Identity is something that I considered to be concrete and true, but I never really questioned my own identity until I was faced with solitude and self reflection. Throughout this essay, I will explain my journey through identity and my realization that there is no stable self and there never will be. To reach this conclusion I defined Identity and different theories that are associated with it, while also analyzing texts from theorists such as Nietzsche and Butler. I was able to reflect on my own identity and embark on an endless voyage of questioning while conducting this research. This inspired me to create an art installation that depicts my discovery while also displaying the painful mourning of a Self that I never really had.

Horror as a genre is often dismissed on the basis of its reliance on jump scares and adrenaline highs, but history would suggest that society is just as well reflected in horror films as in any other genre. We only truly know our own experiences in real life, but film grants us the opportunity to see the world through another’s eyes, and what a more powerful way than through the experience of fear. In order to contextualize materials for the creation of a short horror film, the first part of this paper explores horror as a genre and the roles women tend to play in horror, both in the past and the present. It also considers how society perceives threats to women and how women perceive threats to themselves. It is important to define the foundation of women in horror and understand their current role in the genre to achieve the overarching goal of making a short horror film depicting a real issue that women face. A script, a storyboard, a timeline, and other materials for such a production are included as well.

Time is an important issue for most of us, and as we grow older, we become increasingly aware of it. We save it, waste it, spend it, value it, and somehow never have enough of it. It’s something we are all familiar with and pay attention to, yet is difficult to define and understand. It simultaneously acts as our limitation and our opportunity, and serves as the invisible but all powerful dimension that limits our reality to happening only one event at a given time and place. The limitations of time force us to make active choices on how we spend it. This simple fact causes time to have a very influential and significant role in our lives. Due to this, each one of us begins to form a unique relationship with time that has an enormous impact on how we live our lives. As we grow mindful of our consciousness and the timelessness of the present, our psychological time seemingly disappears. We can begin to see time not only as something we cannot control, but also as a tool that helps us live our lives to the fullest. Time’s three main domains of past, present, and future all provide their own set of opportunities and obstacles. These domains act as types of lenses through which we see the world, ultimately forming our time perspective. During my junior year, I became increasingly aware of my relationship with these domains of time, and realized that the majority of my stress, anxiety, and fear stemmed from either dwelling on the past or worrying about the future. Moreover, that kind of time perspective had a negative impact on my life and wellbeing. I was inspired to make a change in my life by living more in the present, appreciating every little moment and acknowledging who and where I am today. For this thesis creative project, I created an experimental short film that represents the essence of time and its presence in our lives. The overall goal was to inspire others to reflect on their own perception of time, and inspire them to be more present and appreciate every moment in their lives. Writing, directing, producing, and filming this film on my own required an extensive pre-production process of writing, drafting, securing locations and coordinating schedules. Setting deadlines, being open to surprises, and learning quickly is what made this production successful. The entire process from forming the idea to pre-production, production, and post-production allowed me to grow and develop immensely as a filmmaker and creative storyteller.