We recently connected with Jay Winters and have shared our conversation below.

Jay, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

My entire life! Early on, I loved coloring those cartoon letter people and would get angry when I would color out the lines.

The natural progression from there was to draw. A pencil and a piece of paper. Back then, almost everybody used to draw. I just never stopped. It consumed my life. I was obsessed with getting better. I was the kid that everybody wanted to draw something for them. I called myself impressing certain girls at the time by drawing for them lol! When I was done with my class assignments or tests, I would doodle on my paper and get in trouble. Or I would just not do my schoolwork at all and draw.

I think the very first thing I ever drew was a Ninja Turtle. From there, things progressed to the Simpsons, Sonic, X-Men, Beavis & Butthead, and lastly, Dragon Ball Z. This is how I learned how to draw. Throughout my entire adolescence, I was an art student. It was the only class I looked forward to, outside of maybe science class. I thought I would be some type of visual artist professionally until I discovered Photoshop when I was 14.

When I got to college, I thought animation would be a great route to go down because of my passion for drawing, but later switched my major to graphic design for better job security. I grew up in a single-parent, poor environment, so money was a priority. I always had endless amounts of ideas, but it was necessary to find that balance between being creatively happy and making a decent enough living to get me out of the slums.

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.

So I’m UNscenefuture or just plain o’l Jay. I’m a lifelong creative. I’m from Tampa, Florida, but have been back and forth to Los Angeles for the last 10 years or so. I have been a professional graphic illustrator for the past 14 years. Most of what I’ve done is either corporate design or apparel design for global brands. The next phase of my career is putting myself and my ideas front and center. My phones, computers, and sketchbooks are bursting at the seams with ideas!

UNscenefuture at it’s nucleus, I think ideas are like explosions. That exact moment when a really good idea hits you and you have to act on it regardless of the time or place. That’s the UNscenefuture. So Planet UNSCN is the umbrella that will house all of these ideas or initiatives. The first three phases are Act Accordingly, Enternet Service Network, and The Black Man’s Guide to Surviving LA.

Act Accordingly, my monthly comic strip is based on the madness that we often see on and off social media. It’s a twisted, funny, dark, whistle-blowing commentary on modern society. I’m starting to further build out the world by adding reoccurring characters. Later in the year, I’m looking to add some merchandise and other interesting things for fans to buy and show support for the series. The end goal is to turn the series into an animated series.

I’ve long held a deep love for fashion. I suppose this is why I’ve helped build and create graphics for so many brands. Over the years, my designs have been picked up by Foot Locker, Champs, Zumiez, Kids Foot Locker, and many more. In late 2018, my friend Johnson approached me about working on a brand together. That’s how Enternet Service Network was born. The idea plays on whether we’re living in a simulation or not. Exploring existential moments that go unexplained.

As long as I can remember, I’ve loved to write. The Black Man’s Guide to Surviving LA is my personal take on living and experiencing Los Angeles. I’m writing and illustrating the entire thing. I hope to make it a short read for readers to constantly refer to.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Balancing personal life with work. All of my 20s, I was a caretaker for my mother. It was hard to balance that reality with being a creative. On one hand, I wanted to lose myself in my work and seize opportunities that were presented to me. But I also had to sacrifice looking after and doing for my mother as well. At one point, I was living off energy drinks and not sleeping much. I developed heart palpitations. Early on, I made the choice to succeed at being a creative one way or another. So seeing that mission through to the end was necessary for my own happiness.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Right now, actually. Artificial Intelligence is tearing up Corporate America at the moment. I’ve made really good money the last 8 years. But I extremely doubt I will have another 8. Also, I have all these ideas and projects I want to do. So it’s kind of a now-or-never type of thing. I would say that at this stage of my career, the only hurdle in the way between me and self manifestation is visibility. People from all over the world have shown their support for my work, which is extremely humbling to me. When I create my art, I’m always thinking, Is this connecting to people? That’s the desired outcome for me.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unscenefuture/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC91dDnb20kMWKgGfTIHgQFA
• Other: [email protected] https://www.behance.net/unscenefuture https://dribbble.com/UNscenefuture

Image Credits
Photos of me shot by: @supertiredcowboy