We recently connected with Shannon Hallstein and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Shannon, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
Growing up, I was a quiet child. I wanted to have a lot of alone time where I could daydream and be bored to let my creativity flow. I had great parents, a good home, a wonderful sister which all helped to foster this time of growth in the arts. I grew up in the age just as cell phones were coming into the picture, and when the internet was just beginning to take flight, so the distractions growing up were very few. We had a craft table in our basement, where my sister and I would spend hours upon hours daydreaming, doodling, and just being creative. I can never thank my mom enough for letting us have that time, as I truly believe it is what has set me on the solid foundation to keeping my creativity alive and well. I think in some cases, when the passion hits you to pursue something, it is clear what road you need to follow and I’m thankful it was pretty clear in my case. Being mostly self taught early on, I quickly felt the pull to pursue the arts fully as a career, and spent many hours of the day sketching and painting traditionally. I worked on not only small watercolors but on large canvas paintings to keep the process fresh and alive, all while working on my foundations in color, composition and value. I had so much fire in my belly during my high school and college days as everything was pointing in one direction, to be an artist creating full time.
It was during this time that I feel I learned the discipline and work ethic it takes to be in a creative career. I think there is a lot of misconception around being an artist as easy or just a paid hobby, but it is so much more than that. It takes a lot out of you to continue to be fresh and new but also familiar at the same time with what we are asked to design and create everyday. Those design choices can only come from you soul and previous experiences in life. And you can’t come into work without a positive attitude or a willingness to keep learning, as there is always going to be someone who is better or more skilled than you in some way.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I feel very blessed in how my story has unfolded, I truly believe that God has been with me every step of the way. Becoming a full-time artist seemed like an impossible feat to me early on, as I saw it as a Everest-sized mountain to climb. I kept true to what I found joy and happiness in, which is the pure enjoyment of the process of drawing and painting and telling a story. I quickly realized with my first job out of school, that being an artist professionally can be tedious and can lead to burn out if not kept at a reasonable pace. By looking at it as a time of artistic and personal growth, I was able to get into the grind more easily and push myself early on to get to the next level. As artists, we should be looking to learn, but I believe there is an appropriate time and place to really push yourself. It shouldn’t be all the time as I have found it’s needed to have those moments of quiet and boredom where your creativity can truly flourish. My view of the artistic journey has changed as I believe it’s less of a vertical mountain climb, and more of a hike through valley and mountains. Even being very early in my career as a visual development artist and character designer for animation, I have experienced many valleys and mountains in my journey already. Not just from being laid off or project cancellations, but from life challenges in losing loved ones or family separations. These moments are all apart of the journey of being a creative and we can use these experiences to share and relate to others to create something that is truly human and meaningful.
What I find most exciting about being a visual development artist and character designer is that I get to learn about things I would have not taken the time on my own to research. I get to learn about different cultures and parts of the world that I can help create designs to pay homage to them so that they are best represented in this wonderful medium of animation. Animation is such an incredible way of storytelling as it really has no limits in what it can produce. It can be adult, whimsical, serious, playful and I feel we have still only scratched the surface in terms of the artistic feats it can display. I’m so incredibly thankful and proud I get to be apart of its history and help to propel this powerful storytelling method forward.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
In my journey of being in animation, I feel it has been has been the most beneficial to have the ability to adapt to change. Not only in how I’ve been asked to work in multiple styles, but in having the courage to change your situation and not be afraid of what might happen next because of it. Animation is an ever evolving medium, and that can be a good thing, but can also come with it’s challenges. I found I’ve only been able to really excel and learn in my journey when I adapted to the situation at hand and tried something new. Struggling with imposter syndrome can be the lead cause for fear in making those changes, and I am no stranger to that. However, I found that taking a step back and looking at the big picture with a positive mindset has helped me overcome that hesitancy.
I have also found that having frequent self reflection and check-ins with yourself can keep me motivated and calmest at those stressful moments. Taking the time, even if for a few moments, to rethink your process can help you to move past those obstacles in a more efficient and painless way. Going in without thinking can end up costing a lot more time and energy than is needed.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I love the process of collaboration in animation. To me, it’s the best part. Getting to be motivated and learn from your talented peers while you work together to create something that will hopefully touch hearts and share meaningful stories. I couldn’t ask for a career more fulfilling in being an animation artist.
If you would like to follow more of my work, please check out my instagram @the_blue_leviathan or my website to connect. If you have an animated project in mind, I would love to collaborate with you in bringing it to life!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shannonhallstein.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_blue_leviathan/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-hallstein-517257127/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/shnoobindraws
