Meet Stephen Valdivia | Animation Director

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

Hi Stephen, can you tell us about a book that has had a meaningful impact on you?
C.S. Lewis’ The Silver Chair in the Chronicles of Narnia Series always seemed to really stand out from the rest. It’s arguably one of the darkest entries in the series, where the protagonists essentially venture into Hell (in true Dante’s Inferno fashion) to save the lost prince of Narnia. At the darkest point in the book, all hope is lost, and the protagonists find themselves trapped in the underworld of Narnia with seemingly no escape. Against all odds, they rise from the underworld and save Narnia.

About a year ago I suddenly began struggling with extremely debilitating symptoms where I’d go into anaphylaxis whenever my body temperature rose. It got to the point where merely being in the sun for a few seconds would cause an excruciatingly painful stinging sensation followed by a breakout of hives all over my body. Healthwise, 2022 was living hell. During this time I suddenly had the urge to re-read The Silver Chair and replay The Legend of Zelda: Majoras Mask, which is also arguably the darkest entry in the Zelda franchise. I then realized that I gravitate towards The Silver Chair because it’s exactly in the darkest stories where the light seems to shine the brightest. Just like in life, we all face dark and confusing moments where it feels like all hope is lost. The Silver Chair is one of those bizarre, morbid works of art where the light pierces the darkness and reminds us to persevere when it feels like we’re in a pretty crummy situation.

This book has had such a profound impact on me that I even began writing a graphic novel called Insomnia Chronicles: The Ballad of Commander Groggy, centered around the theme of rejoicing in suffering. After months of sleepless nights, Groggy descends into madness and finds himself in a strange world where a spell on the moon has frozen time, causing an endless night where no one has slept in 100 years. Taking inspiration from the darker elements in The Silver Chair, I hope Insomnia Chronicles is one of those stories were hope shines the brightest.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Recently I had the pleasure of directing the art and animation for a short film called “Blueberry”. Written and directed by my friend Steph Glover, Blueberry is a wholesome traditionally animated film about a boy’s change of heart when his favorite food comes to life. It was a blast working on the film, and we had an insanely talented team of artists. Looking back, I can say it definitely wasn’t easy, as I had to juggle my full time job along with my health concerns mentioned earlier. There were even times where my power would go out and I’d drive to Waffle House at almost midnight during a thunderstorm so I can give our animators notes and drawovers on their shots. Near the end of the project, for about a month I decided it was important for me to stay up until 4am every night giving artists their notes after I finished my day job. It was definitely an adventure, but it was so worth it. We set out with a specific tone in mind for the film and the team totally nailed it. It’s good old fashioned traditional animation! A few months ago, we had our premiere at a theater in L.A. during the Oscar Qualifying Pan African Film Festival. We are still doing the film festival circuit now. One thing I’ve learned from this experience is that the hardest part of working on a project for me is finishing and moving on to the next thing. My boss at Ubisoft shared a quote with me when we were working on an animated trailer for our Street Fighter crossover that perfectly sums it up. “A record is never completed, you just move on to the next one” – Jon Foreman. I’m proud of Blueberry and can’t wait for it to be shared with the world!

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’m still new to the area as I am still working remotely for Blue Mammoth Games/Ubisoft, but when I Iast visited town a good friend of mine introduced me to Antico’s, and it may have been the greatest pizza I’ve ever had. I had their Diavola pizza at the Alpharetta location. And of course, I want to give a huge shout out to the whole team at Blue Mammoth Games in Alpharetta. They are the most talented artists I’ve ever had the joy of working with, and some of my closest friendships started at that studio. It has been a blast getting to grow as an artist under their leadership, getting to work on IPs such as Avatar the Last Airbender, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Kung Fu Panda and many more!

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?
I’m so thankful to have grown up in a home with parents who fostered creativity and storytelling. When I was a kid, me and my dad would film movies with my action figures on our old tape recorder. In middle school when I started learning how to animate, he would lend his voice to characters in my animations. His vocal performance in my Pie Attack trilogy in middle school is legendary, and to this day I still think he needs to get into voice-acting! My mom would buy me and my sister clay for making claymation, which was how my love for animation began (thanks mom!). I even remember at one point they tried getting me into sports, and when they realized that I was only going to basketball practice for the snacks, they asked me if I’d rather be in after school art clubs. It was an emphatic yes from me! Throughout my adult life they have been my support and ground control during turbulent times. They are the kind of people who always know just the right thing to say, and are always building me up and motivating me. I’m so thankful for them!

Website: https://www.stephenvaldivia.net/

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

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-valdivia-574866128