It's somewhat difficult for me to identify my voice. I haven't written in a long time and I always tend to identify voice with writing style. In my art I have themes and ideas that I gravitate towards, so I guess that is what my voice has become. I think I gravitate towards telling stories of struggle, where a particular character is trying something that they are not suited for, or that others are clearly superior at, but somehow, that character is able to overcome their opposition and make a place for themselves. I personally often feel out of place or question if I'm suited for where I'm at, so those kinds of stories hit home for me more and generally encourage me as well. In terms of subject matter, I often try to work into my stories high fantasy or medieval elements, because that genre is extremely entertaining to me and I have a strong love for it. I also tend to like to work with elements that I'm familiar with. I've made many characters and animated (or pitched) situations that revolve around pools and swimming because I was raised swimming, did it for most of my life, and currently still lifeguard regularly, so that kind of setting always has some significance and familiarity to me. I think in terms of tone, I like to be lighthearted. I worry sometimes that I, as a person, can be too much of a downer, and so I try and make up for it in what I produce. My writing, from the little writing I've done in the past several years, is definitely darker in tone and more somber and true to some of my own inner feelings than my current art tends to be. My art combats those feelings while my writing expresses them. That's really all I can think to identify my voice in my animation and art work. I try to be varied, but I will rarely carry something through if it doesn't hold some kind of interest for me, so in that way I keep myself in my work.
