We recently connected with Caroline Le and have shared our conversation below.

Caroline, appreciate you joining us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

First and foremost, thank you to Canvas Rebel for the opportunity to contribute to a platform that celebrates creative entrepreneurs. It is such an honor to be featured amongst so many inspiring individuals and businesses.

Formerle is the animation and motion design studio building innovative futures and it is our mission to partner with the leaders of tomorrow’s tomorrow to solve the future’s biggest challenges. We pride ourselves on creating boldLE, problem-solving dynamicLE and capturing the changing world epicLE.

Our mission is deeply rooted in the energizing pursuit of innovation. Breakthrough brands offering adaptable products and services are built not on the past, the present or the future singularly, but rather every experience altogether. The focus of these innovators is to create human-centered solutions based on the culmination of where we’ve been, where we are and where we’re going. It may seem ambitious to think that one can create such change with video, but we’re firm believers that visual storytelling is key to solving these big, real-world challenges.

Caroline, 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?

My name is Caroline Le and I am the founder of and Creative Director at Formerle. Doing animation professionally has always been a dream of mine. As a young girl, I grew up drawing the Sunday comics and watching Disney movies, both which heavily influenced my desire to be a professional creative. It wasn’t until I saw Toy Story and learned how visual effects were created in movies like Star Wars that I became even more hooked on the idea of becoming a professional animator someday. I eventually ended up studying animation in college, and in the years following graduation, I enjoyed several staff and freelance opportunities in broadcast television, marketing and advertising. My perception of the world of animation as a young girl and student was vastly different once I started working in the industry, and it was during that time that I was introduced to motion design. The possibilities truly seemed endless with the application of motion design and I grew an immediate love for the industry. Every experience since then has influenced my desire to start a studio of my own, and right before the pandemic started, I officially launched Formerle here in New Jersey.

Formerle provides animation and motion design services for innovators who are shaping the future. Much like the clients we serve we too are excited by the curious behaviors that influence innovation, and we believe video has the profound capability to inspire meaningful change. We’re also passionate about the intersection of the arts, the sciences and technology. The bridge between these worlds has created some seriously incredible experiences, and we can’t wait to see what the future brings as these fields continue to fuse together.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Books have had a huge influence on my entrepreneurial thinking, and I’ve become even more of an avid reader since starting Formerle. Taking the plunge into business ownership quickly taught me that relying on my animation and design skills alone weren’t going to be enough. I knew I would need to learn a whole new set of skills that both complimented my creative instincts and supported my entrepreneurial pursuits. There have been several books that have been instrumental in helping me take on more managerial and operational roles within the company including The E Myth by Michael Gerber and Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh. Additionally, I’ve also found Wired for Story by Lisa Cron very beneficial because it reinforces the importance of storytelling in the work that we do and how it relates to a client’s wants and needs.

The most influential book in my library though has to be Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull. It’s a book about the story of Pixar and it’s really helped me pay attention to the different aspects of the business as it matures. I’ve reread it a couple of times over the years, and every time I start it over, I find myself paying attention to different details as I go through my own business journey. I still have plenty to learn, as Formerle is quite a young business, but books have been one of many invaluable resources that have helped me lay the foundation upon which the business can continue to grow.

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

As previously mentioned, once I took on a more management-type role within Formerle, I realized I had to focus on a new set of skills rather than continuing to refine the technical skills I relied upon to start the business initially. This meant learning how to shift my energy away from pure creative execution into a more directorial position that involves managing feedback, expectations and relationships. This became even more evident once I started having conversations with those I look up to in my industry, and hearing how their creative shops went through similar shifts as well. There’s certainly an art to this new role I find myself in, but the challenges that come with it are equally creative and fulfilling.

These conversations, combined with unlearning to focus solely on creative execution, also inspired me to join a community of creative shop owners called RevThink. I’ve learned a lot about my own strengths and weaknesses as a business owner by joining this community and I can’t recommend it enough to anyone who owns a creative business. Being surrounded by the support and camaraderie of this community makes me excited for the future of Formerle.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.formerle.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/formerle_/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Formerle-110660244844991/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/formerle/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/formerle_
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJGkqD1tVIJMYQrLFXxMssQ