I often find that being in nature is an experienced tinted with nostalgia. When I think of memories in nature, I think of middle school fieldtrips, and family trips to beaches. The nostalgia is now often couple with anxiety and fear, of how bad the consequences of our mindless, wasteful actions truly are. I want to preserve the peaceful, childish state of mind that nature allows me to experience. I also want to really transform the paralyzing anxiety about the imminent future of our natural environment into concrete action. I think the most effective tool to care for the natural world is to be conscious when making decisions. Popularizing sustainable attitudes and trends will make them progressively less expensive and accessible to all, and accessibility is the key to action.

During the Fall '20 semester I had the incredible opportunity to work with the theater department at Wesleyan University, as the cinematographer and editor for our version of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. It was one of the most challenging, yet fulfilling, experiences at Wesleyan so far. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, we were unable to have a live audience, so I felt an immense responsibility when I took on the role of cinematographer and editor of the show. I was overjoyed to find out that over 1,000 virtual tickets to see the show. I also worked as a producer and assistant director on two senior film thesis at Wesleyan. I really enjoyed experiencing the logistical and organizational aspect of student filmmaking. In the future, I hope to find more opportunities to collaborate with student filmmakers, and to be able to edit student shorts or projects. I am also planning on writing a Film Criticism thesis my senior year.

I have always struggled to believe that I am a creative person. Ever since I was in middle school, the thought of having any assignment that required creativity, writing a creative paper, or making an art project, has felt so daunting. Gradually, I realized that creativity is free from constraints, it has no right or wrong way to exist. Believing that I am a creative person, in my own unique ways, gave me so much confidence and allowed me to try new opportunities that I used to fear. I took a screenwriting course on adaptations last Fall semester, and I was terrified that I would not be creative or talented enough to be there. Having confidence in my creative and storytelling abilities was an arduous task, but necessary to my personal growth. By collaborating with The Creative Process, I am expanding my creative outlets, while promoting the work of creators who are creative in wonderful, unique ways.

A published article I wrote for the campus film magazine.