Born and raised in California’s laid back Bay Area, David moved to Vancouver to study at Emily Carr. He has since then fallen in love with the city and plans to settle down there. Despite having lived in Canada for years now, he still doesn’t understand the metric system and continues to say “soda” instead of “pop”. It is unknown if this is due to an inability to adapt, or a brazen example of American arrogance.
Artist's Statement
“Insert Credit” is an autobiography told through the style and format of an older, side-scrolling video game. It's the story of how my dad's death has affected me and how it continues to be an issue in my life.
Level 1 is my childhood, which is when my dad died. I never dealt with it when I was younger and so I never 'completed' the level. I wasn’t the ideal son my dad had in mind. He always wanted a son that was much more masculine, one that would play sports with him. Do “man” things. Our relationship was strained because of this. Even as he died, I struggled with how I felt and couldn’t bring myself to talk to him about it as he was in the hospital.
Level two is my teen years. I fell into bouts of depression and drinking, and struggled immensely with school. My cousin Catherine helped me out of it. She filled the 'older guidance' figure in my life and helped raise me. She ended up wanting to start her own life and moved away. I had that void all over again.
Level three, I moved to Vancouver out of bitterness. I felt alone and didn’t have the support I felt I needed. I fell in love, but ended up trying to fill the void of my dad with an older male lover. It didn't work because of all my pressures and expectations of him and he couldn't take it. I was too much of an emotional toll on him. Dear friends helped me recover from the situation.
Level four. It's a dream sequence where I try to get to my dad one last time. I stumble and falter trying to reach him, but each time I do, my loved ones from my past help me up and encourage me to keep going. Eventually I fail to reach him and the character dies. The continue screen pops up and a countdown plays. Before it reaches zero, the sound that plays when you put in a coin in an arcade machine plays, and then it cuts to black.
The ending is... I have tried and failed to get over my dad's death many times up until now. It's affected me all my life, and I hadn’t even realized it. But even if I fail, I can't just give up and let it take over my life. I have to try again, hence "Insert Credit". I have to continue putting quarters in the machine until I beat the game.
