Today we’d like to introduce you to Kieran Quinn.
Kieran, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’ve been fascinated by the world of stop-motion from a young age – and be fascinated, I mean terrified by it. Something about the way clay models moved, or the frame rate, I’m not sure. There was something uncanny about it to my young mind, and it scared me. So, naturally, here I am, some 20 years later, actively pursuing a career in the arts of stop-motion, creating films, fabricating puppets, and telling stories. It’s still just as scary, only for entirely different reasons.
I started drawing at eight years old and developed and pursued my passion up through college, during my tenure at the Savannah College of Art & Design in Atlanta. Joining the SCAD Stop Motion Club as an active participant in the films they developed and workshops they hosted were my first true steps into a larger world, as it was through those connections that I was able to become the Learning Coordinator with Atlanta-based nonprofit animation society ASIFA-South, hosting events, workshops and monthly mixers to bring together a tight-knit community of animators and establish Atlanta as the place to be for animators.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Some of the biggest obstacles I’ve faced have been related to my own struggles with anxiety, which I think is a common problem for a lot of artists and animators. Meeting our expectations for ourselves, keeping said expectations reasonable, learning how to coordinate with others and work as a team – it’s all a part of our collective struggle. I think an area I personally struggled with was self-confidence, both in the more traditional sense, of self-worth and belief, but also in the sense of following your gut. Several times during my creative pursuits, I’ve tried to segue an idea into something that I feel might hit with more of an ‘oomph,’ or have a staggering subtext that will widen eyes and open minds, when, in reality, the end result lands with a dull thud instead. I always want to encourage and explore projects with depth, layers, and subtext, but sometimes that’s not what a project needs to be, and it’s best to follow your instincts and see where your thoughts and creative process lead you. Something that’s personal and true to you can be just as profound and resonant as something with layers of meaning and ideology behind it.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about ASIFA-South – what should we know?
I specialize in stop-motion animation, of all shapes and sizes, as well as education, through ASIFA-South, hosting and organizing workshops so that kids and young people can make their first steps into the world of animation. I think there’s something inherently appealing to stop-motion, and there’s an inherent knowledge in the back of our mind when we see it that everything in that commercial/short film/movie/etc., is a physical prop, item, or puppet, that is tangible and exists, and has the blood, sweat, and tears of an artist attached to it, sometimes even visible in frame. It’s also a medium that transcends one specific form; it can be clay, it can be felt, it can be flat, it can be three-dimensional, it can tower as tall as a building, or be as microscopic as the tip of a needle. It’s tangibility and versatility make it such a great gateway into understanding how animation works, how objects and characters move, and how they’re framed on-screen. Getting to work with and teach kids at workshops with the Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, the BronzeLens Film Festival, and Georgia Tech at the Robert C. Williams Papermaking Museum, among other venues, has been rewarding and inspiring in equal measure, especially when you have those’ah-ha’ moments when the kids truly seem to break through and understand the intricacies and appeal of animation, and how all the cogs work to create a final piece.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
I’ve had so many! Friends, family, teachers, professors – so many kind people and brilliant minds have helped me on my way. One in particular that has always stuck with me would be my fifth-grade teacher, Mr. Weatherby; he was always encouraging and kind-hearted, but on my very last day of Elementary School, he stopped me on my way out the door, looked me in the eye, and told me to never, ever stop writing or creating. I can remember the moment so vividly, it was such a genuine, emotional, human moment of encouragement and optimism, that it sticks with me to this day. And I never did stop. Nor do I intend to anytime soon.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kieran-quinn.com
- Phone: 6789439935
- Email: kieranquinn618@gmail.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/cakewinnerart
Image Credit:
Photos either self-taken (me) or by Casandra Brewton-Johnson
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