Natalie Nourigat’s Memoir Comic About Getting an Animation Job

Boom! Studios has announced that they will be publishing Natalie Nourigat’s graphic novel I Moved to Los Angeles to Work in Animation in December. I enjoyed her previous book of diary comics, Between Gears, so I’m eagerly anticipating this memoir, particularly given the unique topic.

When she left her life in Portland to move to Los Angeles and pursue a job in animation, Natalie Nourigat realized that despite her research, nothing truly prepared her for the wild world that awaited her in the studios of Southern California. This autobiographical how-to graphic novel explores the highest highs and lowest lows of pursuing a dream in animation with a dose of humor and advice not found anywhere else!

“I Moved to Los Angeles to Work in Animation is a first-person account of how I landed my first animation storyboarding job and survived my first year in Los Angeles, along with all the things I wish I had known while I was trying to break in,” said Natalie Nourigat. “I set out to make a friendly, practical guidebook relaying what I have learned thus-far so that other people can be empowered with more concrete information about salaries, career paths, studio cultures, how to meet other artists, what to put in a storyboard portfolio, and much more. I’m thrilled to release this story as a graphic novel with the potential to reach readers considering big career moves of their own, and hope it’ll help make those decisions easier.”

The question of how to make an interest in art into a career is always a challenging one, and I’m glad to see more people talking about the options available and hard work required. As you can see from these preview pages, it also takes a lot of time and patience.