Today we’d like to introduce you to Tim Rowberry.
Hi Tim, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
When I was younger, I was always drawn toward creative outlets. I loved writing stories, making movies with my friends (which was pretty cumbersome, because this was the late 90’s, early 2000’s), and even went so far as having a movie premier at the Tower theater around 2002. When I was in my early 20’s I transitioned to working in IT for nearly 10 years, all while doing creative work on the side. I had developed a cartoon character and decided to write a book about him. While I was working through this on my free time, I had a co-worker mention they had met the owner of a local animation studio and introduced us. Long story short, a year later I had started a new endeavor in animation, owning a studio with him for several years. We white labeled for large companies, as well as commercial work for local places like the NHMU while developing our own IPs. During this time, I had the opportunity to pitch cartoon ideas to networks all around the world. After closing this studio, I even had the opportunity to produce an animated short for Sesame Studios (https://youtu.be/BFzk0UDf4fg?t=22) voiced by Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone of The Lonely Island.
After working in animation for several years, I decided to start a small Video Production company to service clients and work on my own projects. Through that, I’ve been able to work with clients like Blizzard Entertainment, ABC, HGTV, and History Channel as well as commercial clients all while developing and pitching new shows and ideas. Although video and animation are a huge part of my creative outlet, I have a massive love for other creative works as well. I co-authored Dr. Suess style book on cryptocurrency called Toshi to the Moon (https://www.amazon.com/dp/1728823943) as well as co-developed a board game called Fright (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09F3TY9QS/) as well as several other games and products.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I think if you live life right, it’s never a smooth road because then you wouldn’t have the bumps to learn from. When I had my animation studio, we had partnered with a college to intern students as a trade for space in the school building. It was a pretty sweet deal. I was asked to speak in classes a few times and was always asked if I would recommend college, which put me in a funny predicament. I had decided not to go to college, instead, I had earned several certificates specific to the roles in IT I was pursuing at the time, then when I moved back to creative work, all I needed was the willingness to fail, and drive to learn from it an move forward. I always answered students with “It depends” because in this day an age (unless you’re pursuing something in the medical field) almost all the knowledge you need is free online. If you’re the type of person that has drive and structure inherently, you might be better off going the route I did. On the other hand, if the way you learn is through a given structured environment to keep you on track, then school might be the better choice. I’m sure I could have avoided some of the pitfalls I encountered had I come across the information needed to avoid them earlier, but who’s to say I wouldn’t have encountered those same pitfalls years later after graduating school? I chose to learn to fail and fail quickly so I could keep going forward.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I can wear a lot of hats, but the hat I wear most often (and most comfortably) is a Producer, or more specifically a Creative Producer.
I’m probably best known for the Agua Donkeys series on Roku, and Hip Hop Howls on Sesame Workshop.
The work I’m most proud of is probably some of the shows I have in development/production right now. This last year I’ve been trying a lot of new approaches to filmmaking, as well as spending a lot of time in virtual production.
I think what sets me apart from others is probably my positive attitude and willingness to take on any challenge. There’s a million ways to approach any situation, but the best way is always with a smile and drive to keep moving forward.
We love surprises, fun facts, and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
If anyone is close to me, they know I love sloths. It might be surprising to some of them that I actually owned a sloth once as well.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tim_rowberry/
Image Credits
Jer Jackson
Eli Cuevas
Vincent Rocco Vargas
