Larissa Meek, a former model and actress, is an Art Director at the award winning web design firm known as AgencyNet. She competed in the Miss USA ‘01 and Miss Teen USA ‘97 pageants. The genre of art captivated her while watching cartoons and doing crafts with her mother because she couldn’t afford to go in for physical activities- when she was a little girl- as it could trigger her asthma but now fortunately, she’s free from it. In 1998, after getting scholarship from the arts department in St. Louis, she decided to take a plunge in 3D Animation. And then there was no looking back... scroll down to know how!

1. Who is Larissa Meek in flesh and blood?

Larissa: I love technology but it doesn’t define me. I’m an artist at heart. I may seem shy because I like to observe and take things in. I observe and create.

2. Who are some of your biggest influences?

Larissa: In life: My Mom and Dad, my grade school art teacher and God.

In Art: Picasso, Jody Hewgill and Walt Disney.

On the web: Veerle Pieters, Moxie Design Studios and Dooce

3. How was your experience with 3D Animation?

Larissa: When I was a child, I always dreamt of becoming an animator. After seeing ‘Toy Story’ I decided to study 3D in college but the timing was weird. I found that very few schools offered decent 3D animation programs. Software was costly and computers even more so. If only I had been a few years younger (*sigh*) - but 3D animation is what led me to the web. I created my first web site to showcase my 3D work and my modeling portfolio. I ended up purchasing a computer which was worth more than my car so that I could continue my studies. It is now obsolete but I still have it as a trophy.

4. After becoming the 4th runner up at Miss USA in 2001, you landed up at no man’s land hence, you launched your first website, as a way to promote your 3D skills, selling artwork and showcasing your modeling portfolio. How far did you reach in this attempt?

Larissa: It’s funny, because I was at a point in life where I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I could have continued modeling but I wanted to do something more satisfying- something with my mind. I didn’t have any experience in the web when I created my first site. I just wanted to make something witty and I didn’t care about loading times or compression... And um, the bandwidth charges were a bummer. Too bad YouTube wasn’t around back then to host my 3D animation reels.

5. Would you like to share your experience, which you encountered during the television show ‘Average Joe: Hawaii’?

Larissa: Wow, where do I start? It was the best and worst experience of my life. I feel weird talking about it because it wasn’t ‘reality’. I lived in a vacuum during filming. Everyone on the show became hyper- sensitive because their sense of reality was distorted. I had a blast, but it was difficult to watch the edited version - to see how the rest of the world perceived the experience.

6. Larissa, what are your other interests besides your work? How are you able to snatch out time for so many things? I would appreciate if you can share your working and lifestyle with us.

Larissa: I can’t sit still... I don’t watch much TV or if I do I’m on my laptop. This is my life. I love to learn and I love to create.

7. Where do you see yourself, let’s say, five years from now?

Larissa: I’d like to see AgencyNet change the face of advertising and for me to be a huge contributor to that movement... Mostly, I just feel really thankful that I get to do something I love. I look forward to going to work every day. I hope to continue being a creative professional.

8. Any parting words of wisdom, you’d like to give to our readers?

Larissa: You don’t have to know everything. Just be passionate and work hard. I think one of the biggest challenges of our medium is keeping up with changes in technology and knowing various aspects from programming to design - not to mention the various intricacies of Flash and Standards based sites... It’s a daunting task.
As long as you are passionate and have dreams under your belt - you can do anything.

9. Finally, we would like to have your thoughts on the Instablogs News Network and all its related sites. Which one is your favorite?

Larissa: My favorite part is the web 2.0 channel because of the variety of content and broad representation of the ambiguous term ‘Web 2.0′.

Some relaxing question to follow:

1. Describe yourself in one word?

Larissa: Observant.

2. What kind of music do you prefer?

Larissa: A variety - I like to mix it up.

3. What is the best moment of a day?

Larissa: Bedtime - I love that half asleep half dreaming state.

4. If given a chance, what would you change about the world?

Larissa: Our hearts - to be more ‘others’ focused.

5. If given a week’s holidays, how would you like to spend them?

Larissa: I’ve always wanted to visit Italy and see all that art and history has to offer.

Before signing off, I’d like to thank Larissa for sparing out time for this wonderful interview and would like to wish luck for all her future endeavors.