Every now and then, we offer interviews with up-and-coming animation professionals to find out more about how they landed in animation, what they love about their jobs, and their future goals. We recently had the chance to catch up with the multi-talented artist Nadine Promes García who is currently working on Disney TV animation’s much-anticipated reboot of Phineas and Ferb (which premieres in 2025) and has also worked on shows such as Futurama, Disenchantment and King of the Hill. Here is what we learned:
Animag: Can you tell us a bit about how you got interested in a career in animation?
Nadine Promes García: I grew up in Maracabio, Venezuela, and I loved watching dubbed versions of animated shows and movies. As I grew older and society was forcing the misguided idea that ‘cartoons are for kids,’ I decided to ignore that misconception and isolated myself further into my blissful corner of vibrant colors and funny voices. Then, I discovered the wonder that is Japanese animation. Inuyasha stole my heart and demonstrated that animated stories could be more. Avatar: The last Airbender solidified that realization. However, it wasn’t until I discovered Gobelins: L’école de l’image on YouTube that I learned that people studied animation. Three years after graduating high school and moving to Paris, I was finally brave enough to say; “I want to study animation.” That was the best decision I’ve ever made!
When did you first know you wanted to get into animation?
Nadine: I truly believe that I was born to be in the animation industry – I just had to get rid of certain expectations I was raised with. So I believe the right answer would be; The universe knew before I did, but I’ve always wanted it.
Can you tell us how you got your foot in the door?
Nadine: My artistic career started in 2021, the year I got my Temporary Protected Status (TPS). The TPS is a special status that allows nationals of a country in crisis to reside and work in the United States lawfully. Prior to having the TPS ,nobody really wanted to hire me despite having my student work visa; which is a constant challenge for many international students. Regardless of any shortcoming life threw my way, I always kept practicing my craft, networking and applying. It was a month after receiving my physical work permit card in the mail that my doors opened and I got my first union job as a storyboard artist.
What was your first job in the industry?
Nadine: My first job was working on Matt Groening’s Netflix series, Disenchantment. The pre-production studio is called Rough Draft Studios and it’s located right on the Burbank/Glendale city border — this job pushed me to move to Burbank, CA, which is the local hotspot for animation.
What do you love about your current job?
Nadine: Currently, I work for Disney Television Animation on the upcoming new version of Phineas and Ferb. This show holds a very special place in my heart because it was my younger brother’s favorite show as a child and I would watch the Spanish version with him back in Maracaibo. The show feels like part of my family. Aside from the personal aspect, the team is amazing and Disney’s company culture is pretty fun to be a part of.
What would you consider your biggest challenges?
Nadine: My biggest challenge are my immigration hurdles because without a work permit, I can’t work at all. I have to make sure I have extra money in my pocket to pay the high legal fees needed to hire a good immigration lawyer to handle that area of my life. After that, I believe my mental health can make it challenging sometimes. At this point in my life I know I belong where I am, but anxiety can be a nasty liar and can whisper the opposite in my ear. Thanks to the insurance that comes with the job, I make sure to take good care of my mind to continue doing what I love.
What is the best advice you ever received about finding work in the animation business?
Nadine: I’m not sure if anyone ever told me this, but I discovered that your network is key when finding work in this industry. Working hard and following directions are a given but networking and being proactive with your connections can be the difference between having employment or lack it. In fact, it is thanks to my connections that I was hired In two of the three studios I’ve worked for.
Who are your biggest influences?
In a weird way, I have been my biggest influence! My drive has always been fueled by the stories I want to tell someday. I’ve always been pretty stubborn which would get me into a lot of trouble as a child, but it also got me where I am today. The only way to influence my mind was through drawing characters that represented different points of views having ‘discussions’. Like puppet therapy but using my art. I realized I started depicting a future version of me that I aspired to become and as I grew, that version became exactly who I am today. All these characters are part of stories I will tell someday and maybe the lessons I learned in life can be passed on to others.
What would you say is the biggest misconception about being a storyboard artist?
First off, I’m pretty sure most people don’t know we exist. Second of all, if they do know, they most likely think it’s a very simple and quick job. There are some clients that will ask you to change the clothing of a character once you have already drawn everything. They don’t realize that notes such as that mean a lot more time and pencil mileage because you have to redraw the edit in every single panel.
These days, there’s a new misconception that artificial intelligence could potentially replace us. Despite that scary belief, storyboarding is not just technique and drawing knowledge, there’s a very crucial human aspect required for the craft of visual storytelling. You must be able to convey complex emotions through subtleties in acting, composition, lighting, etc. It’s a constant invention of how you can express certain ideas in the most creative way possible.
Thanks so much for your time. One last question before we let you go. What are your future plans?
My future plans are simply to keep doing what I do and continue to grow as an artist in this industry. I also want to publish my personal stories on the side and see where that leads me. It’s been a pretty exciting journey and I don’t doubt it will remain that way.
You can learn more about the artist at nadinepromes.com. (For the sake of complete transparency, Nadine has been kind enough to volunteer for Animation Magazine at various animation events in town — including Lightbox, SIGGRAPH and Comic-Con — for the past few years.)
