Daily Inspiration: Meet Kathrin Eder

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathrin Eder.

Hi Kathrin, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I was born and raised in Austria. When I show people photos of my childhood village, they immediately associate my upbringing with The Sound of Music—which I didn’t actually watch until my late twenties.
My attempt to get into the University of Fine Arts to become a sculptor failed. It was devastating at the time, but it turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to me, because it set me on the path I’m still on today. I ended up studying Social and Cultural Anthropology instead, which came with generous breaks—and I traveled extensively during those months off.
After meeting someone from Los Angeles while in Spain, I decided to visit LA. I firmly believe the city chose me, much like the jobs I’ve had in my life have found and chosen me. I fell in love the moment I arrived: the smell of sage, the quality of the light, the vastness, the diversity of neighborhoods, the strong Latino culture, all the other cultural corridors and languages, street tacos, bike rides, curiosity—I loved it.
A year later, I moved. A student visa and Los Angeles City College got me started. I didn’t have a driver’s license, and I couldn’t afford a car, so for six months I biked from Highland Park to East Hollywood to get to school. I made a ton of friends. Eventually I got my first car—and of course it had to be a red convertible, Reality Bites–style. When my best friend visited, I added a Thelma & Louise bumper sticker for our first road trip.
Before becoming an artist’s assistant to two local artists, I hustled Craigslist jobs and even worked as a cleaning lady for a porn star for a while. I’d go four hours once a week between classes, earning $80–100, which covered my groceries. Eventually, the artists I worked for connected me with a production designer for an internship—and once I stepped onto a set for the first time, working in the art department, I fell in love. I knew immediately this was my path. I wanted to become a production designer.

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?
I think growing up is naturally bumpy; and when I say “growing up,” I definitely mean my twenties and thirties! There were bumps for sure, but I came in with a lot of positivity and a very healthy amount of naivety. Looking back, I sometimes wonder if I’d advise my younger self to be just a nudge less naïve and a bit more focused.
My path was shaped by many spontaneous decisions. That said, I was always deeply committed to doing the work and determined to make it. I wasn’t focused on making money as long as my rent was covered, which, back then in Highland Park, was a very manageable $750. 😀 I also didn’t have a clear strategy for how I was going to get “there,” or even what “there” meant.
What I was drawn to was meeting people, collaborating, and seeing how far I could push each challenge to make it the best it could be. Along the way, I had my heart broken more than once, made mistakes, learned how to own them, and felt very lonely at times. None of that was easy; but I stayed optimistic, and somehow lucky, which kept me moving forward.
After all, I was also living my own life and making the most of each day. One of the biggest hurdles for me was learning to be okay with saying, “I don’t know,” and finding humility, and curiosity, in that. Once I allowed myself that, it freed up an incredible amount of space for growth and action.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a production designer working in film, episodic television, and commercials. What I love most about my job is the opportunity to collaborate in building worlds that feel emotionally grounded and visually specific to each project. I enjoy working with space as my canvas, creating environments that feel right for the story and for the characters living in them. My background in social and cultural anthropology deeply informs my work; I’m always interested in how environments reflect identity, memory, class, and culture.
I think what my collaborators appreciate about my work is my commitment to realism and my approach to design as both an artistic and logistical discipline. I love the challenge of translating abstract ideas into physical space while balancing creativity with budgets, schedules, and large teams. I take a lot of pride in being collaborative and in cultivating work environments where people feel supported and inspired.
I’m most proud when I complete a project and feel good about it on all levels, creatively, logistically, and emotionally. When I walk away knowing the collaborations were meaningful, friendships were formed, and the work I contributed is valued. I’m also proud when the team I’ve built leaves the project with a sense of resonance and shared accomplishment. I’ve worked my way up, and curiosity, empathy, and rigor matter deeply to me. I care about the human stories behind the visuals, and I’m willing to do the work it takes to get the details right.
All of this has allowed me to work on a wide range of exciting projects, from period television series to genre films like the latest Hellraiser. I’m on the road a lot these days and have had the opportunity to live and work in places such as Vancouver, Wales, Atlanta, Joshua Tree, and Cuba for periods of time. I also work alongside my partner, which makes these journeys especially meaningful; we get to experience the work and the places together.

If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Haha, according to my mum, I was a cute, stubby little girl who could get very upset and turn blue crying on the floor if I didn’t get my way. I was a shy kid at heart and loved fairy tales, especially stories from One Thousand and One Nights. When I turned six, I asked my dad to buy me The NeverEnding Story. To this day I remember how proud he was that I wanted a book instead of a Barbie, though, of course, I loved Barbies too.
I had the privilege of growing up in a small Alpine village, so being outdoors and in nature all day was simply my childhood. I was afraid of boys until my teenage years and chose a Catholic girls’ school for junior high and high school, to the mild horror of my very feminist mother. In all fairness, I also chose it because I loved the architecture: a modern, minimalist building. Looking back, I wonder if there was already a calling there.
As a teenager, I was hopelessly in love all the time, I think I had a broken heart for a solid six years, which worked out perfectly given that I was a punk-rock, grunge teen. I did all the angsty things: reading Bukowski, Milan Kundera and Eric Fromm, falling hard for Brad Pitt’s early movie characters (Legends of the Fall!), and I was pretty independent early on. I also loved sports and was always biking, snowboarding, rock climbing and hiking. We grew up in very humble circumstances, and Im very grateful to my mum for all the opportunity she gave my sisters and I.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kathrineder.com
• Instagram: @kat_skills
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathrin-eder-56baa337/
• Other: https://wp-a.com/clients/kathrin-eder#narrative

Image Credits
Most images are taken by myself, my mother or my partner Sean Horan.
– childhood image: Anna Maria Eder, Other images: self