Sandra Navarro Davalos interviewed by Jenny Rojas-Sandoval
Jenny Rojas-Sandoval Why did you choose to do your animated poster on Immigration?
Sandra Navarro Davalos I chose to do my poster on Immigration because I feel like it’s a topic that doesn’t get enough coverage as compared to other issues such as mental health or LGBTQ rights and also as a Latina, immigration is a big issue in my community. Since my parents are also immigrants, it’s a topic that I want to learn more about while spreading awareness.
JRS Can you speak into specifics for why you chose to incorporate the butterfly in the poster?
SND The butterfly is actually a popular symbol to represent immigrants, especially the monarch butterfly. It’s used because monarch butterflies migrate and because butterflies are considered beautiful, it’s the reflection of beauty in migration.
JRS How did you go about selecting the images incorporated in the poster?
SND Actually my poster has a bunch of different images. I started with just searching up immigrant families because one of the biggest issues is the separation of families so I wanted to portray the truth behind it. The first image has children behind bars with bad conditions so it showcases the struggles they go through once they get here. The second image in the South American outline shows families coming here and it also portrays the struggle and effort it takes to even get here. Another image I used is for the background which displays a field since a lot of immigrant workers work in the fields once they get here. Aside from that, I also incorporated a journal entry from a mother who was separated from her child.
JRS How do you think people should spread awareness about these types of issues?
SND Although the media can be seen as a bad place for such issues, I believe that more coverage on this topic would allow for more people to get informed and I think that more content on social media helps such as this poster being spread to let other people know about what’s truly going on.
JRS Do you feel personally affected by such issues mentioned earlier?
SND I definitely do and I think that’s why I’m so invested and determined to spread awareness about this topic. I think that a lot of times, coming to this country can be sold as a dream but once you get here, it’s a different story as to how immigrants are treated and because my parents are immigrants, I’ve been able to witness how they are perceived in society.
JRS How did you select the outline for the images?
SND I selected the outline of the United States and South America. I kind of wanted to focus on South American immigration because it’s a topic that’s not discussed as much. In addition, there’s a general focus on immigrants from Mexico and Central America because I wanted to showcase the reality and struggles that South Americans go through to get here as well.
JRS What are some platforms that you would share this poster to?
SND I would share this primarily on Instagram and Facebook because they allow for animation to look good and because they focus on shorter video content. Therefore, people can easily share posts on their story which would allow for an easier share/spread of information.
Jenny Rojas-Sandoval interviewed by Sandra Navarro Davalos
Not being sold by the lies of influencers on social media, Jenny’s poster raises the question of what is truly being sold to us on the internet and how it can be dangerous to us. She uses a simple design with minimal components to portray her message. Jenny chooses to see past the commodification of dietary supplements from celebrities and calls for us to truly do research on what we consume from the media. Sandra Navarro Davalos
Sandra Navarro Davalos Out of all the instagram posts on the internet… I just have to ask. Why did you choose this Instagram post of Kylie promoting sugarbear hair specifically for your poster?
Jenny Rojas-Sandoval Um… I chose Kylie because of the controversy that was occurring with the Kardashian family. They were involved in a diet scandal where they advertised many dietary supplements to the public for their own profit and they were dragged for doing so.
SND Rightfully so… I keep looking at the background of your poster. The gradient reminds me of the one in instagram’s logo. Was that intentional?
JRS Yeah.. I did it on purpose because a lot of Instagram posts now contain influencers who have such a big influence on a lot of people. Because of the diet scandal, there were a lot of people who bought the supplements that were advertised. They were purchasing pills and gummies that actually harmed their body rather than helped them.
SND What did you use to have the words fly in and heart fade in? It looks cool and I think it adds to the impact since you see the heart first then the question.
JRS I used photoshop to have the words and heart fade in that way. I don’t entirely understand blender so I decided not to go that route.
SND What do you want people to take away from your poster?
JRS I want them to not follow certain trends or things from Instagram. Don’t gamble with your health. Don’t follow along with things portrayed on social media. It’s all very harmful and I want people to be aware.
SND Can you elaborate on your choice of the question, “Would you like?”
JRS I used it because the main reason a lot of these instagram influencers post these sponsorships and posts is because of the likes they would get. The text allows me to say would you support the message that Kylie is trying to give through her post like would they support the lies she is posting.
SND It is definitely a powerful question in this context. Can you speak about your studies and ideas for this project initially?
JRS The studies I did were mainly focused on mental health and I wanted to tie it to Instagram. I wanted to show mental health and its impact on social media but I went with dietary supplements because they have a correlation with beauty standards. It has been shown that a lot of Instagram users have been perpetuating the whole beauty standard and influencing their followers to feel a certain way and take action to look a certain way.
SND Why this topic? Do you have a connection to it?
JRS I primarily selected to do this content because I feel like it has a personal connection to me. Not only because I use social media a lot but it has also influenced me to feel like I have to look a certain way.
SND I definitely agree. The standards portrayed on social media have influenced the way I see myself as well. How can this be avoided or fixed?
JRS A way this can be avoided is to have individuals properly do their research before purchasing items especially ones that lead to health problems and also influencers should stop posting about dietary supplements.
SND Literally…. That should be something left to doctors and not people on Instagram. How would you go about sharing this poster and the message behind it with others?
JRS A good platform would be Instagram itself primarily because its platform that reaches a lot of people and promote it on different Instagram pages and share it to influencers who devote their pages to mental health and revealing and discussing the beauty standards perpetuating beauty standards.
SND What is your social media presence like? What do you use it for?
JRS I use social media a lot and I have an okay amount of followers.. I have around 2,000-3,000 followers which isn’t that great but I feel like a lot of what I post on Instagram are seen by a lot of people. It’s seen by a thousand people everyday and Instagram is the main platform that I use when I want to have information shared. I use it to spread information on mental health and ways to cope with it. And I utilize it as a market to sell my clothes.