Where you grew up and your background can often have surprising effects on our lives and careers. We’ve asked folks from the community to tell us about how their background has affected them.

Sherrae (Kehtten) Rucker | Visual Storyteller & Post Production Artist

I’m from Topeka, a relatively small town in Kansas. The slow paced lifestyle and being afro-indigenous in middle America allotted me plenty of alone time. Those many moments of solitude allowed my imagination and creativity to flow freely. I would get inspired by anything but particularly by nature and sound. Growing up I had time to look closely at the little details, the veins in a leaf, the texture of a moth wing, the hush of the wind through the grasses. I would spend hours watching the clouds go by. Read more>>

Vivienne Aerts | Vocalist, Performer & Composer

Being originally from the Netherlands, my background and upbringing have had a significant impact on shaping who I am today. I’ve studied choir conducting at the conservatory, while also pursuing a degree in Clinical Psychology at Leiden University. After working for a couple of years as a psychologist and choir conductor, I decided to move to the USA to study voice and composition at Berklee College of Music. Read more>>

Nataliia Alekseieva | Character Animator

I’m originally from Ukraine. I was a very artistic child, remember I liked to draw more than hanging out with my friends. My favorite thing to do was to watch the Walt Disney movies “The Little Mermaid” and “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”. At the age of five, I would ask my parents to pause the film on my favorite frames so I could attempt to draw the characters. Read more>>

Cynthia Smalley | Photographer

I grew up in the rural Nevada desert, with artistic influences on my Mom’s side and thrill seeking influences on my Dad’s side. We had lots of reptiles and animals, cats, dogs, a pony and a pet Red Tailed Hawk, to name a few. I have love of wide open spaces, wild lands and weather and a huge reverence for all animals from my environment in my early upbringing and it still is very much who I am today. Read more>>

Lucas X | Visual Effects Artist and Photographer

I am from the state of Jalisco, Mexico which is famous for mariachi, tequila and amazing food. I remember getting sick at an early age and the only thing I was able to do to pass the time was to draw. Art became a staple of my childhood that kept me busy exploring everything from sketching to photo-real oil paintings. I wanted to become a Disney animator and during my college years my priorities changed. I stumbled on motion graphics and eventually became a VFX artist. Read more>>

Zan Aspero | Actor, Writer, Film/TV, SAG-AFTRA Member since 2015 and Digital Photographer

I am from Morristown, New Jersey. I have been in and out of here over my lifetime. I was raised in New Vernon, New Jersey, a small town outside of Morristown. My upbringing was very protective. I come from a family who was proper, always taught to look and be the best, do the best you can. On my father’s side I saw Lawyers, doctors, architects. On my mothers side I saw art, interior design, creatives, thinking outside the box. With all of this mind, the values I was taught were honesty, integrity, believing in yourself and trying very hard. They are still in me today. Read more>>

Anjali Deswandikar | Design Leader, Mentor, & Life Coach

I am from Mumbai, a city that never sleeps. My dad was an architect, photographer and avid traveller. My mom has been a homemaker, teacher but a highly disciplined one. With them I spent all my vacations while growing up in travelling across the country and exploring different places, people, cultures. Both provided a loving environment where I was allowed to think “Anything is possible”. Read more>>

Becky X | Dancer & Drag Queen

I’m from a religious family raised in Tampa, FL. My father was in the military most of my childhood and my mother was a high school teacher. I did gymnastics, martial arts, dance and took art classes as a young kid and knew I wanted to be famous when I grew up. I loved singing in the choir and performing in talent shows but a career in entertainment wasn’t encouraged by my parents even though i have a knack for it. Read more>>

Tee Two Times | DJ, Radio Personality & Content Creator

I’m from Detroit. The Westside to be exact! The saying “Detroit Hustles Harder” is one of the truest things ever written. It’s what I’ve seen, it’s how I was raised and it’s what I know. I can’t say I’ve ever been satisfied doing just one thing. Even as a child, my mom had me involved in multiple activities year-round. I was in everything from my church’s mentoring program to Ice Skating to Dance to Cheer. Read more>>