Artist Ant Interviews People Summer Series #16: Sage AKA AngelicNeonAnime. 7/14/19
Interviewer: Anthony Andujar Jr
Interviewee: Sage
Hello and welcome to the Artist Ant Interviews People Summer Series! Today we have a special guest to the landscape of the internet. This individual Is someone who I have an immense respect for, not because I know this individual as a fellow artist, but also, the skill, talent, and approach to the work that he produces. This is an individual who is a kind soul that is more introspective than most realize. Whether it’s anime, video games, cartoons, he is no stranger to the various forms of entertainment in which he creates work from. Please help me introduce this individual, the one, the only, Sage AKA Angelic Neon Anime!
Q0. Who are your inspirations?
Sage: A big inspiration of mine was my high school art teacher, Aleksander Twarog (idk if you want to use his full name but putting it down just in case). He made class fun and enjoyable and I learned so much from him. But what really inspires me is his enthusiasm for art of all kinds. I remember how he tried to push me to do things outside the box and try new things. At the time I had been too self conscious of my art and extremely jealous of other students in my class that I never really tried to push my art beyond my own limits and instead kind of wallowed in self pity thinking I'd never be as good as the rest of my classmates.
It also didn't help that when I had first started high school I was put in an art class filled with sophomores rather than other freshmen so they had more experience than me and it just made me feel worse about myself. But his eagerness to teach and to learn was so refreshing to see that it still sticks by me to this day. He makes me hope that I never lose my love and interest for art when I'm older and he keeps me pushing forward, to never stop creating art. Other than him, most of my inspirations come from video games, movies, and comics. I don't have any other specific artists or people in mind.
Q1: How did you get into art?
Sage: I was always interested in art as a kid. It also helped that I had a bunch of art pieces from an aunt that was extremely artistic and creative. Her artwork really made me want to try and copy what she did so I just started drawing I never really stopped.
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| Art by AngelicNeonAnime |
Q2: When did you take art seriously?
Sage: I think I started taking art seriously in middle school. Art was something I did just for fun and as a way to express myself, but when I had to pick a high school that I wanted to go to I couldn't decide because I didn't know what I wanted to do. At that point I decided I might as well try and get into an art school since I'm pretty decent at drawing and I don't really know what else I would want to do with my life.
Q3: What drives you in your daily life?
Sage: What drives me in my daily life is my friends and my dog :)
Q4: What made you the person that you are today?
Sage: What made me into the person I am today is mainly due to my mental illnesses, my gender identity and sexuality, and the people I have met along the way. These things mean a great deal to me and have shaped me into the person that I am now. My mental illnesses (more so my depression and anxiety) have been around since I was still in elementary school and had affected my behavior and how I produced art. It had caused me a great deal of pain and it had continuously let me think that I was useless and wouldn't amount to anything. I had actually thought about killing myself a lot back in high school because of how bad my mental state had gotten, but I had managed to pull through and slowly but surely I am making progress.
My gender identity and sexuality were something I had always questioned back in middle school, and since the start of having a social media account, I found myself more and more confused about who I was. This was also a factor of my depression and anxiety. My gender and sexuality was such a big deal to me back then, even now sometimes I question who I am. I've never felt comfortable in my own body and I never really knew what I wanted but learning about it really helped bring me to a happier version of myself. As for the people I've met along the way, not all of them were good. Some of them were terrible and others were amazing. Being at LAGCC really helped me feel more comfortable around others and helped me become a better person. Everyone at college was extremely nice and they felt so sincere and genuine, more so than at any school I've been to. It really helped me bring me out of my shell more.
Q5: If you could speak to any living creator or inspiration, who would it be, why, and what would talk to them about?
Sage: I would love to talk to Hayao Miyazaki. His movies are so fascinating that as a kid,
and even now, I feel like I'm being transported into the world that the movie takes place.
I would ask him how he decided to start working on animations and doing art and ask about his own inspirations.
Q6: If there were any deceased creators , actors, singers, writers, etc that you would want to speak to, who would it be, and why?
Sage: A deceased artist I would like to converse with is Vincent van Gogh. I'm really interested in why he decided to keep making art even though he was making no money off it, especially since people didn't seem all that interested in the things he was making.I would also like to know what his last thoughts were before he died.
Q7: If there were any deceased creators , actors, singers, writers, etc that you would want to speak to, who would it be, and why?
Sage: I would love to go to Japan and Italy!
Q8: What is one thing that you fear?
Sage: As an artist I fear that I may never reach the goals I set for myself and that I might lose the ability to draw one day. But if you mean if I have any fears in general then I have a fear of heights.
Q9:If you had a superpower what would it be and why?
Sage: I would really love the ability to stop time because time is always something I feel like I lack. It doesn't help that I tend to procrastinate often, but stopping time would help me get myself more focused and give me more time to do all the things I want.
Q10: What catches your attention when you meet people?
Sage: When I meet people, the first thing that usually catches my attention is the way they talk to me or others. I respect those who respect others and I hate those who are absolute assholes for no reason.
Q11: What is one word of advice that you would impart to your younger self?
Sage: I would tell my younger self to keep trying and not give up so easily. I feel like if I knew things would get better I would have actually tried harder.
Q12: What are three books that you always remember or return to, and why? How did they shape you?
Sage: I don't really read any books anymore and as much as I love comics I rarely read
those now too. But one book that I constantly think about and occasionally go back to is a manga called A Silent Voice. This manga is about a boy named Shouya Ishida, who is weirded out by his new classmate, a deaf transfer student named Shouko Nishimiya. He deems her as the target of his ostracizing and bullying. Day after day, Shouya picks on Shouko, unaware of the effects of his thoughtless actions. He finally understands the pain he has inflicted on her when one day, his bullying culminates in her leaving the school, and his classmates begin to shun and harass him every chance they get instead. Determined to right his wrongs, five years later, Shouya, now a third-year high school loner, meets Shouko again.
What had first drawn me in to this manga was the fact that there was a deaf character in it. It was the first time that I had seen any manga that dealt with a person with a disability such as deafness, so I was intrigued to see just how good it was. Reading it at first and seeing how terrible Shouko was treated had really made me uncomfortable. I hated seeing how she was bullied for being different and made me wish that she would fight back against her bullies. The further I got into the manga, the more invested I became. After seeing how Shouya decided to change after experiencing the same thing Shouko had gone through had been the reason I continued to read it. I had first thought he was only being nice to Shouko because he felt guilty and wanted redemption, but after seeing that he risked his own life to save her from killing herself I realized he truly cared about her. I had cried so hard reading this entire manga and had gone through a series of emotions as I read through the book. No matter how many times I read it I still cry. It holds a very special place in my heart.
Q13: If you could continue or remake a movie, or franchise, what would be your film of choice ?
Sage I would like to remake every single movie that Disney is turning into a live action film. Take the Lion King, for example, the original animated film was amazingly done. But seeing a live action version of it really sucks the fun out of the movie. What made the original movie great was the use of bright colors and over the top expressions and actions. The live action remake looks so boring and the lack of facial expressions from the animals makes the characters seem flat. You don't need every single thing to look realistic for it to be good.
Q14: . If you were to make a film, novel, or comic book based on an album, what album or artist would you pick?
Sage: To be honest I would probably choose the Animal Crossing soundtrack because of how soothing and relaxing it is. I feel like it would be a great inspiration for a slice of life comic. I would probably also choose the Doom/Halo soundtracks because of how high in energy it is and how I can imagine a cool fight scene happening with the music
playing in the background.
A15: Who In this life, has motivated you to stay true to what makes you who are?
Sage: My mom has motivated you to stay true to what makes me who I am. She had
always encouraged me to continue doing art and to try new things.
A16: Where do you hope to see yourself in five years?
Sage: In five years I hope that I am working/interning at an animation studio and learning from professionals.
Q17: What are three albums or songs currently, that you listen to on repeat? And why?
Sage: Three songs that I listen to on repeat currently are “Starlight Brigade” by TWRP
(feat. Danny Sexbang), “Monster Town” by Go!Child, and a cover of Cowboy Bebop's
“The Real Folk Blues” by Sapphire. “Starlight Brigade” initially drew me in because of the
animation that was accompanied by it (which is amazing btw and you should watch it if you haven't already). I listen to “Monster Town” because a youtuber I followed by the name of Snapcube, had started a band with her friends and I was really curious to see what kinds of songs she had put in her album Coffee and Ramen. I ended up getting obsessed with Monster Town and couldn't stop listening to it. As for The Real Folk Blues, there's not much to say other than I really like Sapphire's voice and the way she made the song her own.
Q18: What color speaks to you the most and why?
Sage: Pastel colors really speaks to me because I love how bright and joyful they are and yet I rarely use them in my art. But the color that speaks to me the most is pink because I use to hate it when I was younger and had resented the color in order to make me feel less feminine and 'not like other girls.' I grew to love pink as I got older because it's a beautiful color and younger me was a fool to think otherwise.
Q19: What's one thing that you're proud of?
Sage: In reference to my art, one thing I'm most proud of is how I'm starting to create my own art style. I'm still not quite where I want to be but I can see myself in my own art.
Q20: What is a mantra that you tell yourself?
Sage: Unfinished things are better than things you haven't done because at least you tried.
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| Art by AngelicNeonAnime |
First off here's links to my store and such: Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/M4M094EV / Tip Jar / RedBubble: https://www.redbubble.com/people/angelicnanime?ref=artist_title_name / TeePublic: https://www.teepublic.com/user/angelicneonanime/ DeviantArt: https://angelicneonanime.deviantart.com/ / Twitter: https://twitter.com/angelicnanime / Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelicneonanime/?hl=en
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