Motion Design and animation

Killa Diosa

Ari vasquez

West Hartford, CT

Advisor: Heejoo Kim

Artist Bio

Ari Vasquez is a Peruvian American illustrator and animator, and a senior Digital Media and Design student at the University of Connecticut. She takes a majority of her artistic inspiration from cartoons and comics that raised her, and hopes to produce feature length animated films for children’s animation studios in the future. Her internship at NBC Universal, working on 2x Emmy Winning Kids Connection and working in childcare has helped shape what kind of digital media she would like to create for public audiences. Through her work, Ari hopes that she will be able to send impactful messages to raise awareness about different cultures, identities, and communities.

Artist Statement

Growing up in the United States, I often felt a disconnect between myself and my culture. Other than being taught by my family, I did not see much representation for Peru in digital media, especially indigenous Hispanic people that looked like me. It made me realize that other many people do not know much about Peru or Incan history, and how significant indigenous culture is to the country Killa Diosa, my 2D character animation, aims to inform audiences about this history, through illustrating the country’s aesthetics with character designs and backgrounds inspired by real places in the Andes Mountains. With my secondary character Suya, I can represent the children of Peru and people of Quechuan ancestry. Quilla, my main character, is designed to represent the Incan deities that the Quechua people once worshipped. Through my animation, I would like to emphasize the idea of healing from past traumas. I grew up facing many challenges in my life, and have found that my hardships have formed me into the person I am today. my message is that, regardless of what we went through, we can take our experiences as a way to grow and heal rather than harboring resentment to those who have hurt us. In the end, our ability to heal and move on is what makes us strong.