Meet rui huang | Digital Artist & Animation Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with rui huang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi rui, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
When I was young, I was obsessed with animation and films. Working in the entertainment industry became my dream. After I graduated from Sichuan Fine Art Institute, I got an excellent opportunity to work in the game industry as a concept artist. From there, I started to pursue a creative career. I love creating digital arts, including illustration, animation, motion graphics, games, etc. It provides me with a way to express who I am and what I care about. After I had worked in the game company for several years, I made a big decision to take a break. So, I went back to school. I spent three years at the University of Southern California studying Cinematic Arts. That experience had a significant impact on me, which drove me to keep pursuing my passion for art. I realized that I love storytelling and visual design. So, I told myself I would keep horning my art skills. I wanted to create not only beautiful but also thought-provoking artwork.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am proud that I completed an animated short film, There You Are, during covid. And it was awarded and screened over 50 film festivals worldwide. During that difficult time, my team and I had to overcome all kinds of problems physically and mentally. I felt depressed and stressed. So I kept encouraging myself and my team members. I told myself if I could conquer it this time, I would become stronger. We ended up finishing the film on time. The lesson I learned from that time never stops. Our journey is like climbing mountains. The mid-way is extremely painful. But if we keep climbing. The day when we arrive at the top, we will gain a tremendous sense of achievement. Nowadays, I am working at BUCK, focusing on 3D design. At the same time, I have my team doing game projects. Our team is FunkyDango. We are targeting making beautiful and meaningful games. The first game project we released is There You Are, which has won many awards worldwide. It is a story about unresolved grief. We published on STEAM and itch.io and received a lot of good feedback. Then we decided to continue making new games. The one we are working on is a story-based VR experience. The theme is Ignorance is bliss. Players are placed in a pod to escape a catastrophic explosion on your spaceship. On this trip, you will meet a new friend ARIA who is your AI assistant. And you will reveal some secrets about ARIA. This is FunkyDango, a team of great artists targeting making beautiful and meaningful games. A principal theme in our artwork is the inner world of people. We are concerned with mental health issues and hope to convey those concepts through our work.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My best friend and I used to live nearby in my hometown. After I moved to LA 4 years ago, we didn’t have a chance to catch up in person for a long time. If we were to take a trip together, I would like to take her to Hawaii. Both of us love beach scenes, where we can relieve our pressure. We will probably find a good place on the beach chatting a whole day. There must be many important moments in our life that we have missed with each other. And, of course, LA is a fun place to visit. There are many great museums, like lacama, The Broad, and The Getty. I would strongly recommend it.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My family is very supportive and important to me. I am fortunate that my parents are very open-minded. No matter what decision I made in my education or career, they always believed in me and gave me 100 percent support. And I have a lot of good friends and mentors that helped me in my journey. Especially my best friend Rong and my mentor Mike helped me and inspired me when I was frustrated and at a low point in my life. Without them, I cannot imagine how I can continue to pursue my dream. I gained confidence and courage from them.

Website: https://www.ruihuangart.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ruihuang1126/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rui-huang-81a41315a/

Twitter: @ruihuangdesign

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rui.huang.520/