Framegrabber is a mobile residency by independent animator Anna Firth. I was given a light table to learn hand drawn animation on paper. My project was to create animations of Korean crops grown at the Berkeley Student Farms as part of an ongoing project by Koreans for Decolonization (K4D). I volunteered at the farms and used my experiences and observations to inspire my animations.
Working at the student farms provided me with not just the opportunity to devote my time towards something that directly benefits people (growing produce for the basic needs center and other community orgs), but provided a space where I could focus on weeding and talking to people without technology. Though this may seem like a simple way to pass the time, it allowed me the space to form my own ideas about my life and career.
Independent animators often describe coming up with an art style for animation as coming up with your own visual language. This resonated with me because the most important aspect of my education was learning languages. I learned German in Berlin, took a Korean class, and learned to code with python. While learning new languages expanded my communication skills, I observed that a rising reliance on AI decreased my peers’ ability to communicate. Conversations became more artificial and independent thinking became more difficult. As our language and communication skills break down, I find that devoting my time towards making my own language in animation a valuable project.