Timeouts are lightning-quick interviews. Five questions to help you get to know the players holding court at Dribbble. Many thanks to Joey for being today’s interviewee.
Who are you? Let us know where you hail from and what you do.
My name is Joey Ellis and my wife and I run our own illustration and design studio here in Charlotte, NC. I love doing character design and being the biggest nerd on the planet (I would be elected King of the Nerds if we would ever organize). I also have two boys and they aren’t allowed to play with my toys. You tell them to get their own.
What are you working on?
I’ve currently got a few mascot/identity projects going on as well as a hefty iOS project that I’ve been lucky to be a part of. I’m also a big fan of doing self-initiated projects so I’ve got several personal pieces going on (current estimates have my personal pieces being completed in March of 2063).
Choose a favorite shot of yours. Why is it a favorite?
My “Band of Louies" piece was a benchmark for me as far as landing on a style that I finally felt good about, that I could sell to clients, and that I would enjoy spending a career to improve upon.
Tell us about your setup. What tools did you use to create the shot(s)? (e.g. hardware, software, pens, paper, blowtorch, etc.)
I do a lot of research and drawing on every project that I do. Homework beforehand is king.
I tend to keep several sketchbooks going at a time. Typically one sketchbook is dedicated to a single client/project as I have found that makes it easier to go back and find things. I draw in red and clean up in black. I like the way that looks, but more importantly, I don’t tend to take a “red drawing” very seriously, meaning I don’t fall in love with it and can keep changing things about it. It’s just the way my brain works, yo.
My tools are my red and black Polychromos pencils, Illustrator, Photoshop—all the usual suspects. My studio is in a room above the garage. It’s not cool or glamourous and is filled with crap. It’s kinda like an episode of Hoarders, but there aren’t any dead animals in here yet. I have my iMac and an old Wacom along with a few iPads for iOS stuff. I have tons of toys and half-filled coffee cups strewn about.
Choose a favorite shot from another Player. Why do you dig it?
Oh, my “likes” are filled with Matt Stevens, Jared Chapman, Matt Kaufenberg, Chris Sandlin, Melanie Matthews, Dave Mott, Ty Wilkins, Rob McClurkan, Todd Bright (just to name a few) but one of my all-time-favorite shots is Troy Cummings' “Hike”. I love the shapes used in the characters. I love how the bear fits with the hiker. I love the depth of the forest. Love love love. Also love.
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