Hi Justin! Thank you for your time.
My name is Ros, and I recently pivoted from a fine art + stem bg to animation. Eager to find work soon!
I’m currently in the development stage for my MFA thesis film right now, hoping to go into production soon. Mike has helped me flesh out my character designs through motion and gesture test prompts, and just recently we’ve been discussing the extent to which I drawing inspiration from specific anime sources. As an art director currently active in the industry, I was wondering if you had any thoughts, advice, or suggestions on the matter? Some faculty warn me that I may be limiting my “hireability” by opting for this kind of stylization.
Below are the kind of style explorations I’ve made so far:
And for extra context, my heaviest inspiration comes from:
Sonic CD Intro (1993, Toei Animation) + Sonic the Hedgehog OVA (1996, Studio Pierrot)
Yuji Uekawa’s Adventure-era Sonic (1999) + Ryuta Ueda’s work on Jet Set Radio (2000)
Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball (1984) + Hirohiko Araki’s Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure (1987)
The Powerpuff Girls (1998, Craig McCracken) Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt (2010, Studio Gainax)
If this isn’t too direct: do you think I’m screwing myself over by moving in the direction I am? RE: opportunities for employment next year as a 2d animator in LA
Thank you again for your time!
Happy to talk further via e-mail, on campus, or over Zoom — whatever works best for you : )
Ros