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

Hi Hannah, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

Practice! I started out seeing things I liked and trying to replicate them with whatever materials and resources I could get my hands on. With makeup, I used what I had on hand and slowly built up my kit and skills over time. With fabrication, I studied online and watched videos and the more I did the more people I met that could teach me new things. But practicing and educating myself as much as I can is still how I continue to improve myself and grow.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’ve worked in the film and creative industry for 10 years collectively, spending the last 5 years as an Artistic Lead on most of my projects, although I love to work for others who are more experienced than I am any opportunity I get! I specialize in Special FX Makeup and Prop and Puppet Fabrication. One of my favorite things to do is to take a conceptual idea (mine or someone else’s) and bring it to the 3-dimensional world. I think that is what sets me apart from others. I love taking a client’s idea(s) and imagination and running with it to bring it to life in ways they could never have imagined on their own. In addition to that production designing and coordinating teams of people to execute larger projects is something I excel at and love to do. Whether it be bringing imagined or designed characters to a practical setting or building sets and worlds in front of the camera, it’s all so much fun. I love that every project feels new and exciting and brings its own unique set of challenges to overcome.

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

Last year I was connected with a client who had a dream of creating a massive walking puppet for a parade. He wanted to have a big impact with this one and he wanted his very own Queen Alien. He had no idea how to build it, but he knew the essence of the impact and feeling he wanted to create. We met for a creative brainstorming session, and after that he gave me a lot of creative freedom to run with it. I was so excited and got to build my dream team of fabricators and artists. Like every creative project, there are always a million ways to get from point A to point Z. But, with the right team you can really nail down a process and get to work, and the project continues to develop and grow along the way. The end result was a gorgeous and magical 9.5 foot hot pink Queen alien walking puppet. The city was enchanted by seeing her move and walk the streets. Being able to create something like this took so much time, effort and energy from every single person involved. Everyone was so committed to making it the best it could be. Through sleepless nights, a little blood and a whole lot of sweat; it all culminated into being not just a puppet, but a physical representation of passion, creativity, dreams and craftsmanship.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

On a super simple, literal side, I wish I knew earlier on about Stan Winston’s online classes. They are affordable and so informative. It’s like having access to the greatest library, teachers, classroom in special fx and fabrication at your fingertips. And the financial commitment and burden of student loans goes out of the window.

On a more “energetic” side of resources, I wish I knew earlier on that I could build a life doing things I loved to do and was passion about and make it my career. I wish I had access to more artists and creates with success stories to teach/show me that I didn’t have to follow the societal norms to make money and survive. Although they do say, “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.”, and that’s far from true! Doing what you love, requires a TON of work, but the work is so much more rewarding, when it’s truly what you love to do.       

Contact Info:

• Instagram: leakyroofstudio
• Other: [email protected] I’m still not big on social media and believe in creating and building my network through organic and personal relationships and networking!

Image Credits
Tsukimi Photography Khader Alherimi Matthew Garvin