Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1525032
FALL 2024 13 T H E C L I M B After graduating in 2014, Fabbretti began applying for animation jobs. At the same time, he worked as a children's book illustrator for publishers like Bloomsbury and Simon & Schuster. Animation is a competitive field, Fabbretti says, and finding a job can be difficult, which is why he always tells students he meets to persevere: "It's about being at the right time, [in] the right place, because there are very few spots on any production." In his case, Fabbretti didn't allow himself to be discouraged, and continued going to animation conventions, meeting people, and getting an idea of how things work in the industry. Fabbretti's first animation job was at Cartoon Network on Clarence. When the series ended, he was hired as Lead Character Designer on Julia Pott's Summer Camp Island. But it was during his time on Clarence that an opportunity arose that would forward his career. Stephen Neary asked him to do some character design on a pilot he was creating that ended up being The Fungies!. In 2018 Fabbretti became the show's Art Director. Fabbretti explains that Neary had a very clear vision for the series, wanting the episodes to have a storybook feel to them. "To achieve a unique look, we designed each background using pencil on paper. Each drawing was shaded [and] had some eraser marks and a very lovely traditional feeling to it," says Fabbretti. "We worked on 80 wonderful episodes with a really kind and sweet crew." They originally thought that using a traditional medium would be challenging for meeting tight deadlines, but the artists on the team exceeded expectations while also adding their own original details to each drawing. He loved observing how an episode could come alive through the collective input of the individual artists. opposite page: (top) Fabbretti has been drawing ever since he could hold a pencil; (bot tom) Fabbretti recreates his childhood days spent reading comics while his grandfather read the newspaper; this page: An illustration from Fabbretti's original comic book series. With his recent role as a Creative Director in series development, Fabbretti found it fun and challenging to work with so many creators in different styles and mediums on projects for different audiences. But he says that whatever his role, he finds himself drawing, whether he's adding to an idea or just figuring out a direction that something might go in. When he's invited to do a portfolio review or critique a student's work, he urges them to "just draw," and while waiting for his next project, he plans to keep drawing on Spider and Fly. It's safe to say that putting pencil or pen to paper is ingrained in Fabbretti's DNA. —Karin Briner "I used to draw on grocery receipts, school desks, or the paper tablecloths that usually cover the tables of the pizzerie in Italy."