The Team Behind The Magic - Alfredo Barajas

One of the things about creative people is that we genuinely love our work, sometimes it's hard to draw the line between work and fun. It is a blessing to be in this position, but it is a blessing that comes with its own set of challenges.

Most of us see our work as a reflection of our personality and part of who we are. Therefore, we spend hours looking over the shapes, the colors, the movement, the characters, and the stories that occupy our days. Sometimes, we get lost in the details trying to get something perfect.

It is a way of self-expression and sharing part of ourselves.

In short, our work is a very important aspect of our lives. Nevertheless, we need to remember something more important than that. The most important thing is not the work but the people who make the work. Projects will come and go, some of them will be worthy of praise, and others will go unnoticed. Still, the people, the friendships, and the connections we build along the way will forever remain with us.

With this idea in mind, we want to kick start this series of articles to give our team the recognition and praise they deserve. The same way we share our work, we want to do a better job at showcasing the amazing team behind it.

Who better to kickstart this series than our one and only Art Director: Alfredo Barajas, our first full-time hire ever back in 2015.

In the past seven years, Freddie has been a key member of our team. We have grown together, building Animagic's visual style with his incredible skills, exceptional visual sensitivity, and attention to detail. We can confidently say that Animagic would not be what it is today without Freddie on our side. So, to celebrate this, we had a conversation with him to learn and share more about his life and work with all of you who follow Animagic's journey.

We hope you find this interview interesting. Most importantly, we hope this helps bring recognition to the minds and hearts behind our work.

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Alfredo Barajas - Art Director

Hi Freddie, briefly tell us about your career as an artist:

I have a bachelor's degree in Graphic Design from Guadalajara University. My professional career in Animation started back in 2008 with a project called "Batallon 52" where I had my first assignment as a character designer and animator. The project's goal was to develop 52 Animated short films to celebrate the Mexican Revolution and Independence. One year later, I got the chance to work on Día de Muertos production, one of the most ambitious 3D animation projects in Mexico. Since then, I've had the fortune to be part of 2 other animated feature films, three animated short films, 4 Animated Series, and dozens of publicity ads. I have collaborated with various Animation Studios worldwide, and currently, I'm part of the Animagic Studios art team.

How would you define your style?

Clean and simple.

I consider my style as a mix between organic and abstract. I love to combine hard-straight geometry with loose shapes that collide with each other.

Can you mention 3 artists that give you inspiration? 

Bobby Pontillas www.instagram.com/bobbypontillas/

Melanie Peñaloza www.instagram.com/melanamobes/

Jackie Droujko www.instagram.com/jackiedroujko/

Robert Valley www.instagram.com/robert_valley/

What project is the highlight of your career so far? And why?

Día de Muertos animated feature film. It was my first project as a professional character designer. It allowed me to explore my own artistic style, and it helped me to discover my strengths and weaknesses. I learned so much from this experience. This project shaped me professionally, and it opened the path to get where I am now.

However, having the chance to be the art director of Stories to be Remember with Animagic is one of the most important things in my professional career. In this project, I had the opportunity to explore and develop Animagic signature style while producing most of the assets and graphics, from characters to Background illustrations and props. I'm so proud and thankful for all the fantastic artists involved in this project and for all that we have achieved as a team until now.

What apps or programs do you use for your work?

Wacom Cintiq, Photoshop and Illustrator

What is your favorite part of the creative process? And why?

Character Design is always fun, possibilities are infinite! 

What is the most difficult part of your creative process and what strategies do you use to overcome those difficulties?

Usually, production time in the Advertising Industry is very short. Therefore the creative process is always time-limited. Each project is different, and it demands constant adaptation to multiple requirements and specific needs that can be quite challenging when trying to create something unique. As a professional artist, it is crucial to keep an open mind and develop the capability to be creative while being flexible. Following your favorite artist's work can be very helpful in staying inspired!

What advice would you give to the designers who are just starting out? 

"Be faithful to your own style and work hard to perfect that thing that will makes it unique. Practice is fundamental, and mistakes are part of the process. Remember, the details truly MATTER."

Great advice Freddie, thank you for your time! This next section is just for fun! Tell us a few of your favorite things:

Fav Band: Red Hot Chili Peppers

Fav Songs: Venice Queen, Desecration Smile.

Fav Food: ALL!

Fav Movie: Hard to say! I love the Star Wars Universe, The Lord of the Rings saga and most of Pixar movies. I guess it depends of the mood.

Fav Series: Breaking Bad, Euphoria, The Office, Mind Hunter, The Big Bang Theory.

Hobbies: Keep my environment clean and organized.

We could not be more grateful and excited to have someone like Freddie on our team. Our goal is to create a space to highlight all the amazing people and artists behind our work. As much as we love our work, our people and collaborators are what make Animagic. The work and projects we create are the results of us coming together.

Thank you for sticking around and following our journey, and we'll see you in our next Team Showcase article series.