Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Justin Brown. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Justin, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I got to work on a Black History Month project for Disney. The best part wasn’t an actual set of deliverables, it was that I got to present to 100+ employees across Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ via zoom. It was a huge opportunity to talk about my story and what Black History Month means to me.

Justin, 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?

I’ve been drawing since I was little and always wanted to get into traditional animation. After receiving an Associates Degree in Computer Science and Bachelors in Fine Arts, I spent the next 10 years in Broadcast TV making commercials, broadcast packages, show titles, etc, before going full time freelance. Over the years I’ve pursued so many different areas of design and animation, that I’m able to offer services ranging from 2D/3D Illustration and Design, all the way to using my computer science degree to write Javascript for After Effects animation templates. I’ve been able together these unique disciplines together to provide a well-rounded service.

When I work with clients, I really like to be a Creative Director, or an extension of the Creative Director I’m working under. We are in a service industry so it’s not good enough to just “be good”. I’ve learned there’s soft skills that clients really look for.

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

That the journey of life and learning is linear and should be the same for everyone. It’s dumb when I say it out loud but I used to get really caught up in the fact that if I didn’t learn something at the same school or in the same way, or even if I didn’t learn the same things that somehow my experience and knowledge isn’t valid. It’s really the comparison that turns into envy and believed that lie for a while.

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

I wish I knew about School of Motion sooner. That community has been such a huge inspiration and learning experience. I’ve added to my skillset in very practical ways through the courses there.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thebrowncrayon.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebcrayon/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thebrowncrayon/