Today we’d like to introduce you to Stella Golden.
Hi Stella, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
When I was a little, my parents would buy me a bunch of science books meant for kids and I liked flipping through them and pretending that the dinosaurs in it were having conversations n stuff. I eventually started making paper picture books every single day about those dinosaurs and other things with their own dilemmas and resolutions. I made so many that there’s a giant storage tub filled to the brim with them! I think I’ve always had an affinity for making up stories and worlds ever since then. By like middle school, I had a group of friends that were really into drawing anime characters and they were all really good at it. I really wanted to prove myself and tried my best to get as good as all of them and it eventually became a hobby! I didn’t really consider that drawing could be a career until my high school art teacher mentioned ArtCenter College of Design to me. I went to their open house and was moved by the Entertainment chairman’s passionate speech about what he valued in design. I then took the Entertainment Design Intensive and decided that the Entertainment track was meant for me!
I’m still figuring out where I fit best in this industry but have high hopes for the future.
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’ve always struggled with getting started and staying motivated with new personal projects. I’m someone who tends to defer things telling myself “I’ll do it when I get better at __.” Of course, that doesn’t really work though because you can only get better if you do it and practice. There were also times when I didn’t really know what I liked drawing! I knew that I really liked video games and live action movies but I really enjoyed drawing more stylized. I only realized recently how much I liked animation and have been exploring that path now!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I have recently been switching over to storyboarding! For a long time, I was specializing in character design but wanted to be able to participate more when it came to the development of a story. I’ve had a lot of fun getting to make decisions in things like character interaction and interpreting a script in a way that’s different than the next person. I’m most proud of my work when I learn from my mistakes and have the opportunity to correct them. There are so many times where I’ll do something one way that doesn’t seem to be working very well and then I have an epiphany and a simple fix makes a world of difference. I also love when people are excited about my work and it motivates me to try something better than the last thing I did.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
I have learned how important it is to stay connected with people. I’m a homebody by default but when COVID started up, I realized how important it was for my mental health to have a group of friends to talk to. Social media is a lot of things but it definitely kept me connected to people and sane, surprisingly. I also had more time to think about what I really enjoyed doing as an artist and what I needed to do to be fulfilled. I think despite all that has been happening in the last year and a half, I have been able to grow a lot!
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.stellagolden.art/
- Instagram: _stardiac_
