Meet Brett Brooks | Illustrator | Storyteller

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brett Brooks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brett, every day, we about how much execution matters, but we think ideas matter as well. How did you come up with the idea for your business?
When I was in attending the Savannah College of Art and Design, I had this idea – “those that can’t make it in the industry end up freelancing.” No one told me to think this way. There was no viable evidence or research that accommodated this very narrow viewpoint. I mean, I had never even heard anyone say anything like that. But, at the time, I think I was so hyper-focused toward having X title at X company, that it created this slanted type of negative reinforcement that I assigned to my career path.

In 2008, I received a Professional Internship at the Walt Disney Company as a Character Artist for the Disney Design Group. Though the internship lasted less than a year, I believe this, too, fueled that rather immature mentality.

Fast forward to life after graduation. My time at Disney had ended. I was “out in the real world” without the structure of a class schedule or assignments hanging over my head. And I wasn’t finding a lot of…well, any…studio work. So I started advertising my website on Craigslist. Yes. Craigslist – the pinnacle of an artist’s professional network, right?. As remedial as that resource seemed at the time, I did get a few bites, one being a startup company for a game app when apps were just sort of stepping into the limelight. This turned into a “full-time” gig, and from there, more gigs began to develop.

One client turned to two. Two turned to five. And before I knew it, I was working from home every day. And that dated idea of success orbiting around a studio’s validation sort of melted away. Freedom was my new treasure and it’s sort of been that way ever since. I have worked in studios since graduation, but only for a limited time, and I always come back to client work once those expire. So, in a sense, I sort of just fell into freelancing as opposed to it being an intended idea.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m an independent illustrator, film writer, and sometimes…even an actor.

My early influences stem from the likes of Walt Disney, Bill Watterson, and Don Bluth. I’ve authored and illustrated two graphic novels – a 180-page black and white crime noir titled “Dust Bunny” and a 212-page sci-fi/action story titled “Deuces Wild.” I’m currently represented by KT Literary as both an illustrator and author.

My passion for story telling overlapped in both the illustration and film world while growing up in the small town of Ozark, Alabama eventually consummating during my time at the Savannah College of Art and Design where I received a BFA in Sequential Art. From there, I went on to work at the Walt Disney Company for a limited time, producing character art that would be used on park exclusive merchandise in both the Florida and California locations, Since then, I have has leant my talents to such companies as Marvel, DC, Showtime, IDW Publishing, Hard Rock Cafe, and M&Ms.

Most recently, I was an Illustrator for HBO’s “Doom Patrol,” where I created over 50 featured comic book images used in the show’s fourth season. I was also a Character Designer on Marvel’s “Hit Monkey,” which launched on Hulu in November 2021.

Regarding my somewhat limited reach into cinema, the short film “Grimoire,” (which I co-wrote and starred in) won Best Film in Atlanta and went on to compete against 130 other short films worldwide in the 48 Hour Film Project in 2019. Since then, myself and my incredibly talented team of Atlanta-based friends and filmmakers have continued to produce short film content, which may be found on my website below. My most noted accolade in film writing and acting is the mystery/thriller feature film “Patient,” re-titled “Cursed to Kill” which was acquired by Showtime in 2017 and is now available on Amazon.

I’ve been dedicated to the arts and my own personal projects for a very long time. I love what I do, and I strive to inspire and share my work with a broader audience. All that to say, I’m not sure I would claim to be “where I want to be” yet. I’m not so sure you ever really get there, or what you might think the romanticized idea of “there” looks like. Dreams are never linear, so I don’t believe one should assume the path to achieve them will be either. I have had some really amazing opportunities along my professional journey. But I’ve also had some real slogs. More of each than I could economically squeeze into this question’s response.

That being said, I don’t believe you can have one without the other. And as I’ve gotten older, I do value (not always enjoy – but value and appreciate) how both sides of that coin inform each other when finding balance, whether creatively…or just in life. I think it’s important to really embrace the high points in life because, just as it is with most things, you never know when it will come to an end. I also believe that to be true during the low points – remember that they are also temporary, and “down” does not mean “out.” This has been the pendulum swing during most of my adult life and something I’ve become intimately familiar with in recent years – the struggle to keep going.

I could expound upon that topic alone in elaborate detail for several, several pages. But everything I have to say boils down to the one thing. And it’s simple. Don’t quit. Just. Don’t. Quit.

Also, I love roller skating and collard greens. Nothing to do with art, but I figured the readers were curious.

Check out my work at www.brettbrooks.com

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m so glad this is a question.

Because I recently moved out of Atlanta and am in a transition phase to my next city of residence.

So, in the meantime, allow me to take you on a journey through the utopian expanse that I currently call home. A place of unimaginable wonders, limitless horizons, and a shady chicken wing food truck located in the parking lot of the gas station down the road from my house. Welcome to Somewhere in Alabama.

If you’re looking for a fun time for the whole family, look no further! Walmart is open until 11pm every night. Here, you can explore the mysteries of the human condition, such as “which tank tops used to be t-shirts” and “why is there a jar of peanut butter next to this Dora the Explorer jigsaw puzzle, which has been opened and is sticky for some reason?” Or, if you’re looking for something more challenging in this department store playground for the middle-aged, establish residence in the town for a few years, go to Walmart after 8pm on a Tuesday, see someone who recognizes you, try not to make eye contact, fail to avoid eye contact, and find yourself hog-tied into a 37-minute conversation about the weather, the Hardee’s employee that was arrested for public intoxication, or the current President…or the last President…or the next President. Your milk is getting warm. You told your wife you’d be back in 5 minutes. She’s texting you in all caps. The kids are hungry. The dog is throwing up. The cat has killed something and hidden it in the kitchen. Your phone is at 4%. Larry won’t stop talking about his knees…or niece…you can’t tell. He’s slurring. The milk is getting warmer. This is not the escape room your friends told you about.

What’s that? You’re not up for that endless well of excitement? You’re looking for a more relaxing night? Maybe a night out with your significant other; a nice dinner with some moody atmosphere?

Well, you’re in luck. If you’re looking for food with moods, Walmart has a Subway conveniently located at the front of the store, next to the shopping carts and that one guy who’s always playing the claw machine in a Darth Maul t-shirt and camouflaged Crocs that have those dumb rubber ornament things stuck in the holes of the toes.

The Walmart Subway offers a variety of delectable entrees, such as old lettuce and maybe Covid. The menagerie of gourmet bread choices is to die for – white, wheat, Italian Herbs and Cheese, and a local favorite “We Outta that. And That. We Got White.” These gluten-loaded loaves of love are served with a wide assortment of your choice of toppings, like meat, it looks like. And while you wait on your culinary cultured Sandwich Artist to craft your munchable masterpiece, you can pass the time with some fun filled activities, courtesy of the establishment. Brain-teasers like, “How many Department of Health violations are currently incubating on this sneeze guard?” and “Can I request the employee put on gloves at the risk of ending up on TikTok?” Or the classic “Is that Larry? Great, that’s Larry. Don’t make eye contact.”

Yes, if you and yours are looking to hop off the ol’ grid and shut down just like the local Taco Bell, you’ve come to the right place! Bring the kids!

Larry will leave the light on.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Definitely my family.

At a very young age, I began to show proclivities toward the arts – particularly in comics, illustration, and character designs. I would spend hours filling sketchbooks, notebooks, and the margins of math tests that I would finish way too fast because I didn’t study the subject matter. And I didn’t want to turn my test in before other students, because I knew the teacher would know I phoned the whole thing in and then she’d start prying. Plus, I wanted to draw. I knew I was floating somewhere between a C and a D on the test. Can’t do anything about that now. There’s still 30 minutes left before the bell. May as well not waste the extra space on the page. I think Confucius said that somewhere. Probably. Was he good at math? Anyway.

Side note. One time, when I knew I had bombed a math test and was, once again, just filling class time, I sketched out a caricature of my teacher on the back of the test. She was either overly charmed by my gumption to do such a thing…or she just liked the drawing. Whatever it was, she bumped me from a 69 to a 70 because of it; she told me this. That isn’t academic advice to any of your young readers. Just sayin’. It was pretty dope.

So many times, pages of my notebook would be ripped from me in the middle of English class when the teacher would walk the rows of the class and realize I had spent the entire period drawing instead of taking the assigned notes on Shakespeare or F. Scott Fitzgerald. There’s probably a lot I missed at that age while trying to nail down Sonic the Hedgehog.

Point is…I was never far away from a pencil and a piece of paper. No matter where I was.

But in all this, my parents never once discouraged me from pursuing the things I loved. Don’t get me wrong, I got more than my share of scoldings regarding “initiative” and “responsibility” when it came to studies. But amidst those (very much deserved) talks, the sketchbook was never withheld from me.

As I grew older I discovered that it was somewhat of a commodity, even a rarity, among my peers to have parents who would support such esoteric predilections, much less the lofty dreams that would follow – especially in southeast Alabama in the 80s and 90s. I was very blessed to have parents that not only allowed me to find my way, but helped (and continue to help) in so many ways as I continue to journey toward my final destination…whatever that may be.

Also, you owe me a few pieces of notebook paper, Ms. Stevens.

Website: www.brettbrooks.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/brettbrooks

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brettbrooksillustration

Other: IMDb – https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3520785/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1