Introduction

As a voice actor and audio and video editor, I am passionate about bringing stories to life. I have a deep appreciation for the art of storytelling and the technical skills required to produce high-quality content. My interests include character design, 3D modeling, stop motion animation, and visual effects, and I am excited to learn advanced techniques in these areas. I look forward to exploring the creative possibilities within the modules and developing my skills to create captivating visual narratives. Additionally, I am eager to integrate animation and visual effects into my video production/editing business, which I am working to officially launch, combining my artistic talents with my love for building and creating.

I’ve been a student at the University of Cumbria for two months now, and it’s been a whirlwind of emotions. The Brampton Road campus is incredibly creative, and I couldn’t be more excited about my course. Animation has fascinated me since childhood, from Disney to Pixar, Paddington to Shaun the Sheep. Finding this course feels like a dream come true.

I’m one of the six students who have joined this new course. My background is in art, music, video, and voice acting. I’ve lent my voice to characters in video games, animations, and various other projects, and I’ve also collaborated with students in game design, wildlife media, and TV media production.

I’ve made new friends both within and outside my course. The university is home to a diverse range of people, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how many students are ADHD or on the spectrum. I was diagnosed with ADHD combined type in June 2024, which helped me understand why I do things differently and reassured me that I’m not broken or stupid.

So far, I’ve learned to create character sheets, animate with googly eyes, and work on a bouncing ball and rig posing in Maya. I’ve also been learning Adobe Animate and After Effects. I'm just getting into making things like a car, building, and armature, which I’ll cover in my next post.

I’ve been lucky to have my friend Mel, a previous student, on the same course. She’s been a great guide and friend, although with us both being ADHD, things do get a bit crazy at times. In our first week, we had a trip to Keswick and a free cinema viewing of the latest “Beetlejuice” movie, which I loved. I can now appreciate the visual effects and animations on a different level.

Apart from the fun activities, there’s also the academic side. We’ve been dealing with “Cultural Contexts,” which I initially found daunting but now find very interesting. We’ve explored the impact of the printing press, the first car, wildlife documentaries, and story narratives on our lives and culture.

I plan to write many more posts focusing on animation, VFX, and other aspects of university life. I'm not a blogger or a good writer, so thank you for taking the time to read my post.