We recently connected with Momo Cao and have shared our conversation below.

Momo, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

I’m really glad I somehow ended up on the path of art from a young age. I think it was my mom who really knew how to notice my strengths. Like one time I drew all over a white wall while she was asleep, and instead of everything, she actually thought it was kind of funny and encouraged me to keep going.

I was probably somewhere on the autism spectrum when i was little, still am, just learned how to blend in better I guess. What I do know is that my mental state has never really fit the kind of 9 to 6 routine job. I experienced that once in Beijing, I negotiated with my boss at the time to start work at 1 pm (though in reality, I usually showed up closer to 2). The result was that I’d stay in the office until 4 am, the only one in the coldly lit building, trying to finish everything. It was incredibly lonely. And getting a taxi home that late was hard too. After I survived that project and it launched, I basically fled. It wasn’t only because of the work itself, but I lost my life to it. And that’s the one thing i never want to do again.

But I also tend to mess up my life again when I’m overloaded with too many tasks. It’s this strange tangled relationship… or maybe not related, I’m still learning how to deal with work stress. I’ve talked to my therapist about this in recent years, asking her how other people manage to live normal lives. She asked me back: what does normal mean? Maybe everyone’s faking it, once they get home, they collapse in bed and cry, and you’d never know. And I thought, okay, maybe no one’s really okay.

My dad came to visit me in New York, he criticized me a lot. He saw that people around me had stable partners and stable jobs, and he believed that would bring me the kind of happiness he values. So I introduced him to my artist friends who are also freelancers. He still thought we were all weird. It feels cliché to bring this up in this day, but it’s something I constantly run into in my life. And my conclusion is: whether my family or others understand you or not, I can only be myself. And I AM trying to build some kind of rhythm that doesn’t kill me I really am.

Momo, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi everyone! I’m Momo Cao, also known as Mopalekko. I’ve been in the art world basically since I was around 10 years old. I attended the high school affiliated with one of the top art academies in China, and ever since then, I’ve been trying to sharpen my skills, in drawing, eventually in filmmaking as well. When I was applying to college, I figured, illustration is just… more drawing. What if I try something I don’t know yet? So I chose animation.

Thanks to God, I worked as an animation director for a few years after undergrad. I’ve directed episodes 1–12 of a motion comic TV series, worked on cinematic cutscenes for a Japanese style RPG mobile game, and assisted on a live action documentary, helping log interviews, storyboard the narrative, and getting tea for the director and the crew.

Now as a freelance artist, I take on all kinds of 2D and 3D animation projects, like social media posts, promotional videos, music videos, etc.
One of my recent projects was a PV for a law firm. They told me they were very different from traditional law firms, they’re involved in entertainment, media, younger culture, and talent incubation, so they wanted a stylized, animated piece that could really capture their brand visually.

What sets me apart, I think, is that I’m not just limited to one style or medium. I’ve done graphic design for web, packaging boxes, and drew jewelry. I love experimenting.

What I’m most proud of is my professional skillset. I’ve been in this field for a long time, and I’ve worked really hard at it. My MFA mentor Liz Blazer once said I was like a sponge, I absorb everything. That meant a lot to me.

Right now, I’m also building out my own studio called Terminal Gospel, a character based project that includes original merchandise like blind box toys, and I’m using animation as both marketing and worldbuilding. It’s all connected.

I hope potential followers and collaborators will get to see all sides of me, not just the storytelling, not just the animation, but the full, cross disciplinary vision.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

It’s really just about comparing myself to others. I think anyone who studies art must has moments where they see how amazing other artists are. A lot of people I know actually use that feeling (feeling like they’re not good enough) as motivation to work harder. Which is a good thing, but also… not exactly healthy.

What I’ve learned is, only compare yourself to yourself. I often come across this kind of quote, whether from the Bible or from famous people, it’s always about focusing on your own growth.

After our thesis films were screened in my class, we all stood in a circle, pointing at each other and saying, “I couldn’t have made what you made, you couldn’t have made what I made.” (Shoutout to my friend Riki Gao, she’s the one who came up with that line) That to me, was much more inspiring than self doubt. I just really love seeing every artists’ diversity.

I do sometimes have the heart to want to reach the level of the masters, but not the ability.

But then I learned that even Renaissance masters used mirrors and lenses to project images onto the canvas and trace them (according to David Hockney’s research). Why wasn’t that part of our art history education? No one is really that perfect.

So yes, working hard is still necessary. But I’m already the kind of person who’s overly self-critical by default, I really don’t need more reasons to beat myself up.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I’ve always wanted to challenge myself to do things that feel really difficult for me.

For example, right after I graduated from undergrad, I wanted to work as an animator, but there was this animation producer who really supported me, and he said, “You should be a director.”

Animators can animate, sure, but directors get to do everything, storytelling, storyboarding, giving notes on music, sound design, everything. (That’s not exactly how he put it, but that’s my goal.)

Because of my love for animated shows and film, I’ve met so many like-minded people, best friends who are just as passionate about storytelling and filmmaking as I am.

We all have this feeling like, we have to make amazing movies in this lifetime.

Because life is painful, and getting to create something with people you love, that’s one of the few truly beautiful things in my life.

It’s not just the creative process, it’s the joy of doing it together.

Relationships and friendship have always been the most important thing in my heart.

And one of my favorite feelings in the world is when I share a new story or idea with my friends, and they go, “Whoa!! let’s do it!” That moment of shared excitement, it feels just like a scene out of a shounen manga.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.caomomo.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mopalekko/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mopalekko/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Nekoaoya

Image Credits

Yunsik Noh, photographer