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Backgrounds & 3D
As a Background Artist I was responsible for creating the setting in which characters live and act. Another way to think of it: the Background Artist’s work fills the other 75% of space in an animated scene not taken up by characters. Background art determines the scene’s mood, lighting, and context. It is the primary support of character action.
Similarly as a Texture Artist, I painted 3D assets used either in background shots or as 3D animated components. To give a metaphor, a 3D Modeler could be thought of as someone who can construct a hollow box. The 3D Texture Artist can paint the box to look any way that is needed: like fine mahogany, like bumpy concrete, or even like dewy moss. As a 3D Texture Artist, I took flat, grey 3D models and convincingly painted them to match project styles and portray any surface required including worn metal, weather wood, or well-trodden tile.
Archer | FXX
Archer | FXX
From 2009 to 2023, the Atlanta-based animation studio Floyd County Productions made 145 episodes of a spy action-comedy cartoon that won four Emmys and left its mark in American adult animation history. For four television seasons, I contributed to Archer's acclaim as a Background Artist and 3D texture Artist.
Promotional Materials
Promotional Materials
My work with Archer extended beyond the television show. The image above is a promotional image celebrating the 100th episode of Archer and was used for a jigsaw puzzle giveaway. I worked in sync with a character artist to create the cake and frosting effect.
Background Artist
Background Artist
Working on the Backgrounds team for Archer taught me the value of collaboration. The environments for Archer are dense, atmospheric, and detailed. It would be an impossible job for one person with a single skill set to produce the types of Backgrounds we made. Instead, our backgrounds were greater than the sum of their parts.
The 3D team used models to capture rough compositions for each shot. We designed interiors, items, and lighting for those shots, and shared them with anyone working on the same scene. We worked smartly by reusing assets and prioritizing the focus of each image. Lastly, we made sure each delivery of backgrounds worked for the character designers and animators needs.
Best of all, I learned that collaboration shines brightest where my limitations begin. If there was a texture I could not capture, lighting I did not understand, or colors looked muddy, I was trusted my teammates to steer me in the right direction or tag team with them to complete the work. Learning to ask for help is a game changer.
3D Texture Artist
3D Texture Artist
There came a point of decision for me to make the leap into 3D art. I had never studied it and had never envisioned myself working in the 3D pipeline, but an opportunity presented itself when a need arose for a texture artist, and it made most sense for someone with a strong record as a Background Artist to enter the role.
I took the plunge from my discipline in Illustration into 3D, and the learning curve was steep. The jargon, programs,
and thinking were completely different. I had to look up definitions while reading tutorials and crawl through 3DS Max and Substance Painter. I'm proud to say I came out the other side as a Texture Artist who has contributed to 3 animated features and 2 video games.
The perseverance I found within while trudging through the alien world of 3D foundations has served me well in my quest for skills outside of my comfort zone including graphic design, UX/UI, typography, and public speaking.
Hit Monkey | Hulu
Hit Monkey | Hulu
3D Texture Artist
3D Texture Artist
With Hit Monkey by Floyd County Productions, I was excited to take part in Marvel and Disney's cinematic legacy. Scenes involving 3D animated shots required painted textures that mimicked Hit Monkey’s art art style which sat between flat 2D coloring and painted brush strokes. Assets were hand painted in Substance Painter, a program typically used for its procedural textures.
Seamless Texture Tiles
Seamless Texture Tiles
Seamless tiles are used to create repeating textures in 3D animated environments. For Hit Monkey, my painted tiles were used to populate city buildings and streets in 3D animated sequences that required dynamic environments that superseded the limitations of standard, static backgrounds.
Big Impact
Big Impact
The tiles I created reduced the overall time needed to complete scenes because they could be reused as needed and avoided a hefty lift from Background Artists. The finished animation was perfectly flashy, smooth, and fit within the established style used by the rest of production.
Designed to Repeat
Designed to Repeat
These tiles repeat seamlessly because I designed their entire process with this in mind. Whether using photo reference or creating an original asset, the files were set up to repeat and were tested before being applied to 3D models.
My time on Hit Monkey continues to influence my approach to art direction. Most notably, I gained confidence in my ability to learn new skills as I dove deeper into 3D texturing. This serves me when encouraging myself or others to pursue new skill sets.
I also grew from working in a team with diverse personalities and specialties.
My time on Hit Monkey continues to influence my approach to art direction. Most notably, I gained confidence in my ability to learn new skills as I dove deeper into 3D texturing. This serves me when encouraging myself or others to pursue new skill sets.
I also grew from working in a team with diverse personalities and specialties.
Aqua Teen Hunger Force & Slim Jim | Adult Swim
Aqua Teen Hunger Force & Slim Jim | Adult Swim
While at the Awesome Inc. studio in Atlanta, I helmed the design, production, and delivery of background assets for a Slim Jim commercial featuring Adult Swim’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force. A plain script gave light direction for what setting and action was needed. Conversations with the producer, 3D artist, and animator helped form a plan of action for scenes and timing. My work brought to life a memorable commercial that aired on Adult Swim and favorably cemented a brand’s product in the fandom.
While at the Awesome Inc. studio in Atlanta, I helmed the design, production, and delivery of background assets for a Slim Jim commercial featuring Adult Swim’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force. A plain script gave light direction for what setting and action was needed. Conversations with the producer, 3D artist, and animator helped form a plan of action for scenes and timing. My work brought to life a memorable commercial that aired on Adult Swim and favorably cemented a brand’s product in the fandom.
Background Artist
Background Artist
The backgrounds needed to be built from the ground up with finesse and time management. By reviewing the storyboards and script, I was able to break down scenes into their necessary parts and create an organized task sheet for the needed artwork. I worked closely with the other team artists to ensure what I planned fit their needs and would work as a cohesive vision. The final pieces were created via painting, photo manipulation, and mindful application of Slim Jim’s brand assets. As a fan of Aqua Teen Hunger Force, I’m forever grateful for the opportunity to contribute to its legacy.
3D Texturing
3D Texturing
Painting the unwrapped UVs of the snow mobiles was my first foray into 3D art. Interpreting the flattened models was foreign to me, but I was up to the challenge. I was able to analyze and conceptualize the model, and my experience as a Background Artist gave me the tools needed to create a fun and effective texture map that reflected the characters' personalities.
Big Grams | Adult Swim
Big Grams | Adult Swim
Big Grams is a collaboration between musical artists Big Boi and Phantogram with one song featuring Run the Jewels. The Awesome Inc. art team and myself produced the two music videos for the collab and ran them together as an animated short on Adult Swim.
Big Grams is a collaboration between musical artists Big Boi and Phantogram with one song featuring Run the Jewels. The Awesome Inc. art team and myself produced the two music videos for the collab and ran them together as an animated short on Adult Swim.
Lead Background Artist
Lead Background Artist
The project challenged me to grow as a leader. The vision was ambitions, the team was light, and the schedule was tight. I knew an intelligent strategy was needed to complete the project within time. Creative solutions were found after I analyzed the script, organized tasks, collaborated with the team, and concepted designs and art styles.
I used several methods in order to keep the project on track for success. When it seemed our output was falling behind, I observed my direct report's strongest abilities and implemented a tag team work pipeline that significantly boosted our productivity. Detailed communication with my Producer allowed us to shift scenes and timelines as needed. Reusable assets were identified thereby greatly reducing the workload. By working closely with the character designer and animators, I attuned the background art to stay true to
The project challenged me to grow as a leader. The vision was ambitions, the team was light, and the schedule was tight. I knew an intelligent strategy was needed to complete the project within time. Creative solutions were found after I analyzed the script, organized tasks, collaborated with the team, and concepted designs and art styles.
I used several methods in order to keep the project on track for success. When it seemed our output was falling behind, I observed my direct report's strongest abilities and implemented a tag team work pipeline that significantly boosted our productivity. Detailed communication with my Producer allowed us to shift scenes and timelines as needed. Reusable assets were identified thereby greatly reducing the workload. By working closely with the character designer and animators, I attuned the background art to stay true to
the music's dreamlike (and at times nightmarish) tone.
The final artwork is trippy and grimy, reflecting a dangerously altered state of mind and body. The two videos are run together as a complete animated short, and aired on Adult Swim. I'm very proud to have made this work which showcases some of Atlanta's favorite musical minds, Big Boi and Run the Jewels.
the music's dreamlike (and at times nightmarish) tone.
The final artwork is trippy and grimy, reflecting a dangerously altered state of mind and body. The two videos are run together as a complete animated short, and aired on Adult Swim. I'm very proud to have made this work which showcases some of Atlanta's favorite musical minds, Big Boi and Run the Jewels.
Other Projects | FXX | Pitchfork | Netflix | Adult Swim
Other Projects | FXX | Pitchfork | Netflix | Adult Swim
Even small jobs deserve big impacts. This variety of projects have blessed me with the opportunity to explore different art styles, overcome interesting challenges and work with great clients. As an art director, these experiences have served as touchstones for approaching needs with an open mind in terms of style, texture, and color.
Even small jobs deserve big impacts. This variety of projects have blessed me with the opportunity to explore different art styles, overcome interesting challenges and work with great clients. As an art director, these experiences have served as touchstones for approaching needs with an open mind in terms of style, texture, and color.
Background Artist
Background Artist
These are selected backgrounds for The Get Down on Netflix, The Lonely Island on Pitchfork, and a Schick razor ad. I met the unique needs of these projects by providing library assets for my art team, working from photo reference, drawing compositions from the ground up, and delivering finished backgrounds for animation.
Of these, the work for The Get Down was fascinating. The live action show had sequences that transitioned into animation to depict the main character's rich, artistic imagination. It was an engaging challenge to translate the live action film sets into expressive, lived-in background paintings.
These are selected backgrounds for The Get Down on Netflix, The Lonely Island on Pitchfork, and a Schick razor ad. I met the unique needs of these projects by providing library assets for my art team, working from photo reference, drawing compositions from the ground up, and delivering finished backgrounds for animation.
Of these, the work for The Get Down was fascinating. The live action show had sequences that transitioned into animation to depict the main character's rich, artistic imagination. It was an engaging challenge to translate the live action film sets into expressive, lived-in background paintings.
Concept Artist
Concept Artist
Adult Swim's Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell uses actors on limited sets combined with 3D environments to create a world of a literal corporate hellscape.
As a concept artist I designed environments based on script descriptions, then spliced in the actors and set pieces to ensure the movements and story were properly supported. These concepts were shared with stakeholders and used by the team's 3D artist to create finished environments for the television series. The artwork I crafted filled a critical step between written script and the 3D artist's final rendering. My work found creative solutions that appropriately fit the fantastical setting and gave the rest of the team what it needed to complete its episodes.
Adult Swim's Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell uses actors on limited sets combined with 3D environments to create a world of a literal corporate hellscape.
As a concept artist I designed environments based on script descriptions, then spliced in the actors and set pieces to ensure the movements and story were properly supported. These concepts were shared with stakeholders and used by the team's 3D artist to create finished environments for the television series. The artwork I crafted filled a critical step between written script and the 3D artist's final rendering. My work found creative solutions that appropriately fit the fantastical setting and gave the rest of the team what it needed to complete its episodes.
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