Story & Lesson Highlights with Nina Hirten of Mid-City

We recently had the chance to connect with Nina Hirten and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Nina, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: What is a normal day like for you right now?
My day is epic at the moment – I wake up at 5 am, stretch, make breakfast for myself and the kids, and read/watch financial reports and forex charts. Then I homeschool my school aged kids and set them up with tasks to do with dad for the day before I head to the office to edit Grimsburg, the animated tv show on Fox.

After work I head back home and spend a few hours with the kids, and once they’re asleep I get back to work on clients for Oh Just Peachy Studios (my video production company), draw, and plan future musical or cinematic projects for myself until I’m ready to sleep.

It’s a long day but I love being busy and productive – and honestly it’s the only way that I can have my cake and eat it too!

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Nina and I am the multimedia artist known as DEROSNEC. I work as a film and tv editor as well as own my own video production company, Oh Just Peachy Studios Productions, which focuses primarily on servicing independent music artists in creating music videos, lyric videos, and concert videography – but also dabbles in short form video entertainment.

Currently I am one of two editors on the animated tv show Grimsburg, starring Jon Hamm, and working on about 4 other projects on my own time.

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
I used to believe that I was a victim – I was the fat kid at school, and while my family and family friends would prop me up as a talented kid, I never felt worthy of any of it because of the bullying. Initially, I sunk my feelings into my art, and it’s what kept me going. But after doing some deep self-work in my 20s, I lost all the weight and shifted my mindset from “victim” to “boss”. I learned that I am not only worthy, but that it doesn’t really matter what people say or think. You can’t let other people’s words affect your self-worth or your identity. You are you and your opinion of yourself is ultimately the only thing that matters.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Honestly as a Leo and and a natural go getter, the universe probably put me into that victim mindset in order to humble me. Today, I am a very confident person – I’ve always been confident in my talents and abilities, but personality-wise having a big ego would have gotten in the way of my success. Today I can step back and see my ego for what it is, keep it in check, and instead use it productively. This is especially important as an editor, because the main goal of my job is to be objective, and I can’t do that when I get in my own way!

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
The people who are in charge of the film and music industry don’t think that the craft or the art of the film matters, when in fact that is the most important part. Today art is commodified to the point of soullessness – and studios are afraid to take risks with propping up new people and ideas. They don’t know anything about the crafts themselves, but think that they can run a creative business in the same way that you can run a car dealership. (hint: you can’t)

Case in point: animation vs. AI. I actually personally have no problem with generative AI even though I choose not to use it except for very very certain circumstances. I do however have a problem with calling a startup studio “an AI animation studio” because AI lacks the craft that makes “animation”. Feel free to make cartoon-like AI generated films, but I have a problem calling it “animation” because it’s not.

Animation is one of the oldest forms of filmmaking – if it wasn’t for Edward Muybridge breaking down a horse gallop over a bar bet, we wouldn’t have any of the movies we have today! There is an incredible amount of study, practice, and craft required to be a great animator, no matter what kind of animation you’re doing, and as fun as some generated AI stuff can be, it doesn’t hold a candle to the detail, craft, emotion, and care that something animated by a human can create.

So go ahead and make AI cartoons, but don’t call it “animation” unless a human drew it or keyframed it.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If immortality were real, what would you build?
A castle to be the best vampire I could be!

Seriously though, I am and have always been very influenced by Walt Disney and what he built – I would love to bring back the craft and art of film and animation in the same way that he did.

After failing multiple times and getting ripped off like nobody’s business, he finally struck gold and built a studio which was unprecedented. His artists each had their own office, were in the same building collaborating, and he was constantly trying to find new ways to integrate new technology without sacrificing the craft of the art. He wasn’t always successful – there were some techniques that he was vocal about disliking – but the bottom line is that he did try it, and he did lift the craft to empire levels.

I would love to do the same thing, especially in today’s world – we need to bring people back to the real world: trades, crafts, hands-on work, and in-person collaboration for society to thrive.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://derosnec.com
• Instagram: @derosnec
• Twitter: @_derosnec_
• Facebook: @derosnec
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/c/derosnec
• Soundcloud: @derosnec

Image Credits
Bryan Beasley, Mel B