Rising Stars: Meet Isaiah Ferguson of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Isaiah Ferguson.

Hi Isaiah, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi! I’m Isaiah Ferguson, and I am an artist, animator and musician from and based in Los Angeles. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always loved to draw – in fact, I often got in trouble for it in grade school! I found doodling in the margins of my classwork pages far more interesting than any math lesson.

Although it has been a lifelong influence on my work, I didn’t realize animation was even a potential career opportunity until I started experimenting with simple 2D Microsoft Paint animations on Windows Movie Maker. Seeing a lot of Flash and LEGO animations on the early days of the Internet made me realize how accessible the medium was, as long as you had the right equipment and creative ambition.

I discovered my love of stop motion and mixed media animation through CalArts’ Community Arts Partnership (CAP) program. During that time, I completed an animated short film, “The World I Want To Live In,” which was accepted into the 2016 White House Student Film Festival in Washington, D.C. Later, I completed my Associate in Arts degree at Santa Monica College, where I learned storyboarding and color design, and then transferred to CalArts’ Experimental Animation program in 2019.

After college, I decided to become more involved with my local independent film community. Over the years, Silver Lake Shorts, Sethward’s Show & Tell Screening Spectacular, and The Great Film Club (to name a few), have been and remain wonderful spaces for me to network, meet friends and collaborators, and put myself and my work out there.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There are usually a few bumps along the road that you’ll encounter as a creative! The pandemic certainly has been a factor, and it directly impacted my own experience in art school. A big bump in the road right now is the daunting rise of generative AI, which is exacerbating the already dwindling job opportunities in the animation industry. It left me wondering a few times if I ever made the right choice pursuing this as a career at all – until I remembered that AI is only as good as what is fed into it. It can never replace true human ingenuity!

In a similar vein, I’ve experienced a little imposter syndrome from being turned down by some creative job openings. Rejection letters are not a reflection of your work! The best lesson I’ve learned was to not take anything personally, and to put my stuff out there anyway for the love of the game. I do what I do first and foremost because I enjoy the process and outcome, not because it satisfies someone else! Thanks to the rise of social media and YouTube, it’s become easier than ever to put your original concept out there and build a following. It’s eliminated the need to pitch and sell your idea to the big studios altogether!

Although I’ve been lucky to find a few gigs here and there, I struggled for a long time to find long term animation work. I now work a day job and do commissions to get by, but I make sure to keep grinding on my personal projects when I have the free time. I’ve built an audience mainly through social media and little animated vignettes, which have served as my gateway into the underground L.A. creative communities I now frequent today.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in mixed media animation, primarily in stop motion and traditional 2D animation. I work part time as a fabricator and visual effects editor at Apartment D Films in Burbank and currently have work featured as part of the Metro K Line Leimert Park station’s moving image mural, “Love, Leimert”.

You can sometimes find my films screening at Silver Lake Shorts, Sethward’s Show & Tell Screening Spectacular, Hot 30 Microshorts, The Great Film Club, Austin Walker’s Varietyville and Tomorrow! with Ron Lynch. I am also one of the regular rotating animators for Picture This! Comedy, a comedy show that features live standup alongside animation.

My animation work incorporates simple, warm character design and inviting, colorful environments (influenced by the likes of “Peanuts”, “Calvin and Hobbes”, “Thomas the Tank Engine” and “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse”) coupled with lively movement and funny visual gags. I try to emphasize timing and engaging character performance in my work as I want it to feel “real” to my audience.

I am most known for my stop motion animation – one video of mine in particular, “My Bologna” (a stop motion fan tribute to parody artist “Weird Al” Yankovic) helped to get my foot in the door of the indie film spaces I frequent to this day. I am currently working on an ongoing self-produced indie animated comedy series called “Chori Choo Choo,” about an L.A. based Afro Cuban food ordering and delivery service in the form of a magic toy train. “Chori” originally started as a mixed stop motion/traditional 2D short film I produced during my third year in CalArts’ Experimental Animation program. The first short episode of the new series is available to watch on YouTube, and episode 2 is on the way!

I have also been very fortunate to work with a few personal heroes of mine. I was once commissioned by Irish singer/songwriter Gilbert O’Sullivan to produce, direct and animate an official music video for his song, “Blue Anchor Bay”, from his 2022 album, “Driven”. The video is a cinematic narrative of a quaint, British trip to the seaside, directly inspired by one of Gilbert’s experiences in art school.

I frequently collaborate with friends in my community – one of my favorite projects I’ve worked on was “MEGASKULL”, directed by Jacqueline Medina and written by Brandon Scott Wolf and Jared Corwin. I fabricated and animated a singing brain worm that took control over a Manosphere influencer’s body. It was a slightly warped departure from my usual “cozy” work, but a fun challenge to take on!

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
For any animators wanting to make a show, I highly encourage checking out “Creating Animated Cartoons with Character” by Joe Murray (creator of “Rocko’s Modern Life” and “Camp Lazlo”). It’s a free and generously informative guide to the ins and outs of producing any animated project with depth, world building and memorable characters. I also recommend fellow CalArts alum Emily Brundige’s series of videos, “Li’l Toughy Academy” (creator of “Strawberry Vampire”, “Goldie” and “Pubertina”), which dives even further into producing indie work, seeing a concept through to fruition and building your own audience.

I’ve found having a separate past time or hobby produces a healthy life balance, and it doesn’t necessarily have to involve making art. I love going out to comedy shows and concerts, seeing movies with friends, and collecting model trains, comics and physical media – right now, I’m really into acid jazz albums! If you’re experiencing artist block, hobbies can be really useful outlets to explore until a new creative idea comes bubbling up to the surface!

My general advice in doing your best in life is to just be authentic and be kind to others, as well as yourself. Be easy to work with, and never be condescending or big-headed. The L.A. creative space is a small pond, and people will remember you from any interaction. I’ve learned and am still learning that unfortunately, not everyone you work with in the business will have your best interests at heart. On the other hand, there are so many potential collaborators turned lifelong friends you’ll have yet to meet! You don’t have to exceed your personal boundaries, but even in small interactions, a little kindness will go a long way.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artby_isaiah/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaiahbferguson/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@artbyisaiah
• Other: https://linktr.ee/artby_isaiah

Image Credits
Isaiah Headshot: John-Michael Bond
Isaiah Presenting at Show & Tell Screening Spectacular Photo: Lori Lusk Studio
Isaiah with Picture This! Comedy Group Photo: Ray Camacho