Hi! My name is Will Bolander and I am a student at the University of Iowa. Since high school, I’ve been animating and drawing under my alter-ego, Tin Can Island Designs. Admittedly a strange name, it comes from a group of drawings I did back when I was six years’ old, which I titled “Tin Can Island” (I still don’t remember why I did that). When my parents found those drawings in their basement, I knew right away I wanted to keep that connection going - the bird logo on my Homepage comes from those drawings.
I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and later Milwaukee and always loved drawing and animation, along with playing a lot of hockey, baseball and other sports. Initially, I intended to pursue a major in human physiology at Iowa, but kept wondering about animation and the creation of artistic works. During the COVID-19 lockdown, I got really curious about how animators created my favorite animated series (like Regular Show, South Park and Superjail!). Figuring, “why not try this myself?”, I started downloading free animation software like OpenToonz and Tahoma 2D and taught myself to do basic animation through YouTube tutorials and a LOT of trial and error. None of those efforts came out too pretty but it opened my eyes to the love I have for creating and my passion for animation.
Back at Iowa, I changed my major to Film and Screenwriting to learn more about the creative process and to sharpen my writing, communication and artistic skills. I’ve also sought out other opportunities to learn more about animation and have been taking animation courses at Southeastern Community College. Between my part-time jobs, I’ve also enjoyed working with local Iowa City bands and DJs creating visuals for their shows and music videos.
Ultimately, I hope to pursue a career in animation and would love the chance to work with others to create content that inspires others (and hopefully makes them laugh). If you have any questions or would just like to communicate about animation, you can reach me at will17bolander20@gmail.com. Thanks for visiting Tin Can Island Designs!
- Will
