The first thing Abigail Seils does after walking into the classroom and sitting at her desk is pull out her sketchbook and pens. After all, there are five minutes until class starts. It may be 9 a.m. on a Monday, but Seils’ creative juices are already flowing
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Seils, who goes by Abby, was born and raised in the city of Chicago, Illinois. But where exactly in the city?
“About as far south and west as you can go while still being in city limits,” she said.
Seils’ mother is a computer teacher at a local Catholic school, and her father is an accountant and basketball referee. Across the street from Seils’ parents lives her 79-year-old grandmother. Her two brothers, who are twins, work in engineering, and her sister is an afternoon news anchor in Peoria, Ill.
While away at school, Seils misses her pets, especially her cats. However, her home is only 45 minutes from Olivet, which means she usually does not go too long without seeing Frank, Camilla, Sophie, Lily, and Mitzi.
MAJORING IN MULTIMEDIA
Seils wanted to pursue a multimedia communication degree because of her love of storytelling. She is drawn to telling stories that entertain, not ones that try to push an agenda, which is something she has noticed a lot of these days.
“I want to make something that’s primarily for entertainment and just sharing a really good story,” Seils said.
As she works toward her multimedia communication degree, Seils takes classes that give her many opportunities for hands-on learning. She enjoys this class structure as opposed to the traditional one that involves sitting at a desk and taking notes.
“I like the dedicated time we get to actually go out and practice the things we’re learning,” she said.
One of her favorite classes so far is the Film and Video Production course she took last year. Seils credits her enjoyment of the class to her peer production group, who collaborated to produce videos that Seils is proud of.
Seils is currently enrolled in Studio Production, in which she helps produce a talk show called “Tonight at Olivet.” She bounces back and forth between two roles, camera operator and media manager. Seils said the class reminds her of being on the tech crew for theater productions in high school, only at a higher level.
OFF THE CLOCK
When she is not attending class or filming for assignments, Seils has a variety of hobbies that keep her busy. Much like her main passion of storytelling, Seils’ pastimes also utilize her creativity.
Two of her hobbies are sewing and crocheting, the latter of which runs in the family. Seils learned from her mother, and her sister can do it as well.
“I like making things,” said Seils. “And with crochet, you can make anything from plushies to more useful things like blankets and sweaters and stuff.”
Seils said one of her most notable crochet creations is a duck that she made with leftover yarn she needed to use. The duck is about two feet long and one foot tall.
Something else Seils enjoys is drawing. She draws portraits, original characters, and designs for future sewing projects.
“I see her creativity 24/7,” said Janette Chocolatl, Seils’ roommate. “She’s always on the grind when it comes to crochet, mending, sewing, some embroidery, and sketching. Abby has laser focus on creativity. I’m an art major, and she’s more creative than me.”
CONCLUSION
“I’m not sure where it comes from,” said Seils of her creativity. “I think it’s just something everyone has and can choose to grow and develop it, or they can ignore it.”
It is safe to say Seils chose the former.
