Today we’d like to introduce you to Dayaan Scarborough.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Most people call me Dee, I’m black, nonbinary, SoCal native. I grew up in Pasadena and spent most of my childhood frequenting back and forth between there and the high desert area farther north. I always drew, but I didn’t consider making cartoons a career until middle school, at which point I went all in learning what I could through the end of high school. In college, I was hungry to break out so I did a bunch of freelance flash animation for random people, ran all over LA to network at conventions, and every so often I’d try applying for a fancy art college (none of those schools worked out). Two years after I graduated, I ran out of savings and had to find some steadier work, so I got a job in fast food instead. That lasted five years, with me applying for whatever art/animation gigs I could on the side. It was only late last year that I landed a studio gig working as a storyboard revisionist, and that’s where I’m at now.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Oh, not at all. I got a pretty frequent stream of rejections from schools, job applications, portfolio reviews… even standard retail work later down the line when I needed it. I really stumbled through early adulthood, as determined as I was. I managed to find help where I could, so I was thankfully never homeless, but I was close once or twice. Part of me knows I got lucky getting my foot in the door, but depending on your perspective, it also took a good ten years of hustle. I have to wonder if it was just that I wasn’t ready, or if it was that I just wasn’t getting seen or given a chance until now. Either way, at the least, it was because of the #drawingwhileblack hashtag that went around last year during the uptick of support for BLM that landed me my current job.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In the broad sense, I’d say I’m a story artist because I do a lot from storyboards to animations to illustration to get an idea across, but also I specifically just draw cartoons. I like exploring characters and their interactions, and I like displaying them in dynamic, colorful scenes. I have a lot of ideas in the oven that I like, but lately I’ve been making these big sweeping illustrations that I’m enjoying, so I’m pretty proud of those in particular and I’m excited to make more.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
It’s hard to say… but I think independent projects will probably keep at a steady pace, if not increase. It’s easier than ever to make amazing stories on your own. Everyone should do their best to support their favorite individual creators!
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: prodigalbeam.com
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/prodigalbeam
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/siphosomes
