Becca Ramos: The Pinay artist behind Chowder

MANILA, Philippines - Fil-Am Becca Ramos never had it so good in the Land of Milk and Honey. The Emmy-winning background designer’s work is seen in such top animated TV series as The Simpsons, Family Guy, Rugrats and Pinky and the Brain. Becca has been designing locations at Cartoon Network Studios. Among her works for Cartoon Network are The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, Evil Con Carne and most recently, Chowder.

Becca is part of the team that created the magical world of Marzipan City in Chowder, which airs weeknights at 6 on Cartoon Network.

Below, California-based Becca talks about her work, sources of inspiration and edible art, among others, that make her interesting, not just as an artist, but as a person.

For which work of yours did you get an Emmy? And when?

I received Emmys for my work on Rugrats, The Simpsons and Pinky & the Brain, respectively, and proudly, as part of a creative team. This was way back in the ‘90s. I was fortunate enough to have worked on all these successful shows and been recognized for my contribution.

What fulfillment do you get out of creating background designs for cartoons?

It’s great to see one’s drawings on TV. Growing up, I was addicted to television, and particularly with cartoons. I have always wondered as a kid how I can get a job in animation so I can see what I drew on TV. I originally wanted to study fine arts with animation as a major but we didn’t have that back then (well, apart from computer animation now, I still don’t know if there is such a course offered in our colleges, correct me if I’m wrong). It was not available as a course so I went for my second choice, architecture. Despite all the math and engineering subjects, I liked it, even though animation was still in the back of my mind. However, as soon as the opportunity to get into the industry fell on my lap, somehow I found a way of connecting my profession with my dream. And for as long as I have been in the animation business, I still get a kick out of seeing my work on screen. More so when my nieces and nephews would ask me — “You drew that?” It’s all about pleasing the kids, right?

Of all your works, which is your favorite?

At the risk of sounding biased, I will have to say my favorite would be Chowder. It’s just different from all the shows I have worked on. The backgrounds are all hand-inked - talk about being old school. But that’s the look of the show — very loose, uneven lines — very organic. We use a croquille dipped in ink to achieve the uneven line quality. Carl Greenblatt, the creator of Chowder, was also great in allowing the designers to have freedom in adding our sense of humor to our designs. I have to note though that only the backgrounds on Chowder are hand-inked. The characters and props are all done in Illustrator.

How did your studies/background as a student/professional in the Philippines help in your present job?

Good conceptualization and visualization, a keen sense of space, and knowledge of perspective are some of the skills I learned in college that I find very useful to me in my line of work. Background designing is a lot like architecture except we avoid construction altogether.

How were you able to break into the US TV animation industry?

I sent a job application to Hyperion Entertainment, a company in Glendale, California that was doing a feature film for Warner Bros. Just my luck, a former boss from Hanna-Barbera was in charge of the animation checking department on the project so I got an instant recommendation. The company then offered me a job along with a work visa sponsorship so I can work legally in the US. This was the only feature film project I worked on. After the movie wrapped up, I went on to work on Rugrats for Klasky-Csupo, Inc.