Takeover Tuesday with Liz Klein DiBello
An interview with Liz Klein DiBello: a Brooklyn based designer, animator and creative director.
Interviewer: Bella Alfonsi
Read time: 5min
Bella:
Thanks for joining us for Takeover Tuesday, Liz! Can you please give us a lil' introduction?
Liz:
Thanks so much for having me in! I’m so happy to be a part of this!
I’m Liz Klein DiBello, and I’m a Brooklyn based designer, animator and creative director.
I come to motion design with a graphic design background, and it’s a part of everything I do. My work has focused on design-based motion projects like network rebrands and broadcast design, commercials and online videos, but has also included projects that focus more on a collage and texture-based approach which lends itself to projects like explainer videos, PSA’s and more.
Also, I just recently joined the incredibly talented team at Mighty Oak full time as Associate Creative Director!
Bella:
How did your career in motion design begin?
Liz:
From a young age I was always interested in anything related to drawing, painting and crafting, so I guess you could say it started there. There was a chest of drawers in my house filled with all sorts of crafting materials: different types of papers, scissors, pastels, crayons, markers and more (this is probably what started my interest in collage). When I got older and my family got their first computer, I got super into Photoshop and discovered graphic design. Later I found out that I could do this as my career, and that’s what made me pursue a design education.
But for motion design specifically, that part of my story started in school. I was going to the School of Visual Arts in New York for Graphic Design, and took Ori Kleiner’s intro to motion class Junior year. Motion design and After Effects was still relatively new at the time, and I loved the idea of bringing design to life and pairing it with music. Ori would show the class so many examples of great titles sequences and introduced us to the process of making motion graphics. I was super inspired by seeing how others were using this new tool. Senior year there was an option to specialize in motion design and I knew it was the right move for me. I decided to do a portfolio class with Ryan Moore.
During school I had always kind of been working, I was always very practical and really wanted to dive right into real life projects. I was interning at Nickelodeon, but I also started taking on a few freelance jobs here and there. One of my first motion design jobs was a book trailer that was all kinetic type, which was trending at the time.
After I graduated, I found my first full time job at The String Theory, a small studio in Manhattan that introduced me to so many different types of projects– anything from broadway commercials, to billboards in Times Square, explainer videos, lyric videos and so much more.
A frame from Liz’s DogTV project.
Bella:
With expertise in multiple areas, from illustration to art direction, is there a part of the creative process that you enjoy doing the most?
Liz:
The beginning of the creative process is always my favorite. I like to spend time upfront researching, learning, looking for inspiration, and exploring the different directions a project could go. What I find during this phase can help inform design decisions, and the look and feel of what I’m working on. There’s so much potential during this step.
Bella:
Do you have any advice for other artists trying to go full-time freelance?
Liz:
I have SO many freelance words of wisdom! One big one is that community is super important for many reasons- it will not only keep the jobs flowing, but there’s also an element of support that is there. There’s moments where you might feel isolated because you are flying solo. You’re going to have questions about rates, or the hold system, or maybe you just want to bounce an idea off of someone, but you don’t have co-workers anymore to do that with. Panimation NYC is one of those communities, and Dorca Musseb asked me last year to become an admin. It’s such a great space to provide all of those resources, plus just being a way to meet some genuinely cool people, and I’m happy to be a part of that.
Another piece of advice is boundaries during bookings- define them before you start looking for jobs, and stick to them. For example, how many hours does your rate include, 8, 10? What is your overtime rate, and when does that kick in?
Bella:
Where do you find inspiration? How do you combat creative burnout?
Liz:
Of course I’m constantly inspired by the many talented artists and studios in our community, but I try to look outside of the industry as well so I can get a fresh perspective. Some of the best inspiration can come from a trip I just took, an exhibition that I recently saw at a museum or gallery, or just walking around the streets of New York. Music has also always been a huge inspiration of mine– when I go to a concert, I always look forward to seeing what kinds of graphics are on the screen behind the band and what the merch looks like. Music can have such an impact on how something moves and looks.
Inspiration is also one way to fight burnout. Burnout is so real and so important to acknowledge. It’s important to get ahead of it and realize when it’s starting to happen and what your key signs are. For how to recharge, it’s kind of a balance between just stopping to relax fully physically and mentally, but creatively. For the physical/mental part, doing something away from the computer and devices is pretty key- like a hike in nature, or yoga.
Bella:
Your style is super fun and colorful. What would you tell someone who is trying to "find their own style"?
Liz:
Thank you! I would say to take note of what you enjoy working on the most, and try to do more of that. Your style will naturally evolve from there.
I’d also say my own style is still evolving, it’s a long road! So don’t get discouraged if you don’t have a “style” right away. Sometimes you can only see the pattern in your work by looking back at your past work and seeing the common threads.
Frame from Liz’s reel.
Bella:
Do any of the projects you've worked on stand out as a favorite?
Liz:
I don’t know if it gets much better than DOGTV. I had always wanted to work on a network rebrand, and Andrea Pabalan and Darci Manely at thelab nyc approached me to art direct a rebrand for the streaming service.
I should explain that DOGTV is a streaming service for dogs– it keeps them occupied while their pet parents are out of the house, and is actually based on scientific research around reducing stress in dogs. The channel content is actually broadcast in colors that dog’s eyes can see. So it’s a fun project but also serves a helpful purpose.
Our team worked on an entirely new set of assets for the brand that could live on the streaming service, but also in print and digital too. We started with a new logo, typefaces, colors, tone of voice, custom patterns, illustrations, and a brand new photo and footage library. Then we took those elements, and created a new look and feel for the streaming service itself and its content– so everything from bumpers, to transitions and lower thirds, to a sample promo for one of the shows.
We wanted the look and feel to reflect the energetic and unique personalities of dogs, so we went super bold, colorful and poppy. Knowing this was a rebrand for a channel based around dogs, motion was always a huge part of this rebrand and would be something we kept gut checking ourselves against throughout the process. We knew everything we created had to feel like it had the right energy and a playfulness to it.
One of the most fun parts of the project was getting to have a two day photo and live action shoot with over 30 dogs. I made a lot of new furry friends!
Bella:
How do you make yourself stand out among other artists when pitching to a new client?
Liz:
For me it’s not about looking at it as a competition. It’s all about recognizing what you bring to the table and pointing out what makes you and your skills unique, and why and how those things would make the client’s project great. For me, it’s that I can wear many hats- I can design, animate, edit, illustrate, and direct. And I enjoy hopping into all of those roles!
Bella:
What's your proudest moment in your career thus far?
Liz:
I’m really proud of the projects that I work on that give back in some way and use design and animation to serve a greater purpose. I’ve now worked on a few projects that are centered around the importance of elections and voting, a cause that I deeply believe in. I was lucky enough to work on FiveThirtyEight’s The New Bellwethers series, which came out at the time of the 2016 election. Even though the election didn’t pan out as I had wanted, it felt good to be able to contribute to the conversation at that time. Another election based project I’ve gotten to work on recently with Mighty Oak is a spot for NYC Votes. We’re breaking down the process of how to vote to help get more people out there on election day.
And one more bonus proud moment- someone once got a tattoo of a logo that I made. I can’t believe someone liked my design so much that they wanted it with them forever! So that’s definitely up there with my top moments.
Frame from FiveThirtyEight’s The Bellwethers series.
Bella:
Are there any projects coming up that you're excited about?
Liz:
Right now I’m working on a series of collage-based videos for IBM, which I’m pretty excited about.
Thank you so much for the invitation again, it means so much to me. I really enjoy reading these interviews and it’s great to be a part of this series!