Vincent Tsui is a French animation director and Gobelins graduate (2015). He directed episodes of Scavengers Reign, with one receiving the Jury Award for Best TV Series at the 2023 Annecy International Animation Film Festival. More recently, he directed episodes and the title sequence for Adult Swim’s Common Side Effects. Vincent’s work has also been recognized with awards like Best Student Film at the French National Animation Festival, and he has collaborated with studios including Google, BUCK & Oddfellows.

Hey Vincent! So glad to have you here. Where are you right now? How is life going on?

Hi there! Glad to be chatting with you! You’re actually catching me at a crazy time. I just had a new baby girl a month ago. I also have a 2 year-old daughter which makes things extra spicy, haha. Life is well beyond my control these days but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I’m trying to enjoy my paternity leave as much as possible. I’m getting back to work next week. We’re starting to work on Common Side Effects season 2!

My wife and I recently put this O’Keeffe painting up in our bedroom. I love waking up to it every morning.

Let’s start with your recent work — I loved Common Side Effects! How was the process for you? What stuck with you after it ended?

I’m glad you liked the show! So many talented artists worked on it. But really, all the credit goes to Green Street Pictures, they’re changing the game when it comes to American animation. It’s incredibly exciting to be part of it.

I had three different distinct roles on the show, I worked as a character designer, an episodic director and directed/animated the title sequence. I loved every bit of it. It’s rare to get to contribute on a show like this on so many different levels. I’m definitely aware of my luck.

I was convinced the show would be a hit. Joe Bennett and Steve Hely created something so special. After the relative success of Scavengers Reign (also produced by Green Street Pictures and co-created by Joe Bennett), I knew this show would speak to a larger audience. And thankfully it was also well promoted by Adult Swim which made a huge difference.

Common Side Effects

Your world feels grainy, analog, and yet new. If you had to describe your style to someone who’s never seen your work, what would you say?

Thanks for the kind words! I think you’re mostly referring to the visual style of the title sequence I made for Common Side Effects. My projects don’t always look like this. I actually make a point of adjusting the visual style/art direction to fit the project. That must come from my graphic design background. That’s how I’ve learned to approach each new project.

Otherwise I would say that my style generally includes elements of childlike playfulness, mystery and a dreamlike quality. I’ve also noticed that I personally like to explore themes and subjects through repetition and variation—creating collections or series that circle around the same concept from different points of view.

What’s your earliest visual memory — not necessarily related to art — just the first scene that ever got recorded in your mind?

I think my earliest visual memory was falling against the corner of a furniture at daycare. I almost lost an eye. I still have a scar just above my right eye. It’s wild to think how a mere centimenter would have changed the course of my life that day.

Lobster ID4, 2023

You’ve worked with BUCK and directed across illustration, film and animation. How was working full-time?

Yes, BUCK was my first official full-time job. After I graduated from Gobelins in 2015, I moved to LA to work there as designer/animator. I ended up spending 2.5 years at the company. On one hand, I loved it — I made some very good friends there, and I have a ton of dear memories from that time. On the other hand, working full-time on commercials really exhausted me creatively. I felt so liberated when I quit to go freelance. I just needed to be more in control of my time. I felt like BUCK was holding me back but I was just young and had a lot to prove.

Opal Waltz, 2017

When starting a project, do you follow a clear method, or is it more instinctive?

I’d say I’m pretty methodical when it comes to the creative stage of a project. I’m the type of person who needs clear parameters or constraints to generate ideas, otherwise I easily feel overwhelmed. I usually start broad, using an infinite canvas tool to lay everything out visually—ideas, images, references. I’ve been using Miro but I found myself using Figma quite a lot lately even though it’s not specifically made for brainstorming — I just love how easy and fluid it feels. At the end of this I’m generally bursting with inspiration and so eager to start making things.

I always end up spending too much time in this stage, but it’s the most fun—everything still feels possible.

My workspace is the most boring ever. I’m the type of person who needs everything tidy and neutral to focus. No picture needed — just imagine the most basic setup possible, and that’s it :)

Revolutions, 2023

There’s something so satisfying about the light and colors you use — do you collect visual references over time? How do you begin shaping a visual palette?

Oh, thank you! That part of my work is definitely the most intuitive. I don’t follow any specific method when it comes to color—I usually just go with what feels right at the moment. I probably unconsciously get inspired by the visuals and images that are fresh in my mind.

I do collect visual references over time. For that, I’ve been usingAre.na for years. It’s like a cleaner, more thoughtful version of Pinterest. You can save not just images, but also videos, notes, articles—anything really. Plus, it lets you download an entire collection with a single click, which is pretty useful.

Your short “An Inflatable Portrait of Adolescence” has such an emotional tone. What was the original brief like, and how did the story evolve from there?

I made this music video for my friends’ band, Supernaive. It was the lead single from their EP Dazed & Confused, which had a strong coming-of-age theme. They shared an illustration by Katsuhiro Otomo that really captured the tone they were after—a diptych showing a girl blowing bubble gum, then having it burst in her face. I loved it and started wondering if I could expand on that visual idea of inflation as a metaphor for adolescence. There’s so much tension in it—so much about the loss of innocence.

You’ve referenced adolescence, surrealism, even Hopper-like light in your work. Who are some artists — filmmakers, painters, writers — that continue to inspire you deeply?

There are a few artists who deeply touched me and whose work I keep returning to for inspiration:

Patrick Smith (video game artist aka Vectorpark), Paul Cox (Visual Artist), Emmanuel Guibert (Comic Book Artist), Jean Michel Folon (Illustrator), Thoreau Macdonald (Illustrator), John Stezaker (Collage Artist), George Schwizgebel (Animation Filmmaker) and Norman Mclaren (Animation Filmmaker).

If you could only watch one film for the rest of your life, what would it be — and why?

That would be terribly sad! But the first film that comes to mind is Contact (1997), directed by Robert Zemeckis and based on Carl Sagan’s novel. I love it because it explores profound, existential questions with such respect and tenderness. It also taps into my nostalgia for the ’90s!

And now something a bit more inward… What keeps you up at night these days (besides deadlines)? What are you dreaming about lately?

This one’s easy: my two young children are literally keeping me up at night! I dream of a lazy morning, sleeping in and reading a book over coffee — I can hardly remember what that feels like. Maybe in a few years… haha!

Made in China, 2015

Vincent’s List

Your favorite museum or bookstore:

The Fondation Maeght in the south of France

The last book you read:

Fancies and Goodnights by John Collier

A line that stuck with you:

“Me. We.” Muhammad Ali

A tune you’ve been humming lately:

Nice to each other by Olivia Dean

Your favorite moment in a typical day:

Very corny but just making my daughters smile

The last thing you saved in your notes:

Except grocery lists, an idea for the theme of an illustration series: Hugs in odd places