Tell us a little about yourself and your career.
Hey, I am Bertrand, a lead character designer from a tiny village in France. I started my career in Paris working on TV commercials (full-CG) as a director, art director, character designer, 3D modeler, and story artist. I jumped into animation to create the main characters of the Gormiti TV series, adapted from the toy phenomenon, and then [worked on] several other shows including the global hit LoliRock. In 2018, I moved to the U.S. to work at DreamWorks where I created the main characters for Cleopatra In Space and Doug Unplugs. I am currently working at Titmouse on Amazon Prime’s [forthcoming] The Legend of Vox Machina, based on the YouTube web series Critical Role. I love basketball, running, exploring the city (in a pre-pandemic world), and eating crepes with Nutella.
What challenges have you faced in navigating a career in animation?
First of all, I am lucky that my family always supported me and my passion. I graduated from a prestigious art school (Supinfocom, now MoPA) that opened doors to get a first job. Since then, I am very grateful for all the great people who have been supporting me and the opportunities offered to me.
My greatest challenge so far was to move to a new country with a different language and sensibilities. Most importantly, working with a visa is a constant struggle: In the animation industry, you are hired by season or movie, and once that is done, you need to already have another offer planned for your visa to stay valid. If not, you must leave the country. This process can be quite stressful given the amount of instability it creates, but the good news is that currently there are plenty of opportunities!
Who are your inspirations in the field of animation?
French-Belgian comic books (Tintin, The Smurfs) were my first influences. In the ’80s/’90s, Japanese anime was very popular in France, so I definitely got inspirations from Dragon Ball and Ranma ½. Later, Bruce Timm’s Batman rocked the animation world and inspired not only me but a whole generation of designers. More recently I have been following a lot of amazing designers on social media. Among them, I would like to give a special shoutout to Todd Kauffman, Shiyoon Kim, Rad Sechrist, Fabien Mense, Willy Ohm, Jesse Aclin, Britt Myers, Bobby Pontillas, and Willie Real.
What do you hope to accomplish as an artist in the animation industry?
The most important thing would be to keep working and meeting talented artists and especially great humans. Career-wise, I’d like to continue to create inspiring and iconic characters for great shows. Ultimately, I am working hard to have the opportunity to tell my own stories, and inspire future generations with new heroes, dreams, and creativity.
What does being in the Union mean to you?
I am so thankful the animation industry is unionized. The TAG people always have been kind and helpful to me. They share a lot of great information on their social media, post job offers, propose various classes—sometime free—and organize mixing events. I feel protected and also part of a big family. Thank you for the opportunity to introduce myself to my fellow members.
Discover more about Todesco at his website.
Follow him on Instagram at bertragram.
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