Equestria Daily

We have a ton of artists in the fandom, with some focusing on keeping it show accurate and others going way off the rails. Possumface finds a comfortable medium, with a bunch more adorably chubby pony form and super smooth shading that really sets her apart from everyone else.

You've probably seen her OC's posted all over the place here on EQD, since a lot of her art is dedicated to Stormy Sea and Parlay. They've become relatively famous with interesting backstories and tons of awesome art.

Time for a spotlight! Head on down below the break for an interview and gallery showing off what Possumface does!

Spotlight Interview

Q:) How did you stumble upon My Little Pony? What was your "origin" story if you will?

Well, when I was a little girl I was obsessed with the G3 ponies. I had a ton of the dolls and a few of those VHS tapes that came with them too. Eventually I outgrew them and gave them away to a younger friend of mine. Several years later in 2011, I’m looking through one of those awful meme sites (a much cooler thing to do back then, I assure you) and see that there’s a reboot. I watched the first episode and ended up marathoning the whole first season within the next couple of days. Such a cute show! I didn’t even understand how huge the fandom was either until a little while afterwards. I remember seeing Vinyl Scratch in that Rarity episode in season one and thinking “Oh, she looks nice, I wonder if anyone else has noticed that background pony yet!”

Q:) What is the process you usually go through when drawing something new? What tools and programs do you use?

For the longest time, I would sketch on paper and then finish things up digitally - in MS Paint no less! If you look at my older stuff (which I don’t recommend), you can see how low quality and pixelated my drawings look. I tried to downsize them to hide that.

Nowadays, I do everything digitally in Paint Tool SAI. My tablet isn’t really anything fancy, but if you’re wanting to get a good beginner’s tablet I’d really recommend it! It’s a Huion H610PRO.

Q:) Do you draw professionally? Or is this a side thing to another career or job?

I don’t consider myself a professional. I like to draw my own horse OCs, or maybe a canon character now and then if they really catch my interest. Sometimes I do commissions to earn some extra cash in a crunch, but I have a back problem that makes sitting a literal pain in the behind, so unfortunately I can’t take my hobby to the professional level. I think I’ll probably be happier leaving it as a hobby anyway!

Q: ) Who is your favorite pony and favorite princess? And if it's different, who is your favorite pony to draw?

Hmm… My favorite main character is probably Applejack, but design wise I love Spitfire! My favorite princess is Luna. I know that’s probably a common favorite, but all those dark blues are so beautiful. I don’t think I’ve ever even drawn her with the flowy mane before. Oops!

Q:) What kind of challenges do you usually run into when drawing a character or subject for the first time? Has there ever been an image concept that completely stumped you?

Oh, yes. I struggle quite a bit with backgrounds and scenery, especially geometric backgrounds like a city or inside of a building. I have quite a few artist friends who turn out beautiful backgrounds in a couple of hours, which is completely baffling to me.

Pony wise, I have some trouble with making characters interact in a natural looking way. I think it’s because the pony anatomy works fairly differently than real life horse anatomy, so using references doesn’t always work out. Things like characters hugging can be really tough to figure out sometimes. How do hooves even work?

Q:) Your pones definitely don’t look like possums, but they are very distinctive. Where did the name come from, and how did you eventually land on your current style?

Oh! Interesting question. My dA username is actually a nickname my best friend in high school called me that eventually caught on, to the point where I used it on Facebook and various other social media sites and was commonly called it in real life. It might sound like a sort of mean nickname, but I know it came from a place of love. Plus, I love possums. Have you seen those things? They’ve got super cute faces.

As for my style, who can really say? I’ll just repeat what I know a lot of people say: style is mostly just a combination of traits you like in other art that you’ve woven together over time to make into something new. There are lots of artists I admire, like Scarlet Spectrum, January3rd, and TheParagon who have inspired certain traits in my art.

Q:) You mentioned mainly working on OC’s, and I know I’ve posted Stormy Sea a million times. How did you come up with them?

She’s actually based on the character I’d always create in RPGs (or really any games with a character creator). For the longest time, she didn’t even have a cutie mark or any sort of purpose outside of being a pony version of that. Over time I started to think more about how she’d actually fit into the MLP world, what she’d like to do, where she’d live. I really like the idea of a bat pony who is inherently unbat-like. I mean, she sure looks the part. Maybe I’m just not a fan of a lot of the bat fan stereotypes that have popped up since they first showed up. Like the whole mangoes thing, or a lot of bat OCs being dark, broody night guards. I like Paper Stars for that reason as well!

Funny enough my other main OC, Parlay, is based on a game (Fallout New Vegas) too. I suppose I draw a lot of inspiration from RPGs.

Q:) Socks, sweaters, silly hats, swimwear, full body armor, ponies have worn it all. What is your favorite accessory to draw ponies in?

Sweaters! Especially oversized ones where their little hooves barely stick out of the sleeves. Honestly I think ponies in any kind of shirts are super cute. Not sure why!

Q:) What do you like most about Friendship is Magic? What keeps you drawing so many awesome ponies?

It’s very light-hearted and relaxing. A lot of the other cartoons I watch can get very emotional, with a lot of heavy real life conflicts. Not to say that FiM doesn’t have its occasional heavy episode, but it’s usually done in a way that makes it easier for the younger target audience to handle. I guess in that way, it’s like a comfort show for me. I also find the character designs to be very cute and diverse even in their simplicity. Making OCs is a fun process and a great way to get creative and express yourself, which is why I have such a fondness for them.

Q:) Do you have any tips for newbie artists looking to improve?

Practice! Any time and any way you can. Look at tutorials and watch speedpaints for things you don’t understand. The internet is so full of resources for every imaginable thing, and there’s nothing wrong with referencing things to better understand them. Try not to compare yourself to others, you will always end up feeling bad about it, even when you’ve spent years and years honing your skills. Just do what makes you happy. Make content you enjoy.

Q:) Why do you think My little Pony Generation 4 has been so successful? What keeps you here involved in the community?

It’s hard to say, really. I think turning the concept of cutesy little ponies having tea parties into cutesy little ponies going on adventures and saving the world was a good choice. When I joined the community, I found it to be a very welcoming and accepting place. Some of my closest friends were met via some kind of pony related interaction. I’m not as deep into the community as I was in 2011, but I still enjoy seeing what kind of fan content people come up with. It’s definitely a community that encourages creativity and self-expression.

Art Gallery

[1] Source

There is a place in the distance... by ThePossumface

[2] Source

Rock with You by ThePossumface