Personal Statement

Personal Statement Answer the following questions in the supplied text boxes (do not upload them separately). When answering the questions below: Be specific, not general or vague. Why do you want to attend the Stark Program? If you already have a prior degree in media or already work in media, why do you want to pursue this particular graduate degree? What is your plan for the next year if you are not accepted into the Peter Stark Producing Program? (up to 3,800 characters) In my experience with studying Film and Media Studies, I fall in love with the feeling that working with my teammates and doing a project, a film. I love to get busy with preparing of the film, operating every element to make a film. I like to plan ahead with everything. That is the reason I want to attend the Stark Program. I don’t have too many knowledge about how to being a producer, but in my experience of filmmaking before, my work always similar with the job of producer even though they are very basic. I did one short film when last quarter in my school, the experience was horrible. That was my first time to make a film by my own. It was summer quarter and all of my friends go back to home. My classmates has their own plans with their friends and their schedule can not match. I was lost, and feel helpless. I called every friends that I know who lives in my city, and beg them to help me. Finally, I got four people to be my crew, and they are not in film major. We are all noobs at filmmaking. My story was in campus, so I walk around in campus to find a perfect location of my film, in summer quarter, everything needs to be done in a fast way. I choose a location which is perfectly match on my story, the road was reedy, the lonely feeling was exactly what I wanted. I went there on Friday, to check up the location, and set up with my crew to make the film on Saturday. At Saturday, I planned to film that at 10 o’clock, but my actress arrived late, she arrived at my home at 2 p.m due to the traffic. I grabbed the gears and take her to school, the weather was so hot on that day. At the time that I got to the location, I was stoned. The reed were all cutted, the road has nothing except several grass lays on the floor and asked for water. I was so upset, that was not what I want anymore! But I have to continue, so we began to make the film. The sunshine was heavy and we bearly can open our eyes, at the time I filmming, I realized that the camera could hear my steps, I took off my slippers and continue, the road was so hot that I can bearly stand on it. Finally came up to the final scene, the actress supposed to go in the classroom, but the classroom was locked on Saturday. I felt upset again. I thought I made a perfect plan ahead but actually I did not. I learned that no matter how perfectly that you planned ahead, things will happen. Everything will not go exactly as your plan. I noticed the importance of a producer, and I want to be a one. If I am not get accepted by the program, I am planing to do some internship in the film industery companies. All I learned in school are theories, I do not have much knowledge of filmmaking skills. I am going to use my passion in film and my knowledge of film theory to go a place that making films and learn more skills from there, being more mature and apply to your school next year. Do you have an ultimate career goal? If so, what is it? Do you perceive any weaknesses/shortcomings in yourself? Detail/amplify. (up to 1900 characters) I was trained to be a business woman since I born. My father is a successful businessman and he wish I could be someone like him. I did not have a chance to tell him what I really what to be. Since I was little, I wanted to be an actress. I went to performance school when I was in kindergarden and elementery school. I learned how to performance in front of other people, and I love that feelling. My father banned my dream at the time I went to middle school. I have to watch the finance programs on TV everyday, I have to stay in the Stock Exchange in my every vocation. At the time I went to college, my father asked me to study Business Administration. I took several classes and I felt so boring. I thought those are all on paper and useless. The real skills in business is how to communicate with others. So I change my major to communication studies. At the time I transfer to UCI, I choose to change to Film and Media Studies. The first reason was I want to chanllege myself, and the second reason was I wish I could complete my dream, get closer with film industry to make my college life without any pity. With the knowledge that I learned, no matter in business and communication, my career goal is setted to be a producer. My biggest weakness is I am thinking too much about everything. Sometimes I feel my life is tough. I care about what others saying too much, I don’t want anyone judge me in a bad way. I care about my reputation too much. That is the reason why I can not be myself, the real me. I don’t know how could I tell my parents that I am not going to go the way as they planed, I am worrying that they will disappointed, so I choose to cover this up and I am applying master degree without telling them. I am going to show them I have that ability to finish my dream, to make them not worrying about my future. Describe an emotionally significant experience in your life and how it affected you. What is the most important quality you look for and admire in a friend? Why? (up to 1900 characters) In September 5th, 2009, that was my first birthday in America, and I started my college life in America less than one month. My mother told me that I could buy anything I want since there was no one beside me to celebrate the birthday with me, I went to a shopping center and bought a bag that I always wanted. At the time I back home, I called my mom in my car. I was telling her that I bought that bag and thank her to give me that present. She was crying. I asked why and she refused to answer. I knew something very bad happend, because my mom was a strong woman and I never saw her tears. I told her if she not telling me what happend, I am going to book a flight go back to China tomorrow. She told me that my father cheated on her and going to abandon me. I said, “Okay”. And I hang up the phone cried in my car for half an hour. I can not believe that. My father treat me as a little princess, he gave me everything that I wanted since I was born. Why did he do this to me? My mom spend all her life with him, she quited her job since I was born, what could she do? I can not accept that, that was too cruel. Family means a lot to me. Especially at the time I stay in a place that thousands mile from home, family was the only thing that I rely on in my mind. I drove away from home and straight to highway, I can not stop crying and I can not see the road clearly. I was not scared at all, I wanted to suicide.That feeling was from heaven to hell, straightly. Luckly, I did not die at that day. I refused to eat and go school, my weight dropped 30 pounds in one month. I get serious depression after that, and I keep being strong in front of my mom, I told her don’t need to worry about me. School arrange me to see counselor to help me. It takes me two years to get fully recovery. So many years passed, at the time I am typing this story, tears are in my eyes but they don’t drop anymore. I am no longer that little spoiled princess, I became independent and I learned that things could change, I can rely on nothing except myself. I believe in fate, fate is a very interesting in this world that you can not acually see it but it does exsist. I met my best friend in kindergarden in America since we graduate from there. It has been 20 years, he called my name on street and said I did not change. He has been to America when he was in elementary school, he was totally Americanlized and he is my idol. He became totally independent when he was 16, he went to a company to do traslate works at high school. At the time he graduate from Los Angleas State Univercity with 4.0 GPA, he went to Beijing University to study Finance with fully scholarship. He back to America after he graduate from there and working in an educational agency which doing business with China about the highschool students studyabroad program. At the time he being a financial analyst there, he became the most important employee in his company in just three monthes. His boss gave him everything to do. I asked him why he did not went to a better ranking university since he has a perfect acdemic score, he said that he pays the tuition by himself, that he can not afford any other school rather that State University. He told me that the ability you show to others is much useful that which school you attend. I agree with that and I think the way that make him success is his attitude of doing jobs. That is what I admired in and I learnd a lot from him. Do you have a favorite idea for a film, TV show, digital media project or play? If so, please give a brief synopsis and explain why you want to make it. Do you have a favorite existing film, TV show, web series, book, or play? Explain why it's a favorite. Additionally, do you have interest in other art forms (literature, opera, sculpture, theatre, painting, dance, etc.)? (up to 3,800 characters) I always want to make a film and TV show about the life of international students study in America. There are more than one million Chinese international students in America and all of them have different stories. There are lots of news about Chinese international students no matter in America or in China, most of them are bad reputations that all they do in America is spend money instead of studying. In my experience in America, I studied in three diffenret colleges and met lots of people, especially at the time I was a club president in my community college, the stories always comes to me. I am a good listener, the students tell me their stories honestly and they wish I could help them. There are some students who can not adapt the new enviorment and get depression, some students who falled in love with someone and then break up their heart, and some students who really good at studying and they can not afford the tuition anymore because of the economic drop down in China. I don’t think I am good at comfort them but I am a good story teller. I told those stories to my mom and she told me I really could publish a book based on those stories, but that is not what I want. I want to tell these stories visually, and use the true stories of each person’s life to show audience that the international students are the groups need to take care of, they have been sent away from their home at such a young age, the gap between a spoiled child to independent is huge. They are the group that lost the protection from their parents, especially with the one child policy, most of them are the spoiled children at home. Besides, the lack of knowledge about American’s society shows a lot of tragedy. Since 2011, there are more than 5 Chinese international students died around USC area. They all the only child in their family and they all very success in their acedemic. I think the reason that cause those tragedy is their fluck mind. They think they would be okay that go back home at night alone and the bad luck will not happen on them. But the truth is cruel. I am going to use those true stories in my film to give audiences a knock that America is not as safe as they thought as long as you keep yourself in a safe place. I love the films that based on true stories, I think that life is dramatic, thinking of life is a film and each one plays their own character. I believes that stories are all comes from life, even in animation, you can not avoid humanity emotion in your film. My favorite film is The Shawshank Redemption. I watched this film for many times and each time I watch this, I had diffenret feelings. At the first time I watch this film was five years ago, at the time I just go through with my family issues and I leaned from that film is escape. I thought that life was unfair, good people did not get a good fate. Life was like a prison, you need to escape and fight with your unfair situation to get a better life. At the second time that I watched this film, I read the tough of humanity. For almost 20 years, only use a small hammer, in a extremely strict prison, Andy digged a tunnel, isn’t it the tough of humanity to push him do that? At the time I watched this film again recently, I felt like the tough is dramatic, that needed by director on the storyline, which makes Andy success to escape from the prison. People think this film is talking about “hope”, as Andy writes on his letter to Red : “Remember, Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things and no good thing ever dies ?” That might be what the director wish to tell the audience, but the part of the film that touch me now is more than that. I think the characters in the film are the faces in our society. Warden Norton who is superior, usually pious, recite every word of the Bible, but in fact,he is cruel, sinister and greedy. Haley and other police guards, follows Norton’s word and become Norton’s thugs, treat prisoners life valueness. They are like most of the reality of the power of our class in our society. Red is a wise man that he can get everything people wants, he knows the reality of life that he says to Andy hope is a dangerous thing. And just like the socalled “wiseman” in reality, Red does not want to fight with the fate and he choose to adapt where he at to make him in a safe place. Brooks is the character that shock me the most in film. Brooks life is a profound reflection of the "institutionalized" servant life. He spent most of his life in prison and finally he released on parole, was set free, but once left the familiar surroundings, familiar people, who feel their own value, can not find their place, he had the freedom of the body but in fact, his soul had been strangled shark fort, part of his selfworld has been compressed to a minimum. Finally he can only choose from this is completely not his own world disappears. I think the director is trying to tell us, if Andy does not appear, Brooks is an example of Red and most other prisoners in the future. Doesn’t he an example of us in real life too many people in the future as well? Andy is the real humanbeing in the film, “It takes a strong man to save himself,and a great man to save another.” He is not redemption of himself, but he also make every effort to save the soul of the prisoners. I think The Shawshank Redemption shows me the “institutionalizing" destroy human nature and how to face that. It shows that keep hope and never give up, no matter how hard the life treat you, don’t fall into depression. With that hope, also need to insisted perseverance action. Without that, the hope is only in your mind and never will work. That is what I learned from this film and I keep that in mind to motivite me. Besides film, I love literature as well. I read lots of world famous literature books when I was in China. Also, I studied playing piano since I was three years old, even though I did not play piano for many years, I still love to play it no matter when I get a chance to touch piano.