Rutuja Sawant defies cultural expectations after leaving India

Samantha Vargas | UB Spectrum

Growing up in India, UB student Rutuja Sawant never felt like she could express herself.

She struggled between the pressure to succeed academically and the lack of representation in media, but found a sense of identity through filmmaking.

Sawant, a junior media study major, has been pursuing film since she was a freshman. She never used a camera before she moved from Mumbai. Now she has worked with multiple film genres, all with the intention of submitting her work to film festivals. After climbing an uphill battle against insecurities and academic pressure, Sawant has made a full transformation since coming to Buffalo. 

Sawant has made big strides in the department of media study, culminating in the screening of her film “Janitor Jay” in a Performance, Lectures and Screenings in Media Art course. She has received a flood of attention from students and faculty, enough attention to warrant entire response papers on the film.

“I feel like UB has given such a space to me when I came here. I feel comfortable to express myself more than I ever had before,” Sawant said. “Knowing people have discussed my film is a big deal for me. I felt really honored.”

But Sawant didn’t have this confidence three years ago. 

She originally applied to UB to pursue mechanical engineering. She only switched into media study after taking one film class.

“Growing up in India, I was kind of expected to just choose engineering or one of the STEM fields. So after high school, I thought, ‘I’m just going to do engineering.’ My parents expected me to always do well in school,” Sawant said. “I always knew I wasn’t really interested in it, but more so doing it for my parents.”

She said her parents supported her decision, although they would prefer for her to pursue a more “stable” career. Switching majors was a relief to Sawant, who recalls the pressure she experienced during high school. 

“In school there was always a competition over grades. I still wonder if any of us were actually even friends, or if it was all just about the competition,” Sawant said. “People kept pushing me. They would say, ‘You used to be a good student,’ but I was still getting 80s. I was never failing.” 

Sawant said she began to feel the effects of her culture’s demands over time. She began to burn out and isolate herself. 

“Eventually I closed off. I feel like I had so many things to contribute, so many things that I wanted to do in school but I couldn’t take it,” Sawant said. “When I went back home last summer, my sister told me, ‘You were so different two years ago.’ I wasn’t me at that point.”

Sawant was able to come out as gay after coming to UB, but her journey toward self acceptance came with its own obstacles. She was bullied by a former roommate and other students.

“When I came [to America] a few years ago, I didn’t know anyone who came from my country that I could talk to. I felt like I was the only [gay person] from India. Some people were not very nice to me,” Sawant said. “It was hard, but I was able to find a group of great friends. Going through something like this, with people that supported me, it gave me confidence to voice my opinions.”

Now that she is able to pursue her passions, Sawant feels as though she can express her true self. This newfound freedom is seen through her films and work ethic.

Justin Allen, a junior health and human services major, has acted in many of Sawant’s films.

“For all of her films, she has everything planned out and makes sure everyone is on the same page. It’s incredible to see a student filmmaker be so organized,” Allen said. “Her work is so different and interesting. Even as an actor, you become so engaged in the plot and all the small details she includes.” 

Sawant said she hopes to create progressive dialogues with her work as she continues with her career. One of her recent films touched on the topic of gender expression. She drew the inspiration for the film from her own struggle with sexuality. 

“I’ve always had a problem with dressing ever since I was young. People always expected me to dress a certain way. My mom always hated that I liked T-shirts and jeans, nothing girly,” Sawant said. “I always felt you should dress how you want, not based off your gender. I wanted to make a film about it to show people what words might not be able to.”

She wants to pursue filmmaking that will offer different kinds of representation and give different perspectives.

“I want to make films that make people like my parents, who do not even think about sexuality and gender expression, think about new ideas. I want people to understand things better and change perspectives,” Sawant said. “Growing up in my culture I didn’t see people express who they really are, in media or in Bollywood movies. I want to make that for people. That would make me really happy.”

Rebel One Studios brings animation to Buffalo

Samantha Vargas | UB Spectrum

Animation is typically associated with big Hollywood studios, but the art form has grown far beyond film and television. 

Rebel One Studios is reclaiming animation and breaking traditional stereotypes from healthcare to architecture and advertising. 

The five-person animation team is based out of downtown Buffalo and has worked on everything from big-budget commercials to visualizing government projects. Rebel One Studios has produced the marketing animation for StarKist Tuna, Tops Friendly Markets Monopoly, Nickelodeon’s Kid’s Choice Awards, The Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team and more. 

Samantha Haney, the owner and creative director, said she never imagined herself as a business owner. 

“It’s really daunting when you’re in college and you’re like ‘All I do is draw. I don’t know anything,’” Haney said. “It’s surprising how much you are capable of when you’re put in the position.”

Haney graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art with a degree in time-based media. She established a career with various animation companies after interning at UB’s computational research facility. 

She decided to lead her own studio shortly after. 

The company opened its doors in 2015 in Williamsville. The studio relocated to Allentown as business picked up to accommodate the expanding team. The Williamsville native chose to establish a team of handpicked, local animators for her company.

“Everybody that works with me right now lives in Buffalo,” Haney said. “I really like keeping that close-knit group. Moreso for the flow of the team. If you bring in somebody who is working on different hours, say from the west coast, it just doesn’t work well.”

But the company’s Buffalo loyalty doesn’t stop at its staff.

Rebel One Studios has partnered with UB under the Start-Up NY Program. The program provides companies with access to experts and research facilities, while students and faculty have access to direct job opportunities. 

Adrian Levesque, UB’s urban visualization and multimedia specialist, said he appreciates the economic contributions Rebel One provides.

“Buffalo isn’t a hotbed for animation, but there are a lot of talented individuals working here. The Start-Up NY Program helps these small businesses avoid unnecessary costs, and then they contribute to our economy,” Levesque said. “It’s much easier for businesses to grow when they’re able to leverage, say [UB’s] super-computer, compared to paying to facilitate somewhere like Amazon.” 

The studio’s partnership with UB prioritizes community members for employment and internship opportunities.

“[UB] is the first place we’re reaching out to when looking for interns. There’s a lot of promise in our local schools,” Haney said. “I know there’s been an interest in animation and visual effects locally, so we’re definitely trying to bring people in and get them that real-world experience.”

Western New York provides exceptional resources for an up-and-coming animation studio, Haney said. 

“The technology really lends itself to our company. I can point to [UB] especially since I know the guys over at the center for computational research and the super-computing power over there is just amazing,” Haney said. “I’m surprised more people aren’t taking advantage of all the things that we have here.”

The team also contributes to the city’s infrastructure, providing local developers and architects with 3D models. 

“When there are buildings in development downtown, like the Women and Children’s Hospital redevelopment project, we got to be involved with visualizing what that space could look like before it was built,” Haney said. “It’s really cool to be able to see how Buffalo will be changing before it does.”

Habiba Abdelall’s cultural clash with female sexuality

Samantha Vargas | UB Spectrum

After a serious car accident in Buffalo, UB student Habiba Abdelall found her comfort through art. 

Her focus: female nudes. 

The senior studio arts major picked up drawing as a way to help ease her depression and she eventually enrolled in classes at UB. The focus was different for Abdellal because she said growing up her family disapproved if her body was not covered. But when she moved to the United States at 17 years old from Egypt, she fell in love with the female body. Abdellal said she overcame the adversity of a conservative, disapproving upbringing and the trauma of a near-death experience in order to pursue her art. 

“When I came to the states, I found the freedom to look and paint however I wanted,” Abdelall said. “I fell in love with the female body because I think it is beautiful and it deserves respect; it deserves de-sexualizing and it deserves a painting. So I started painting nudes.”

Recovering from the accident wasn’t easy for Abdellal, either. 

“I ended up with bone fractures and two facial scars –– one above my right eyelid and one on my right cheek,” Abdellal said. “I dropped down to a part-time student for a year because I was lost between doctor appointments, therapists and recovery. I was severely depressed and alone.” 

Christian Gonzalez, a senior general management major, remembered her use of art as a form of recovery.

“When Habiba first started [painting], I think it was more about self-therapy. Soon, it evolved into something more for her,” Gonzalez said. “I think her art was a way for her to freely express herself. She definitely fell in love with it. I could read her thoughts and feelings from her very first drawing.”

Abdellal soon switched majors from architecture to art and began to paint nudes because of the “individuality” of the female form.

Coming from a conservative background, she said she understands that her content is not for everyone.

“I would identify as a straight, cis-gender person, who is really interested in the female body,” Abdellal said. “Personally, I think sex is a beautiful, natural thing, but it could be something very off-putting for someone else and that is also OK.” 

Her journey to find her own artistic approach led her to explore different styles of art. Her paintings are primarily abstract, but she dabbles in a variety of styles and mediums. She is currently exploring the incorporation of physical materials like thread, wood, paper and steel wire.

“I was always interested in different styles –– hyper-realistic paintings being my least favorite,” Abdellal said. “This is because I believe that the eye can see hyper-realistically, but your brain is able to create the most amazing things, and I wanted my hand to be a tool in translating what my brain saw.”

As Abdellal became more confident in her work, she began to offer commissions to family and friends. Now she plans on expanding her brand through social media. 

“Some commissions take hours, and some take months to finish. The other day I was working on a painting that I started three years ago,” Abdellal said. “I build an intense connection with paintings after I finish them, and it’s hard to let them go.” 

Prachi Goyal, a graduate student in quantitative finance, holds Abdellal’s art and work ethic in high regard.

“I believe that her art has a lot of meaning and depth –– it can be interpreted in many ways. I see it as an abstract narrative of empowering femininity,” Goyal said. “Her paintings feel like a conversation. I not only see the raw emotions of the artist in her work, but also feel them.”

Abdellal said she plans on using her degree to pursue art in the future and is hoping to open her own art gallery.

“The human body is very beautiful and full of detail,” Abdellal said. “All bodies are beautiful and all bodies are different.”

Joshua Diamond’s journey through self expression and education

Samantha Vargas | UB Spectrum

Most art students go to Michael’s to pick up supplies, but Joshua Diamond goes to the local butcher.

His supplies include blood –– sometimes even his own.

Diamond, a senior environmental design major, previously attended a school in the midwest for phlebotomy in search of steady work and out of personal interest. His solo art exhibit “Ketsueki” is open from Nov. 7-16 at the Center for the Arts gallery. “Ketsueki” translates to blood in Japanese and the show features a variety of art mediums including his use of blood, sculpture and steel.

Fellow artist Nick Kushner originally inspired him to integrate blood into his work. Kushner, who worked solely with blood as a medium, befriended Diamond while he was experimenting with artistic vessels. 

“I started to experiment with [blood] in my past art school life as a painting medium alongside gold leaf and watercolor,” Diamond said. “[It was] an abstract way to conjure up a phenomenology with certain interests and themes of existentialism, alchemy, Jungian psychology and symbolism, sexuality and BDSM, and a sort of disconnection felt between the modern world and my body.” 

Diamond uses beef blood from a local butcher shop in his work, although he has used his own blood for his pieces. Still, he does not choose to use his own blood unless it is out of necessity. 

“I haven’t used my own blood in quite some time –– there’s lots of limitations and precautions with that, and when needing a lot of the medium, it is not the ideal source,” Diamond said.

His previous painting series, “Blood Forms,” incorporated blood into every painting within the collection. He said there are similarities between the exhibit and his current exhibit.

Diamond said one of the sculptures uses large-scale watercolor paper and blood to emulate the “textures, colors and performance” of the blood. It then “pools up” and creates different reds, blacks and coagulations, he said. 

He drew and painted as a kid and gradually worked his way into sculpture because of his attraction to texture. This led to him using different physical mediums and artistic techniques.

Despite the success that goes along with debuting his own solo exhibit, Diamond stopped pursuing art prior to transferring to UB. 

“A lot of the ideas I’ve built on in the past two semesters are with mediums and concepts I’ve had for quite some time, but until recently, didn’t pursue to fruition and explore while studying the design of the built environment,” Diamond said.

His academic peers acknowledge the significance of his journey with art and education. 

Kassandra Hazelhurst, a UB alum and fellow artist, appears on the poster for the new exhibit and models one of Diamond’s sculptures.

“Josh is definitely one of the few students pushing the culture in the art program. He’s fearless with his work and is extremely candid when he talks about it,” Hazelhurst said. “I had the pleasure of modeling one of his sculptures and was not only impressed with his design skills, but also his craftsmanship.”

Diamond’s interests go beyond blood. “Ketsueki” explores different mediums that the artist is passionate about. He previously incorporated dead honeybees, burned wood, bullets and knives into his work. 

“I would say all the mediums used in the show are my favorite, but blood is definitely one that I don’t feel finished with , and am excited to keep exploring,” Diamond said.

Diamond said he is attempting to create a significant impression within the art community and his program. His use of controversial mediums has been growing in popularity through his time at UB. 

Aside from creating art, Joshua works as a student supervisor with Russ Crispell in UB’s Outdoor Pursuits office. Crispell remembers his first impression of Diamond as an artist and individual.

“I think his ability to focus on detail compliments him well as a student supervisor and in his life as an artist,” Crispell said. 

Diamond said he hopes to one day combine his passions for architecture and sculpture and he attributes some of his art to his time at UB.

 “I’m sure I’ll keep working on work that sort of creates an elegance with a macabre  unsettling nature,” Diamond said. “I’m very happy I was able to take a risk and take a sculpture class here when I first transferred and discover there was a way to more accurately be creative with myself.”