Meet Chris Garbutt | Writer, Director, Executive Producer working in Animation, Books, and Comics

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

Hi Chris, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I’ve been excited by drawing, writing, and creating characters, stories, and worlds, ever since I was very young. It all comes from spending hours and hours reading comics, watching cartoons, loving being in those worlds, meeting those characters, and then wanting to create ones of my own. I guess I have a rampantly active imagination, and this provided me with the perfect outlet. Making a career out of it was always my dream, so it’s something I pursued with an absolute, single-minded drive, completely sure in my own mind that I didn’t want to do anything else.

Please tell us more about your work. We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others, what you are most proud of or excited about. How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges? What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way. What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?
I’ve worked in animation, comics, books and illustration for over 25 years now, working in London, Paris, and Los Angeles. I’m the co-creator, writer, director, and executive producer of both the animated interactive Netflix movie, We Lost Our Human, and the Netflix/Nickelodeon animated series, Pinky Malinky. Both projects made alongside my co-collaborator Rikke Asbjoern.

I’m very proud of both of those projects, but it was always a goal of mine to have my own animated series, so having Pinky Malinky green lit was definitely a pretty special moment. We Lost Our Human was a very different beast, and has a different sense of accomplishment as it was a HUGE undertaking to bring together such a massive project, and I’m very proud of the whole team for doing such an incredible job.

Personally, I’m also very proud to have recently accomplished one of my own childhood dreams of having a regular comic strip in a humour comic in the UK, as I’ve been writing and drawing a strip for a comic called Monster Fun. This is definitely one that 9 year old me would’ve been blown away by!

In regard to getting where I am today, growing up in Yorkshire, in the north of England, there was never an obvious path into an artistic or creative career. At that time there was no real industry for that kind of work up there, but regardless I had a deep passion for comics and cartoon, paired with a blind faith and stubborn drive that if I kept working hard I would find a way!

Thankfully I had very supportive parents, and did well at art through school and college, so I was encouraged by those around me to keep at it too. Despite doing some comic work during my time at school and university, it wasn’t really until I left college that I really started to find out more about the industry.

Myself and a friend of mine (Dave Needham, who’s also now in the industry) spent the last of our student loans and took at trip from the UK to, rather naively, turn up on the doorsteps of major studios and artists in New York and LA to try and find jobs! We visited Nickelodeon, MTV, DC Comics, Marvel, all kinds of places, and even met some of our cartooning heroes, like Bill Wray (from Ren and Stimpy) who was very encouraging, and further opened my eyes to the animation industry.

Unfortunately, despite a very positive reception from everyone I met, the lack of a work visa was a problem! So, after 3 weeks we returned to the UK.
From there I discovered there was actually an animation industry in London, so I eventually packed my bags and headed down there and gradually picked up enough work to base myself in the city. Things really started to take off and ultimately I was able to fulfil my dream of living in the US and working in the animation industry in LA too!

I guess the lessons that I’ve learnt along the way, with the many highs and lows, and hundreds (if not thousands!) of rejected pitches, is to never give in. It sounds cliche, but it kind of rings true. If you want something hard enough and are willing to put in the work, listen to people, question yourself, take risks, push yourself, pick yourself up and keep going, then reaching your goals can be possible.

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?
Head to Los Olivos. Hire bikes. Drink the amazing wine. Eat fantastic food. Repeat for a week. Then maybe take a trip up to Big Sur also, just to disconnect, decompress, and try spot some whales for a few days.
After that, back for more bikes and wine.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My Mum and Dad supported my dream, no matter how unlikely it might’ve seemed that I would fulfil it! Bill Wray (of Ren and Stimpy fame) was one of the first professionals to respond to my work and make me realise I could do this for a living.
Steve Small (animation director based in London) was someone who took the time and patience to help nurture me through the early years of my career working in London.
Charlie Bean (director and executive producer based in LA) has been a constant mentor, supporter, and friend for over twenty years, and someone whom I still gain so much from!

Instagram: @thatdamngarbutt