Today, we will be covering cross-country ex-Raptors Zoe Luczaj and Daniel Kim.

Zoe Luczaj attended Magnet her freshmen year before moving to California. A shoo-in for best dressed at AMHS, today, Zoe is pursuing film on the West Coast. 

Zoe shares that, “I moved right before the start of Sophomore year since my parents got a job offer, so we moved all the way out to California. It wasn’t my first move, I actually lived in Orange County, CA before, but then I was in Columbia for a bit and eventually Charleston.”

Discussing her experience with the school shift, “I had a bit of whiplash coming to my current school, there’s a lot going on. Since the school is a lot bigger, it was a little stressful at first to figure it out. While it definitely doesn’t have the same community feeling I thought Magnet did, it had a lot of other opportunities. I sort of feel like I moved out here for a reason, because if I hadn’t gone to my current school, I wouldn’t have discovered my passion for film. Last year I took a Video Production course where you got to make short films and you learned a lot of the basics of filmmaking.”

Reflecting on her time at Academic Magnet, Zoe reveals, “There’s a lot I miss about Magnet, I always tell my friends about how much better the spirit weeks were there. The culture at Magnet is something I really miss too, everyone really supported each other. I am thankful for having less of an academic workload though since it has allowed me to focus on film a bit more.”

Talking about life in Cali, Zoe says how “California is a huge state and has given me so many opportunities. It’s really pretty out here, and not too long ago I took a road trip up to San Francisco to look at some colleges. I think Northern California is pretty underrated. People are really creative out here too, I’ve gotten into my local punk scene and I’ve gotten to go to some really cool shows.”

“For the future, I definitely know what I want to do now. Living out here and getting first-hand experience in the film industry inspired me to apply to film school, so I’ll see where I end up, but I really like Chapman University and UCLA since they have really strong programs.”

As a final reflection, Zoe shares, “I’m really glad I got to go to Magnet, I think it really motivated me, but I am also really lucky I moved to California because it helped me find my passion.” 

Thank you, Zoe!

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Next up, Daniel Kim. A more recent loss from the Raptor nest, Daniel was a faithful Raptor for three years before he moved to Vermont. 

Daniel contemplates how, “Vermont definitely feels colder than Magnet, both physically and figuratively.  Obviously, the weather makes it that gloves and sweaters are a necessity but my school just feels colder because everyone is already in their cliques.  At Magnet I had my set group of friends and knew people, here everyone already knows everyone and I feel like an outsider.”

Giving props to Magnet, Daniel discloses that “People definitely underestimate how good Magnet teachers are. Every teacher there is passionate about what they teach, and their curriculum actually seems to make sense. At Magnet, I wouldn’t seem to feel the classes drag out, but some of the classes here seem to last forever, but that may just be the lack of friends.”

We miss these ex-Raptors, and it has been good to catch up with them and their new lives outside the nest. To check in with more ex-Raptors, see who’s soaring at GSSM and see here.