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This interview was conducted in August 2023.  Shreya Devarakonda reveals her exciting journey as a Character Designer at Walt Disney Animation Studios, emphasizing the importance of developing personal art styles and crafting meaningful stories! Shreya, thank you for sharing your passion and valuable experiences with us! So, first off, tell us a little about yourself! I’m a character designer at Walt Disney Animation Studios and have worked on projects including Wish and Elio. I graduated from Ringling College of Art and Design in 2021 and previously interned/worked at Pixar Animation Studios, Netflix, Blue Sky Studios, and Disney Television Animation. What inspires you to design characters? When I first saw Tangled growing up, I was obsessed with how beautiful the characters were and wanted to draw characters that looked like that. What types of characters are you the most excited to design? People— human characters with a lot of personality, and a lot of specific personality— the more you know about their personality, the more informed the design can be. That’s what I get the most excited about. How do you choose the personal projects that you work on? For personal projects, I like to pick films with fun characters. For example, when I asked myself, “What is a live action film that I like and know well that has a fun cast?” The Goonies came to mind. It was a film that I haven’t seen much in portfolios, and the film had a great cast of kids that all have specific personalities.  What does a typical day as a character designer at Disney look like? Every day I will work on assignments given to me by the team, depending on production. Maybe it will be exploring a certain character, doing research, or putting together a slide of reference images to work off it, mostly all at my own pace. What is your favorite aspect of the job? Being able to work on a project that I am passionate about. I’ve been on a wide variety of projects, and you can really tell when the team really cares about the project or when the message really means something to the director. We as artists also feel passionately about it when the team does, and it makes me enjoy my work more. How do you feel about the current representation of Asian characters today? I have seen it change. It’s slight, but we are seeing some more representation in films. We’re trying to push for that, and it’s getting better. But I have not seen much South Asian representation, and there still needs to be more Indian representation in animation. Are there any dream projects you’ve been wanting to work on? It would be fun to work on a culturally accurate South Asian film. There’s so much color and culture to play with, but we haven't seen much of that on a big scale within animation yet. What do you wish you knew before starting your art journey? Finding your style and voice can be really difficult, but it takes time. The way you draw is the way you draw, and you just have to embrace it. A lot of people fight that and try to copy the way other great artists draw, and even I found myself doing that along my journey. But the more pressure you put on trying to be like others, the harder it is to find your own voice. Find the things that truly inspire you and just have fun. With time and practice, you’ll get there! But even when you think you’ve nailed it, you’ll realize that you still have so much more to learn, and that’s what’s great about being an artist. What advice would you give to aspiring animation workers? Story is the most important thing in an animation, regardless of your specific role within the industry. Story is going to drive all your decisions in your design and that’s what gives it meaning and depth. I used to draw just pretty things, but I learned the hard way that that’s not going to be what gives me a job. Really keeping that in mind will help. Writers: Jordan (@deadswampsofsadness) | Point Person: Gaby, AIA Team
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