In anticipation of the Made in New York: Best of NYC Animation showcase and panel at Metrograph this Saturday (9/13/25, 5pm), I had the opportunity to speak with Signe Baumane and Debra Solomon about the screening, making it in NYC, and 417 Hz YouTube videos.

Just as New York has long been the capital of America’s artistically ambitious “Second Cinema,” a scrappy foil to the Los Angelino industry of streamlined entertainment, it is also home to a counter-tradition of independent animation that has nothing to do with what happens out there in Burbank at the House of the Mouse. Two abundantly talented stalwarts of the NYC animation scene, Bill Plympton and Signe Baumane, have teamed to assemble a program of some of the finest (and most outrageous) work to emerge from artists living and working in the Big Apple, and will be coming to Metrograph to introduce a one-of-a-kind evening of stubbornly individualistic toons, with a number of the participating filmmakers also present. Not the sort of stuff you’re likely to catch on Saturday morning, kids!

“What makes NYC indie animators so special? Sense of timing. As we scurry from place to place trying to avoid gawking tourists, hungry rats and drag racing vehicles we internalize the sense of adventure and fast pacing, and we bring it to our work. This program showcases just a sliver of the best NYC indie animation: some of the films are Oscar winners, others are made by animation newcomers, but they all share the sense of wonder, adventure and perfect NYC timing to make you laugh, cry and be entertained.” —Signe Baumane

Post-screening panel discussion with Chris Wedge, Bill Plympton, Chris Conforti, Lisa LaBracio, Anna Samo, Patrick Smith, Peter Ahern, Alex Budovsky, Candy Kugel, Marilyn Kraemer, Signe Baumane, Debra Solomon, and Morgan Miller on Saturday, September 13th.

Links to points of discussion:

• Made in New York: Best of NYC Animation showcase and panel on Saturday, September 13th at 5pm
• Metrograph
• Signe Baumane's website
• Karmic Knot
• Debra Solomon's website
• Debra Solomon's Facebook
• Lisa LaBracio on The Animator's Friend
• Andy London's website
• Arthur Metcalf's website
• The Animator's Favorites
• Kristian Sensini's website
• Angelika Film Center
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram
• The Animator's Animations

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator based in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for lighthearted and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded, produced, and edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Booking assistance from Kaila Hier
• Digital marketing assistance from Arnesh Kundu
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design by Sawyer Rippon
• Microphones provided by SVA MFA Computer arts
• Special thanks to Kaila, Michael Dondero, Kristie Kish, Darren Santa Maria, and my mom and dad.

Nayon and I met on a grueling hike in the French alps after a revelrous week at Annecy International Animation Festival, bonding us in a unique way. I can say for myself, she saw my most bratty, unvarnished self within only hours of meeting, which I can't say for most people! Hear us reminisce.

Nayon Cho is an animation director and artist born in Seoul, based in New York. She uses a technique which combines drawings, photographs, cel and computer animation. Experimenting with timing and abstraction in 2D narratives, her works explore themes of gender dynamics and social conditioning.

Upon graduating from Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in Film/Animation/Video, her short films and commissioned works have screened internationally in film festivals, like Ottawa International Animation Film Festival, Pictoplasma, Kaboom Animation Festival, and more. Recently her commissioned piece, “Peekaboo,” made for Hulu IDs won a Webby Award for Craft-Best Use of Animation.

She is seeking to collaborate on story-driven projects, she is available for work directing, animating & consulting opportunities.

Links to points of discussion:

• Nayon's website
• Hulu IDs Peekaboo
• Stigma
• Skincrawlies on YouTube
• The Animator's Animations
• Hudson Valley Film Fest
• Hudson Valley Film Fest on Instagram
• Rhode Island School of Design (RISD)
• The Animator's Playlist
• David De La Fuente's website
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for personal, lighthearted, and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded, produced, edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Digital marketing assistance by Arnesh Kundu
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design and branding by Sawyer Rippon
• Microphones provided by SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Special thanks to Simon Wilches Castro for introducing me and Nayon; Hsiang Chin Moe; Michael Dondero; Malt Adult; and Mom and Dad.

Tala really knows what it means to live life creatively! She blurs the boundaries between her art practice and personal life to lead an existence that feels like a work of art in and of itself. You can experience this rapturous reality by attending one of her many retreats, workshops, and community events! Join her orbit: @talaschlossberg.

Tala Rae Schlossberg is an American experimental artist known for her distinct animated style, original voice and inventive storytelling. Her animation practice merges rhythm, wordplay, and systems of logic to construct entirely new ways of seeing. Schlossberg’s distinctive visual language—at once ironic, pastoral, and incisively original—reimagines the relationship between image, meaning, and motion.

Links to points of discussion:

• Tala's Instagram
• Tala's website
• Tala's Substack
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram
• The Animator's Animations
• The Animator's Playlist
• Peephole Cinema on Instagram
• Hudson Valley Film Fest
• Hudson Valley Film Fest on Instagram
• Kristie Kish on The Animator's Friend
• TAF at Animafest Zagreb
• TAF at Annecy International Animation Festival
• School in Sweden I mentioned: Sorangens folkhogskola
• My email address: india.lombardi.bello@gmail.com

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for personal, lighthearted, and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded and edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Produced in part with facilities provided by SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Digital marketing assistance by Arnesh Kundu
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design and branding by Sawyer Rippon
• Special thanks to Bergen Hoff for introducing me to Tala; Kristie Kish; Michael Dondero; Jose Vargas; Malt Adult; and my mom and dad Lisa Lombardi-Bello and Mick Bello

Cynthia and I are passionate about being able to communicate with cockroaches one day, but for now, we'll have to settle on talking to eachother. Listen to us in our middle-of-the-night post-lasagna daze, spiraling over roller-coasters, ghosts, and crystals.

Cynthia Chu is a 2D illustrator and cel animator originally from NYC. Her style goes between painterly and moody to silly and simple. Past Clients include Nickelodeon, SONY, Girl Rising, STARZ, MTV, and Court TV. She is available for freelance Color Design, BG Paint, and 2D Cel Animation.

Links to points of discussion:

• Cynthia's Instagram
• Cynthia's illustration portfolio
• TAF at Annecy with Barnaby Catterall
• Josh Pilch on The Animator's Friend
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram
• The Animator's Favorites
• Annecy International Animation Festival
• Ottawa International Animation Festival
• Anne Beal on The Animator's Friend
• The Animator's Animations
• The Animator's Playlist

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for lighthearted and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded and edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Produced in part with facilities provided by SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design and branding by Sawyer Rippon
• Special thanks to Barnaby Catterall, Lisa Lombardi-Bello and Mick Bello, and AJ Lawrence

We are live-to-tape at the 2025 Annecy International Animation Festival! Take a pew with me and my friend Barnaby Catterall (who I met at Annecy 8 years ago!) as we chat with Animation Talent Picnic attendees about how well they tan, what animal would play them in a Better Man type biopic of their life, and what they have or have not yet seen at the festival this year.

Links to points of discussion:

• Barnaby's website
• Barnaby's Instagram
• Annecy International Animation Festival
• Arco
• Layer Explorer podcast on Youtube
• The Animator's Animations
• Alberto Allegri Rodriguez's website
• Alberto Allegri Rogdriguez's Instagram
• Potlems on Short of the Week
• Mikkel Mainz on Instagram
• Sun Creature Studio
• Skjaldborn Studios
• Tales of Alethrion on Youtube
• ChaO
• Dragon Striker
• Hoj
• Kfir Ben-Dov's website
• Lee-Yam Naaman's website
• Lee-Yam Naaman's Instagram
• Mononoke The Movie
• The Animation Workshop
• Pedro Martins Twitch
• Hlin on Instagram
• Melissa Raymond Lund's website
• Royal College of Art Animation MA
• The Animator's Favorites
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for lighthearted and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded and edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Co-host Barnaby Catterall
• Produced in part with facilities provided by SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Travel support provided by Annecy International Animation Festival and SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design by Sawyer Rippon
• Special thanks to Cynthia Chu; Brent Sievers; Ash Suh; Tracy Liu; my mom and dad Lisa Lombardi-Bello and Mick Bello; Barnaby's mom and dad; Darren Santa Maria.

In the interest of making new friends while attending Animafest Zagreb this year, I hung out at the festival picnic to record some impromptu conversations. This feels especially meaningful since Animafest is where I got the idea for the podcast this time last year! I was graciously joined by Sawyer Rippon, designer of the TAF logo, to chat with some new buds about Animafest's programming, frogs, and the beauty of the animation community with guests.

Links to points of discussion:

• Sawyer's website
• Sawyer's Instagram
• Animafest Zagreb
• Bratislava Academy of Performing Arts
• Alina Koroleva's website
• Alina Koroleva's Instagram
• Estonian Academy of Arts
• Power Rangers Time Force on Tubi
• Yiyang Sun's website
• Yiyang Sun's Instagram
• @rs92221 on Instagram
• A Night at the Rest Area by Saki Muramoto trailer
• Ode to Perfume by Maxim Litvinov trailer
• Rise & Shine
• Animateka International Animation Festival
• Kaboom Animation Festival
• The Animator's Animations
• The Animator's Favorites
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for lighthearted and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded and edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Co-host Sawyer Rippon
• Produced in part with facilities provided by SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Travel support provided by Animafest Zagreb and SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design by Sawyer Rippon
• Special thanks to Ash Suh for talking about recording at animation festivals with me; either Britt Raes or Tracy Liu for talking about recording specifically at the festival picnics with me; my mom and dad Lisa Lombardi-Bello and Mick Bello; Darren Santa Maria.

Listen to my chat with my two favorite Annecy Achievers Michael Dondero and Shengnan Dong, whose film Nostril has been programmed into Annecy International Animation Festivals 2025's WTF Block! If you are going to Annecy, book your ticket for one of the WTF blocks ASAP or rush day of!

Links to points of discussion:

• Nostril's website
• Michael Dondero's website
• Michael Dondero's Instagram
• Shengnan Dong's website
• Shengnan Dong's Instagram
• Annecy International Animation Festival
• The Animator's Animations
• The Animator's Favorites
• The Animator's Playlist
• Walla Walla Movie Crush
• Lost Signal Society (Michael's podcast)
• Woodstock Film Festival
• Blender
• The Animator's Friend on Instagram

The Animator's Friend is hosted by India Lombardi-Bello, an animation educator at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. In this new series, India creates a platform where animators get to talk about themselves outside the context of their work. A questionnaire format, inspired by the 24 frames per second of animation, allows for lighthearted and unexpected conversation.

Credits:

• Recorded and edited by India Lombardi-Bello
• Produced in part with facilities provided by SVA MFA Computer Arts
• Music by Cloutmeyer
• Design by Sawyer Rippon
• Special thanks to my mom and dad Lisa Lombardi-Bello and Mick Bello; Malt Adult and Sarah Schmidt; Darren Santa Maria