Creatin an Artistic "SELF"

Who am I? Who am I as an artist? I ask myself these questions a lot, A LOT! I don't remember much from my early childhood, but it seems that the things that are the most clear to me are the characters from Disney movies and other cartoons. I most distinctly remember The Little Mermaid! It was the greatest movie I had even seen, and though I was only 5 when it was released, I can still remember seeing it in theaters! It was the first movie mom and dad had ever taken me to theaters to watch and it changed my life. When it was finally released to VHS, I watched it every single day (sometimes even multiple times a day). I watched it so much that the tape became weak and some parts of the movie wouldn't play properly. I could quote the entire movie! But the most important thing was that I drew Ariel so much that I could even draw her with out even looking at a picture her. I identified myself with Ariel from that movie so much that at one point ( when I was 16 in fact) I even dyed my hair red to look like her. It seems strange now to recall that story but it is true. I feel that that movie defined me in some way that I can never fully put into words. Even to this day I still long to work for Disney. In fact Disney movies where what made me realize I could draw, and liked to draw, in the first place. They were how I marked my talent as an artist; how accurately I could render their likeness became a test to me. I believe that is why I love the human form so much. I never wanted to draw anything else and still don't find anything can hold my interest as well as a live model and dramatic lighting. I know that this strays from the original topic of ones artistic "self" a bit but with out that one experience I don't think I would even be an artist today. I know that now I am drawn to emotion and more importantly my own, I know that I have certain media that I really love; but I still think of that one movie every time I doubt myself as an artist. I feel that one experience shaped me so much that it would be impossible to have ever become anything else. I still am dealing with the personal and internal question of self and until I find that answer I may never make single piece of work I really like; but I know that I identify myself as an artist. I know that I do so largely in part due to that one event in my life. Yes, there have been others that have reaffirmed this pull to be an artist and communicate visually; but that is the one that seems the most self defining.