My passion for drawing and creating began at a young age, with a steady diet of cartoons, movies, video games, and comics throughout my childhood. My need to create only grew stronger overtime, and stayed with me all the way to high school. It was around my junior year when I got more serious about making a career in art.
After graduating high school, I started Community College. This was where I got a large sample platter of different art-related courses, along with GE courses that would greatly shape my own personal views. It was a very well-rounded life experience that I will never forget.
Once I got my Associates degree, I transferred to Woodbury University, and majored in Animation. Here I learned what I was good at, what to improve on, and what I gravitated towards most as an artist. Another valuable experience that helped shape me as a person.
After graduating with a BFA in Animation, I then interned at a stop motion animation studio called Bix Pix Entertainment. It was here that I learned various post VFX skills for TV production, and met many experienced and hard-working artists in the industry.
Since my internship, I’ve been doing various forms of hustling and networking. Some of which include reaching out to studios, interning/volunteering at different studios/events/galleries, and working both seasonal and freelance jobs. In between all of this, I’ve continued working on my craft and exploring my own artistic interests by experimenting with different mediums, such as Stop Motion, 2D Animation, VFX, and both digital and traditional Illustration.
One place I visited most frequently was a different stop motion studio called Open the Portal. I’ve attended each of their live events for about two years, and connected with many artists and non-artists alike. One of the most notable events was a show called ‘Lets Watch Messed Up Cartoons.’ I helped set up and clean up for the show a few times, and created two animated shorts for the show back in 2019. I also got to work with Open the Portal on an Adult Swim ad at the start of 2020.
Since the Pandemic hit, I haven't been socially public, but that hasn’t stopped me from networking online. I am still applying/reaching out to different studios, attending virtual events, talking with more artists, doing more freelance work, and working remotely on both collaborations and personal projects.
My career has barely started, but it feels like I’ve been through so much already. Knowing this excites me for what lies ahead for my future goals and opportunities.
