“There are some people who live in a dream world, and there are some who face reality; and then there are those who turn one into the other.”

– Douglas H. Everett

Today’s dreamer is the quirky and gifted Miss Jody. Oh, Miss Jody, what an astonishing, rare person this lady is. I met her through one of my best friend’s Faun and she treated me like we knew each other for years. Not many people have that kind of personality which is refreshing. This woman wants to make interesting little characters for people to fall in love with. Cartoons and comics are her things, which she does well. Now let’s dive into the spectacular mind of THE Miss Jody.

Miss Jody

What is your dream?

My current dream is that five years from now I am making artwork full-time. My studio, Cyclops Fairy Studios, which includes myself and three other artists full time, creates comics, animations, and short films for the entertainment of the 15-45 crowd. I would like to eventually travel from convention to convention selling comics and DVDs, while spending my days insisting to my cats that they can’t touch what I’m currently working on. My dreamiest dream is to have a building that I own, with the ability to hire people to come sit in and make art and be creative and beautiful and let me feed them on occasion. Possibly with a neon sign. On the building, not to feed them with.

What drew you to the art form that you are pursuing?

Haha, drew.

As a child, I was constantly scolded about drawing in the corners of my schoolwork, daydreaming, and embellishing the truth in my own unique way. Through middle school and high school, I spent hours of my life writing stories, trying to get books published, creating worlds to which I could escape to. By the time I was halfway through my degree in Electrical Engineering I dropped everything and switched to Studio Art. I think what drew me was art itself, maybe some minor deity of storytelling. It’s always been part of my life, and it is the pursuit that leaves me most satisfied in life. I love creating little characters, telling elaborate stories, and trying to make others love them too.

When did you realize this was what you wanted to do with your life?

Very recently actually. When I graduated from college I was in this place where I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I didn’t want to just apply for shows and hope someone decided to start collecting my art someday. I had dabbled in drawing comics and making stop motion animations while I was still in school, but it wasn’t until almost two years after graduation that I thought that might be the career I would pursue. I had to work through some “real” life stuff first, struggling with drug addiction and self-esteem issues. Near the end of that process, I was working on an animation project for myself, as sort of art therapy, and realized how much I missed making art. It wouldn’t be until 2015 though that I realized I would need to form an elite team of artists to be my accountabilibuddies and partners in a venture to start a studio together. Now we work together to produce artwork to entertain others, and I’ve never been more satisfied with a concept of a job that I would like to have for the rest of my life.

What does success look like for you?

Success for me is when I paint a portrait of a friend and they use it as their main profile picture for over two years. It is when I show someone a drawing or animation I’ve made and they ugly laugh the same way I ugly laughed while making it. It is when I tell any story or express any emotion so spot on through my artwork that there is a reaction to it. I’m not as worried that people will know my name ten years down the road, rather I’m hopeful that when they hear my name they will immediately have an emotional reaction related to a work I created for them to consume.

Who inspires your creativity?

Brad Neely, Caitlyn Hackett,  Lois Van Baarle (aka Loish), The Whitest Kids You Know, Rebecca Sugar, Pendleton Ward, Birdie Nam Nam, La Roux, Michael Schur and Greg Daniels, and like, Freya? Pretty good overview I think, though it may look like a crazy assortment of artists, writers, musicians and goddesses. But there’s a theme here, I promise. Ideas like that you keep pushing, keep trying always, this sensation of being a warrior fighting at life and art. Do it for the art, the passion of it. Be ridiculous, dry, boisterous, dark, but gosh darn it be funny. You’ve got a message, a story? Hide it under some layers there, but not too many because you still want the person looking to feel uncomfortable. Each of these people or groups play a huge part in how I think about art, life, and the creative path towards a successful experience.

What do you want your legacy to be?

I don’t want my legacy to be about me. I want it to be about characters and stories that touched people, on the butt sometimes. I want it to be googling a title and finding a bunch of cosplayers and non-canon slash fanfictions. I want it to be friends getting together and binge-watching some show I created. Someday, long after I’m dead, I hope to all that is good that people are still buying bootlegs of my creations. That’d just be the best.

Check out Miss Jody’s Studio Cyclops Fairy Studios here:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdnPlBwxAIiB2JhsU4ZohLw

http://cyclopsfairystudios.tumblr.com

Instagram: @cyclopsfairy

Thank you so much Miss Jody for answering my questions! Everyone go check her out!!! I hope one day I get to see a cartoon starring a Cyclops Fairy produced by you. Keep dreaming and keep doing!