The Creative Pursuit With Cartoonist Matt Smith | Run Your Life #103

In todays’ episode, I sat down to have a face to face conversation with educational consultant and cartoonist, Matt Smith.  Matt has a great story and is genuinely a person of the world. He is a third culture kid. If you haven’t heard this term before, this is what the actual definition is: Third culture kids (TCK) are people raised in a culture other than their parents' or the culture of the country named on their passport (where they are legally considered native) for a significant part of their early development years. As a young person, Matt lived in Germany, Thailand, and Malaysia. Having attended international schools, Matt was constantly exposed to a multitude of different cultures and experiences and it is during these very formative years when he began to develop an identify that was deeply rooted in a love of film-making.  After graduating from high school in Malaysia, Matt attended the Vancouver Film School then ultimately went on to get a degree in education.  Matt jumped right into the world of international teaching at the American International School of Japan which is located in Tokyo. From there he went on to teach in Kuwait as well.  What I appreciate about Matt’s story and what you will learn from listening to this episode is his ability to take initiative in his life and to follow his passions. As a very creative person who enjoys writing and story telling, Matt began to develop himself as a cartoonist in order to pass on his love of story-telling and creativity to young people.  Although he had a short stint in Cartooning school, he is very much self-taught. You’ll hear about Matt’s journey as a cartoonist and how he uses cartooning as a means to develop student’s literacy skills in the classroom.  Matt now travels and presents at many different international schools around the world.  He’s a man who continues to take action in his life to not only be his best but to live a life of purpose and meaning through his work.  Matt’s Bio Matt Smith is a Canadian/British cartoonist, filmmaker and educator. He has lived all over the world in countries like Malaysia, Japan and Kuwait. He currently lives in Glasgow, Scotland where he continues to create comics and facilitate comic workshops. Matt has taken his comics workshops to schools, comic conventions and art galleries in North America, Europe, Asia and Africa. In May 2018, Matt facilitated a panel on creating comics at the Vancouver Comics Arts Festival with fellow cartoonist Ryan Howe.  He is best known for his humorous autobiographical Smith vs Smith comics, which can be found online at SmithvsSmith.com, on the Tapas app and in the Comixology and ComixCentral online stores. You can also buy Smith vs Smith comics in book stores across Canada and the UK. Matt's comics typically focus on travel, the ups and downs of modern relationships, and the joys and frustrations of cat ownership.  Matt also appears at comic conventions across Canada and the Middle East where he sells his books and runs workshops for future cartoonists. While Matt is best known for his humorous autobiographical Smith vs Smith series, Matt has branched out to the horror genre, creating Gruesome Comics, horror stories written by Matt and illustrated by a host of international artists. Connect with Matt Twitter: https://twitter.com/SmithvsSmith Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smithvssmithcomics/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smithvssmithcomics Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.smithvssmith.com/about Themes Discussed: Creativity, Cartooning, Literacy, Purpose, Culture, Teaching, Gratitude, Initiative