CG Chatter 029: Illustrator & Designer Sean Dove

The CG Chatter Podcast: The Art, Business, and Lifestyle of Creating Computer Graphics

Welcome to the CG Chatter Podcast episode #29! In this episode I chat with Sean Dove, who is an Illustrator & Designer and runs his own one-man design studio, And Thank You For Flying.

Sean creates illustrations and design in a wide range of styles, and in addition to working with well-known clients like Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, and McDonalds, he’s illustrated a 40-page comic and published his own book of illustrations inspired by James Bond films. I particularly liked his behind-the-scenes insight into making comics, his approach to keeping his portfolio up-to-date, and lessons learned from running a successful Kickstarter campaign.

Episode Guide:

• 2:36 – Sean describes the diverse work he does as an illustrator and designer
• 3:17 – Growing up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with parents who were interested in and supportive of artwork
• 3:47 – Comic books and cartoons were his main entry point into wanting to create artwork
• 4:26 – Sean went to art school and was exposed to many different forms of art, most of which he has used since then
• 5:17 – He got to make short films in his high school film class
• 6:06 – What Sean doesn’t like about doing hand-drawn animation
• 7:39 – It’s possible to create animations entirely within Adobe Photoshop
• 8:38 – Sean walks through his technical approach to illustration, and how these days he’ll sometimes go between using his Cintiq and hand-inking
• 10:54 – Because my wife and I are currently planning a Hawaii honeymoon, I have to ask about Sean’s Hawaiian origins
• 12:30 – Sean had a great experience with illustration and art in the public school system of Ann Arbor, Michigan
• 13:50 – He recalls some of the films he made in high school
• 15:40 – Sean worked at the Art Institute of Chicago’s media center while enrolled
• 15:49 – He was uncertain about what he would do after school or how he could start a successful career in art
• 16:44 – Sean landed an internship with Devil’s Due Publishing, a comic book company in Chicago
• 17:26 – He ended up interning for a long time while living off of a large student loan
• 17:50 – His transition from interning to being brought onto the staff as a graphic designer
• 19:08 – Devil’s Due mostly went out of business but Sean was able to continue working with them on a freelance basis
• 19:59 – Why Sean didn’t like working from home
• 20:38 He got together with other former Devil’s Due guys to start Four Star Studios
• 21:06 – He would end up working way more hours when working from home, and really appreciates getting to go somewhere else to work
• 22:02 – What’s a typical day like for Sean at his shop?
• 23:33 – For the most part, everyone at Four Star Studios works is an independent freelancer
• 24:39 – Four Star Studios made a comics app called “Double Feature”, which let users see the comic-making process
• 26:56 – Sean’s work on “Brobots and the Kaiju Kerfuffle” (see images below)
• 32:44 – Sean’s work on “The Last Days of Danger” (see images below)
• 34:38 – He talks about his experience doing a successful Kickstarter, and lessons learned
• 37:18 – Sean’s work for NFPA Kids (see images below)
• 44:25 – Once you build a good enough reputation, you may find clients seeking you out instead of the other way around
• 45:33 – Sean’s work on the cover of “TimeOut Chicago” (see images below)
• 47:13 – Screen printing has had a big influence on Sean’s art style
• 49:00 – His experience creating art prints for Gallery 1988 for their pop culture shows
• 50:56 – Freelance affords Sean opportunities to try lots of different things
• 52:02 – It’s important to keep your portfolio up-to-date so it reflects your current abilities and proficiencies
• 53:25 – Unfortunately you won’t always be able to put projects in your portfolio, depending on the preferences of different clients
• 54:19 – Sean’s had a Squarespace website for many years and finds it very easy to use and keep up-to-date
• 56:39 – Sean doesn’t bring his phone with him to bed, and makes it hard to check email on his iPad, so that he’s not checking it at night
• 57:33 – Doing the creative work is only part of the job as a freelancer – you have to also make time for invoicing and other paperwork
• 58:01 – Sean tries to stick consistency to normal Monday-Friday business hours, and makes sure clients know this
• 1:00:07 – Doing things you enjoy (like reading) helps you come up with creative ideas later
• 1:00:51 – If you’re interested in pursuing freelance, consider taking some business courses to prepare yourself for that aspect of it
• 1:01:53 – Always practice and make time to experiment
• 1:02:32 – I recall when I was doing contract work and neglected to put aside money for taxes, then suddenly owed about 25% of what I’d made
• 1:04:03 – Sean is a frequenter of movie blogs and toy sites, as well as Tumblr
• 1:04:28 – Omgposters.com is a cool place to check out with sort of Mondo-inspired pieces
• 1:04:59 – Sean’s worked on several toy projects with Hasbro, including design & art direction for a Stan Lee toy package
• 1:06:29 – He’s also done some toy design and has come close to shipping them
• 1:07:46 – At some point he’d love to do toys for the Brobot characters
• 1:08:36 – Sean shares what he’s up to currently, including working on pitches for another comic series
• 1:09:59 – He tells the origin story of the name of his one-man design studio, “And Thank You For Flying”
• 1:13:14 – He’s a big fan of Kyle Webster’s brush sets for Photoshop
• 1:14:13 – “Work in a million different ways and combine them all”

Episode links:

• And Thank You For Flying (Sean’s studio, also SeanDove.com)
• Four Star Studios
• School of the Art Institute of Chicago
• @andthankyou (Sean on Twitter)
• @andthankyou (Sean on Instagram)
• Projects Sean has Worked On
  • The Last Days of Danger (also see its Kickstarter page)
  • Brobots
• Clients & Companies Sean has Worked With
  • Hasbro
  • Wizards of the Coast
  • McDonalds
  • Marvel
  • Devil’s Due Publishing
  • Oni Press
  • TimeOut Chicago
  • Gallery 1988
  • Shout Factory
• Software & Tools
  • Adobe Animate (formerly Adobe Flash)
  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Adobe After Effects
  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Apple Final Cut Pro
  • Adobe Premiere
  • Squarespace
  • WordPress
  • Kyle Webster Photoshop Brushes
• Other Mentions
  • RoboTech
  • Mazinger Z
  • J. Torres
  • Scott Pilgrim
  • Kickstarter
  • James Bond
  • Army of Darkness
  • Tumblr
  • OMG Posters!
  • Mondo
  • Stan Lee
  • San Diego Comic Con
  • Spider-Man
  • GI Joe the Animated Series
• Hardware & Supplies
  • Wacom Tablet
  • Cintiq
  • Brush Pens
  • Micron Pens
• Other CG Chatter Content
  • Episode 25 with Motion Graphic Designer Tim Weidelman

Featured Work from the Episode:

“Brobots and the Kaiju Kerfuffle”, Published by Oni Press (Image 1/2)
Sean’s Role: Illustrator & Designer

“Brobots and the Kaiju Kerfuffle”, Published by Oni Press (Image 2/2)
Sean’s Role: Illustrator & Designer

“The Last Days of Danger” (Image 1/2)
Sean’s Role: Illustrator, Designer & Writer.
Self-Published Book via Kickstarter

“The Last Days of Danger” (Image 2/2)
Sean’s Role: Illustrator, Designer & Writer.
Self-Published Book via Kickstarter

NFPA Kids Animation (Image 1/3)
Sean’s Role: Storyboards, illustrations and rigging for animation

NFPA Kids Animation (Image 2/3)
Sean’s Role: Storyboards, illustrations and rigging for animation

NFPA Kids Animation (Image 3/3)
Sean’s Role: Storyboards, illustrations and rigging for animation

TimeOut Chicago Cover (Image 1/2)
Sean’s Role: Illustrator

TimeOut Chicago Cover (Image 2/2)
Sean’s Role: Illustrator

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