This episode features Director/Producer Ryan Crego who created the Netflix 2D animated feature film Arlo the Alligator Boy. In this chat Ryan shares his journey from story artist at Dreamworks to getting to create his own film at Netflix. You’ll also learn: *3 great tips to avoid burnout in animation *Ryan’s underlying motivation that leads him to new and amazing opportunities *Ryan’s version of success that drives him to create amazing stories Follow Ryan on Instagram: *https://www.instagram.com/creegsmamation/

This episode features stop motion animator Laura Tofarides, who is known for her work on Isle of Dogs, Early Man, Love Death + Robots, Robin Robin, and Kiri & Lou. In this chat, Laura shares how she went from a Runner on Chuck Steel and everything she did in between to become a super stellar, full-time stop motion animator. You’ll also learn: *What you need to showcase in your work to work on feature films *The number one reason to specialize in an area of stop motion *How to actively further your career in stop motion and become in demand ~[Sponsored Message]~ This episode is sponsored by HUE, makers of colorful, affordable USB cameras and animation software for creative teaching, work and play. Available from huehd.com and Amazon, the new HUE HD Pro camera features 1080p image and video resolution, a built-in microphone and LED lights. HUE’s funky, flexible, Plug & Play cameras are easy-to-use and they are compatible with any apps that recognize USB cameras including Discord, Dragonframe, OBS, Twitch, Google Meet, Zoom and many more. Visit www.huehd.com for more information and follow @HUEcameras on Instagram or Twitter for news, freebies and giveaways! ~ *Follow Laura on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauratofarides/ *Check out Laura’s website and reel: https://www.lauratofarides.co.uk/

This chat features Stop Motion Animator Lindsay Berkebile. Lindsay’s ten-year career has spanned commercials, televisions, and more recently feature film as she is now animating on Henry Selick’s Wendell and Wild. Tune in to Ibele and Berkebile to hear: *How Berkebile got her start in stop motion *The number one thing Berkebile did to move from TV to feature film animation *The show Berkebile is currently pitching Social Links: *Follow Berkebile on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/10secondday/?hl=en

This chat features Greg Franklin, Co-Founder and Creative Director at Six Point Harness Studios. Throughout his 20-year career in animation, Franklin has worked on many award-winning projects including the Oscar-winning Hair Love, Guava Island, and Cosmos with Neil Degrasse Tyson. In this chat, he shares what it was like founding a studio and keeping it running for nearly two decades. You'll also learn: *How Franklin turned a professional wrestling career into animation *The mindset that’s kept his business going for 20 years *The crazy backstory to how Tig Notaro’s Drawn got animated Social Links: *Follow Franklin on Twitter: https://twitter.com/greg_franklin?lang=en *Check out the trailer to Tig Notaro: Drawn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDC_ze4IQXQ *Check out Six Point Harness Studios: https://www.sixpointharness.com/

This chat features senior character animator Justin Weg who shares his journey into CG character animation. Justin has worked on films like Rio, Spies in Disguise, The Peanut’s Movie, and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. He is also a teacher at Animschool, teaching class 5 on character performance, and on the side he is a stop motion hobbyist. You'll also learn: *What it was like working at Blue Sky during the closure *What Justin did to get his first job in CG animation *The number one thing he tells his students to work on Social Links: *Follow Justin on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JustinWeg *Follow Justin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jweg/ *Check out https://tvtropes.org/

This episode features Story Arist Keith Baxter and Music Composer Greg Sims. Keith has worked as a director, songwriter, character designer, 2D and 3D animator, and story artist on previous projects like Flushed Away and The Croods. Greg has worked in television on Oprah and Dr. Oz as well as animated film like The Lion of Judah. In this chat they share the unique way they created the boards for Tom and Jerry in New York. You'll also learn: *How Keith made the switch from music school into animation *How Greg made his break from television music into animated film *The two biggest skills that have made them invaluable to work with *Find Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregsimsmusic/ *Check out Greg’s website here: http://gregsimsmusic.com/ *Find Keith on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keith-baxter-04223631/ *Watch Keith’s Cheesemonger here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-ZF2TRthfI *Check out Keith’s YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC01T3K5h0QJthJYh2uTJ8Pg

This episode features Create Director of Spire Studios, Ted Mathot. Mathot spent over 20 years as a story artist at Pixar working on some of their biggest films like The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille, and Wall-E. In this chat, he shares everything he’s learned to make compelling stories audiences eat up. You’ll also learn: *The book Mathot read that helped him move from Story Artist to Supervisor *The number one piece of feedback Mathot gives Story Artists *The secret formula to a boarding a compelling scene *Look up Ted on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ted-m-898a26169/ *Read Quiet, The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B004J4WNL2/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1 *Read Leaders Eat Last: https://www.amazon.ca/Leaders-Eat-Last-Together-Others/dp/B084D3XK1Z/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=leaders+eat+last&qid=1629238323&s=digital-text&sr=1-1

This episode features Marty Cooper, a feature storyboard artist turned social media animator. Over the years Marty has created pieces for Wendys, Nike, Will Smith, Rick and Morty, and even the Biden 2020 Campaign. In this chat he shares his journey from full-time studio work, to building up his career as a freelance animator through social media. You’ll also learn: *How Marty originally went viral with his animation on YouTube *The pros and cons of being your own boss *His strategy for finding success in his career through social media Social Links: Find Marty on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkNqSFUZ4XXuiJ8JWpFPs1w Follow Marty on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hombre_mcsteez/

This episode features animator and Ataboy Studios owner, Vikkal Parikh. Originally Parikh pursued a career as an architect in India, but realized working in the animation industry would be much more fulfilling. So, in the early 2000s he decided to make the switch and applied to SCAD. In this chat, Parikh shares the challenges of making the journey from India to the US as well as starting his own studio in New York. You'll also learn: *How to win commercial projects without compromising on budget *The secret formula to selling an ad *Where the future of animation advertising is heading Follow Ataboy Studios on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ataboystudios/

This episode features veteran Disney animator and current Creative Director of Story and Animation at Spire Animation Studios, Michael Surrey. In this chat, Surrey shares how he got his big break at Disney in the 90s, how he worked his way up the animation ranks, and what he learned about pursuing a lasting and fulfilling career in animation without burnout. You'll also learn: *How to make yourself invaluable when you’re just starting out *The mindset you need to get into to make a character perform naturally *His best advice for those looking to have a long career in animation Add Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-surrey-6525a234/ Follow Michael on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michael.surrey/?hl=en