The Girl
My name is Laura Nicole Dávila (that's an accent on the first a, so please try not to mistake me for davilla/daviya or daveeeela or davilahhhh. It's more like dah-vi-la. Got it? Cool.) I was born here in lovely Austin, Texas but due to my father's family business I was promptly transported to Laredo where I spent the majority of my life. Although Laredo is a godforsaken land that no one by any means should live in for too long, I eventually found likeminded friends and later escaped to attend college here at the fabulous University of Texas, continuing life where I feel I truly belong. I would never forget my roots, though, so Laredo's legacy of lame people and border violence forever weighs upon my mortal soul.
Also a lot of friends still live there, so returning is unavoidable if I ever want to see them.
If you can't tell by now, I'm hispanic and kind of nerdy. What you probably can't tell necessarily is that I am also a pisces (not that it really matters, but it is fun to think about), a vegetarian, a Senior Fellow, and somewhat artistic (at least I like to think so). I have always been into visual art and music and everything related to. When I was small, my mother made me take dance classes and piano. I ended up continuing with dance as a member of the dance team in middle school, but switched to band when I got to high school. I am not the best instrumentalist but I can get myself around on a piano, clarinet, guitar, bass, and even upright double bass. I may not the best, but I definitely have a strong curiosity for music and rhythm based art. What has remained consistent, though, has been my aptitude for visual art. Thanks to access to supplies in high school art classes I have been able to dabble in all types of mediums. Above all, though, I'd say I am definitely best at drawing (I could use some practice, though). My favorite mediums are ink or graphite, and I like to draw character figures and facial expressions best.
So, if I love to draw so much, why am I studying Radio-TV-Film at UT? Well, I think that film and television are the ultimate mediums for communication, which is ultimately why I enjoy art (to share ideas!). When I was young I adored animated films and shows.
Okay. Let's be realistic. I still totally adore animated films and shows.
The point is, that SINCE I was little I've wanted to work in animation because I felt it best culminated all the things I enjoy. Animated musicals in particular are a great way to combine all of my favorite elements of visual art and music together. This dream has stuck with me, so I decided to pursue filmmaking after highschool. Learning these skills so far has opened the door to other potential opportunities. In addition to animation, I now am very interested in television production and production design, as well as the academic discipline of media studies (yes. I told you I was nerdy).
It's become increasingly apparent that today a lot of animation is digital and involves much 3D modeling. This is not my preferred path, but it is practical for those aspiring to work in animation to pick up these skills. So I have sort of been minoring in computer science, familiarizing myself with programming basics and somehow also a lot of web stuff. This has helped me get my current jobs. I work as a student web assistant for The University of Texas School of Law (hey! my brother is a student there at the moment!) and I also work for Digital Media Services in the Center for Teaching and Learning. Hooray employment!
So where is this leading me? I plan to graduate in May 2011. Not quite sure what I will do after that what with the bleak climate of our economy, but my plan as of now (being Fall 2010) is to prepare for the GRE and apply for graduate school at Texas A&M. Save your double take. Yes an orange-blooded, lifetime longhorn, loyal till Gabriel(la?) blows his(her?) horn, is planning to go to AggieLand. For their highly prestigious Visualization program.
If that doesn't work out, I will probably wander myself into graduate school in some form, because I am THAT girl who loves school and I don't know what I'll do without it. Maybe I'll end up doing production design freelance on top of some other form of steady employment related to my tech skills. Perhaps I'll venture into television, which also highly interests me *cough*especially shows that last for years on tv and therefore equate to steady employment*cough*. I'd love to work on anything sci-fi related, but I'd be happy even running a local TV station.
But who knows? Maybe I'll humor my mother's hope I go to Law School. Maybe I'll go back and study medicine. Probably not, but hey! Life does happen.
Inspirations and Influences
I feel it important to make note of all the awesome things that I really like so that you can get an idea as to where my aesthetic leanings come from.
Works that absolutely get me going and feeling amazing for whatever reason are those by JK Rowling (ie The Harry Potter series), Morrissey, David Bowie, and AFI. While I do not make music or write the way they do, I owe a lot to these artists for inspiration. I have quite a bit of art I've made has been an idea or character from their work (and later inspires something completely original on my end!).
Other wonderful people and things: Miyazaki movies, Pixar, Marjane Satrapi, Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Jhonen Vasquez, John Waters, Kevin Smith, Edgar Wright, Adrienne Shelly, Tim Burton, Delicious Mocha drinks, Tegan and Sara, Keane, Nightmare of You, Joss Whedon, Sandy Stone/The ACT Lab, Gorillaz, Disney movies (as long as I reprimand their racist/sexist history), bell hooks, Gloria Anzaldua, and plenty of other things that make me happy.
Some Works
Here's some of my art and videos and stuff
Drawings
I have way more where this comes from, but here's a small sampling of some things I'm most proud of, mostly with the aid of computer and tablet. Contact me if you want to see more.
Animation
Duckie Adventure from Lady Subrosa on Vimeo.
Not quite sure why, but Vimeo doesn't like the sound on this project, but all you're missing here is me quacking over a soundtrack I made with garageband's extensive tools.
Glinda Ghoul from Lady Subrosa on Vimeo.
My first and only 3D character animation made in Blender! Yay free software!
Video
This was a practice exercise in editing (both audio and video) and an experiment in After Effects. I made a little fake promo for AFI's last album Crash Love
Berenice from Jordan Torres on Vimeo.
This was the project I worked on in the fall of 2009. I was the editor, sound designer, and animator (for the 2D animation behind the window) for this.
Time For A Hero Trailer from Sarah Russell on Vimeo.
Here is the trailer for a short I did production design on. I did storyboard and set dressing for this one, as well as a little prop gathering and graphics (mainly the posters in his bedroom...Some of them were drawn on set).
My first hand at cinematography, directing, and proper editing. A music video! On this project I learned that I am probably not a cinematographer, but it was a ton of fun to shoot!
The Blog Who Destroyed the World?
Once there was a blog who had a vibrant glow. Woah Oh Oh Oh. But as it goes someone took it from her. One day in the rain I heard her meekly moan 'Will you come and wrap your arms around me as I'm blogging?' Remember when we were all so Blogiful? But since then we've lost our glow.
This blog title, after much thought and meditation, is one I feel reflects both my own baadasssssery but also pays mini homage to the best band in the universe ever, A Fire Inside. The title is a slight parody of their song entitled "The Boy Who Destroyed the World" off of their much acclaimed EP, All Hallows EP.
And that's about all I've got to say. Stay tuned!
