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I was born Shainoor Karim Tejani, but people usually call me Turtle, when they can't pronounce my name. My older sister; Serena, nicknamed me. One day when I was very young, I used to wear these really cute green pajamas and would always get up and sing to the Turtle's Commercial "turtle, turtle, ra, ra, ra, turtle, turtle, ha, ha, ha, mmm, I love turtles". She said "Aren't you a cute little turtle" and it stuck. I was born on March 2, 1981 in Toronto, Ontario. I was blessed with a family who always supported me in everything I did. When I told them that being involved in the entertainment industry was what I wanted to do with my life, they were behind me one hundred percent. When I was 12 years old, I came across an ad in the paper, advertising the opportunity to become a movie extra. I jumped at the chance and before you knew it, I was in blockbuster titles like Chicago, Good Will Hunting and many others. I loved being on set, it was the greatest time of my life, only I wanted more. I wanted to learn how a movie was created, from writing the script to editing to finally seeing the finished product. Unfortunately, when I was still in High School, I had no idea that a program such as New Media existed. So when it came time to applying for a program, I applied for psychology since I had shown an interest in that field. However, my marks weren't high enough and I was rejected. Some considered it a tragedy, I called it a blessing. If I hadn't been declined I would have never known that it was possible to turn my passion into what I would like to be my career. Six months later, a friend who was attending Ryerson spoke very highly of the New Media program. I researched the program and the topics it covered and discovered a real sense of interest for New Media. I attempted to apply for the program, yet I had already missed the deadline. So I decided to take New Media courses through continuing education and I've been attending Ryerson ever since. I have learnt so much at Ryerson and it's not just what I've learnt through books. It's the teachers that go beyond the textbooks and use their real life experience that make being apart of this field so exciting. What originally started out as a minor certificate in New Media evolved into a quest for a degree in Image Arts with specialization in New Media. ..
