The power of marketing and advertisement has always been a force to be reckoned with. It’s incredible to think marketing has the power to make or break a films box office earnings, or product sales, or even the fate of an entire company. Every cog is essential in order for the clock to spin, and marketing is one of those cogs. Not only is marketing an important aspect of a companies success, it’s also an interesting and fun way to help a business thrive. No one has liked or cared about commercials, which is why you have to grab the viewers attention as much as possible with the 15-30 seconds of screen time you have. This type of thoughtful and creative storytelling requires thoughtful and creative people. People who know what the average consumer wants and what they’ll pay attention to. People who can convince the general public that they need their product above all others. I must admit, I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea of subliminally manipulating the average consumers thoughts and emotions in order to make profit, but I was young and naive. I now realize the power and influence that marketing and advertisement has, and I want to be a part of what makes it happen. I always had a passion for television and film, and my dream is to become a writer for my own show or movie. If I were to pursuit a career in marketing or advertisement, I would like to do so by joining an advertisement firm, and slowly work my way to writing commercial scripts. This way I could gain experience in the advertisement industry and learn how to hone my writing skills at an earlier age. At a firm like this I could learn the ropes of advertisement and marketing, taking on multiple companies and coming up with interesting and creative marketing campaigns unique to both the company and my own creativity. For example an upcoming films advertisement and marketing go campaign. I would be involved in getting streaming services and social media apps to advertise the film, setting up interviews with the cast and creators in order to better promote the project, or even set up collaborations with other more popular companies in order to make merchandise or novelty items inspired by the film. That’s just one of the infinite possibilities of business and creativity that await me if I join an advertisement company. I don’t really know what’s gonna happen in the future, but I do know that setting my sites on advertisement is a good start. I could use my creative skills and ideas and share them with the world. I could look at something on television and say “I made that”, even if it’s just for 30 seconds during a nfl game. Nothing would make me prouder than to know that the world has seen my passion, my creativity, and I think that advertisement and marketing is a way to accomplish that. Thank you for your time and for considering me for this scholarship.

My name is Makai Rieves, and I'm now proud to say that I'm a black gay man. Lately, it's been hard to feel proud or accepted about who I am though. As I grew older, and discovered truths about myself that I didn't know were there, I also realized how little things can make a big impact on how we see the world, such as representation in the media. When I finally realized who I was, I was nervous about how those close to me would perceive me after I talked to them about my sexuality, like most kids my age. I didn't want them to see me as different than who I was, as one of the harmful caricatures shown on television from 2000 to now. This fear mainly stems from LGBTQ representation in media, which I realized wasn't as modern and inclusive as I thought it would be. If anything, It's actively perpetuating the stereotypes that are fueling the stigmas against gay men. Lesbians, for example, are always treated as strong, brooding super feminists who get to save the world or take down fascist regimes. To many, it's seen as cool or rebellious for a woman to date another woman. Gay men, on the other hand, are portrayed as the exact opposite. We're portrayed as catty, fashion-obsessed, male best friends in 2000s romcoms, and it never really sits well with me. This harmful portrayal in media makes the world see us as weak and dainty, or as less of a man than we are. I'm a former football player, wrestler, avid horror and action film watcher, weightlifter an aspiring film and TV writer/ director, and a generally big guy, and to see people like me represented like this in modern media made me feel like I was doing something wrong. like I was wrong, and I'm sure I'm not the only one to feel that way. This, and many other problematic stereotypes are the reason why I want to major in media communications and minor in screenwriting. While film and television have always brought me and millions of people pleasure, I never really understood the significance of media and film, and just how critical it is for proper representation. What we see in our lives and how they're portrayed can affect the way we feel about these things, which is why proper and accurate representation matters. With the world divided on what's considered woke and what's considered shameless pandering, it's hard to find a show with an accurate representation for gay people. Especially for black lgbtq members, which you barely ever see in modern television or film. That's why It is so important that I am a part of the future of Hollywood or the study of today's media, so I can make sure that guys like me can have characters they can relate to, and make sure the world has a broader sense of what it means to be a part of the lgbtq community. Our sexuality is a part of who we are, but it's only one piece of what makes us unique, and I feel as if a lot of modern " woke" writers don't understand that. I don't want the next generation to end up like I was, confused and worried about the type of person I was "supposed" to be when I should have just been proud of who I was becoming. It takes one writer or media analyst to make a difference, and it would be amazing if that writer was me.

My name is Makai Rieves, and I'm now proud to say that I'm a black gay man. Lately, it's been hard to feel proud or accepted about who I am though. As I grew older, and discovered truths about myself that I didn't know were there, I also realized how little things can make a big impact on how we see the world, such as representation in the media. When I finally realized who I was, I was nervous about how those close to me would perceive me after I talked to them about my sexuality, like most kids my age. I didn't want them to see me as different than who I was, as one of the harmful caricatures shown on television from 2000 to now. This fear mainly stems from LGBTQ representation in media, which I realized wasn't as modern and inclusive as I thought it would be. If anything, It's actively perpetuating the stereotypes that are fueling the stigmas against gay men. Lesbians, for example, are always treated as strong, brooding super feminists who get to save the world or take down fascist regimes. To many, it's seen as cool or rebellious for a woman to date another woman. Gay men, on the other hand, are portrayed as the exact opposite. We're portrayed as catty, fashion-obsessed, male best friends in 2000s romcoms, and it never really sits well with me. This harmful portrayal in media makes the world see us as weak and dainty, or as less of a man than we are. I'm a former football player, wrestler, avid horror and action film watcher, weightlifter an aspiring film and TV writer/ director, and a generally big guy, and to see people like me represented like this in modern media made me feel like I was doing something wrong. like I was wrong, and I'm sure I'm not the only one to feel that way. This, and many other problematic stereotypes are the reason why I want to major in media communications and minor in screenwriting. While film and television have always brought me and millions of people pleasure, I never really understood the significance of media and film, and just how critical it is for proper representation. What we see in our lives and how they're portrayed can affect the way we feel about these things, which is why proper and accurate representation matters. With the world divided on what's considered woke and what's considered shameless pandering, it's hard to find a show with an accurate representation for gay people. Especially for black lgbtq members, which you barely ever see in modern television or film. That's why It is so important that I am a part of the future of Hollywood or the study of today's media, so I can make sure that guys like me can have characters they can relate to, and make sure the world has a broader sense of what it means to be a part of the lgbtq community. Our sexuality is a part of who we are, but it's only one piece of what makes us unique, and I feel as if a lot of modern " woke" writers don't understand that. I don't want the next generation to end up like I was, confused and worried about the type of person I was "supposed" to be when I should have just been proud of who I was becoming. It takes one writer or media analyst to make a difference, and it would be amazing if that writer was me.

As a young child I was always shifting my focus from one thing to another. Sometimes I wanted to paint sometimes I wanted to build something, rarely did I want to play basketball. That mindset is reflected in my high school experience as well, as I was involved in many distinct extracurricular activities. I spent 3 years playing high school football, one year on the high school wrestling team, and my last year of high school I will be involved in an internship and the class of 2024 club. One extracurricular that truly caught my attention wasn’t even attached to my school. From December 2022 to May 2023 I was an escort for the delta sigma theta sorority cotillion. If you don’t know, a cotillion is an event for young women, or debutants, involved with a specific group or organization to present themselves to those close to them as the intelligent and capable women that they are. These events - or this event in particular - are usually centered around black youth, which brings a new layer of community and pride to the event and those involved with it. A ball- or cotillion- is held in their honor, with each debutant being escorted by a young man involved in the organization as well. I wasn’t directly involved with the sorority, but my grandmother is a member and asked if I would be interested. At first I was mainly there due to the fact that we had to wear suits to the events in question, and I never miss an opportunity to dress nice for a public appearance. Then I got to meet the people involved and learned what they really did. I had fun with the debutants and other escorts and really learned why the event was so important to the people in charge. To my understanding the sorority has been doing this every year for decades, allowing young black men and women to be a part of something new, and to be a part of a tradition like this made me feel like I was a part of something bigger than myself. I enjoyed playing football and wrestling, but I never felt like I was ever actually contributing something to the teams I was in. I only started playing football freshman year, as opposed to the guys who have been playing since elementary school or younger. Almost everyone was new to wrestling, and for someone’s first year I was doing pretty good, but the passion just wasn’t there either. The two sports did teach me a lot about routine and consistency, two ideologies that I try to uphold every day, but with the cotillion, I had a lot more freedom with my time, and when I was practicing for the event, it was a lot more casual and enjoyable than that of my other extracurricular activities. Now that I’m a senior, I’m actually eligible to enter a beautillion ball, where young men get to present themselves to the world. A lot a black men and women will struggle to find an opportunity to show our authentic selves like this in life, myself included, so it always warms my heart that there are people working to for us to have that experience. Participating in the 2023 Delta Sigma theta cotillion really opened my eyes to a whole new side of our community, and I hope that I will be able to participate again.

My aspirations has always changed as I went through life. That’s part of growing up, exploring your options, seeing what kind of person you want to be. One constant has always been my need to go to an HBCU. As a person of color, you realize that things aren’t as simple as deciding to be chemist or a lawyer. Of course anyone, no matter what race, has to work hard to get where they are, but people like me will always be at a disadvantage. No matter how hard you work it always feels like you’re one step behind where you’re supposed to be. I think that’s part of why hbcu’s exist in the first place: so that those people can get a first class education with people and faculty that know what we had to go through to get where we are. That’s why for the past couple of years I’ve been looking into Howard university. If I’m going to pursue a college education, I want people that I can relate to on a deeper level, not that I can’t relate to people that don’t have the same skin color as me. While Howard University isn’t an all black school, it does still have that sense of black excellence, which is exactly what I’m looking for in a community. Like many schools, Howard is also an extremely expensive school, and not the easiest to get into. A little help goes a long way, and If I were to win this scholarship, it could help me move an inch closer to make my dreams a reality. If I were to go to Howard, I would major in Media, journalism, and film. Recently, I’ve really started to contemplate the importance of representation. To contemplate what it means to see someone like you creating worlds on the big screen, or leading important discussions of what’s going on in the world. It’s like having someone speaking on your behalf, having someone who sees the world similar to how you see it. Black people have had great representation in the past, from singers to athletes to politicians, but you don’t see many of us behind the camera, bringing life to films for the world to experience and appreciate. Lately there has been many great black directors and writers, Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Steven Caple Jr, and Antoine Fuqua to name a few. I want to be one of these few. As far as I know, there haven’t been that’s many black gay film directors, andI want to be one of them. Having a community to be a part of always sounded fun, but I never really got what it meant until recently. I’ve been trying to contribute to my community more frequently , which led me to become an escort for the delta sigma theta cotillion. I initially signed up because it required me to wear nice clothes, but I quickly came to appreciate what else came with it. Not only was I taught the means to be a proper gentleman, but I also got a sense of community that I haven’t felt before. I met black people from different cities, different financial situations (mostly wealthy), and different experiences. By being an escort, I was also able to help young black women present themselves to the world and their communities. It was all very different, but really made me feel like I was doing something important. Being an escort also really showed my how much being black means to me. It helped my realize the true meaning of black excellence.

It’s funny; the person who influenced my life the most doesn’t even know I exist. While my family will always have an influence on who I am, film director Jordan Peele will always have the biggest influence on my dreams and aspirations. Everyone has dreams growing up there’s no doubt about that. I dreamed of being basically every profession there is, from head chef to ballet dancer. When you’re young, you’re allowed to be selfish. You don’t have to worry about reality or logic, you just worry about what’s happening in your own little world. At least that’s the case for the lucky ones. Unfortunately as you get older things start to set in, and you realize that not every metaphorical door is open to you. You have to come to terms with the fact that your skin color or your sexual orientation or gender is seen as a disadvantage in the real world. That could have something to do with our representation in media and film. You don’t see that many black and gay men in television or film. For a good chunk of time you didn’t even see that many black people, unless they were the sassy best friend or a horror films first victim. Jordan Peele changed things for us. For the past decade, he’s been changing what’s possible for us in a genre where we’ve been the most neglected: horror. For years he’s been writing, directing, and producing horror films centered around the black experience, each one more chilling than the next. Peele inspired me to try and pursue a career in horror. When I graduate, I would like to use my artistic skills to not only pursue a career in film, but to also start my own horror comics. I’ve always been passionate about comics, specifically marvel, but Not many kids my age are into comics as they’re used to. It would be great if I was a part of a team bringing new comics to the next generation, sharing my passion with the world. What makes me different from the rest is that I thrive in the uncomfortable. When I’m drawing up new characters or monsters, I like to think of real life fears that people have and use that as a base of characters designs. Take trypophobia for example. I was drawing up a character with close ties to nature, but couldn’t figure out what it needed to stand out. I then had the idea to draw holes and gaps down its arm, and add a honeycomb on top to really sell the idea of trypophobia. I like to doodle twisted versions of beloved cartoon characters in my free time, like if Mickey Mouse was some lab experiment gone wrong, or giving basic characters human organs like stick men with skulls or pac man with guts and teeth. I want to be a part of this new wave of black artists and creators, inspiring other kids and showing them that the world isn’t as bleak as it’s made out to be. That’s how Jordan Peele influenced me, all the while showing me how important representation really is. Black gay kids need to see someone like them doing big things, and I want to be that person. Thank you for your time.