I am a visual development artist and illustrator with 10 years of freelance experience creating concepts and illustrations for a wide range of products in diverse styles. I translate creative briefs into polished characters, scenes, and props, focusing on strong storytelling and production-ready results. As an in-house studio director and lead animator, I mentored teams from concept to final product, driving collaboration and expanding creative performance for broadcast television and marketing campaigns.…

Manuel Aquino

PRO

I am a visual development artist and illustrator with 10 years of freelance experience creating concepts and illustrations for a wide range of products in diverse styles. I translate creative briefs into polished characters, scenes, and props, focusing on strong storytelling and production-ready results. As an in-house studio director and lead animator, I mentored teams from concept to final product, driving collaboration and expanding creative performance for broadcast television and marketing campaigns.…

Available to hire

I am a visual development artist and illustrator with 10 years of freelance experience creating concepts and illustrations for a wide range of products in diverse styles. I translate creative briefs into polished characters, scenes, and props, focusing on strong storytelling and production-ready results.

As an in-house studio director and lead animator, I mentored teams from concept to final product, driving collaboration and expanding creative performance for broadcast television and marketing campaigns.

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Language

English
Fluent
Spanish; Castilian
Fluent

Work Experience

Freelance Concept Artist / Visual Development at Freelance
January 1, 2014 - November 4, 2025
Develop concepts and illustrations for a number of products in a variety of styles. Sketch and develop designs of characters, scenes, and props. Creative lead with clear communication and constructive feedback.
3D Generalist, Lead Digital Animator, Illustrator, Marketing Artist at M&S Marketing Graphics, Inc. / Editorial El Antillano
January 1, 2014 - January 1, 2014
In-house studio director specializing in 3D/2D animation for broadcast television. Lead animator and visual designer for television shows and clients such as Badillo Saatchi & Saatchi, No Te Duermas, and Hecho a Mano. Led a team of artists to develop visual content from early stage to final product. Known for mentoring and implementing training that expands team members creativity and levels of performance.
Freelance Visual Development / Concept Art / Illustration at Freelance
January 1, 2014 - Present
Develop concepts and illustrations for a number of products in a variety of styles. Sketch and develop designs of characters, scenes, and props. Developed and iterated character and prop designs, enhancing visual storytelling and aligning with creative briefs for marketing campaigns.
3D Generalist, Lead Digital Animator, Illustrator, Marketing Artist at M&S Marketing Graphics, Inc. / Editorial El Antillano, San Juan, Puerto Rico
January 1, 2002 - January 1, 2014
In-house studio director specializing in 3D/2D animation for broadcast television. Lead animator and visual designer for television shows and clients such as Badillo Saatchi & Saatchi, No Te Duermas, and Hecho a Mano. Led a team of artists to develop visual content from early stage to final product. Mentored and implemented training that expands team members' creativity and performance.

Education

MFA Visual Development at Academy of Art University
January 1, 2020 - January 1, 2024
Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts at Escuela de Artes Plásticas de Puerto Rico
January 1, 1998 - January 1, 2002
Master of Fine Arts at Academy of Art University, Visual Development
January 1, 2020 - January 1, 2024
Bachelor of Fine Arts at Escuela de Artes Plásticas de Puerto Rico
January 1, 1998 - January 1, 2002

Qualifications

Add your qualifications or awards here.

Industry Experience

Media & Entertainment, Professional Services
    paper Visual Development Story Proyect Titled: The Thief

    The Thief is a film dedicated towards kids from age 8 to teenagers and adults.

    My children inspired me to create a fantasy world where two siblings are living together in a family home with both father and mother and they are simple farmers. I want to show young kids how one situation can drastically change your life and how a certain event forces you to redesign yourself for the better, even if it means leaving behind all comforts and safe zones. And that before conquering all odds you must first trust in yourself and those that are the closest to you. An adventure about healing, love, sacrifice, family, and courage.

    A have a mixture of films and games that inspired me both artistically and spiritually for my story. I take films like “Princess Mononoke” (1997) by Studio Ghibli and Director Hayao Miyazaki, “The Never Ending Story” (1984) Director Wolfgang Petersen, “The Legend of Zelda” video game series developed by Nintendo, “Castle in the Sky” (1987) by Studio Ghibli and Director Hayao Miyazaki, and “The Lord of the Rings” Directed by Peter Jacksonhttps://www.twine.net/signin).

    The style that I intend for this animation is a combination of Studio Ghibli’s lush world build with Zelda’s culture environment.

    I will mostly use PhotoshopCC and Corel Painter for developing this project along with hand drawn material. And I also use Adobe Illustrator for creating stencils and patterns and Adobe Lightroom for publishing purposes and other pipelines.

    I would like to present the final project like an art book of “the making of”.

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