Anyone who knows me is aware that I have an absolute love for film and cinematography. Since I was younger, I loved hauling around my dad's big video camera to record videos of my brother skateboarding on the driveway, or my dogs running in the snow. It was nothing spectacular, but I had so much fun doing it.
As I got older, I began to record short skits with my brother around the house, editing them with Windows Movie Maker, and uploading them to YouTube to our extensive fan base of two subscribers.
Over the years, I never had a lot of opportunities to dedicate an extensive amount of time to recording short films and skits. That was until I took a film class in my senior year of high school that finally allowed me to do just that. We were recording new shorts every month, writing screenplays, and having so much fun editing all of the clips together. At this point, I finally fell in love with film again.
When I got to college, I once again fell into the cycle of not having enough time or resources to create the elaborate films that I dreamed about. So I decided that, if I can't go out and make these films, I might as well dedicate as much time as I can to learning about film; the importance of shots, colors, sound, and everything else that comes together to tell a story in such a fantastic way.
Since then, I've made it a goal to try to watch a new movie every single night. While this is not always possible, considering the amount of schoolwork I have to do, it's something that has really taught me a lot about the art that I am so passionate about. I've always been a film lover, watching movies from every year and genre, not always out of sheer interest, but to learn about how simple techniques can tell a story so beautifully. In this process, I've discovered many of my new favorite movies.
I know a lot of students in college pack their nights with parties, but I've come to accept that, that's just not me. I've always been an introvert, and I've always loved art. To be honest, the time I have alone to watch films and work on my own film work is some of the most relaxing, enjoyable time of the day.
The point of this article is really to show that, if there's something you're passionate about, don't give up on it. Even if it's something you can only dedicate a mere hour a day to, go for it. Because in the end, the time you spend doing something you love is not wasted.