Dan Shefelman
Cartoonist, Animation Director and Professor
Dan Shefelman Studio / FIT School of Art & Design
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
I went to Kenyon College, which coincidentally, my cartooning idol Bill Watterson attended.
One of my first jobs was building a video game for a bank that taught you how to manage your money.
My first and second newspaper cartoonist jobs were huge for me; it felt like I'd "made it."
Cranking something out for that huge audience everyday helped form my ability to think on my feet.
I first got into teaching by accident; I started out by substitute teaching for a friend.
Teaching at FIT has given me the freedom to pursue my passion projects.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
Career
Cartoonist, Animation Director and Professor
I am a visual storyteller, focusing on animation and cartoons, and I teach these subjects at FIT.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Art
Entrepreneurship
Communicating / Sharing Stories
Day to Day
A lot of my time is spent gestating ideas - it looks like I'm doing nothing. I think that's a big part of any creative career. Another part of my day is working with 25 students, lecturing or going from station to station to help them with their art. During the school year, I block out time to sit down at my desk and draw or write - sometimes I work on those projects on the train. During the summer and winter breaks, I can devote more time to seriously tackling my creative projects.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for college students
You could go into a very specific scientific major, join an R&D department with your specialized knowledge, and have an animation job as specific as modeling fur. And then of course, you can go to art school and learn the tools to literally draw or paint and animate that fur. People in animation come from all majors, so choosing is not the most important thing. You just have to go with your gut, and go into a school and major where you're going to be inspired by your fellow students and professors.
Recommended Education
My career is related to what I studied. I'd recommend the path I took:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Myself:
"You're not good at this. You don't have any good ideas. You can't teach."
