Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1079787
decision? When I had kids, I realized there are way bigger things than to be afraid of your career decisions. I speak my mind a little bit more and so far it's had a positive effect. GINA: I shifted from daycare to a nanny, which took a toll on our expenses but was what I needed at the time to advance my career because daycare until 6 p.m. wasn't going to cut it. KATYA: What I thought my career would be has changed. I thought I was going to hit all these milestones at this certain time and then I had my daughter and everything had to slow way down. It's been life changing—accepting that things are different, they're going to take longer and it's still going to be good. JEANETTE: I would get offered director positions and I would keep turning them down. Now that my daughter is 12, I started calling and [saying], "I'm ready to be a director when you're ready to give me a position." But it would have happened sooner if it wasn't for the kids. YOU ARE THE ONE WHO WAS HAMPERING YOUR CAREER. JEANETTE: Yes, they were offering, it was a conscious choice on my part. ANNA: I was doing TV and I thought maybe I'll go back to 3D features. Deadlines get crazy when it's crunch time so that deterred me. I was like, back to TV. I don't regret it but I do wonder what that path would have been like. JEANETTE: It's never too late. JESSICA: One of the questions that I asked when I was being interviewed was what kind of hours are you working? Please be honest, I have a son. SO YOU'D TELL SOMEONE TO BE UPFRONT ABOUT WORK/LIFE BALANCE. JESSICA: I would. You have to know what you're getting into. For some people that's okay to work a lot of overtime. That's just something that doesn't work for my type of personality. ELIZABETH: I was on Adventure Time as a director when I had my first kid and second kid. It helped immensely to have a producer who was a woman and who was a mom. As long as it's an understanding crew, then you're setting up a good situation for people. MAIRGHREAD: Guys who are new dads are in that same boat and can be just as understanding and supportive. JEANETTE: When I first got pregnant nobody had kids. They didn't have a room for me to pump in. I got one of those single pumps because they're quiet, and I pumped while I was working in my cube! So it was really hard. ELLEN: Our son had surgeries, so I wanted to pump to make sure that I was there for him. Work has a very large campus so the mother's room—they have one—was 10 minutes away. You can sign up for a time, but inevitably with meetings someone will be using your time. You're literally running across campus to go pump and then get back in. That's my one piece of advice. Beware that pumping can be challenging. ANYTHING ELSE YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE? CAROL: I'm a supervisor right now— sometimes I am and sometimes I'm not, I go back and forth. I've been doing this for 30 years and I've seen so many changes, it's up to us to make sure that women can do all these things. MAIRGHREAD: About seven years ago when I first started at Warner Bros. there weren't [many] women and then when I left it was like 50/50. It's really cool to see that. So I think that can only help understanding what women need when they first have children and supporting their needs. I'm ready to be a director when you're ready to give me a position. from left: Elizabeth Ito, Katya Bowser, Monica Tomova, and Jeanette Moreno King Do you want to get in touch with other families or caregivers in the animation industry? Join the closed Facebook group: Animation Parents of LA. SPRING 2019 29