I was sitting cross-legged in front of our old television. As a homeschooled student, my mother tried to expose me to as much knowledge as possible. I was often allowed to stop studying to watch educational programs, although she would often peek behind the door to check that I wasn't watching cartoons. He had no need to fear. If it wasn't David Starkey, it would be an Elizabethan docudrama. The story hooked me, and once I found Paul Dowsell and Horrible Histories, my path was set. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Thanks to homeschooling, I was always free. We made quarterly visits to London museums and English heritage sites. The latter definitely fueled my oldest hobby: vintage miniatures. Walking through time, seeing the architecture, and hearing the tour explain long-lost lives fascinated and inspired me. Being able to recapture the past in such a delicate way was magical. I continue to work on historically accurate miniatures at my local Makerspace, from small costume dolls to furniture reproductions. The socio-historical background of dollhouses also interests me a lot. When my father was diagnosed with cancer in 2010, medicine quickly ran out of answers. We moved north to Harrow in the West Midlands to seek treatment at a Bible school specializing in faith healing. The cultural shift had a huge impact on me, leading to a new direction of curiosity and understanding. When my father died, I started looking for heavier, angrier music to express everything that was brewing inside me. I explored the world of rock, then heavy metal. I started watching music documentaries about the birth of the genre. I learned that Black Sabbath's slow, intoxicating riffs were due to their guitarist losing his fingers in an Aston factory, and that Judas Priest's lead singer was inspired by the sounds of rhythm machines near his primary school, which was just a mile from my new home. It gave me a new understanding of the industrial pall that remained over Walsall. After leaving my friends in London, and most of the local teenagers, deciding that I looked "too posh", I retreated into myself, gorging on films and TV. Series after series, film after film. I was truly in love. I discovered YouTube video essays on film theory. I was fascinated by the analysis and the beauty. I had always loved storytelling, but had only written books, bad poetry, and the occasional play. Suddenly, I realized that I could actually do this. I could make films. So I signed up to study film and TV. School was very tiring at times, but I was full of ideas, ruining my sleep schedule to write them all down. Many of the productions I intend to make one day are historical; mostly they are stories that help the viewer explore the past. I connect with history in its humanity, in the struggles and victories that have governed every era. I believe virtual reality is the future, given its infinite potential. It's a medium I hope to experiment with. I didn't have a conventional life. From the age of 5, my parents traveled around Europe taking me with them. They became fond of Latvia and left regularly while we built an abandoned house. We met many fascinating people who opened my world to incredible experiences. Learning about World War II and the Iron Curtain from those who survived gave me an appreciation for the history of Europe.