Letter of intention

Link to my portfolio: http://sarakapciak.blogspot.com/p/letter-of-intention.html


Dear Animation Workshop

My name is Sara Klaudia Kapciak, I’m an 18 year-old Polish girl and this is my first time applying for The Character Animation Bechelor programme at your school.

I have always been fascinated by art, and everything it encompasses. Most of my childhood memories revolve around making decoupage pottery, mud sculptures, drawing or gluing paper cutouts to walls. However I wasn’t sure if the path of an artist is really my thing and I couldn’t decide what to do with my future. My life changed when my friend showed the then 12-year-old me Hayao Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke. I instantly fell in love. It was at that moment when I decided that I would do everything in my power to be able to create something as beautiful, unique and inspiring as that.

Next year I applied to The State Secondary School of Art in Kielce (Poland) where I would spend the next 6 years. (2010-17). It was the most wonderful time of my life. I met lots of unforgettable people, made lifelong friendships, and learned things I could have never imagined myself. My education included numerous art subjects, such as Drawing and Painting’ where I learned about different painting techniques, composition and human anatomy. As my specialization I chose ,Painting and Gilding Techniques’’ where I studied how to copy famous paintings (including works of A. Mucha, F. Thaulow and J. Brandt), and how to make boxes and frames using gold as a decoration. In other subjects I learned about the history of art, how to sculpt in wood and in clay, and how to work in Photoshop, CorelDraw and Blender. During those years I had the privilege to have a few exhibitions of my works, and to illustrate a book for children ,,Wszędobylska Bajeczka” writen by Kazimiera Szczykutowicz.

In addition to the abovementioned subjects I completed during my education, I also had the unique experience of being the director of a film created during my “Basis of Film and Photography”. It was quite a challenge for me that gave me a knowledge how to work with a team as a leader. I also took part in other art projects, as a member of the crew and as a editor. Thanks for that I got to know how important each person in the team is.

My second biggest passion after art is traveling. I love to see and learn about different cultures and people living in various places around the word. It helps me understand how important diversity is in media nowadays and just how hurtful stereotyping people can be. Within a few years I was able to visit Italy, Greece, Spain, France, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Turkey, where I was sent to instruct Turkish students in the technique of Esgrafiado and in exchange studied art of painting on water (Ebru technique).

During my education in the art school I discovered how hard and stressful the challenge of being an artist can be. Constant work, aspiration to become better and hours and hours sitting before one painting, trying to get that one part right can make you reach the state when all you want to do is to scream at your younger self for making such a stupid decision to become an artist, throw away all your art supplies and find a different job. But I can’t. Because during those years I became addicted. Along with bags under my eyes, my passion for art reached the state where I can’t turn back. My life without drawing is completely unimaginable. I thought about becoming a graphic designer, illustrator or even an architect but my love for animation is too rooted for it to be dismissed. It’s amazing and unbelievable that ,”just a bunch of drawings’’ can evolve into such inspiring and thought provoking stories. How can people create characters so relatable and ,”human’’ when they only exist on paper? How much work and sleepless nights are put into just one minute of film? All of these things makes me want to be part of that world.

I heard about The Animation Workshop about 3 years ago and realized that it would be a great opportunity to develop my skills and how it could help me on my path of achieving my goal and becoming an animator. I hope that in the future my craftsmanship will reach the level where I will be able to visualize my ideas and stories and pass on that special feeling I get when I see works of art from people who spilled their soul, blood and sweat to create something special.

I try to see inspiration in every aspect of my life, starting with my surroundings, people I met, nature, amazing artists I have seen on the internet, the ones I have come to know from years of studying history of art and those artists with whom I shared a floor every day at school and also movies (better or worse), books, comics, etc. I often try to disassemble things I see into prime factors in order to see which parts I like, which ones annoy me and how I can use that knowledge in the future to make my works better.

Some artists however have made bigger impressions on me than others. I’m especially fascinated by Nico Marlet’s character designs which are so expressive and intriguing that it is a shame not all of them found their place in final productions. I adore the works of Zdzisław Beksiński, Andrey Surnow and Jakub Rozalski. Each one of them is a master in portraying that unsettling, fascinating hard-to-grasp mood which makes you addicted to their works. My other inspirational sources are Glen Keane and Hayao Miyazaki who have created the most wonderful worlds I could ever think of.

For my favourite works I would choose Hayao Miyazaki’ ,,Princess Mononoke’’, Laika’s ,,Paranorman’’ and the cartoon ,,Samurai Jack’’. ,,Mononoke’’ is very important for me partly because of my sentiment and because it depicts such an amazing world while talking about known environmental issues. It’s hard to choose which film from Laika studio is the best, however ,Paranorman’’ has a great story-line, loveable characters and is full of outstanding humour that make them stand on top of my list. In ,,Samurai Jack I appreciate it’s unique style and interesting story.

As I said before I try to find the bright side in everything, still there are things I can’t stand. Romantic comedies are one of them. I could never understand how repetitive jokes and a bland, uninteresting plot could be so enjoyable. The next thing I despise are sequels (with few exceptions) which are just quick ways to earn money without thinking about originality. I also don’t really like new ,”adult cartoons’’ whose unwitty offensive humor relies heavily on stereotypes.

I plan on financing my education with the aid of my parents and with my own savings.

I hope that this catches your attention and I will be able to fulfill my artistic dreams of expanding my skills, talents and passions in The Animation Workshop.

Sincerely
Sara Klaudia Kapciak



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