Kristen Sanzari is a toy designer at Mattel working on the Jurassic World toy line. Previously she was a designer and illustrator for the toy and publishing company Bendon Inc. Where she designed craft and toys for Disney, Nickelodeon, Hasbro, Dreamworks, Sanrio and more. Among other things, Kristen worked as a graphic designer intern for CSI: Miami for two seasons and is currently the Chief Creative Officer for the Cal Poly Varsity Club.
(Be sure to watch the video interview below!)
Kristen Sanzari has a MFA in Visual Development for animation from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and a BFA in Graphic Design from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and currently lives in Hermosa Beach in California. We found Kristen in CTNX 2016, she’s been attending the event for the last 5 years and she will be there this year showing her new book at table T006.
You can check her work here:
Her Website
Her Facebook
Her Instagram
Her Twitter
Interview with Kristen Sanzari:
(Click the play button to watch the video interview above)
Click here to watch in a new Tab: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fU6jlmVF4YE
In this Episode, You Will Learn:
- Kristen Sanzari’s Story
- The process for designing toys
- Similarities between visual development & toy design
- How to network in events
- Finding hidden opportunities
Actionable Steps
- Focus on the work you want to do, don’t make your portfolio with all these random pieces, present the kind of art you want to make for life, focus on it.
- Collaboration and teamwork is really important, so work on meeting the people who work with you, know your team, it’s really important.
- When you work full time for a company, is really important that you find space for doing the art you want to make just for your own sake and no one else, it’s good to have a side thing always.
- Most people hate the word “networking” but it’s truly important, that you meet and befriend the people who are doing exactly what you want to do in the future.
- Keep learning about the topics you’re interested in, you have podcasts, videos, use them, learn from them.
Did You Enjoy This Interview? Let Us Know On Twitter!
If you enjoyed this interview, please let Kristen and I know on Twitter by clicking on the link below:
Click here to let us know you loved the show!
Now it’s Your Turn!
Got questions or any advice or thoughts you want to share about this interview or anything you learned that helped you on your way to freedom? What’s one thing you can take from Kristen Sanzari’s Journey? Please feel free to share in the comments section below!
Thanks so much for watching the interview with Kristen Sanzari, I truly appreciate YOU!
Until Next Time!
Rodrigo
