This interview with @Cassieblanks (Cashie) is part of the Written Interview Series from @HyypeHQ.

Anaroth: Can you share a little about the transition you made as a creator from drawing to animation? I feel like that had to be such a powerful unlock.

Cashie: I have been drawing since I was a kid, and growing up is hard, there are so many paths to choose. I made the choice to drop my drawing career and find another path because I had this feeling that I wasn’t good enough. Then this friend of mine invited me to an animation workshop, and from there I learned a lot about animation. After months of attending the workshop, finally I had a chance to have a freelance job for a 2DFX artist in the animation industry. I honed my skills there for about five years but due to the pandemic and the impacts that it had I quit that job. I decided to take a gamble on this NFT world as an animator from the start. It turned out to be a great decision, and I am happy to have the opportunities I do.

Anaroth: How did you discover NFTs? Do you find yourself still collecting today? Any grails you wish you had?

Cashie: I had this friend of mine that introduced me to this play2earn game called Axie Infinity last July 2021. I was shocked because I had no idea that you could really earn money playing a game. From this entry point I learned about a lot of NFT games, from Cryptoblades and some other BSC Smartchain games and things that ultimately went to zero. It happens to the best of us.

That being said I learned a lot about liquidity and coin trading from my time in that space. How I was able to leverage Pancakeswap and stuff. It had been a lot of fun learning and understanding this new knowledge. However, because things didn’t pan out, yeah I became real broke after that. This is when I decided to lay low from Play2earn and start doing some of the Art contest from NFT projects. From there I found myself getting to know projects like BAYC, Doodles, Cool Cats and others. I was late! I wish instead of investing in Axie back during that time of July, I should have minted some BAYC or some Doodles and other bluechips, but I was late. I already saw them around 1 ETH and I didn’t even have a basic grasp of what it was. That’s why I was afraid of investing that amount of money, but I wish I did! If i could just go back in time, damnit what a real life changing opportunity that would be. Haha!

Anaroth: I know you get a lot of commission requests, what advice do you have for Artists that are looking to do more commission work? When and how do you allow yourself to say no?

Cashie: Low prices can be a good weapon for being a commission related artist for startups. Just letting the world see what you can do with those prices, eventually people will start questioning you why your prices are dirt cheap. I swear, someone actually said exactly that to me. That’s when I knew my work was able to be priced higher than I had been. This also allowed me to start picking who I would want to work with.

Saying No can be hard sometimes. For me, if it is hard for me to imagine what it would be and the schedule is real tight, I’ll definitely pass. I find unwanted commission work could burn out a weeks worth of energy in a single day for me. Be mindful of yourself and stay in stuff you can handle. Do not gamble with your mental health, it is too important.

Anaroth: When you reflect back on some of your favorite pieces of artwork, is there a central theme that you feel connects them?

Cashie: Every moving element is my other form of inspiration, just a fire in a candle can get the juices flowing in my creative brain and start seeing the beauty of it. Waves of ocean would, ripples in a glass of water, the rain, the cigarette smoke. It all mesmerizes me, and keeps me inspired.

For now I cant feel that central theme, since i worked on a lot of 2DFX and animation design on clients such as Disney, Warner Bros, Nickeldeon, MLP and others. There we are forced to alter our design to what the client wants. That’s why I have this wide range of style, but don’t necessarily feel like I have a signature design / style yet, and I do wish I did.

Anaroth: Has your NFT commission success changed the way you think about opportunities in your future?

Cashie: One day, I will find myself as a signature artist too. It is my dream. I aspire to be my own Beeple or Gxngyxng, Deekay, Burnt Toast, or some other 1/1 Artist’s out there. It’s my goal now, and I will keep pursuing light in the dark.

Anaroth: Who is someone you would like to collaborate with and why? Have you reached out to them to do so?

Cashie: Gxngyxng of Ghxst and Deekay are my dudes of inspiration! i literally stare at the blank sky and think on how to be like them. Once I build my foundation of being a 1/1 Artist, maybe then I will finally have the courage to come up with plans on collaborating with them. It would be really special to have that opportunity.

Anaroth: How do you overcome a creative block? How does a deadline impact your creativity?

Cashie: For me I find taking a rest, or watching some awesome anime is always a good move for me to recover from a creative block I have. A deadline doesn’t impact my creativity very much, because before I start the commission, it is already finished in my head. It is kind of pre rendered in my brain. I will just need some coffee, and some good music for me to start kicking.

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