Meet Brent Clouse, Atlanta-based 2D Designer & Animator.
This week we talk to Brent Clouse, the popular designer, animator and illustrator behind many of the delightful animations for companies including: MailChimp, Intercom, Slack, Dropbox and Vox Media, among others. With a diverse background in writing, video production and animation, Brent works in a variety of styles to produce engaging content to help elevate brands. This week we chat with Brent about his beginnings, his process, managing clients, and what success means to him.
Sandip: Let’s start from the beginning, where are you from?
Brent: I grew up outside of Indianapolis, Indiana. I attended Taylor University where I majored in media communication and English writing. During my senior year, I spent a semester out in Los Angeles doing a film program.
Sandip: How’d you like Los Angeles? Is that what helped you catch the “bug”?
Brent: I loved Los Angeles! In total I was there only about 7 months, since I needed to return to Indiana to finish my degree and graduate, but I considered moving back until I began finding opportunities in Georgia. At the time, LA seemed like a wonderland to me; I was 21 having grown up in the suburban midwest, and even seeing billboards for movies along the highway was oddly magical. It definitely had an aura of “this is a city where everything’s happening!” But at the same time, the internship I was in was burning me out pretty quickly. I was mostly answering phone calls at a producer’s office and dealing with always-angry people. I wanted to be involved in movie-making, but speeding through Beverly Hills to get lunch for my boss each day wasn’t scratching that itch. And most everyone I knew in town was running a similar race and always in a hustle mode. I think at the time I was trying to find what inspired me creatively, but all I had known was office work… so I felt stuck. When my semester ended and I was packing my car, I remember being okay with the possibility of never returning to LA for work. I’ve gone back a few times since then, and I have to say, it’s a lot better visiting and having no desire to work in Hollywood.
Sandip: I completely understand. Growing up, would your parents say your current career choice makes sense based on what you were into?
Brent: This may be a common story, but I was one of those kids whose parents thought they would be an engineer because they loved building with Lego blocks. My father’s background was in engineering, so I grew up thinking that was a possible career direction until about high school (when mathematics starting giving me some trouble). Looking back, I can see playing with Legos was more of an outlet for imagination, and less about understanding how things worked at a technical level. So I gave up the engineering dream pretty quickly. My other hobby (much to my parents’ chagrin) was video games, particularly role-playing and adventure games. So again, stuff that sparked my imagination.
I attribute this somewhat to being an American midwest thing, but I grew up mostly unaware of creative industry jobs being viable career options. I lived in a suburb where everyone’s dad was climbing a corporate ladder in some capacity, so it was easy to think that was what you had to do once you entered the working world. It was only after my brief stint in Los Angeles, and later after moving to Atlanta, that avenues for design, video and animation jobs became more apparent.
Sandip: What was your first job in design or animation?
Brent: My first job was in video editing and shooting actually, but that occasionally allowed for opportunities to design graphics and titles. I distinctly remember one project where I was way more invested in how the lower-third name cards looked rather than the editing or color grading, and that was probably when I began considering working as a motion designer. Conveniently, I guess, the video studio I was working for decided to split up shortly after I became full time, and I found myself working as a freelancer not by my choice. During this time I was trying to cast a wide net by offering video production and animation to local Atlanta clients.
The biggest lesson I learned from this season is that there isn’t a substitute for passion. Sounds like a self-help blog, perhaps, but I really believe it’s true. During the year after I lost my job, I really doubled down on learning new things. Designing and animating felt like pure creation, and I knew I had to invest a lot of hours if I wanted to get traction as a freelancer, but all the while I was having a lot of fun. In a way it felt like playing with Legos again.
Sandip: You illustrate and animate. How’d you learn both? If you had to pick, which would you say you’re the best at and which would you say you enjoy the most?
Brent: Working as an animator was the natural result of having interest in both illustration and video production. In many ways I think one reinforces the other. From an execution standpoint, I knew how to use video editing software from college, and I had picked up some Illustrator and Photoshop experience during some internships. Making the jump into After Effects wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be.
Illustration or animation… I’m not sure what I’m better at honestly. There’s days where I enjoy one over the other, and then there’s days where I enjoy project managing and taking client calls more than everything else. I seem to flip-flop depending on the job I’m working on.
Sandip: What tips would you give another illustrator that’s interested in learning animation?
Brent: I’d suggest starting small by animating an illustration into a short looping gif. Short projects like these are great exercises in personal development. They also get you tackling different problems on a frequent basis, which I think is one of the best ways to be self-taught.
Sandip: Do you shoot too? Ever wanted to get into 3D or live action work?
Brent: Not much anymore! A few years ago I ended up selling a lot of my video production gear to buy a Wacom tablet instead. I don’t particularly have a desire to dive into live action compositing, but 3D is something I’m testing the waters right now.
Sandip: So since you mentioned gear. What kind of gear and tools do you use daily now?
Brent: When I was still shooting video regularly, I was shooting on a Canon DSLR, which was kind of this hot item back then. You could get shallow depth of field, which seemed to be all it took to be a considered a good videographer. I remember having clients asking for blurry backgrounds, which is so funny to me now. Again, the video and film bug was short-lived for me. I thankfully never accumulated a ton of camera and lighting gear, and was able to sell nearly all my stuff to help fund a new computer. Today my work setup is so minimal comparatively. I work off an iMac or a MacBook when I need to be portable, and I use a Wacom Intuos Pro tablet.
Sandip: You’ve worked on all sorts of successful projects, both big and small. Do you have any tips that you believe help ensure success on those projects?
Brent: Great question! I think having a strong relationship with the client is the first step towards a project being successful. Trust is very important — not to make this sound like you’re dating your client! But there’s some truth to it for sure. Understanding how your responsibilities pair with your client’s is the first step towards this, and is something I try to define at a project’s outset before any sketches or mood boards are made.
Sandip: You have experience working at agencies and on your own. What was the hardest thing about making the switch? Do you have a preference?
Brent: I personally like juggling agency work alongside projects I’m producing individually. The hardest part about working solo with a client — without an agency in the middle — is that you immediately take on multiple roles, sometimes all the roles if you choose to not bring on additional help. This can be great, but personally I’ve had to work at juggling two modes of thinking: project management and the creative. Perhaps this is because the tasks are requiring two different sides of your brain? I’m not sure how much truth there is to that theory! Lots of times I choose to split tasks up and only work in one area a day. For instance, I’ll make Monday all about admin work, emails, budgeting, etc.., and then Tuesday I’ll set aside the entire day for illustration or animation.
Sandip: Do you have a favorite project to date?
Brent: That’s tough. I recently finished directing a video for a company that develops biotech instrumentation products. That sounds very technically intense, but in this case it turned out to be a lot of fun because we were appealing to the brewery and restaurant industries. This opened up the chance to use a midcentury cartoon approach to the art direction. This was also a huge collaboration win for everyone involved; I worked with Andrew Kolb on illustration, Josh Watkins on animation, and Wesley Slover on sound design, and their talents opened up so many creative possibilities. Handing off responsibilities to the experts allowed me to lean more into director and producer responsibilities on this one, which were really fulfilling creatively for me. I was also able to focus more on working with the client to manage expectations and keep things on schedule. Overall, it was a very fun and successful experiment in managing a team remotely.
Sandip: Sounds super fun! So like the project you mentioned above, you’ve worked lots of interesting projects and for the likes of MailChimp, Slack, Dropbox and others. How’d you land those projects?
Brent: Much of my recent animation work has been for SaaS companies, and I owe a lot of those connections to Justin Pervorse, who currently works at Intercom in San Francisco. In a funny way, I’ve hopped around with him as he’s worked at different companies. He’s been responsible for me getting work with MailChimp, Dropbox, and Intercom. So, thanks Justin!
With that said, personal connections is how I’ve landed many of my projects. Internet presence can be helpful with finding new leads, but I believe word of mouth is better, particularly in the long run. It puts a name and a face with those you work with, and it shrinks the industry down to a more personal level.
Sandip: I’m a fan of Justin’s work! Do you have any advice that you would give your 20 year-old self?
Brent: This maybe spills over into other areas of life, but a lesson that’s really stuck with me is that there isn’t a formula for all this — particularly with careers in freelance industries. There isn’t one path for success that works for every person and situation. Hopefully this is read as an encouragement! It’s easy to anticipate that by X date you’ll be in X job at an X company in X city, but lately I’ve learned to loosen my grip on expectations. This doesn’t mean not having a plan for the future, but I think freelancers can easily fall into the trap of associating their career and creative output with their self-worth — and that’s anxiety I really wish I could have spared my 20 year-old self from. At the end of the day, I think the best we can do is to define “success” as doing the best you can do with the abilities you have.
“There isn’t one path for success that works for every person and situation. At the end of the day, I think the best we can do is to define “success” as doing the best you can do with the abilities you have.”
Sandip: Do you have a person, place or a thing that keeps you inspired?
Brent: Travel seems to help me get out of creative ruts, even when it’s short distance or a hop over to another state. I recently went to Yellowstone National Park just to get away for a few days, and that helped me detach from work just long enough to come back home and jump back into projects.
Apart from traveling, I get a lot of inspiration from video games, particularly games that require you to problem solve or think strategically about a situation. That sort of player agency seems to get creative juices flowing in new ways for me.
Sandip: Fun!You’re based out of Atlanta, Georgia. What do you love most about living in ATL? If someone was visiting for a few days, what would be a few of your must-do, must-see, must-eat places?!
Brent: I’ll go on record and say Atlanta has the best food in the country. Sure, I’m probably biased. Atlanta’s local restaurant scene is very competitive, but that means as a consumer you have excellent options in just about every neighborhood. My favorite place is Ticonderoga Club, located in Inman Park along the Atlanta Beltline.
Sandip: Bold words Brent, but I love the local pride! Do you have a favorite book or podcast (or both)?
Brent: I must have a thing for longterm investments with the books I read. I recently began Karl Ove Knausgaard’s multivolume memoir, ‘My Struggle’, and it’s been excellent so far. When I’m not chiseling away at that, I’ll pick up a fantasy novel from Brandon Sanderson. Those books are easily a thousand pages each. Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive series is fantastic, and when a new book comes out everything else gets puts on hold until I finish it.
Sandip: What are you listening to these days? Do you have a favorite artist or band?
Brent: I’m really enjoying the new album by The National, and there’s also a new Rostam album that’s pretty amazing. And 2017 was the year I finally became a Kendrick fan. It’s hard to pick a favorite, but I’ll say Sufjan Stevens has been the artist I’ve consistently followed the longest. I was a fanboy back during the banjo years, and his recent work and collaborations have been very impressive.
Sandip: Last question. Do have any daily routines? Things you do every day?
Brent: Just coffee and quiet time in the mornings mostly! I’ve gotten into the habit of listening to podcasts in the shower.
Thanks so much for reading! Each week our team publishes an interview with a designer, illustrator, filmmaker, animator or artist that inspire us. A big thank you to Brent Clouse for taking the time to chat with us! You can see more of Brent’s work over on his personal site, Dribbble, and Vimeo. You can also follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
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