Illustrator Spotlight: Danielle Heitmuller
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| © Danielle Heitmuller |
March 2, 2025
It's the beginning of the month so we are pleased to host an Illustrator Spotlight on Danielle Heitmuller and her website banner design for Kidlit411. Check out her awesome art!
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| © Danielle Heitmuller |
You work in animation, movies, and videos. How do these skills translate into your illustration work?
I am very grateful for my background in animation. I was well-versed in visual narrative and how to construct a sequence of images before I ever attempted a children’s book project. I rely heavily on the principles of film language; particularly framing, composition, color, lighting, and graphic design all support the visual narrative. Animation is a lot of drawing too. While I may have griped about how hard it was when I was going through school, it really does train you to be a great draftsperson. If you are looking to get better at drawing a character from any angle and keeping them looking consistent, I highly recommend studying animation. It is a lot of work, but it pays off in the end.
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| © Danielle Heitmuller |
We love your banner design for Kidlit411. How did you approach this project?
Thank you so much! I have to admit, I had resigned myself to not entering this time, but luckily the idea popped into my head with just enough time to spare. Reading always felt like a gateway to other worlds as a kid stuck in a small town, and I love space and sci-fi. I did a lot of sketches to get the character poses and composition, but the concept was there from the beginning. Once I had a sketch I liked, I scanned it, printed it onto watercolor paper, and painted it traditionally. Then I added finishing touches with a fountain pen and a little Photoshop.
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| © Danielle Heitmuller |
Who or what inspires you?
All kinds of things inspire me! I find inspiration every day, and I jot things down on my phone, as I always have it with me. I love taking a walk and seeing nature or exploring a city on foot. The color of the sky, an expression on my son’s face, an overheard snippet of conversation…any of these can become a story. I was reading an article, and it had a particular turn of phrase that I loved. While the article had nothing to do with the story I was working on, that phrase was able to crack open the story world for me. I also like to sketch from life in cafes and cities, but that is harder now that I have a child. He is 5 and doesn’t like to wait!
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| © Danielle Heitmuller |
What projects are you working on now?
I have a new dummy I’m about to go out on submission with, and two more I’m working on. One is at the thumbnail stage, and the other is in the rough sketches stage. I am also making a new animated film, which takes up most of my summers.
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| © Danielle Heitmuller |
What is one thing most people don't know about you?
I love to sing. I’m not really comfortable doing so in public, but my shower concerts rock.
Where can people find you online?
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