Chris Sherrod

1995, B.F.A., Communication Design: Graphic Design
Website: Nickel Rocket Enterprises
LinkedIn: Chris Sherrod

Please tell us a bit about yourself. 
Hi, I'm Chris Sherrod, a lifelong creative addict who always keeps coming up with "Stupid Ideas™" to scratch the itch in my head saying "make something." It doesn't have to be good, but by god, it better make you happy. I have covered the gamut of print, video, animation, and film. I approach creative projects as a problem solver asking, “Who is this for? What am I trying to say? Where will this be seen? How can I make this memorable?”

Who or what inspired you to choose an arts- or design-related career? 
Charles M. Schulz. As a kid, I devoured my local public library's "Peanuts" treasuries. When I would get home, I would copy pictures of Snoopy on his doghouse, typing his terrible plays or hunting down, and losing to, the Red Baron. At 8, I recreated the book "It Was a Dark And Stormy Night" on notebook paper and gave it to my parents as a present. It was never in my mind not to create art.

Blue Starlight Drive-In poster for Scott Pilgrim and The Last Starfighter double feature screening.

Has there been a point in your career where you took a scary risk? 
My major break came when I joined the DNA Productions crew in 2001 to create Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, the animated feature. This was fantastic because I got to make animated movies and didn't have to move to LA or go into debt at an expensive school. After two movies and a TV series, DNA was forced to shutter in 2006 due to a lack of projects in the pipeline. The staff at DNA did right by the crew and organized a job fair with all the major studios, and I got hired at DreamWorks in Glendale, Calif., to work on Kung-Fu Panda. However, this was also right after the births of my second and third children. Would I leave my wife and three very young children so I could chase the dream of my name in lights on another major motion picture? To her everlasting credit, my wife said she wouldn't stand in my way. And I left. I spent the next six years in California trying to make it to bring the family West. DreamWorks, Crest Animation, Lucasfilm Animation. Two major Oscar-nominated movies and tons of experience could not keep me employed at a studio longer than a few years. I wanted more than anything to be reunited with my family, but that wouldn't happen out there. I do not regret my decision because I always would have wondered what could have been.

Product design concept art for Artie & Bas Pesto Works.

Has there been a magical moment in your career when you knew you had made the right decision to work in an arts- or design-related field? Can you tell us about that moment? 
Whenever I work on a project and see the results in real life, I know I made the right decision. Nothing is more gratifying and satisfying than seeing your work appear in the real world on a T-shirt, patch, or DVD so you know something came out of your brain and impacted reality. I run a Boy Scout troop and designed a patch for a District-wide Camporee event. It was the coolest thing to see Scouts from other troops wearing that patch on their uniforms in Colorado.

As a creative, where did you learn your craft? 
To me, being creative was a foregone conclusion. It wasn't something like a decision was made or an off-the-cuff choice that "I guess I'll do this now." I'm never happier than tinkering in my workshop or playing with a new program to determine the desired result. I don't seek out new skills all the time. I'm not a constant improver. But I do believe in the fundamental disciplines and the principles of design. I'll play with a new medium but always find ways to bring those principles into my work.

Can you share the story of when you’ve had to pivot in your creative journey? 
The Animation Industry didn't last forever. It was a fantastic opportunity, and I tried to make the best of it. But in the end, I missed my family. I was missing all the great stuff my kids were getting into. I missed my wife, who was my best friend. I knew it was time to go home. After applying for the same job at the same four studios fighting with 500 of your closest friends, you lose the taste of it. When I returned to Texas, I had to find something that would give me the same creative freedom, the same multiple-hat challenge that made animation so exciting. Surprisingly, that was as Director of Motion Graphics at FASTSIGNS, Inc. All my skills up to that point fed right into the demands of the job: digital animation, videography, layout, scrappy do-it-yourself mentality.

Was there ever a moment in a critique or class that made you think you should give up your art dreams, and if so, how did you get past that? Did that provide a lesson for your career? 
I absolutely busted my ass to get my Ad Art 7 portfolio up to snuff. I found a groove and a project that made my heart sing. All the pieces came into place. I made extra bits to bulk out the portfolio. I even had to rebuild my portfolio because it was stolen out of the back of my car. But I managed to get it into the room before the final critique. And then, nothing was selected for the final show. Not one board was added to the student show at the end of the year. So, I put my stuff up anyway. I found some hooks and some blank space, and I made my work be seen. And then, I got my first job and got out into the real world so I could start the next chapter of my life. The lesson is "Don't Quit."

Photo session composite of a model at an oceanside villa before the storm.