My name is Tsvetina Doycheva, otherwise known as Tina. I am originally from Bulgaria but have been living in Britain since the age of five. Art is my passion and I plan to continue with drawing, in some form or another, for the rest of my life. I love to travel and experience new cultures and I am currently studying French with a hope to live in the suburbs of France someday. Ever since I was little, animated movies and illustration have been a huge part of my life, shaping my perspective of the world and influencing personality traits and core values that I carry with me to this day. Animation and specifically, Disney, are behind a lot of my childhood memories, and as I grew, my love for stories and art, especially in this beautiful medium, didn’t fade, and inspired a dream that I have been chasing for several years; becoming an animator. I want to bring that same joy that I experienced to children, teens and adults across the world. This is what brought me to Confetti to study VFX & Animation, the belief that one day, I will be sharing stories, making others smile and breaking stereotypes that animation is just for little kids. I still have a long way to go on this journey, and I will be trying my hardest to improve my skills in all aspects of art and tech, as well as gain experience in animation, which is a key part of my dream job.
Some of my key strengths are that I’m an organized person. When presented with a task, project or challenge, part of my preparation is to be clear on what I will need, what I will do and the best way to categorize and sort everything into its respective field. I am also quite flexible, which is a skill that I have built up specifically for animation. I can work in a team, independently and get accustomed to new environments fairly quickly. I am also open to criticism and challenging myself to push the quality of my work. My love of art has resulted in a positive attitude towards projects – I like to work up to a result over a period of time and this grants great satisfaction, which is excellent in the long-run because art and animation require time and effort and a level of consistency.
I think some of the most important things I need to improve on is my presentation skills. Although I am not overly shy in day-to-day situations, I have always struggled being in front of a crowd, however large it may be. Presentation skills are extremely important and relevant to my goal and sadly, I struggle in most of them whilst trying to explain an idea. Things like confidence, clear communication and body language are some of my weaker areas. I can also be a bit of a perfectionist, which I have noticed can sometimes hinder my work, slowing me down as I iron out the little details. I will work upon being more efficient in my time management and view on the little details.
I am excited about the possibilities that have opened to me upon starting at this school. The different business events, people, equipment and setting all create amazing opportunities that I can take to aid in my development in the field of work. Currently, the best option available is to take advantage of social media and its unique ability to interconnect artists across the world. I believe that as my style and skills advance, the different social online platforms will be essential to starting to create a presence in the world of animation and VFX. Of course, I cannot ignore the obstacles that I suspect will arise. One of the bigger challenges I will most likely face is travel. England is growing in terms of artwork and technology, however some of the bigger opportunities lie further and further away from my home, which leads me to think about how much I can handle in terms of finance, ability and mentality. However for now, my focus rests primarily on making the best of what I have, which means working hard and spreading my work online whenever possible!