We recently connected with Po-En Wang and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Po-En, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

Emotions and feelings are something I have long been fascinated about but struggled to convey when interacting with people. Although wearing emotions on my sleeve is not a norm in my culture, a professor helped me break through this barrier. That is when I felt the power of visual storytelling for the first time. I learned that a tool combined with effective storytelling could express a person’s emotions. I then was at the point of no return……

During my junior year in college, I was fortunate to meet Professor Hsun-Chun Chuang, who taught me 3D Animation class. Through his class, I learned that humor is a healthy way to connect and arouse audiences. An assignment I did, entitled “True Color”, describes a soul-searching experience of a “reverse centaur” who struggles to understand who he is – a horse or a human. In fact, “who I am” is something I have long been searching for, and this question inspired this short film. In the end, the story unveils he is none of them but a bird. The surprising ending certainly earned a lot of laughter, but in the meantime, it also provoked a sense of belonging where one sees his value in life. From this assignment, I gained an understanding that a story can be told in many ways, and animation presented in a comic way could ensure effective and non-stop emotional connections with the audience.

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’m a character animator and 3D artist. I love making characters come to life. My proudest work is my personal short film, “Hawaiian Pizza’s Revenge.” I produce every aspect of it except music. I think my whimsical and comedic style makes me different from others.

I like to design characters that look a bit dumb and funny. After designing and finishing the 3D models, I HAVE TO make them move, because who wouldn’t want to see funny things actually come to life?

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I wish I knew that reaching out to people is very useful and it will not hurt my reputation. As a 3D art student. I struggled through so many technical problems. Problems that I had to spend hours or even days to solve. I didn’t reach out to people because I thought having problem-solving skills was Important, and indeed, it is. However, it was also okay just to ask people who knew the answer. If I can solve this problem in 5 minutes by asking, why spend hours?

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

Every time I finished a project. Whenever I see the result of my hard work. I can be proud of myself because so much blood and sweat had been spent, haha. That was the moment I knew I’d created something. Something that belongs to my collaborators and me. That special feeling of ownership of my work is always worth it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thebrandonwang.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thebrandonwang
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/thebrandonwang

Image Credits
Po-En Wang