Meet Ricky Baba | Art Director

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

Hi Ricky, what do you attribute your success to?
My success in creative fields can be attributed to an unwavering commitment to learning. I’ve always maintained a curious mind and sought out new methods of working. This has allowed me to use transferable skills to move between industries in creative fields. So in my case, success has been characterized by adaptability, resiliency and consistently creating value in different domains.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
What sets you apart from others?

What sets me apart is my ability to blend creativity with strategic thinking. While I am pretty good at generating innovative ideas, I also have a strong focus on implementing them in ways that drive measurable results. My diverse background, which spans multiple industries, has equipped me with a wide range of transferable skills and a deep understanding of different perspectives. This combination allows me to approach challenges with a unique lens, consistently delivering solutions that are both original and effective.

What you are most proud of or excited about?

I’m most proud of being self taught. I did go to school for classical 2D art & animation, but didn’t really do any digital art on a computer until after college. Most of my classmates went on to study 3D animation, but I did not. That made me feel insecure about the skill gap, so I made it a priority to learn on my own.

How did you get to where you are today professionally?

Focusing on growth areas beyond my primary skill sets of just being an artist. As a baseline, I always wanted to be a world-class artist. However, to grow into more demanding roles, I had to learn how to work and communicate effectively across functions within a large organization to grow my career in a professional environment.

Was it easy?

Absolutely not! For me to grow my career, I felt that I had to perform on the biggest stage, which meant leaving my home country (Canada), somehow getting a work visa, and relocating to California. Moving to California meant that I had to prove to the studios (DreamWorks in my case) that I was worth the immigration and relocation time/costs.

If not, how did you overcome the challenges?

I put myself into ‘lockdown’ mode. Basically, I stayed inside and worked on learning 3D animation software for about 2 years. This in combination with picking up random 3D tasks at work. At some point, I became ‘good enough’ to get an artistic position at DreamWorks Animation in LA, and they moved me to the US.

What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?

Never stop learning, because tools evolve and one must stay relevant to remain agile enough to withstand industry disruptions.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?

I’m just a regular guy who never gave up on his dream of becoming a professional artist.

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?
Anytime my friends are visiting LA, they usually have certain sights that they want to see. I usually lean into that and make sure that they have the smoothest experience possible. I’d want them to see the city’s vibrant culture, iconic sights, and food scene. I would plan zones to spend each day in, to avoid having to spend too much time in the car.

Beaches: I would suggest visiting some beaches and spending the day in that area. The Santa Monica Pier is iconic and the food and shopping nearby is a huge plus. It’s also always fun riding bikes from Santa Monica to Venice Beach. Also, driving up the coast to Malibu is worthwhile.

Downtown: To give people options in one concentrated spot, I would suggest Grand Central Market in Downtown. Or I would head a bit west to get some eats in Koreatown. If it interests them, I’d hit up The Broad museum, it’s one of my faves.

Hollywood: The Griffith Observatory and Runyon Canyon offer nice views. The Hollywood Walk of Fame is something that most people want to see with their own eyes. Since it’s been developed over the years, there’s more to do and see than when I lived there. I’d suggest the Magic Castle for some unique entertainment.

Beverly Hills: In the past, friends have enjoyed window shopping and dining in the Rodeo area as well as driving around and admiring the nice homes in the area.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I have to give a huge shoutout to my wife who creates space for me to pursue my creative passions and wild ideas!

Website: https://rickybaba.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/rickybaba

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickybaba

Twitter: https://x.com/rickybabatweets

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rickybaba

Image Credits
DreamWorks Animation (Kung Fu Panda 2, Rise of the Guardians, Shrek Forever After)

*TMNT characters are my own fan art, based on characters owned by Nickelodeon, which is owned by Paramount.