We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brett Brooks a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Brett, thanks for joining us today. Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?

Fourth grade.

When I was in elementary school, not paying attention to the lessons, I would go down each row of students in my class and I would draw them, one by one – the best I could – in the style of The Simpsons. I wasn’t even allowed to watch The Simpsons. But I was obsessed with Itchy and Scratchy…Krusty…Radioactive Man. So anytime I could sneak an episode in, or pick up a Bartman comic at the local shop, I would. I dunno. Maybe that was the allure of drawing my fellow classmates in that way.

Anyway, one day while drawing at my desk, I remember this kid that sat next to me leaning over and asking me what I was doing. When I showed him, his next question was “How much?” I had no idea how to respond. But I think he gave me a quarter for the Simpsonized drawing of himself.

After that interaction, I would spend the day – or as much of the day as I could – drawing in class and, at 3pm, I would set up shop on the giant corner rug for the kids that stayed after to wait on their parents to come pick them up. I would spread all the drawings across the rug, each of them now priced in the upper corner – $0.10, $0.25, $0.50 – and ready to sell.

I would come home excited, having drummed up a whole $1.75, which meant I could buy my own bag of popcorn and 8oz carton of chocolate milk during snack time the next day.

It was my first job as a freelancer.

Brett, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m a graduate from the Savannah College of Art and Design and I began my industry career in 2008 at the Walt Disney World Company working as a character artist for the Disney Design Group. There, I was responsible for providing illustration work for developing Character Art and package design for park exclusive merchandise sold at the Walt Disney World and Disneyland theme parks and resorts in Florida and California.

I have remained an independent contractor since then and I continue to pursue passion projects, which may be found through my website below. My most recent industry title was Character Designer and Illustrator in Atlanta, GA working on HBO’s Doom Patrol, which premiered Fall 2022. Prior to that role, I was a Character Designer at Floyd County Productions in Atlanta, working on Marvel’s animated series Hit Monkey, which aired on Hulu November 2021. Some of my other illustration and design clients include IDW Publishing, M&Ms, Hard Rock Café, Netflix, and the CW.

Currently, I am in the contractual stage to be a co-artist on a middle-grade graphic novel for Scholastic.

I have also overlapped into the world of film and television. I was a co-writer and lead actor in the horror/thriller feature film Patient in 2013, which was acquired by Showtime in 2017 (renamed Cursed to Kill). The film had a two year run-time on all Showtime streaming services up until December 2020. It is currently available on Amazon and Vudu. My other film credits include writing the 2015 short film Re Inc. for the Atlanta 48 Hour Film Project. The film won Best Actor and was selected to be showcased in the Short Film Corner at Festival De Cannes in 2016. In 2019, I co-wrote the horror short Grimoire for the Atlanta 48 Hour Film Project. The short won Best Film in Atlanta, qualifying it to screen at Filmaplooza 2020 in Rotterdam, Netherlands among 129 other global winners. The film won Best Cinematography, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Editing. It was also nominated for Best Writing.

Myself and my super talented group of filmmaker friends continue to pursue avenues in film today. We will be shooting our next short project in October 2024.

If you would like to view my illustration and film work, please visit www.brettbrooks.com

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

The lesson I had to unlearn was one I unintentionally taught myself.

“I can do this alone.”

And I did exactly that for a very long time. While I do think it’s good to be as self-sufficient as possible in this industry – this ever-changing, unpredictable, unforgiving industry – I think it’s just as important to surround yourself with like-minded people that can help you along the way. That may be peers that have the same goals (and work ethic, ideally) as you, or, in a best case scenario, an agent who is doing work for you and willing to fight on your behalf when you can’t.

Do as much as you can on your own, so that you develop a very clear voice with your work – whether its music, performance, design, whatever. But if you ever feel like you need help…go get it. It’ll make things a lot easier, and probably more enjoyable, in the long run.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

All of them.

I wrestle with the idea that I’ve been “late to the party” my whole life.

I grew up in southeast Alabama in the 80s and 90s. It wasn’t exactly teeming with creatives or any sort of artistic community. My parents weren’t artists. My friends weren’t storytellers. So everything I learned, I taught myself from watching cartoons or reading comics, picture books, and Mad Magazine. It wasn’t until I was 18 years old that I obtained some sort of formal training – as well as my foray into the digital art world – while attending Full Sail University in Orlando, Florida…

…of which I dropped out after 10 months because, turns out, I kinda sucked at all things Computer Animation.

My parents were thrilled…

However, it was there that I was first introduced to Abode Photoshop – a digital software program that would forever change my life and, ultimately, give me a head start on a lot of my peers when I would later attend Savannah College of Art and Design in 2005. But, again, between 2002 (when I left Orlando) and 2005 (when I would start SCAD), I was back in Alabama where creative resources, even online at the time, were still kind of limited. So it was back to teaching myself again.

Honestly, I still feel like I’m behind the 8-ball in this wild creative world we live in. But as long as I’m continuing to grow and better myself, then I think that’s most important.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.brettbrooks.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/brettbrooks