Disclaimer: The following points are my conclusions from the talks. They represent my interpretations, which may not always perfectly align with the artists’ original statements. I have structured them as direct creative principles.
Here is the expanded breakdown from the second day.
A weekly challenge of making polymer clay and found-object sculptures exposes the true nature of creativity.
The project was born purely from frustration — losing an open call, skipping exorbitant gallery commissions, and deciding to just make and sell directly in a short timeframe.
The visual formula is a highly specific mix: Neon + Hindu aesthetics + Pinterest + Flea markets + Joseph Campbell’s “Follow your Bliss.”
There is a deep respect for simple details, whether through their broad cultural history or their connection to personal, formative phenomena.
The meaning of the work does not lie in agonizing, deep symbolism; it exists purely in the joy of making.
Thinking breeds doubt and stiffness.
Looking only at the future and the end result is a recipe for unhappiness, because the moment of making is always now.
To eliminate the terror of the blank page, pre-make physical “blanks” (armatures).
Repetition doesn’t kill creativity like a factory line; it actually creates the spatial boundary for creativity to happen.
Creativity isn’t about having a grand idea — it is simply the mechanical act of starting.
Sometimes, going against the current means making everything completely from scratch every single time, abandoning the chase, and choosing to live in the present moment.
You can choose the rule not to start a film unless finding a producer first, especially if you are preconditioned to meet quality standards.
Character shapes dictate their roles: round and soft shapes work for a story about a boy and a grandfather, while opposing characters require sharper, more expressive forms.
Sometimes, writing the entire story is required just to figure out the character design (like shifting the focus to the main character and giving her a superpower).
Always place characters into background environments immediately to see if they actually read well.
Comedy can be added purely through character behavior.
The style and appearance of characters may change even after a production teaser is already approved.
Small details change the pipeline: dot-eyes force characters to physically turn more, creating extra work for animators.
Success in line art does not guarantee success in color, because color spots carry their own weight.
A 9-year production involving multiple cities and people is exhausting; think ten times before committing to this level. DIY might work better for your nature.
Find something very simple to start with — you can always complicate it later.
AI is only useful for ideation in clean production; the heavy, routine production still falls on you.
Learn screenwriting and pitching to beat impostor syndrome.
Refusing to do things simply because you feel incapable is a massive waste of time.
When stepping into the unknown, set a strict timeline (like three weeks for a first film).
Copying someone’s style initially isn’t a problem; it will inevitably integrate into a unique practice anyway.
Deconstruct your favorite modern animations — analyze their visuals, structure, and timing — don’t just study the classics.
If you are stuck on a solution, dig through your old work; the answers there might be better than what you are inventing now.
Audiences ask fewer questions when work looks highly complex because they fear looking stupid. If a project is deeply philosophical, it might be best not to even hint at its complexity to the public so the viewer won’t be afraid to come into contact with that fortress of seriousness.
Being shy helps with absolutely nothing. No one is waiting for you. Also, pigeonholing yourself into small solo projects becomes painful once you outgrow them. Facing funding rejections for big projects is much less painful than staying confined in a tight, outgrown shell.
For high-production comedic work, start a showreel completely serious, then hit the viewer with an abrupt, absurd punchline.
Only explain your education or pipeline if there is a genuinely impressive or unusual difference.
It is highly useful to have a dedicated person to show a bad sketch to someone who will simply say, “Yes, I believe in you, do it.”
Characters don’t need to be complex to work. Uneven negative space, movement, humanity, and humor are enough to make them catchy.
Rigging is a delicate balance between lively lines, proportions, and actual functionality in the film.
Realistic rendering (shadows, specific angles) can force a complete character redesign deep into the animation stage.
Millions of client edits do not mean you are a bad artist; it simply means there is a budget for it. Relax, iterate, and do it for your mental health on someone else’s dime.
You never truly know how a character is perceived until the project is out in the real world.
In personal projects, prioritize your own values, interests, and quality criteria over what a client might want (before agreement, of course). This is the only way to build a portfolio that attracts the right clients.
Oversharing combined with humor becomes highly relatable.
Sharing personal obsessions transfers their energy directly to the viewer.
Making a film over a few years with long breaks is perfectly normal; it isn’t procrastination. It will be done when your interests and the film align. There needs to be enough volume of identity, so the film doesn’t feel cramped.
Tactility is expressed not just through textures, but through symbols, animation, composition, and colors.
The more vulnerable the work, the more the audience connects.
If you doubt anyone cares: if it’s relevant to you, it’s probably relevant to others.
Sketching intimate feelings is vital for mental processing, but not everything needs to be shared in its rawest form to be authentic.
A distance and buffer between feelings and sharing is necessary.
With AI on the rise, sharing BTS will become even more essential.
And the ultimate networking hack: keep showing up to the studio with snacks until people like you.
Ego deceives you; true pleasure doesn’t always lie in what the industry considers “cool.”
You don’t have to be a serious artist to be taken seriously. Commitment to what is interesting matters more than what is “important.”
A project you once dreamed up might become irrelevant, but if it keeps haunting you, you can try to delve into its technical side. After all, if it keeps haunting you, it’s still important to you, you just can’t remember why.
Set a strict three-week deadline to get rid of it, make it super short, or strip the idea to its skeleton and dress it in new meat.
Making characters do things for absolutely no logical reason is funny because that’s exactly what people do in real life.
Violence isn’t usually smart, but sometimes a character’s head just needs to randomly explode to keep the ball rolling.
If animation won’t add clarity to a good narrative, just make a beautiful comic instead.
Iterate intrusive thoughts to the point of absolute absurdity until they are worth showing to others.
If a project feels terrifying, just assemble the fun, key moments. If the flow isn’t there, drop it and check back later. Look at it as a viewer, free from the inner critic that ruined it. If your hand reaches to finish it, do it; if not, just poke around the file.
The ultimate goal is fighting off death every day by creating life—like adding silly faces to things that explicitly do not need them or making things move that shouldn't move.
Make the art that can only ever be yours.
Long films are dying under their own weight; the new meta is two minutes and under.
Small films give immediate gratification, but it is a challenge to pack sincerity into something so short.
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