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David DePasquale

Lead Character Designer/ Illustrator

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David was born in Jersey City and raised in Manalapan, New Jersey. Growing up infatuated with the arts and music, he spent his childhood splitting his time between drawing what he loved and playing his piano and trumpet. He graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City in 2010 with a BFA in Illustration. In January 2015, he moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue a career in the animation industry, began as a Prop Designer for Disney Television Animation, and hasn't looked back since. He is currently a lead character designer at Netflix, on an unannounced project. His other clients have included Disney Television Animation, Dreamworks TV, WB, Titmouse, Nickelodeon, and Bento Box, among others. He currently lives in Burbank with his boyfriend and their dog, Banjo.

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Testimonials

David really cares about character design and it shows in his interactions with students. His feedback and Q&A sessions are always insightful and motivating. David is super approachable and open, he’s never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down. Truly a great teacher.

Frank

David was a joy to learn from! I really appreciated that he was so open to taking late assignments. Being a working professional, it can be hard to hit the assignment deadlines on time, and David was always willing to take my late submissions and still deliver feedback.

Amanda

This has definitely been the most educational and productive character design class I’ve ever taken

Asia