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Hey, I’m Al! I’m an illustrator, visual development artist, and above all, a collaborative storyteller. I’ve helped bring meaningful stories and characters to life with local animation teams including Eat Rice Studio and Cap Gun Studio. I’ve also done just about every part of the animation pipeline while working on student films with my peers at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI!…Hey, I’m Al! I’m an illustrator, visual development artist, and above all, a collaborative storyteller. I’ve helped bring meaningful stories and characters to life with local animation teams including Eat Rice Studio and Cap Gun Studio. I’ve also done just about every part of the animation pipeline while working on student films with my peers at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI!

Al Caruso

Character Designer, Props, Background Designer, +4

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Hey, I’m Al! I’m an illustrator, visual development artist, and above all, a collaborative storyteller. I’ve helped bring meaningful stories and characters to life with local animation teams including Eat Rice Studio and Cap Gun Studio. I’ve also done just about every part of the animation pipeline while working on student films with my peers at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI!…Hey, I’m Al! I’m an illustrator, visual development artist, and above all, a collaborative storyteller. I’ve helped bring meaningful stories and characters to life with local animation teams including Eat Rice Studio and Cap Gun Studio. I’ve also done just about every part of the animation pipeline while working on student films with my peers at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI!

Available to hire

Hey, I’m Al! I’m an illustrator, visual development artist, and above all, a collaborative storyteller. I’ve helped bring meaningful stories and characters to life with local animation teams including Eat Rice Studio and Cap Gun Studio. I’ve also done just about every part of the animation pipeline while working on student films with my peers at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, MI!

Skills

Experience Level

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Intermediate

Intermediate

Beginner

Language

English

Fluent

Work Experience

Character and Prop Designer at Cap Gun Studio

September 1, 2025 - October 1, 2025

Used storyboards to design on-model poses; Adapted to pre-established art style; Designed props that aligned with project’s humor

Visual Development Intern at Eat Rice Studio

April 1, 2025 - August 1, 2025

Worked with directors to establish film’s overall look; Designed main and background characters; Created keyframe paintings to guide animation team

Character Designer, Animator at Pursuit (Student Film)

September 1, 2025 - April 1, 2026

Character designer and animator for a student film Pursuit. Created character concepts, developed animation sequences, and produced storyboards and mood boards. Generated 16 background designs from layout to paint, and authored 10 short animation loops. Recreated props aligned with the project’s humor and provided emotional color scripts to guide the team. Consistently incorporated director feedback and supported the visual development process.

Background Designer & Painter at Game Night (Student Film)

February 1, 2025 - April 1, 2025

Responsible for background design and painting for a student film. Designed film narrative through storyboards, created emotionally impactful color scripts to guide the team, animated 2K key shots, and produced 16 backgrounds from layout to paint. Implemented feedback from directors to maintain cohesive visual style and prioritized efficient storyboard-to-animation workflow.

Storyboard Artist, Visual Development, Animator at 50 Seconds in Heaven (48-Hour Challenge Film)

November 1, 2025 - November 1, 2025

Storyboard artist and visual development for a 48-hour film challenge. Created storyboards to outline narrative, developed color scripts, and contributed animation work to establish the film’s overall look and tone. Designed props and keyframes to support humor and pacing, and produced multiple background concepts to streamline production.