Discover the Vibrant World of Emily the Artist
Emily Art
Emily Art

FAQ

  • Home
  • About Us

The questions I get asked most, answered directly. If yours isn’t here, the contact page reaches me.

I’m Emily Leeds — a 2D and 3D animator, director, and digital illustrator. I graduated from Pratt Institute in 2026 with a BFA, entering on a Presidential Merit Scholarship and finishing with the Pratt Circle award for top academic honors. I work the full pipeline: story and visual development, storyboards, character design and modeling, animation, lighting, rendering, and final composite. My work leans toward character-driven storytelling and slightly off-kilter worlds.
Four animated shorts, each written, directed, and animated solo, plus two demo reels — all on my films page. Well of the Underworld (2026) is my Pratt senior thesis film. It won the All Show Audience Choice Award at Pratt Institute and was an Official Selection for Best Animation there. Easy Bake Husband (2024) won Audience Choice at the Lift-Off Global Network First-Time Filmmaker Sessions, with Official Selections at the North Edinburgh Film Festival 2025, the Lift-Off Global Network Sessions, and the Otis College Animation Festival 2024; its end credits read “A film by Emily Leeds,” and it’s on IMDb. Woodsy and the Sleep-Walking Cure! (2024) was an Official Selection at the Otis College Animation Festival 2024 and the Lift-Off Global Network Sessions, and Pop! (2023) completes the set.
Yes. I’m open to full-time studio roles in animation and willing to relocate. I’m equally comfortable owning a project end to end or slotting into an existing pipeline, and I also take freelance, contract, and commission work. The contact page is the fastest way to reach me; my studio-facing portfolio is on ArtStation.
Studio-pipeline tools first: Autodesk Maya for modeling, rigging, and animation; ZBrush for sculpting; Substance Painter for texturing; Nuke for compositing; Toon Boom and Blender for 2D animation. For illustration and design work, Procreate and Photoshop. The tools follow the story rather than the other way around — I pick whatever gets the shot right.
Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York — BFA, class of 2026. I entered on a Presidential Merit Scholarship and graduated with the Pratt Circle award, Pratt’s recognition for top academic honors. Before Pratt I studied at NSU University School in Davie, Florida, and spent years teaching art to kids at Young at Art Museum and working in the theater program at the Broward Performing Arts Center.
Two audience-voted awards, at two different festivals: Easy Bake Husband won Audience Choice at the Lift-Off Global Network First-Time Filmmaker Sessions, and Well of the Underworld won the All Show Audience Choice Award at Pratt Institute — where it was also an Official Selection for Best Animation. Academically, I entered Pratt on a Presidential Merit Scholarship and graduated with the Pratt Circle award for top academic honors. Easy Bake Husband was also an Official Selection at the North Edinburgh Film Festival 2025, the Lift-Off Global Network Sessions, and the Otis College Animation Festival 2024, and Woodsy and the Sleep-Walking Cure! was an Official Selection at the Otis College Animation Festival 2024 and the Lift-Off Global Network Sessions — those are selections, not wins.
The films and reels are on my films page, and more work is in the gallery. My full studio-facing portfolio — character work, environments, and process breakdowns — is on ArtStation. I’m also on IMDb, The Rookies, Behance, LinkedIn, and Vimeo.

Let’s Create Something Together

I love hearing from clients, collaborators, and other artists — whether you’re considering a commission, want to discuss a project, or just have a question. The fastest way to reach me is the contact page.