November 19, 2016

Meet Decatur Designer and Animator: Aurorah Yarberry

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Aurorah Yarberry.

Aurorah, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’m originally from Atlanta and grew up painting and drawing as well as knowing I wanted to be an artist. Neither of my parents were artists per say but they were creative in their own way. After graduating high school early I attended Georgia State because I had earned the hope scholarship- but I knew I ultimately was headed to art school. I had a hard time figuring out what direction to take my creative studies and tried a lot of different things including a brief stint learning to tattoo. It all sort of clicked when I became friends with a production assistant at Adult Swim. The first time I walked into the cartoon network offices a lightbulb went off for me. I suddenly realized that I could make a career in the creative industries and I began to pursue a more focused education in the arts- specifically animation. That pursuit took me to England to study illustration and animation production for four years and really started my career.

Has it been a smooth road?
Following your passion is rarely easy. There have been times when I was only eating green beans because that’s the only thing I could afford to eat for months at a time. I graduated during the recession. When I moved back to America in 2011, my family home had been foreclosed on because of the Bank of America robo signing scandal- I pretty much didn’t know where I was going to live or what I was going to do upon my return. I was basically homeless and staying with friends until I could find a job. I was taking any jobs I could get- art model, painting pet portraits- cheap logo design gigs- anything. It took a while to get on my feet and my student loans were really behind so I was getting threatening calls every 30 minutes or so. That was a really stressful time. I finally got a job working for NBC but I was a really low paid entry level master control operator. I got to work on the broadcast of the Super Bowl and the Olympics that year. I did the final review of all the commercials for both events before they went to air- but I was only making about $12 an hour, and wasn’t allowed to work overtime and had to deal with a supervisor who was sexually harassing me because I refused his advances. At one point I was riding a bicycle a for miles to get to and from work at the TV station -when I got off from work at 5 am I would pedal home and go to sleep for a few hours and then get up around 9 AM to go work on an animation pilot I was working on (for free) to get more experience. The hard work paid off and eventually I got a job at an animation studio as a designer and things started to get better a little bit every year. I have tons of stories about being broke.

What’s your outlook for the industry over the next 5-10 years?
I think technology is going to continue to color the way we creatives work- whether it’s allowing us to work in more remote locations, or be inspired by the way we use new tools. I think VR (virtual reality) is starting to gain legs with some interesting applications and may lead to an entirely new way of producing interactive content – that is a potential game changer. I tend to keep one eye on Silicon Valley to see what’s trending there. I think another big thing is a shift away from highly curated content to more intimate localized contributions from people on location are also going to change the way creative content is produced- but that being said there will always be a need for creative directors and editors.

What has been the primary challenge you’ve faced?
Honestly, I think one of my biggest challenges has been being a woman in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Most major animation and film studios are run by men. Most creative agencies are run by men. Most creative directors are run by men. I have applied for jobs at studios, tested for a role, and was turned down only to discover later that a male candidate was chosen over me because a male in a position of power at another production house wrote a letter on his behalf- and that guy was offered a job that he was untrained in while the company passed on me and I earned an honors degree in animation from a top European art school. I don’t think anyone sets out to close doors on women on purpose- but I do think nepotism can certainly play a role and while men typically hold those key positions of power it makes it less likely that a women candidate will even end up on their radar. For example, Mike Lazzo, the head of Adult Swim has been on the defensive for some time about not having ANY women creators on his programming block. As a qualified woman who has applied over and over again for creative roles at that particular network, I can say it feels like an act of futility to even try applying there. You might as well send your portfolio into a black hole- because if you don’t know any there the likely hood of getting an interview is minuscule and even smaller if you have those subtle gender biases working against you. That’s why I started Project Pencil Skirt- a networking group for women creatives to help bridge the gap between being a job candidate and getting hired.

What advice do you wish to give to those thinking about pursuing a path similar to yours?
Follow your curiosity to new places, don’t be shy (even though I admit I’m guilty of that myself) and try to come from a place of kindness. It’s a big crazy world out there, and there is a lot of competition, but if you come at it from a place of inspiration and openness then the world becomes instantly friendlier. One day someone will give you a chance- just be ready to jump and grab onto it whenever it arrives.

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