Art directors work under a pressure and time constraints. As a freelance illustrator, my job is to relieve that stress as much as possible. I do this by communicating with art directors to understand their needs, providing sketches at an early stage for approval, and producing quality work, on time, always. In 20 years of storyboarding I have never missed a deadline. Brands I have worked on recently include Aussie, Celebrex, Clairol Herbal Essences, Continental, Dawn, Foxwoods, Hershey’s, Office Depot, Outback, Revlon, Swiffer, Trojan, Tums, US Bank, Vital Radiance, and Zoloft.

In the course of my career I have done all sorts of art besides storyboarding, including book and magazine illustration; writing and drawing comic strips for High Times and Heavy Metal; designing toys and illustrating packaging; and illustrating for the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. From 1996 to 2002 I was an art director at Arnold Worldwide, and since returning to the ranks of the self employed I’ve focused on storyboarding. My experience on the inside made me a better freelancer because I now understand the pressures art directors work under as well as what makes a storyboard effective. I am accustomed to the fast turnarounds and last-minute changes of the advertising business. Art directors usually supply me with roughs, but sometimes they simply talk me through a job. I can also work directly with a writer.

Normally I work in my home studio and submit finished work by email, but I am available for onsite work. I particularly enjoy doing sketches at brainstorming sessions or any other sort of conceptual work.

For more on Paul Kirchner:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Kirchner