September 10, 2019

Meet Bonnie Branson

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bonnie Branson.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Bonnie. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
When I was 38, I decided to start over. I narrowed down my life to its essentials, pretty much what could fit in my car, and donated, gave way, or threw away (ouch) the rest. I left a stable job and a nice apartment and drove from Massachusetts to California- just me, my cat, and my trusty blue Subaru. Before the big move, I was a middle school art teacher in a Boston suburb. I loved my job and it gave me a lot of stability, but something was missing. When I was younger, I always dreamed of working in animation and even studied animation in college. I got a little sidetracked in my 20’s. Getting sidetracked isn’t necessarily a bad thing- I loved teaching and working with kids, but I always told co-workers that if I ended up retiring as a teacher, I wasn’t being honest with myself. I have a passion for animation and I love painting and working with color and light. It took me a long time to realize that I was a background artist (someone who sets the scene in animated TV shows or features). Better late than never!

Let me go back a few steps- like I mentioned when I was a kid, I fell in love with animation— HARD. I remember my family and I routinely retreating to a darkened movie theater to see the latest animated feature. As soon as the studio logo would flash across the screen, I would sit, buttery popcorn instantly neglected, utterly mesmerized by the story on the screen. I was overwhelmed by the magic of the animation and the beautiful world the artists had created. While other young girls spent their summers at the local pool, vainly trying to mimic a mermaid’s tail, I spent my afternoons drawing and imagining myself as an adult, sitting at an animator’s light table. I read every animation book I could get my hands on, wrote to animators, and filled my bedroom with movie posters and drawings. I always knew what I wanted to do. When things didn’t quite work out the way I planned, it threw me for a loop.

After I graduated from high school, I enrolled in the Animation program at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Soon after I realized that I HATED ANIMATING. Thankfully, a professor noticed the background and character paintings I made for my student film. Seeing my affinity for color and the sensitivity to light in my work, she explained to me that I was a painter and encouraged to switch majors. I spent the rest of my college years in the Illustration department, learning to paint, and learning how to be a better visual storyteller.

For a few years after graduation, I eked out a living working nights at a production company. During the day, I spent my hours working on my portfolio and picking up a few freelance gigs here and there. Those years in New York, I was very lonely and lost. I graduated right after 9/11 and the economy was pretty bleak. Looking for opportunities to get out more and help others, I started volunteering at a local elementary school. I quickly fell in love with being around kids. I enjoyed being in an environment that buzzed with their activity and energy. In teaching, I discovered a talent I never knew I had. I felt a new sense of direction, so in 2005 I moved to Boston and enrolled Massachusetts College of Art and Design’s post-baccalaureate teaching program.

After graduation, I taught middle school for eight years. A requirement in Massachusetts is that you have to get your masters in order to keep your license. In 2013 I enrolled in a low residency program at Hartford Art School to get my masters in Illustration. In my second year in the MFA program, we had a week-long animation class. When I took that class it was like I came full circle. I loved painting the backgrounds for our project and seeing them help make the animation come to life. After that class I knew what I had to do. I am not married, and don’t have kids so what was holding me back? Soon after I graduated with my Masters, I moved to California to work in the animation industry.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
A lot of my struggles involve ignoring my abilities and strengths and trusting myself. Getting into animation is very hard, there is a lot of competition and you have to have a good relationship with failure. I’m still learning to accept that failure is a natural part of the process. I am also a cancer survivor and I still struggle with how cancer has effected my life.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m a background artist and concept painter for animation. Currently, I am a freelancer, but I would love to work in a studio and be a part of a TV animation production. I love all the different stories and visual styles that are coming out of studios right now.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success for me means having strong relationships with friends and family in my life while finding purpose and value in my abilities. If I can manage to balance my personal life and my professional life, and not just hyper focus on one or the other, to me that is success! (Still working on it!)

Contact Info:

Website: http://www.artbonnie.com
Email: artbonnie@icloud.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artbonnie/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BonnieBranson

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