DR
Derek Raymond
@derekraymondofficial
Your digital art career changed.
But your bills didn’t.
You spent years getting good.
Now the old path feels less steady. And starting over at the bottom is not a real option.
This free 3-minute check-in helps you see what fear may be doing under the surface, so you can find one next move that uses what you already know.
For digital artists in animation, VFX, games, film, TV, and entertainment who want a deeper way forward — not just more career advice.
You are not starting from zero. But you may be choosing from fear.
Find Your Next Move
A free 3-minute check-in for digital artists whose old path changed,
but who can’t afford to start over.
Answer a few simple questions and see which fear pattern may be shaping your next move
— so you can stop guessing and make a clearer choice.
You’ll also get one grounded next move that uses what you already know.
3 minutes
Private
Built for digital artists in entertainment
No résumé advice
No portfolio notes
No “just stay positive” fluff
Start here.
Choose the answer that feels most true right now.
You spent years getting good.
You should not have to go back to zero.
The industry changed.
Work slowed down.
Studios cut back.
Freelance feels shaky.
AI is in the room.
Waiting for things to “go back to normal” does not feel like a real plan anymore.
But starting over at the bottom does not make sense either.
You have skills.
You have taste.
You have experience.
You have bills.
You need a next move that uses what you already built.
The rules changed. Your value didn’t disappear.
Waiting is not neutral.
Waiting can feel smart.
It can feel responsible.
It can feel like you are “just seeing what happens.”
But waiting is not neutral.
Not when the industry is changing.
Not when work feels less steady.
Not when your bills keep coming.
Not when fear is already making your world smaller.
If you keep waiting, your next move may still come.
But it may come from panic.
From pressure.
From “I’ll take anything.”
From “I guess this is all I can do now.”
That is the danger.
Not that your career is over.
The danger is that fear starts choosing for you.
And fear does not choose bigger.
It chooses smaller.
You are not starting from zero.
But you do need to see what fear may be doing before it quietly builds your next chapter for you.
Fear does not always sound like fear.
Sometimes it sounds responsible.
Sometimes it sounds practical.
Sometimes it sounds like, “I’m just being realistic.”
Fear says:
Wait.
Truth:
Waiting is still a choice.
Fear says:
Take whatever comes.
Truth:
Reaction is not a strategy.
Fear says:
Don’t risk looking foolish.
Truth:
Staying invisible has a cost too.
Your next move should come from clarity.
Not panic. Not pressure. Not fear in a smarter outfit.
This is for you if…
You worked in animation, VFX, games, film, TV, motion design, CG, or digital production.
Your old career path feels less steady than it used to.
You spent years building real skill.
You have bills, responsibilities, and a real life to support.
You do not want to start over at the bottom.
You are open to looking at what fear may be doing under the surface.
This is not for you if…
You only want job leads.
You only want résumé help or portfolio feedback.
You think inner work is nonsense.
You want a guaranteed income plan.
You want a magic answer without looking at the fear underneath your choices.
Why Derek
I'm Derek Raymond, and I know this fear because I have lived my own version of it.
I spent more than 20 years as a character and creature animator in film and television. For a long time, animation was not just my career. It was my identity.
Then the industry changed. Work slowed down. The old path felt less certain. And I had to face the thing most people do not want to say out loud:
I did not know what to do next.
And I could not afford to start over.
I had skills. I had experience. I had bills. I had a real life to support. And I also had something else in me I wanted to build.
But I did not have endless time or money to guess wrong.
That is why I do this work.
Not résumé help. Not portfolio notes. Not another “just keep networking” pep talk.
This is belief-shift work for digital artists who know the old path changed and do not want fear choosing what happens next.
Because sometimes the real block is not your skill.
It is the fear underneath the choice.
Already know this is you?
You do not need another quiz to know the old path changed.
If you already feel the fear, the pressure, the waiting, and the “I can’t afford to start over” problem, you can skip the check-in.
This is the path for digital artists in entertainment who are ready to stop drifting and find a next move that uses what they already know.
Not ready yet? Take the free check-in first.
Fear Stops Here: Next Move
A 4-week belief-shift experience for digital artists in entertainment who need to stop making their next move from fear.
Over 4 weeks, we look at:
What changed
What fear is doing under the surface
What part of your skill still has value
What next move uses what you already know
This is not about forcing a huge life reset.
It is about finding one grounded next move without going back to zero.
Find your next move.
You do not need to figure out your whole future today.
But you do need to stop letting fear choose the next move for you.
Still unsure what is driving the fear? Start with the free check-in.
Already know this is you? Get on the founding round list now.
You are not starting from zero. But you may be choosing from fear.
Disclaimer:
This work is for personal growth and education. It is not medical, mental health, financial, or legal advice. Individual results vary.