ILLUSTRATOR | 2D ANIMATOR
LET'S CREATE TOGETHER!
Past clients include...
With over 5+ years of illustration and 2D animation experience, I've had the privilege to contribute several artworks and animated shots to a number of talented projects. I have worked on animated shows and feature films under industry professionals and created multiple illustrations for individual clients and compilation projects.If you think I would be the right fit for your project, please fill out the contact form or email me to get in touch! It would be my pleasure to work with you!
Hayden Luckett, known by his online username haydensmub, is a freelance illustrator, 2D animator, and clean up artist based in Kentucky. He also has experience with puppet animation and storyboarding.He graduated from Lipscomb University with a BFA in Animation. During his time there, he studied under and worked with several Disney legends and industry professionals such as Tom Bancroft, Tony Bancroft, John Pomeroy, Mike Nawrocki, Tim Hodge, and more.Luckett has animated on several short films and completed clean up animation for many high-profile projects. His clients include Pencilish Animation Studios, Armada Company, The Tennessee Titans, and The Dead Sea Squirrels, LLC.In addition to his professional work, Luckett has spent his time producing and cultivating his original project OCULI, derived from his senior thesis film of the same name.Apart from his work life, he enjoys working on personal projects and creating characters and stories. He watches many animated shows and movies both for entertainment and to learn from their creative processes. He is also an avid lover of video games, many of which provide the inspirations for all his past, present, and future projects.
ILLUSTRATION
CLEAN UP
ANIMATION
OCULI
DEMO REEL
SAMPLES
DEMO REEL
SAMPLES
"OCULI" is an animated short film created by Hayden Luckett. Based upon a concept first conceived in 2020, the film was completed in 2023 as Luckett's senior thesis film.The story follows a young girl named Hotai who travels from world to world through door-like portals in search of a way home, all while dealing with a unique quirk where she sees creatures that don't quite exist."OCULI" premiered at Lipscomb University's "5-Minute Film Festival" where it was nominated for "Best Animated Short Film" and tied for 2nd place in the "Best Screenplay — Animation" category.Luckett's personal comments on the film and its production:
“ As of writing, it's been a little over one year since "OCULI" premiered. This was the first short film I ever produced and I'm still quite proud of it, but it definitely served as a huge learning experience for me. Most of the film was a solo effort, save for some last minute help from friends and peers who graciously offered their aid.Due to this solo approach and the deadline I was faced with, the film did not quite find itself in the completed state I had imagined. Honestly, sometimes I even hesitate to call it a "film" as it's more of a fully colored animatic if anything. Though, the definition of the word "film" is still pretty loose, isn't it?In spite of all the challenges, I still had a blast working on it. The concept is one that's been swirling in my head for a few years now, and I had already created a couple other storyboards in my attempts to try and hash out my vision for the story. They were all made with a 5-minute time limit in mind, as that was the primary rule of the film festival that I submitted to. After drafting out three completely different storyboards, I quickly realized the story I wanted to tell was much grander than something that could be told in 5 minutes. Nevertheless, I tried anyway.Each incarnation of the story differed from the previous, to the point now that the original concept is far removed from where it is now. Even the film itself is somewhat outdated, with the story having greatly evolved and expanded just in the past year. I've been speaking about it in a vague manner this whole time, but it's because I've been continuing to develop the concept and I believe it's finally nearing its true state.I'm not sure when or how I will be able to deliver the full story of "OCULI"—if it would even still be called that in the future. I have dreams of telling it in the form of a video game, or perhaps I'll be able to properly make the film as I had originally envisioned. These are options I am investigating, but either way they are definitely far off into the future.Ultimately, I'm proud of the work I did for this film and I'm grateful for the lessons that working on it taught me. It's far from perfect, but the feeling of seeing my work come to life on a giant screen in front of a whole crowd is truly unmatched. I'm thankful for everyone who supported me and for those who pitched in during the final hour to help pull it together.I hope to share more on the future of the series one day. Thank you for enjoying "OCULI"!”
— Hayden Luckett, 2024
CONCEPT ART
EDUCATION
BFA, Animation
Lipscomb University
Class of 2023
SKILLS
2D Animation
Clean Up Animation
Ink & Paint
Inbetweening
Puppet Animation
3D Animation
Storyboarding
Direction
Adobe Creative Cloud Suite
Photoshop
Premiere Pro
Audition
After Effects
Toon Boom
Harmony
Storyboard Pro
TVPaint Animation
Autodesk Maya
WORK EXPERIENCE
INK & PAINT
Reconnecting Roots – lilDRAGON
April 2025 - May 2025
2D ANIMATOR / CLEAN UP / COLOR
Too Much Fun – Skybone Studios
March 2025 - April 2025
2D ANIMATOR / INK & PAINT
The Great STAR Caper
October 2024 - March 2025
STORYBOARD ARTIST
Bedtime Defenderz – Armada Company
May 2023 - June 2023
Storyboarded on Episode 6 and Episode 10.
STORYBOARD ARTIST
Traffic Safety Spots – Armada Company
August 2023 - September 2023
Storyboarded two 30 second shorts.
CLEAN UP ARTIST / INBETWEENER
Light of the World – Pencilish Animation Studios
January 2023 - March 2023
Worked with a small team to produce the film's "Proof of Concept" animation.
LEAD CLEAN UP ARTIST / INBETWEENER
Aro Lucha – Pencilish Animation Studios
April 2022 - July 2022
Headed the line clean up process and completed several scenes of clean up and inbetweening for the intro sequence of the cartoon. Additionally created cleaned up key frames for other artists to inbetween and finish for select scenes.
LEAD CLEAN UP ARTIST / 2D ANIMATOR
Enlightened
January 2022 - April 2022
Headed the line clean up process for a student short film and directed other staff to perform additional cleanup work. Worked alongside another group of animators to also create several 2D animated sequences for the film.
CLEAN UP ARTIST
Pencils vs. Pixels – Pencilish Animation Studios
May 2021 - July 2021
Animated clean lines for scenes of an animated character featured in post-credits sequences.
CLEAN UP ARTIST
Tennessee Titans 2020 Schedule Announcement
March 2020 - May 2020
Animated clean lines for the Colts and Lions sequences.
TOON BOOM HARMONY ANIMATOR
The Dead Sea Squirrels
August 2021- November 2023
Animated character rigs in several shots of musical sequences spanning across multiple episodes.
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