We were lucky to catch up with Davonne Dupart recently and have shared our conversation below.

Davonne, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

At school I learned the technical skill of drawing, painting, and animating, I went to an art high school and continued both my BFA and MFA at art universities. The school structure helped me develop and hone my skills. As a professional in the industry, I saw each studio I joined as an opportunity to deepen my knowledge of my craft and learn the process of running a successful production. I would sit down with my directors and leads and ask questions about their story, their position, and any advice they could give me in my journey. During this process I’ve learned another essential skill is knowing how to converse with people. I needed to push past fear and the fear of rejection and reach out to the people who were excelling at the things I wanted to do. One nugget I was taught growing up, sit next to the smart person in class and learn from them.

Davonne, 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 am an artist, educator, and CEO. Initially I started my career as an animator and over the past 10 years I’ve worked at multiple animation studios here in Atlanta and throughout the country. I’ve animated content on Cartoon Network, PBS, HBO, and Hulu to name a few. These experiences have driven me to become the founder and executive director of Lifted Wings Studios. LWS creates uplifting, educational media for children and families. One of the services I am extremely excited about are consultations. This service is for potential clients who have a vision for an animation but don’t know where to start. At the end of the consultation clients will have:

• A general overview of the animation process
• Animation language to explain specific details of their project to artists.
• Next steps to executing their project
• Additional resources
• An estimated budget and timeline

I’m honored to help steward each clients’ vision into reality.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Oh yes! I have a company, Lifted Wings Studios, and my team and I were working on a proof-of-concept for a very important client. They gave us a tight deadline and it was approaching fast. An important manager on the team did not fulfill all her assignments, nor did she give an accurate assessment of the status of production before her off-boarding. We were now severely behind schedule, and I was left to steer the production back on course for the final deadline. Other team members would look at me and ask, “Are we going to finish?” I would say “yes” every time. I never questioned the goal. Failing to finish on time was not an option. I asked only one question, “how can we reach this goal?” I spent my time figuring out solutions and executing. We finished the project on budget and early! The client was elated about the final product and has continued to work with us.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

It’s amazing to see others engaged in a piece I’ve put so much of myself into. I love seeing the effect my work has on people whether it be a smile, laugh or head nod. It’s rewarding to know that my art adds value to peoples’ lives.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://liftedwingstudios.com/contact-us/
• Instagram: Lifted_Wings_Studios
• Facebook: @liftedwingstudios
• Other: https://liftedwingstudios.com/

Image Credits
Teaching images are courtesy of TeachX