Meet Ardashes (Dash) Najarian | Storyboard Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ardashes (Dash) Najarian and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ardashes (Dash), what do you attribute your success to?
In terms of my actual work, I think a factor that separates me from other artists that led to my success is to be inspired by artists and take aspects from work that I admire and apply it to my own, but to also to make sure my work was authentic and very “me”. A big thing I had to learn was that I couldn’t be another Mike Mignola, Ian McCaig, or Hayao Miyazaki, I had to keep being myself, and there was a lot of insecurity in my work that I had to face because of that. Basically, I learned from my favorites but couldn’t copy them. I also went out of my way to study things I didn’t learn in school. Every time I watched a film I drew screencaps of shots I didn’t understand, or compositions I liked, etc.

For how I marketed myself and my work, I think a big factor behind my success is to be a good person. At this point in the industry, there are so many artists that all know a similar amount of stuff, and people will always prefer someone they know to a name on an application. I focused very hard to meet as many people as possible, having a presence on social media, and if I met someone I thought could get me work, to keep in touch with them. At a certain point, the live action industry just feels like you are hanging out on calls with old friends and work just comes to you. I don’t really apply for any jobs, if people know you are dependable, the work will find you. Being a genuine human being is very rare today, I have found.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am so grateful that I can make art in a style that I find appealing. I find a-lot of peers are pigeonholed into changing their style to fit what sells or what works for a project they are on, and while I do shift a little from project to project, I am happy I can do work in a style I enjoy, and is “me.”

Getting into the industry and making my art a career was equally easy and stressful. It felt oddly out of my hands. I felt like I blinked and one day I was working on a film haha. I think it’s about who you know, not even for just connections, but if your friends are good people and artists, that affects your own work. I don’t think I would have gotten this far without my peers.

A big lesson I learned along the way is “if it’s gonna happen, it will happen.” Sometimes you just gotta wait for your moment, I started getting work in sophomore year of college, but I didn’t get CONSISTENT work till really a year ago. (I graduated in 2020) Another lesson I learned is from my varsity swim coach, Mrs. Zurn, “Practice doesn’t make perfect, it makes permanent.” I think a lot of young artists think that just mileage alone is good enough to get a career, or even be a good artist, but your habits have an affect on your artwork. If you practice how to draw hands wrong, you will only know how to draw hands wrong. A very simple example, but I feel you understand my point haha.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’ve always been a big fan of diners, Earlybird Cafe in Fullerton is incredible. Mikes in La Mirada is a place me and my friends have spent many mornings getting breakfast there. I’ve always found that it’s who you’re with that is more important than the spot itself. Some of my favorite days are getting breakfast at Mikes with my best friend Kip, another incredible artist, then either seeing a movie or drawing around town. My mom always said the best part of SoCal is that an hour in every direction yields something exciting.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to Madison Dunn! He is a very good friend and continually inspires me and my journey in the industry. I am very grateful for all my friends but he specifically has really helped me more than he realizes.

Website: www.dashnajarian.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/artdashes

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/dash-najarian-ba31471b2/