We’re looking forward to introducing you to Taylor Aseere & Caitlin Schrader. Check out our conversation below.
Good morning Taylor & Caitlin, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
This past year, we have helped four different indie artists bring their artistic visions to life through animation. It’s a really magical feeling seeing your favorite art form truly speak to someone and be able to translate what they were imaging their head, and really being on the same wavelength artistically. We feel so proud when we get to experience how much the creator enjoys seeing their vision come to life, and even more proud when we see how their intended audience reacts to the piece and how well we were able to accomplish the creator’s vision. A goal of Shattered Glass Film has always been to connect with local and independent artists and tell original and untold stories. We really believe that we are doing that in the indie community.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
We are Taylor Aseere and Caitlin Schrader, founders of Shattered Glass Film LLC. Taylor is the CEO, Head of Production and Previsualization, and Caitlin is the Head of Animation. Shattered Glass Film is a 3D animation studio, specializing in the preproduction and production phases of the animation pipeline, which includes visual development and concept art, previsualization, animation, and more!
Shattered Glass Film (SGF) was founded on the basic principle of something so simple yet so often forgotten in the corporate world of 3D animation: letting the artists guide the story and artistic vision and giving them the space to share new ideas, collaborate, and give them the freedom to make their magic. Most of us joined this industry as passionate newbies with a hope and a dream, and we want to keep that feeling alive for our team and collaborators. Part of the animation process is getting out and experiencing and observing life, and we want our artists to do just that so they always feel fresh and inspired.
We are currently in the early stages of a big in-house project that we are super excited about, but in the meantime we have been making waves in the industry, and getting to work with some really cool clients and collaborators such as Cricket Wireless, JAMM, and Target. Something really special to us has been working so closely with indie creators as well. In a climate of ever-growing demand for personal passion projects, bringing their visions to life when they didn’t feel like they could get it done themselves in this ultra-competitive (and often expensive) industry is where SGF comes in!
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who taught you the most about work?
My dad. He instilled the value of good, thorough work and pursing passion from a young age. When I told my parents I wanted to be an animator, they didn’t even question it and were fully supportive from the beginning, even knowing how difficult and competitive that career path is. My dad also gave me the most important piece of advice when it comes to work that I have ever gotten before and still carry with me to this day, and that is the importance of building great relationships. Being in this industry and growing a business from the ground up is a true testament of how important networking and building relationships with people is! Every person we collaborate with has been someone we had the pleasure of meeting along the way. We are so grateful for our friendships and partnerships that have been with us on this ride, and are excited for where we are headed! We are so ready and eager to take on all the hard work that is involved with growing this business and making a difference in the animation industry. – Caitlin
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Absolutely. More than once, actually. Breaking into the animation industry as a new artist or small indie studio, is incredibly challenging and can be very discouraging at times. It’s such a competitive and small industry, now more than ever. Everyone is fighting for the same jobs, the same opportunities. There have been times where a client project falls through, or one of our internal projects has a lot of bumps in the road that we didn’t anticipate. It’s times like those where I think to myself, “is this really worth all the time and energy I am putting into this? Am I really going to make a difference in this industry that I love?” Though those times are incredibly challenging, I always find myself having grown from the difficulty. My passion for animation and my love for the art form always brings me back into a good headspace to keep pushing and keep creating! – Caitlin
Many times. Its hard to not have thoughts such as this when starting an indie studio without any financial support or knowledge of how to do this. There is no: “Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make an animation company!” (at least that I’m aware of) and with the rising cost of living, it was a huge risk. But the other voice in my head was and is louder every day. Urging me to continue down this path and chase this dream. I’m grateful I listened to that voice, as I have had the privilege of meeting some phenomenal artists, and now friends along the way who also believe in this dream. Together we can create something everlasting! – Taylor
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
That Ai art is will eventually go away if we ignore it. Unfortunately we have to disagree. We think that Ai is here to stay, and large studios are going to start fully implementing it into their workflows and pipelines. We don’t say this to sound pessimistic, we say this as realists who are seeing this starting to happen across the industry. We truly believe that the best way to keep real human art alive and thriving is to put money, time, and effort into supporting small indie studios and creators, whether that be watching their content, spreading the word, donating to crowdfunding efforts, or going to see those movies in theaters when they come out. Indie animation and art is making huge waves right now, and I think that the rise of generative artificial intelligence and “made for scrolling” content is going to drive audiences away from corporate and mainstream art as they seek something more human.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
Stop worrying about what is going to happen in the future. It’s so easy to get weighed down by every day life tasks and anxieties and to-do lists that we forget where we are in this moment. We are exactly where we are meant to be at any given time. Life is truly a gift and there is no sense in worrying about what might or might not happen, because worrying about things out of your control will not change the outcome. It is okay to live with uncertainty.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.shatteredglassfilm.com/
- Instagram: @shattered_glass_film
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/shattered-glass-film/
