We had the good fortune of connecting with Hannah Pendergrass and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Hannah, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I think I always knew right off the bat that I wanted to do something creative when I grew up. A lot of my core memories from childhood involved family movie nights with my parents and older sister and the love for the craft just kind of blossomed throughout my teen and young(er) adult years. College was where I really hit the nitty gritty of it all and started to lean even further into specific forms of art like music, theater, film, costuming and eventually make-up. The spring semester of my freshman year I got to take my first “proper” make-up class where I got to play with products that aren’t typically used on a regular day to day basis like prosthetics or liquid latex and it really fanned the flame of practical make-up and SPFX effects in movies and at that point I decided that it didn’t really matter where I was working or what I was working on as long as I could have a creative outlet to lean into.
Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Like I said somewhere else, while I’ve got my own skill to thank for getting where I am professionally it would’ve been much harder to do without the support and encouragement from a village full of people. The creative journey has been a rocky one with lots of ups and downs depending on the market, sometimes it feels as easy as breathing and sometimes it requires a mentally strenuous amount of work to be done, but I think the best way to overcome those challenges is through perseverance, patience (which I’m still working on) and keeping just a pinch of hope in my back pocket all the time. I think one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned along the way is that if you’re actively putting love into what you do, it’ll always find a way back to you bigger and better than ever – there will be a couple of times where it feels like it isn’t going anywhere but you’ve got to trust that it will always come back around to you, and there will always be people rooting for you when it happens. And as far as proud or excited moments I feel like most of it has had to do with watching the growth of my art throughout my years of practice and seeing a timeline of how I’ve improved and how I’ve been able to help others improve, but I know there are always going to be bigger and better projects or ideas that will keep the ball rolling.
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.
So fun story, this actually happened a few weeks ago! One of my best friends flew in from Connecticut and I took her to MomoCon. Atlanta has a really great convention scene whenever they roll around throughout the year. I honestly think it’s one of the best things to do if you’re an aspiring or established creative in the city because it really gives you the opportunity to meet and talk to some really talented people that either do this professionally or pursue it for the love of it. On a slightly more unrelated tangent Ground and Pound in Roswell has some of the best coffee I’ve had and Outrun Brewery in Stone Mountain and Sceptre Brewing Arts in Decatur have some really awesome beers if you’re into that, I’m a sours girl myself.
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?
There are so many people I have to thank, for all of the wonderful things they’ve done to help me pursue a life full of creative work. First and foremost I have to start with my family, who dragged me tooth and nail to my first few theater auditions and then shuttled me back and forth on endless nights of rehearsals. Then, Ray Mannila, who is not only missed very dearly, but really pushed me to follow through on building my creative skills wherever I could whether it was in make-up or acting or even on the more technical side of theater or film. Of course, my college professors Julie Megginson, Lisa Davis and Jeff Green who all held so much time and patience for me when it came to rehearsals and learning new skills or ideas to utilize to make the art I was creating that much better. Last but not least, my favorite colleagues Autumn Shelley, Pat Peacock, Beau Palmer and Kynder Bonilla who have been the best people to share any form of creative space with and always listen to my ideas and offer feedback on how to make them better. It truly takes a village and I’ve been blessed with having a seriously rock solid support system.
Instagram: @hannahnabatman
Image Credits
Kynder Bonilla