Today we’d like to introduce you to Adeline Wang.
Adeline, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I didn’t really start looking into filmmaking until my senior year of high school. Before that, I was fairly sure that I wanted to go into fine art or graphic design; I drew mainly for myself, though I was the courtroom artist on my school’s Mock Trial team and occasionally did commissions for friends and family.
At first as a film studies student, I didn’t really see a connection between filmmaking, film analysis, and art/design; it seemed like there was no overlap between the fields, though they were all creatively challenging. Now, as a rising senior on college, I’m an aspiring creative director and writer, with a particular interest in examining the role that media—from social media to mass entertainment—plays in shaping the roles and perceptions of the public. I’ve spent much of my free time on set in the Art Department, doing production design and set dressing.
I’ve started interning at a film festival company (Moving Parts Film Festival!) that specifically uplifts BIPOC and LGBTQ+ voices, which aligns with my own values of what I want the film industry to become, and I do freelance concept art commissions.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think a lot of the way has been paved with indecision; just an uncertainty in not knowing whether or not risky projects will succeed or fail, as nebulous as those terms are. I also think coming to terms with my ethnicity and sexuality has helped to push my work forward as well.
For a very long time, I rejected my Chinese background. In part, it was because I went to schools where there were maybe a small handful of other students of color, and I felt this need to assimilate. I think I also saw myself only in white characters in film and media. Asian characters were so often forced to fit into such a narrow box that, not only could I not identify with them, I also started rejecting any instances of their appearance.
Most of my art now, whether it be personal film projects, scripts, or design and artwork, revolves around a new exploration of topics like cultural assimilation, femininity, and sexuality that I had previously was unable to tap into.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
For the most part, I do graphic design (Instagram posts, logos) for on-campus clubs and my internships, and I have lately been focusing on concept artwork commissions for scripts in development.
For my own enjoyment, I make zines, digital paintings, animation gifs, and fashion photography (I’ve also recently fallen in love with 35mm photography, and learning how to develop film on my own was one of the most satisfying culmination of a project).
I don’t think this sets me apart from others so much as this should be a sort of baseline standard, but being aware of existing systems of oppression in the forms of racism, classism, misogyny, etc and being mindful of representations is very important to me. In this age where most of our lives are being conducted via social media and where we consume an almost constant stream of content, it’s so important to be aware of the impact that film/tv/advertisements have on individuals. And I think truly that the only option is to make an effort to be personally aware, to be inclusive and hold companies (as well as each other) accountable.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
One of my favorite memories from childhood is watching my late grandfather make scallion pancakes directly on the tile countertops. I didn’t quite have the strength to roll out the dough properly, but he gave me half of the batch anyway.
It was winter in Colorado, early morning so the sunlight was still a little soft, and while I clumsily punched sliced scallions into my dough and twisted it, he told me about the rabbits that would find shelter under the small deck outside. And then he would fry the pancakes I made anyway, even though they were a little too thick and he could’ve fixed them beforehand easily and I probably would have been none the wiser.
Pricing:
- $25 / flat color digital concept art from script (2880 x 1800 pixels)
- $25 / flat color digital portrait (2880 x 1800 pixels)
Contact Info:
- Website: https://acwaew.wixsite.com/adeline
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crushedoranges/
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adeline-wang-08918417b/
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