From Sanming to Bloomington: A Career Journey

A 36-second animation of the six cities on my path so far, from my hometown in Fujian to Indiana University. It runs through one full day, from dawn in Sanming to dawn in Bloomington, and shows each city through its landmark and the details the city is known for. The animation was created with Claude Opus 5.5, written in code and rendered with Remotion, with its style inspired by animations on Prompt Motion. The six cities are the same as in the 3D City Landmark Weather Visualization.

The stops

• Sanming 三明, 1988 to 2007: hometown. Qilin Mountain and its pavilion above the city, in the forested hills of northwest Fujian.
• Xiamen 厦门, 2007 to 2011: BA in English Literature, Xiamen University of Technology. Gulangyu and Sunlight Rock across the strait, with egrets, the city bird.
• Shanghai 上海, 2012 to 2015: MEd in Sport Management, Shanghai University of Sport. The Lujiazui skyline over the Huangpu River at sunset, with white magnolia, the city flower.
• Athens 阿森斯, 2015 to 2019: Ph.D. in Sport Management, University of Georgia. A graduate stands just past the Arch, which by tradition students pass under only on graduation day.
• Baton Rouge 巴吞鲁日, 2019 to 2026: Assistant Professor, then Associate Professor, Louisiana State University. Tiger Stadium lit for a night game.
• Bloomington 布鲁明顿, 2026 to present: Assistant Professor, Indiana University Bloomington. The Sample Gates at dawn, with Little 500 riders passing.