Today we’d like to introduce you to Dara Insixiengmay
Dara, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Despite being a full-time artist now, I spent my childhood as a regular academic with a love for math. I could swear I’d be a mathematician in another life! Regardless, I still had a love for the arts as a kid- growing up with plenty of exposure to animation, playing multiple instruments, and drawing a lot! At this point, I never thought about pursuing it as a serious career.
It wasn’t until I had a life-changing opportunity as a high school sophomore where I passed my fine arts audition for the Governor’s School for the Arts program, a multi-disciplinary art enriching summer camp hosted for free by the state of WV. I spent 3 weeks with unconditional access to free art materials and teaching while being surrounded by like-minded talented peers. It was the perfect exploration I needed that gave me the desire to continue that passion into adulthood, and so began my journey into animation.
Ultimately, I was drawn to the Savannah College of Art and Design, where I studied under their animation program. I gained foundational 3D skills with access to supportive professors (namely Thomas Meseguer) and some of the most talented and awe-inspiring friends and collaborators I know to date. It was also here that I learned about rigging, my current specialization, as a discipline and how it perfectly combined the artistic and logical mathematical sides of my brain into one skill.
From college, I continued the momentum into my first ever job as a 3D artist and animator with Tender Claws, an experimental VR games and arts studio based in Los Angeles. Despite not having game development experience, the studio took me in and taught me so much on the job. Eventually, I got to ship my first title in games, “Stranger Things: VR,” a virtual reality game based on the hit Netflix television franchise, Stranger Things.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Even though I cleared the hurdle of securing a job in the general entertainment industry, I definitely had struggles of burnout, lack of motivation, and regaining passion as an artist, which I’m sure is an all-too-familiar feeling to folks in my field. While I don’t regret all the hard work and late nights in my senior year of college, I was left feeling entirely exhausted and I had only 3 days to “rest” in-between graduating to starting a job that I had almost no experience in (which in itself was another struggle).
Outside of my work hours, it was more evident that I was battling with burnout. I had enough energy to finish tasks on the clock, but I couldn’t stay at my desk past work. I lost the passion to do any personal projects or to even draw again without it feeling like a chore. So I took a long break from creating outside of work, mostly by resting and enjoying life. Only this year, I was finally able to come back better and refreshed while reconnecting with my passion for making films again.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a 3D artist and filmmaker with a specialization in 3D rigging, which in simplest terms is a skill in the 3D animation pipeline that turns a 3D model into a puppet for animators to manipulate. However, due to my previous job as a 3D generalist, I’ve found myself enjoying all aspects of animation more recently such as in modeling, animating, drawing, experimenting with look development, and more.
My work showcases a unique experimentation of mix media and techniques, particularly with a focus in 3D animation with a 2D look and sensibilities. Especially as a rigger, my goal in all that I create is to push stylistic aesthetics beyond the boundaries of 3D through the deformations and setups I build. That tends to lead to flexible cartoony rigs for animators to go wild with!
In terms of works that I’m personally proud of… my senior thesis, Pirate Lesson, directed by my good friend and creative partner Sofia Azpe, is a project that still makes me proud to this very day. I spent a lot of time developing and experimenting with the look development of the film, trying to closely hone in on Sofia’s 2D art style. Having a focused art direction led us to a stronger look where our team combined different techniques for a mixed 2D/3D painterly look! And I’m grateful we got to do our film justice with a successful festival run where it screened at 40+ different festivals and won several awards!
What are your plans for the future?
I’ve always had a long-term goal to work on an animated feature film and to see my name one day in the credits of a theater screening. However, in this turbulent time for the entertainment industry, I’m not entirely sure where my career will be headed… but I’m ready to ride it out and see where I’ll go. Regardless, I want to be making films so in my immediate future- I plan to be creating more with the collaboration of my wonderful and talented friends!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://dinxie.carrd.co/
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/dinxie_
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/dinxie_
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCqnTn-lcOSeF4ONO4Ken2Q
- Other: https://bsky.app/profile/dinxie.bsky.social
