It’s the summer of 1992 and a young boy, clothing soaked with whale-water, happily skips his way from Shamu’s stadium, tugging at his mother’s sundress.  Something has caught his attention – a 17-year-old artist drawing caricatures of guests at the park.  His mother acquiesces and asks the British-accented artist to sketch her little boy.  Little does she know that the one day, Stephen Silver, the talented teen drawing caricatures at SeaWorld, will become one of the most recognizable character designers in animation.

“I think I always had a love for drawing. I was the only kid in my family that drew these crazy stories,” recalls Stephen, who discovered a sketchbook when he was 6. “It was full of original sketches, had portraits and landscapes and I would carry that around with me everywhere and start drawing. That was something that encouraged me.” 

Some children love drawing animals, machines, or flights of fantasy, but young Stephen Silver was captivated by people.  “I always loved drawing people,” reminisces Silver, “so it was almost like this natural progression. Then I saw Norman Rockwell’s work.  I was always drawing caricatures of people in everyone’s high school yearbook, and all that sort of stuff, so it became… easier.”

As time went on, Silver continued to hone his craft without any formal instruction.  While attending Palomar Junior College, he decided that the path of structured academia was not for him. Needless to say, his parents, who held more traditional views on education, were less than thrilled. 

“My parents didn’t kick me out of the house in a mean way. They kind of said, ‘Listen, you’re on your own.’ I was 18 years old at the time and, you know, it worked out great, making me have more of a drive than if I were bored, living at home, taking it easy as an artist.”   

Stephen took a job working as a caricature artist at SeaWorld San Diego.  There, his skills were sharpened through professional experience and the mentoring of his fellow artists.   

“The guys that hired me could draw really well and I would watch them draw all the time. Then, the sheer volume of thousands of people that I had to draw became easier and easier.”  Eventually, while doing freelance caricatures in the mall, Silver was discovered by the No Fear clothing label, who hired him to work on logo and t-shirts designs.    

In the summer of ’97, Silver’s life changed forever when his parents sent him an article on the animation industry.  “My parents,” he explains, “had always sent me articles that had to do with cartoons.  I think Lion King had recently come out. Business was booming.  I thought, ‘Hey, that sounds cool, maybe I should try to get into animation.’”  Though he had no previous training, Silver phoned a contact at Warner Bros. Animation.  Fortunately for him, a new show was in production – Histeria! 

“Histeria! was all based on historical caricatures so it was a perfect match and perfect timing. They looked at my portfolio and gave me a test. They gave me a few weeks to do the test, but I did it in two days and took it back that same week. And then they hired me.”

It was a large production, with four different crews.  It was an imposing atmosphere for a neophyte character designer, but thankfully Stephen found a mentor -- his unit’s director Bob Doucette. 

“He was very supportive and encouraging and liked my artwork, so he was always nurturing to me. He helped me do my turn-arounds in the beginning. I’d never even done a mouth chart before, but he showed me how.” 

Eventually, Stephen found himself at a crossroads.  With a few Warner shows under his belt, he was looking for work once again.  He had submitted his portfolio to Disney Feature and Disney Television.  If neither came through, he had a backup plan – the Peace Corps.  As luck would have it, though, he was offered his pick of the opportunities.  After much thought, he went with his instincts and chose the television show Clerks: The Animated Series. 

It was a wise decision.  Though Clerks lasted a brief six episodes, Silver’s character design defined the 2D aesthetic of Kevin Smith’s beloved slackers. 

“I’d do the logos for the stores, and all the movies.  It was a great freelance gig, many years after the fact. What was cool was it gained an underground following.”

Stephen went on to work on Kim Possible, where he was lead character designer, producing some of his most recognizable work.  He has also designed for Danny Phantom, The Penguins of Madagascar and development on Sony’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.  Today, however, he is a devout believer in the power of freelance work. 

Between teaching, his books, development for major studios, caricatures for celebrities, and commercials, Silver continues to be busy with non-staff opportunities.  “The great thing about being independent is I don’t have to report to anyone,” he quips. “I travel a lot, I go to different conventions all the time, and I don’t have to ask for weeks off.”

Like any master craftsman, Silver has his preferred tools.  While some skew hi-tech, such as his Cintiq and Alias Sketchbook Pro, there is always a place for traditional copy paper and a trusty brush pen.  “When designing characters, you’ve got to know the story of the character,”  Silver says. He points out that “it’s important to focus on one character at a time, too.  That’s how you establish the overall style of the product.”  He also emphasizes the importance of “drawing loose,” and defining “the shapes and proportions of the characters.”

Stephen has very clear career advice for this new generation of artists and animators.  “Promote yourself.”  You are never too big or too small to advertise your talents.  “Create your own work, and get out there,” he advises.  “Don’t procrastinate or wait around for the phone to ring.  Create your own destiny.”  Even Silver, a master of his craft, continues to promote himself though Facebook, live feeds, silvertoons.com, and self-published art books, like his 2004 compilation, Art of Silver.  He also teaches online classes through schoolism.com.

Stephen lives by the creed that there is no such thing as failure.  “Everything is a learning experience.”  His illustrious career has seen its share of tough decisions and unsuccessful projects, but his greatest achievements often came at the most unexpected times.  “One thing leads to another,” believes Silver, a fact that is hard to argue when observing the SeaWorld caricaturist turned world-renowned character designer.  Everyone starts somewhere and we never know what opportunities lay on the horizon.   

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Mark Stuart is a video game designer, freelance animation writer, and all-around cartoon connoisseur.