Tyler Akam

I chose Behrend because it has a lot of great resources and a growing community of creative people and evolving digital art opportunities.

Major: Digital Media, Arts, and Technology (DIGIT)

Minor: Game Development

Hometown: Corry, Pennsylvania

Scholarships: Renaissance Fund Scholarship and the Lake Erie Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association Scholarship.

On choosing Behrend: I chose Behrend because it has a lot of great resources and a growing community of creative people and evolving digital art opportunities.

On choosing his major: I originally intended to participate in the 2+2 program and planned to start at Behrend and go to University Park for Film. I ended up staying at Behrend and switching to the DIGIT major because it fit my broad interests and ideas, and Behrend has a lot of useful resources, such as the equipment available to borrow from the Behrend Open Lab for Digital Creations (BOLD-C). It was a good choice to stay, as I have been able to explore different fields and areas that I am interested in.

His proudest accomplishment at Behrend: One of my proudest accomplishments is my senior project, which is a stop-motion/Claymation short film. I’m still working on it at the time of writing this, but it has been a journey on which I have learned more about my creative process and how to execute it.

Campus involvement: I was involved in the Chess Club, first as a member, and then as a member of the executive board. I helped plan events early on, and then I settled into the role of making the event posters as I got busier.

Awards and recognition: I’ve made the Dean’s List regularly. I’ve taken part in DIGIT Works, a digital event to showcase what I’ve worked on that takes place at the end of every semester, and that feels like a reward as I get to show my fellow students and members of faculty the kinds of projects I’ve worked hard on.

What makes him unique: I have a lot of creative and ambitious ideas that are seemingly endless. I come up with ideas for projects all the time. I have the skills and know-how to use Photoshop, Illustrator, and video editing programs such as DaVinci Resolve. I tend to have a knack for making interesting YouTube thumbnails and other graphic design products.

The sky’s the limit: There is no limit to what I am interested in. I usually end up exploring new areas of technology and the different forms of art. All at once, I’m interested in creating film, music, physical and digital art, video games, comic books… I could go on.

His passions: I am passionate about stories and music. I love indulging in a story and immersing myself with characters and their worlds. The human condition is to create and imagine things, which I think is amazing. I listen to music every day, and I look for a lot of meaning and like to relate to the lyrics of a song and let the instrumentals paint pictures that I can imagine. Listening to music is really one of my favorite things to do.

Advice for first-year students: If you’re having doubts, make the change you think you should. It’s not too late to change your direction in life, and you might end up making the best decision of your life.

Parting thoughts: If what I do sounds interesting, you can follow me and my projects on my YouTube Channel @Takamator. I have and intend to upload videos to introduce my projects to people there. I hope to be consistent with it, and I hope to grow as a creator.

Tyler would like to establish his own brand with his creative projects in filmmaking, music, game design/development, and more. He also is pursuing other opportunities that fit his skills.