Dear Ben & Frank

Do you have any animals that hang out with you while working?

Question Submitted by Eric

Ben SaysWell...I wouldn’t have chosen the word animals to describe my coworkers but if the shoe fits...

Just kidding, but they are ferociously talented bunch.

I like cats more than dogs, and I usually really like other peoples pets, but don’t have any myself. I imagine they would be very distracting to me in a studio environment.

Frank SaysThere’s a kitty that hangs out here with me at the studio. Her name is Lisa. She came with the studio, and we’re mortal enemies.

Dear Ben & Frank

How do you come up with interesting designs?

Question Submitted by Zhuoshi

Ben SaysBy coming up with lots and lots of uninteresting designs first.

Frank SaysInteresting designs start with interesting ideas.

And you get interesting ideas by having lots of them. There’s a lot of waste in gold mining.

Dear Ben & Frank

Is there any type of design that you refuse to work on?

Question Submitted by Rus

Ben SaysI feel especially privileged so far in my short career that I feel the majority of the projects I’ve worked on were either fun or meaningful, and often both. Those are my main criteria for choosing to work for a company or on a specific project.

I don’t really want to start naming specifics, but there are things I am morally against and that I believe are detrimental to our society. I hope I don’t ever find myself in the situation of having to do these things in order to eat.

Frank SaysI never want to work on a project where the end result would be an annoyance to the audience. I hate having my time wasted and patience tested, so my general guideline is to try not to do those things to others.