Today we are shining a spotlight on Sage Absinthe Oatsmill, a multi-talented creator bringing inclusive avatar components, decor, and destinations to the grid! 

How long have you been in Second Life and how did you first hear about it?
I've been a Second Life resident for a little over ten years. I discovered it through researching virtual worlds at the time. It was number one on the "Top virtual worlds of 2012" list on some tech blog. I've always been fascinated by virtual worlds, MMORPGs, and other metaverse continuums. 

You have a store, Mura, where your creations range from unique food, to hair, and other avatar accessories. How did you get into Second Life content creation and what are some of your favorite items you’ve created?
Although I launched Mura in September 2021, I've dabbled in content creation previously. I launched two clothing stores - Chloe in 2014 and Audace in 2016. Since I needed to gain the skills to mesh and create my own content from scratch, I purchased full perm meshes of clothing and worked to give them some really unique textures. Unfortunately, I decided to close them both when I took a hiatus from Second Life in 2017. I came back in 2020 during the pandemic. After reacquainting myself with Second Life, I decided to learn how to make original 3D content. I took a class by an amazing creator, Mesh Kitti, which lasted about two months. I felt that was all I needed before launching my first original mesh product, which was the Jollof rice set. Some of my favorite items that I've created are:

1. Seafood party platter
2. North African Mezze Platter
3. Interactive Cocktail Set
4. Nigerian Buffet
The common denominator of these products is that they're meant to bring people together through food.

You are also an incredible photographer and machinima artist, along with being the Marketing and Digital Director for Sage & Crystals Magazine in Second Life. Do you have a background in videography, photography, or magazine work?
I have a real-world background in all three. Years ago, I worked at Cosmopolitan and Seventeen Magazine's editorial features department, among others. This experience helped inform my knowledge of the production flow of an issue. Currently, I'm a commercial director and photographer, working with fashion, tech, and entertainment clients.

After all of that, you also run Teranga City in Second Life. Can you tell us more about this destination? What inspired it? What are the different venues Residents can find there, and are there regular events they can attend?
It's a funny origin story, but I started working on Teranga while I was sick and bedridden from COVID in real life (April 2022), but I still wanted something to do to keep me busy. It took about six months to complete. I wanted to create a slice of my family's home countries (Senegal and Morocco). I never really saw a sim or community on Second Life that accurately depicted modern cities of North and West Africa. There's the representation of historical depictions or things like safaris, but that's not the actual reality for millions of people on the continent. I intended to create a space for everyone of all backgrounds to enjoy, explore and connect with the culture. In addition, I wanted to provide a hospitality destination with this same ethos, so I created Al-Mouna Resort, which takes up a little more than 1/4th of the sim. I custom-built the resort's main building and landscaped and decorated the sim with the help of my Second Life family members, Zoeynova Oatsmill and Zai Starchild, who are also phenomenal decorators and developers. 

There are so many things to do in Teranga. As I've stated, there's Al-Mouna resort which has a bathhouse, a spa and wellness center, a self-serve buffet, a beach, pools, and soon a MyStory-compatible restaurant. But, this is only accessible to guests that rent a room or villa. On the rest of the sim, which is open to the public, there's Absinthe Club and Lounge, La Galerie Mall, which hosts the Dancing Robot arcade, a food court, an apothecary, Lucien's Jazz Bar and Lounge, and La Tois de La Teranga, a rooftop club, and pool. There's a Souk (traditional North African market), a beauty salon, a cafe, multiple eateries, a museum specializing in African diaspora art, and Mura, my mainstore. We have regular events at Absinthe lounge, where folks can dance and enjoy salsa and Afrobeats music. Monthly, we've had Layali Troupe, a belly dance entertainment group perform, as well as Semina, a talented live singer.

Tell us about some of the other Creators in SL that inspire you and whose work you admire.
Many creators inspire me so much, and the list is terribly long. As you've noted, I dabble in various creative modalities, so I can attempt to categorize those who inspire. As a content creator, I'm most inspired by Lucas Lameth, who is a wonderful and talented creator and a kind and generous person. His work and artistic style are unique and some of the best I've seen on the grid! I'm constantly drooling over his mesh food releases. 

In the realm of videography, I'm most inspired by Sere Vene, who released their short film "Magazine" about two years ago. I was in awe when I saw this piece for the first time. At this point, I've only been creating videos for six months. Nevertheless, it was one of the best-executed shorts I've seen in Second Life at that moment. The way each sequence transitioned into another, the editing, the costume and set design, the animations, and the sound engineering all made it so extravagant and special. As someone who mainly focuses on music video machinima, all of those aspects are so important to capture effectively in a small period of time.

Where can people see your work? Please share links to your sites and social media accounts.
People can find all of my links through my linktree.

Watch this amazing machinima submitted by Sage.

Thank you, Sage, your work is truly inspiring!

Each of our Spotlight posts features a different Resident to showcase the spectrum of experiences and personalities found in our virtual world. If you have created something inworld that you’re proud of, or have had a deeply meaningful experience that could brighten someone else’s day, please sign up! More info here: https://second.life/spotlight-signup