Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Casey
Hi Katie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m from the Central Valley, specifically a town called Modesto. It’s right smack dab in the middle of California, and it is quite literally the definition of “central.” I often describe my hometown as a fairly small community where cows and almond orchards are about 10 minutes away from my house. My town had a sense of community where everyone knew everyone, and I was surrounded by real and made-up stories from all generations of people I had interacted with. Stories have always been a major part of my life, and they made their way into my home through both sets of grandparents. I’m mixed, as I’m half Mexican and half Irish. Both sides of my family would tell me stories relevant to their lived experiences. For example, my paternal grandma had grown up in rural Nyssa, Oregon, and would often talk about her small brick house with her family of 10. She would tell me stories of some epic basketball games she would play with her team, pranks she would perform on her siblings, and frequent stories of her first home with my grandpa (The House on Myrtlewood). My maternal grandmother would talk about living in San Diego, being the oldest daughter in her family, and the traditional Mexican foods she would make with her mom. She would talk about adventures she and her siblings would go on, one being how they would ride their bikes down this massive hill and pray that they wouldn’t fall flat on their faces. The point is, that if a story was involved, and I was sitting, big-eyed, excited to hear it.
I’m the oldest daughter in a family of five; I have a younger brother and a younger sister. I like to think that being an older sibling also helped me develop this passion and general interest in pursuing animation as a career. I had to figure out how to include my brother and sister whenever I played with them growing up. My brother was a total sport, toy trains, nerf gun battles, and dinosaur kind of guy, while my sister was two and already talking about getting a boyfriend and playing with Barbie dolls. I had to think of ways to include the two and their interests without making either feel left out. I would make up stories involving something they both liked and hope they would both enjoy it. On top of that, I would also force them to make little plays with me in our living room to show to a crowded audience of our parents. I would make little title cards of the characters in the plays and which sibling played them. I was a very detail-oriented kid and would spend way too much time making the sets for the play with blankets, chairs, pillows and stuffed animals and leave them up for days, only for my mom to make me clean them up. From these plays, my mom has photos of us dressed up as a random assortment of characters, from princesses to pirates to dragons. I needed to make sure they both felt included and that their interests were met, as it was important to me and because I care so much about them. The same goes for hanging out with our family friends; I was the oldest and saw them as my siblings. Whenever we would go over to their houses, I would somehow convince everyone that we had to put on a play for our parents before we left. It would never happen, but I still enjoyed telling and living in a story among our friends. I just really liked telling stories to anyone that would listen; it was something I had expressed wanting to do when I got older.
On top of this, I found out when I was younger that I enjoyed drawing and would often create little books about the stories I would tell my siblings and friends from school. My mom had shown me these books not too long ago as they were stored in a huge box in our garage. They were poorly written in Crayola marker and had terrible spelling and grammar, but I was 5 years old and wanted to tell a story. Some were stapled together while others were hanging on by a thread with tape. The books all ranged from stories about dogs doing silly, ordinary things; one was about me going to Seaworld, specifically driving in a random Shamu car, and many involved animals on adventures saving their friends from ferocious beasts. I discovered a copy machine at my dad’s office and would make copies of my books to give to his coworkers and my family. I only remember writing these from kindergarten to the second grade and showing all of my friends what I had made. From this point, I wanted to be an author, but I really enjoyed drawing and wanted to do that a little more than writing. I didn’t know a career in animation existed, and I didn’t know someone could do visual storytelling.
I want to say I was in fifth grade when I was introduced to the internet and had some freedom to go online. I discovered YouTube, and there, I found other creative individuals making animations about shows I would watch, and I immediately fell in love with this idea of storytelling. I remember watching these in secret as I technically wasn’t allowed to be on YouTube, but I was always inspired after watching hours of videos. Here, people were telling stories about their own personal experiences or retelling an already existing story. They would talk about subjects that made me change my perspective and become more open-minded. I wanted to do this and contribute in sparking positive change among the younger audiences. I would create my own characters and write stories about them, telling myself that I could potentially animate something for them when I was older, as I didn’t have the means to do so then. In middle school, I realized I could be a part of the animation industry that created some of my favorite movies and TV shows. From then on, I wanted to go into visual development and story for animated media. I didn’t know what studio, but I just really wanted to help create something. I wanted to create something for the younger me and show her that all that time making little stories in her head was going to be something we did as a career.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I knew from a young age that I had always wanted to pursue a storytelling career; I just never knew it was possible until I was in middle school. I learned I could create movies or shows and even write them; I could pursue my passion and something I knew I would succeed in. I wish I had been surrounded by opportunities, friends, and teachers who encouraged me to pursue art as a career, but it was extremely difficult to convince myself that I should do this. My town wasn’t art-focused, and the general mindset of the older generation I was surrounded by was to get a good-paying job regardless of whether or not you liked it. Many classmates and some teachers looked at me differently when I expressed that I wanted to go into animation.
I had come from a high school and was present in a rigorous program called International Baccalaureate (or IB for short). The program was set up to help students pursue more STEM-focused careers. Little focus was placed on language and the arts, something that some students wanted to pursue but did not have as many resources and guidance due to the little interest. Many of my friends had gone to Stanford and UC schools; I had one friend who went to Harvard. Many of these people thought it was funny that I wasn’t pursuing a more stable career and was pursuing something that seemed “easy” to them. It was difficult to even talk about what I wanted to do as a career with my friends as I felt they wouldn’t understand or judge me. As much as I greatly appreciate these people, we all had our own separate interests, and it was scary for me to open up to them. I remember that during my high school graduation, one of my friend’s parents approached me and asked me what college I would attend and what I would study. I told them I would study animation at Cal State Fullerton. I think they had told my friend something negative after that day, as when I said that, their face looked disappointed, and they just said, “Oh.”
Going into college, I had imposter syndrome. I was surrounded by so many confident artists who knew exactly what they wanted to do. It was terrifying to me. I felt like a fraud; a silly girl from the Central Valley with a sketchbook that just signed up for something I wasn’t cut out for. It did not help that I was alone in a new environment with no one from my hometown. I felt anxious, and honestly, I debated whether this career path was for me. I found comfort in friends I had made my freshman year of college, people I consider my sisters to this day. They mean the world to me, and I can not thank them enough for being my family when I felt like I had no one. I would have moments where I felt like I was on cloud 9; I would be confident in my art and excited to see what I would create the next day. This would go in a complete 180 on some days when I just wanted to lay on my bed and contemplate why I was doing this. In the spring semester of 2024, I was rejected from our animation program at CSUF. You’re allowed to apply two times and that was my first try. As I smiled and cheered to support those that were accepted, I was hurting behind closed doors and I felt bad for feeling that way. I was at my lowest as so many people were able to get in, and I felt that I just wasn’t good enough to even try again. I felt that I would be wasting my time and applying again only for another rejection.
These interactions and general distaste for something I wanted to do made me rethink my decision. I get anxious and worried at times, and I feel that I would be disappointing my family if I went into a career that wasn’t as stable as other careers. My parents have done so much and have sacrificed more than I can even imagine. My mom had moved from San Diego when she married my dad and had worked as a PE and health teacher, juggling between that and raising my siblings and me. My dad worked tirelessly at a moving and storage company and would come home smiling, even if he was tired or upset with something that happened at work. I don’t want their hard work to go unnoticed and I want to succeed for my family. As the oldest sister, there’s an unspoken rule that you are the “guinea pig” of the family. You’re the first. Therefore, you can’t make mistakes, set examples, and must be successful for your family. I was worried that if I were to pursue art, I’d have the potential to fail and not be the big sister that I’m supposed to be. I would disappoint my brother, sister, dad, and especially my mom, which I
wasn’t sure I could handle.
All these emotions and pressures were building up to one question; “why art?” I think my dad was the big push for wanting to pursue something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. My dad works for a moving and storage company ran by my grandparents. He had dropped out of college to help my grandparents run the business and keep it afloat. Although successful, he was very tired and didn’t enjoy what he was doing. I would see my dad come home from work; younger me didn’t understand his exhaustion and his distaste for his chosen career. The older I got, the more I understood his situation, and I didn’t want to be in the same position as him. I remember asking him once what he would have wanted to do as a career if he could go back in time. He said he would have wanted to go into the National Parks services. My dad is a huge nature lover. That’s why I can look up in the sky and tell what kind of bird is flying by based on their wingspan; it’s because of him. After that conversation, I realized that I wasn’t going to settle for something that wouldn’t satisfy my creative drive and need to make something. I wanted to go into art 100% after that.
He tells my siblings and me all the time to do something you truly want to do as it’s something you’re stuck with for a good chunk of your life. I still feel anxious at times and face imposter syndrome, but I know that I want to go into animation, and I know it’ll work out. I’m so thankful I have such supportive friends and a found family at my school as I truly feel like myself around these people. I reapplied for the animation program this semester, and I’m happy to say that I was accepted into the program! That moment was definitely a reaffirmation that I can do this, and that my career goals are possible. It’s tough at times, but I know it is possible and I’m staying positive through the process.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a junior (3rd year) at Cal State Fullerton and a new BFA Entertainment Art/Animation program student! I’m also double minoring in Cinema and Television Arts and English. I hope to enter the animation industry in visual development, character design, or writing; however, I’m trying to stay open to anything. I mainly do charater designs! Much of my style is based on early 2000s animated shows with overly simplified human anatomy and shape language based on a character’s personality. I find a lot of inspiration from shows such as Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, The Amazing World of Gumball, Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, and Shawn the Sheep, as I enjoy the uniqueness of the environments. If we’re being honest, I’m a sucker for thick lines and goofy-looking characters which is why I love these works so much.
I was involved a lot in high school with ASB for all four years of attending, and I wanted to be involved in something similar when entering college. I’m currently the secretary for CSUF’s Pencil Mileage Club (or PMC for short). The Pencil Mileage Club is one of the largest art clubs on campus and acts as a resource for animation and illustration students to learn more about the industry while making friends along the way.I was previously one of the social media coordinators from the 2023-2024 school year. The secretary’s role is described as being “the heart of PMC.” I take notes during our weekly officer meetings and send out officer tasks following this, create the slideshows for our weekly member meetings, respond to emails, and curate the weekly newsletters to send out at the end of the week. It sounds like a lot, but I’m more than happy to do it and always try to help wherever is needed. I have the previous secretary to thank as she helped me understand the role and is a huge inspiration to me. PMC is a huge part of my life, and I don’t think I would be the same person without this club. I’ve made so many lifelong friends, and I always joke that I have a little “PMC-shaped space ” in my heart. This club is important to me because it helped me feel more confident in myself and my chosen career path. Being an officer just means that I can help others feel the same way and have security if they feel out of place, something I felt during my freshman year.
I’m also a member of a student-run animation studio called Pending Animation Studios. I’m one of the character designers and social media coordinators! Pending also has a little space in my heart as I’ve found an amazing group of people that I never would’ve thought I would find. They mean the world to me, and I truly feel at home whenever I’m with them. I’ve learned so much, and being involved in a team setting for an animation project is so fun. As a character designer, I helped create the designs for the main characters in our current project, LoveBats. I also do some of the clean-up animations and help with special poses. As social media coordinator, I help create designs for our Instagram to promote our team and film. We recently released a trailer for LoveBats and are currently in the post-production stages of the film. Fingers crossed it’ll be finished by January! Pending is something that I never thought I would be approached to join, and I’m so grateful to have been asked. I hope to continue growing as an artist and understanding more of what it means to be actively involved in an animation pipeline.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
My grandma would always call me weird growing up. Not in a bad way at all, my grandma has a funny way of describing things to people. I think she meant that I was a very creative as I was always deep in a pile of paper coloring non-stop. I remember in my living room, my mom had this really old computer and printer that she used for work. She never really used the printer, it just sat on a small table, but I always went to it to steal the printer paper to draw. I remember grabbing my big box of Crayola markers, getting paper, and drawing whatever came to mind. It was usually something to do with a book we were reading in class or, because I was obsessed with the Tinkerbell movie series, my friends and I as fairies. I would make little books with this printer paper, too! I would color on the back of some of my drawings because we would run out of paper and I just wanted to draw and couldn’t wait for a fresh sheet.
We had this ottoman in my living room, too, that housed tons of DVDs my mom had gotten from those $5 bins at Walmart. I have always loved watching animated movies like Monsters Inc., Meet the Robinsons, and Chicken Run, and the list goes on and on. I often watched Pixar and Aardman Movies and TV shows on Disney Channel and PBS Kids. It would get to the point where I would literally remember every tiny detail from every film I had watched. I would talk about it with friends and softball teammates, but I don’t think they were as movie crazy as I was. We had a running joke in my family where my mom would specifically quote this one random line that Mike Wazowski would say in Monsters Inc. that would always crack me up. It wasn’t even a major plot point, just him talking about his new car and wanting to drive it to work even though work was a block away. Movies were just a big part of my childhood, and that passion made its way into my little head.
I was pretty shy growing up, and I am still a bit shy. I didn’t have a big group of friends, and all of my closest friends moved out of town around middle school. I had also transferred school districts at this time, so I felt a bit lonely. I found lots of comfort in shows around this time. I frequently watched Phineas and Ferb, The Amazing World of Gumball, Teen Titans, and more. It seems a little lonely, but I would make up stories in my head about being in those worlds and going on adventures with those characters. From those, I would create my own characters based on little stories I had previously heard. I would draw them all the time and write about them getting caught up in stories and some of them have stuck with me all the way to college.
I was just a kid who liked playing outside, playing softball, and tried being outgoing and making friends. I would always come up with different stories to play with my friends. I had, and still have, a pretty vivid imagination and would often pretend the tetherball courts at my elementary school were little houses on big floating islands. My friends and I were neighbors who would have to jump to get to the other houses because that was more interesting than walking across a bridge. Every day I had a story that I would convince my friends to play during recess and lunch. They would range from playing house to zombie freeze tag to the playground being a massive pirate ship. At home, the stories would stick fresh in my mind, and I would eagerly grab my favorite stuffed animals and play the story in my head with them. Every single one of them had names, and I had my favorites, who always had a role in playtime. My all-time favorite was a little gorilla stuffed animal I so creatively named Baby Monkey. He’s never left my side as there are many photos of me holding him, and as I write this, he’s currently sitting on my desk. I guess I was always weird with my vivid imagination and my vivid memory, but these moments shaped me into the person I am today. Someone who’s just passionate about storytelling and creating.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kccadoodle.wixsite.com/my-site-2
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kc.cadoodle/
