We asked some insanely talented artists, creatives and makers to tell us about when they know they were going to pursue a creative career.

Sarah Sawyer

I think I first realized I wanted to be an actor when I wouldn’t stop reciting lines from Hannah Montana and I would force my mom to lend me her video camera for my friends and I to play with. This isn’t to say I ONLY wanted to act. When I was really young I said I wanted to be an actor, singer, tennis player (even though I literally did not play tennis but went to a tennis match in person and thought “Ooo I wanna do that”), have lots of children, own my own organization, and probably a lot more. As I got older and the tennis player “dream” and some other very random aspirations dwindled away, one constant was always acting. Over the years, I’ve developed a deeper passion for writing as well. Read more>>

Brittney Mitchell

Growing up, I was always fascinated with fashion and the ability it has to express individuality and confidence. I initially wanted to become a fashion designer. My grandmother bought a sewing machine for me and taught me how to design clothes from scratch using different fabrics when I was younger. It wasn’t until I began watching the Victoria Secret Fashion shows where I began taking interest in modeling. I found inspiration in iconic models such as Naomi Campbell and Yasmeen Ghauri who exuded grace, charisma, and confidence on the runway and in front of the camera. Read more>>

Slimtronic5k

Growing up, music and entertainment wasn’t a choice. It was my mother and father’s profession. My siblings and I all had to act, perform, write, and play in her yearly productions (about one a quarter). To be honest with you, I hated it when I was younger, but it was undeniable that could handle myself on a stage in both the biggest and smallest crowds. I was good at what I did, so I kept growing and learning. I had two really big defining moments in my path to becoming a musician and artist: Read more>>

Fiinix

At around age 5 or 6, I saw the band Third World on TV in their music video “Sense of Purpose”, and it struck a chord with me because of 2 things primarily: 1. the video quality was on par with the big North American acts at that time, 2. I could identify with the group because they looked like me, and the people I saw in my everyday life Read more>>

Dominic O’Connor

Around 4 years ago, a couple months before I was sent home from school due to COVID-19, a friend started teaching me how to make beats in FL Studio. Since that day I knew it was what I wanted to do as a career and I have been making music practically everyday since then. Read more>>

Cat Thompson

Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be an artist. I was completely fascinated by all things music related; from singing, playing instruments, dancing and creating little tunes, I couldn’t get enough of it. The local music store had a player piano (self-playing piano) at the front and every time we walked past, I would point at the moving keys and exclaim, “Look! There’s a ghost playing the piano!” I was always so excited to go past the music store and would run my little fingers over the moving keys and marvel at the magic. Read more>>

Brian Yuran

It may sound cheesy but I always knew I was meant to be a filmmaker. Ever since I was a young kid in NJ, I would write stories, film home videos with friends, and create all sorts of content in the exploration of my creative voice. I also can’t see myself doing anything else. Because if I was an accountant or financial advisor or something like that, I would be daydreaming about movies all day. Read more>>

Jordan Arteaga

At a young age, I knew I wanted to be a filmmaker, my mother gave me my first Samaung camcorder on my 17th birthday, I would record anything, and everything at home, school, in my mother’s van, I even shot my very first opening scene at my old home in Ontario, fade in from black, tilting down from the night sky, and into skakey cam, It wasn’t until 2016 that I decided to shoot my first short silent film with my old high school friend Porsche, a great experience, and eye opener into filmmaking, I’m still on the path of filmmaking, and looking forward to see what happens in the future. Read more>>

Joss Gomez

Well, since I was little I was around show business because my family owned a bid entertainment company in Mexico City, so I started being on TV and film since I was little, but after college when I moved to Los Angeles was when I decided to do it part time and few years ago was able to do it full time and I feel I’ve accomplished a lot but the best is yet to come. Read more>>

Robyn Gibson

I’ve been making art since the 3rd grade. I knew back then that I wanted to create, but I didn’t know that I could be a professional artist. I don’t think I really understood what that meant other than being an art teacher. I took art classes all the way up through high school then put the art making aside majored in Marketing my first couple years in undergrad. I wanted to prepare myself for a job that would pay me, but I felt like something was missing. I needed to make art, so I decided to double major in Marketing and Fine Art. I knew I wanted to be a professional artist at this point, but I didn’t really believe it was possible until my second year in grad school in NYC. Read more>>