And the Emmy goes to.... | Jill Halliday | Artist | The Ten Collective

As Ms. Ludlow scratched her name onto the chalkboard, on that, my first day at College, she stated flatly that;

"....of the one hundred students who were fortunate enough to have been admitted to Sheridan's Animation Program, by the end of its' first Semester, half will drop out, then, of those remaining, only forty percent will graduate, and of those, only a handful will actually work in the industry."

I, barely eighteen years of age, heart racing, and in hindsight, no doubt the absolute least talented kid in the bunch, looked around the room and thought, 

           "Suckers!"

Animation was my calling. From the moment my young self discovered that Fred Flintstone was not a real actor, but in fact a series of drawings, that was it!  That was what I wanted to do! And "do it" I did!

I loved my job, even though, for the first few years, I cried every day. Yes, I was that bad, and my Superiors had no trouble telling me so. Luckily, "The Raccoons" Series needed lots of people,  no matter how green, so that's where I cut my teeth.

The reason I can draw today is plain and simple. Studios don't pay until the work is right. Babar has to look like Babar. Not almost like Babar. It has to be exactly right every time, not "close". I mean, should a plumber get paid for getting the job almost right? Certainly not. I learned a trade, and like so many tradespeople, success depends on reputation, word of mouth, and sometimes just plain old good luck, and let me tell you, I had plenty of that! I got to work for Disney and Nickelodeon! I got to animate on Seasons One and Two of Ren & Stimpy! I was on a team that won A Daytime Emmy! (1995 FOX Studios). I worked alongside brilliant, hardworking, hilarious people who became lifelong friends! Lucky me, yes?! Well. I can think of only three words that can possibly sum up how I feel about all of my good fortune;

        "Yabba! Dabba! Doo!"