Origins: A Creative Journey

If you've ever been told "go get a real job," you’ll be familiar with how creatives are often devalued in the workforce and society at large. But it is still possible to be creative, have some fun, and have a career, and our guest this week, David Mould, is living proof of that.

David has been living in Thailand for the last 20 years and his work has seen him work in many countries around the world. His superpower is t...

With all the allures of fortune and fame, it can be tempting to try and chase trends and do things that will get you noticed. But what does it look like to build something completely for yourself? 

Adam Griffin has done that with Thirsty Thursday Toys, a YouTube channel where he creates a cocktail in homage to a toy from his collection every Thursday. A teacher by day and a monster mixologist at night, Adam’s love of the color green...

Generative AI image creation is everywhere, yet there’s still artists out there creating things by hand and building a brand around what they’re making. 

8pm is one such artist. Known for his anime-inspired hyper-detailed illustrations and his runaway hit vinyl toy Jimmy, 8pm designs UX flows by day and creates his personal brand by night.  

In this conversation, 8pm puts on all his various hats as an artist, UX designer, and communi...

Fan art is a convention staple, but some say it can stifle your creative voice. Pacho Abalos digs deep and dives into why he focuses now on his original characters and how that sets him apart from the masses.Pancho is an artist and streetwear designer known for his graffiti-inspired styles that blend traditional and digital mediums that bring to life his original characters that also reflect incredibly personal stories and emotions...

Have you always had an itch to make your own art, but didn’t know where to start? Award-winning independent comic artist and toy designer Ben Seto will tell you to just do it anyway. 

Ben is the author and artist behind the Xeric-winning comic series “Usagi Jane and The Skullbunnies.” As an independent artist he produces his own resin figures, has run a successful crowdfunding campaign, and makes his marks at comic conventions throu...

Do you know what Japanese soft vinyl, punk rock albums, and shoe catalogs all have in common? Brian Flynn, the founder of Super7 will let you in on the answer - it’s design. 

From understanding the visual language of punk album covers to building his own design studio and working with clients like Nike, Apple, and The North Face to turning a magazine project into a thriving toy company, Brian Flynn has been making things all his lif...

Ever wonder what it takes to make a feature film? What about three of them, with a shoestring budget? Courtney Daniels, not only knows how but wrote a book on it titled Yes You Can - How to Make a Movie for Almost No Money.

The writer and director of What Other Couples Do, Bedroom Story, and It’s Not You, It’s LA (formerly titled This F%*king Town), Courtney is an independent filmmaker living in Los Angeles. She makes character-dri...

Famous musicians can seem out of reach, but after years of promoting and managing artists in Australia, Trent Slingshot of Hip Hop Toyz has built relationships with legends like KRS-One and Wu-Tang. 

Trent is a bona fide hustler in all the good ways, and he breaks down his knack for knocking on doors and establishing himself as the go-to-guy when hip hop acts want to visit Australia. While still promoting and managing artists, Tren...

For many artists, having an immediate sell-out of a product would be amazing. It would be even more amazing to do it in high school. Connor McConnell of Abominable Toys has done just that. 

Connor is the co-creator of the yeti characters Chomp and Chomper and the owner of Abominable Toys, which he runs full-time. With licensed collaborations with Bob Ross and Godzilla, toys in Hot Topic, Abominable Toys is slowly taking over the wo...

Many folks want to run their art business full-time, but have you run the numbers? In this interview with Brianna, the artist behind Onicake, she does a deep dive into the business side of running a kawaii art business and shares how she got started. 

A full-time artist selling enamel pins, ita-bags, plush, and other accessories, Brianna runs Onicake from her home base in Dallas, Texas. You can find her and her adorable creations a...

Are you in love with Mondo’s toy releases as much as we are? Come check out what Mondo will be bringing to DesignerCon 2024 from the men who make it all happen, Hector Arce and Peter Santa-Maria aka ATTACKPETER.

Hector Arce is the  Senior Creative Director of Collectibles and Design at Mondo who basically makes all the toys come to reality. Often taking part in the design, sculpting, and painting of the collectables himself, Hector...

The goal for many fine artists is to do it full time, but what might be the argument for having a day job as well? Fine artist, video game art director, and animator, Sean Keeton explores the benefits of keeping the day job while making incredibly personal work.

 A Los-Angeles based gallery artist at night and a video game art director and animator during the day, Sean Keeton regularly displays his paintings in galleries across LA ...

With the sea of social media hype, the pressures of capitalism, and unprocessed trauma, it’s difficult to not only find your authentic voice, but also make a living doing so. Skinner is a visual artist, writer, filmmaker, installation and muralist, and all-around super monster artist.

With work featured on Adult Swim, murals and paintings in galleries across the world, and music videos for bands like Mastodon and High on Fire, Skin...

Ever thought about starting your own creative business? Ever consider the ups and down and personal discipline needed? Elliot Garnett is the mastermind behind Centerpoint Studios, a full-time custom miniature and diorama studio. 

Always a showstopper at various conventions around the country with large-scale, table-sized dioramas like Dex’s Diner, Elliot and Centerpoint is known for recreating your favorite sets and characters from...

Ever wonder how DesignerCon grew into what it is today? Come meet Kevin Cao, the co-founder of DesignerCon and collector extraordinaire.

In this special episode, Kevin shares his origin story as a collector and entrepreneur, as well as the lowdown on what to expect for this year's DesignerCon for it's first year in Vegas.

From vendors to look out for, the Be@rbrick artist 5-pack making a return, as well as all the good stuff atte...

Have you ever thought what it would be like to make art of all your worst moments and hidden traumas? Kria Lindquist got started making art as a means to exorcize her demons, and eventually led her to the path of being a full-time fine artist.

As a visual artist who is a staple at dark art markets across the United States, Kria specializes in dark surrealist figurative illustrations and paintings. Their work is an exploration of th...

Do you dream of having millions of people wear something you designed? Or working on some of the top anime of all time? What if it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be? The dynamic duo of Asako Sauz and Paul Evangelista have huge credits to their name, but are also setting out on their own to carve their own creative mark on the world. 

From designing Xbox controllers to designing footwear for Target, there’s a very likely chance you...

What does it mean to build a sustainable fine art career? Mark Dean Veca has done just that over the past few decades, working with brands like Nike and The Hundreds as well as legendary rock bands like Pearl Jam, Primus, and Ween. 

With a career spanning back to the 90’s, Mark’s recognizable style and killer brush work has been exhibited world-wide. From public art to illustration to fine art, Mark’s origin story is full of evolut...

Do you have what it takes to leave your job or change professions? Michael Lewarne is an architect, coach, and installation artist who understands fear, decision making, and how to choose himself. 

With a 30-year career in architecture, Michael has pivoted from designing buildings to helping other architects be better leaders through his company, unmeasured. He’s also supported leaders and creatives of all stripes through his coach...