Stories of Resilience: Paula Goldstein
From Emmy-winning design to animation, Paula Goldstein shares her journey of resilience, adapting to a shifting industry, and rediscovering her artistry through new creative explorations.
I had the pleasure of first meeting Paula in 2019 when I joined the team at Walt Disney Animation Studios to work on Frozen 2. Since then, we’ve collaborated on several animated films, including Raya and the Last Dragon, Encanto, Strange World, Wish, and most recently, Moana 2.
I was so excited to have the opportunity to sit down with Paula for this project. While we’ve known each other as colleagues for years, we’ve never had the chance to have a truly in-depth conversation about her remarkable career and her insightful perspectives on the current state of the industry.
Stories of Resilience is a personal photography project dedicated to capturing the voices and faces of those whose lives and careers have been disrupted by the ongoing challenges in the entertainment industry.
Through genuine conversations and portraits, this series aims to document the strength, vulnerability, and perseverance of artists navigating an industry in flux. If you or someone you know has a story to tell, I invite you to visit my website and fill out the form to be a part of this project.
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FYI, this is currently my last signed-up artist, but I’m hoping more will join soon. With Thanksgiving and Christmas fast approaching, the end of the year can be quite hectic for many people. However, please don’t hesitate to sign up or reach out if you’re interested in participating.
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In an industry marked by constant change, Paula Goldstein's career spans four decades of evolution in entertainment and animation. Her story reflects personal resilience and the broader transformation of an industry dealing with technological advancement, shifting economics, and the changing nature of creative work.
I've been working since the 80s and I've never not had a full-time job.
"I've been working since the 80s and I've never not had a full-time job," Paula reflects, smiling, sitting in front of me in my studio in Los Angeles, a city where she now explores new forms of artistic expression. That consistent employment streak ended last year with a layoff from Disney Animation, marking a significant shift in her professional journey. But like many pivotal moments in her career, this change has opened unexpected doors to creative exploration.
[In the spirit of full transparency, you should probably know that I was laid off from Disney Animation at the same time as Paula in 2023, but we have since worked together again on the same team as short-term hires].
Paula’s path through entertainment began at NBC, where she spent more than a decade developing her craft as an Art Director and Designer. During her tenure, she worked on everything from news graphics to special event packages. This experience allowed her to gain a deep understanding of visual storytelling in a fast-paced environment.
Her efforts earned her five Emmy Awards, a testament to her skill and creative vision. Despite the recognition and stability of her role, Paula began to feel a sense of restlessness. “It was a very stable job, maybe too stable for me to take any risks,” she reflects. By 2002, as she approached her early forties, she knew it was time for a change. This quickly became a pivotal moment that marked the start of her next chapter in the entertainment industry.
The transition wasn't easy. Her move to Los Angeles after leaving her role at NBC, driven by aspirations to work in film, initially felt isolating. "I hated LA, I hated it," she says candidly about those early days. "I was used to walking everywhere... it just felt lonely out here.".
An opportunity arose in late 2003 when Paula attended SIGGRAPH1, where she connected with a Disney producer who was hiring artists in Toronto. Back then, the process of landing a job felt different, with less competition for roles. Despite initially being passed over, her persistence and timing eventually worked in her favor. “The supervisor just called me up at the beginning of January, and she said, ‘Can you do it?’ And I said, ‘Yeah,’” Goldstein recalls. The offer came quickly, and with little hesitation, she packed up and moved to Toronto.
In Toronto, Paula spent two years working on The Wild, a project that allowed her to deepen her technical expertise and gain valuable experience in a new production environment, where she also met her future husband, Bruce.
After her time in Canada, Paula made her way back to Los Angeles, this time with deeper industry connections and a broader skill set. She ended up joining the team working on Meet the Robinsons, marking the start of what would become a 17-year tenure contributing to some of Disney’s most significant animated projects. “It felt like everything I had learned before was coming together,” she shares, reflecting on how each chapter of her career had uniquely prepared her for the challenges and opportunities ahead.
During her tenure at Disney, Paula witnessed the transformation of studio culture, particularly during the era of John Lasseter and Ed Catmull's leadership. "It was a good time," she reflects, describing a period when the studio invested heavily in artist development and creative exploration. The emphasis on nurturing talent and encouraging artistic growth created what she calls a "really special time" in the studio's history.
However, the animation industry has undergone seismic shifts in recent years. Tax incentives have drawn production away from Los Angeles, creating challenges for established artists with deep roots in the city. "Salaries in general have gone down, whether you're there or here or anywhere," Goldstein notes, pointing out that current compensation often matches what colleagues earned two decades earlier, without accounting for inflation.
Salaries in general have gone down, whether you're there or here or anywhere.
The economic realities of these industry changes hit close to home for many artists. Salaries have been mostly stagnant for several years, and in a city like Los Angeles, where living costs continue to rise, this creates additional pressure for artists trying to maintain stability. The shift toward short-term contracts adds another layer of complexity. "Only having a contract for a few months out of the year is not sustainable for so many people," she notes, touching on a common challenge faced by artists in the current landscape.
Only having a contract for a few months out of the year is not sustainable for so many people.
The industry's approach to talent has also evolved. "Companies were just realizing they could get the work done cheaper in other places," she observes, discussing the impact of outsourcing and changing production models. The pandemic accelerated these changes, normalizing remote work and opening new possibilities for global talent distribution.
The industry's relationship with experience and longevity presents complex challenges as well. "At my age right now, I'm kind of going through this thing, do I just retire, take the pensions, and call it a day?" Paula reflects. "But I don't really want to retire." Her situation mirrors that of many seasoned artists who find themselves at a crossroads, possessing decades of valuable experience while navigating an industry in rapid transformation.
The questions she contends with reflect broader concerns about career longevity in entertainment. “You feel like, what chance do I have?” she admits, discussing the challenges of finding new opportunities after decades in the field.
Paula notes the pervasive sense in the industry that younger talent is often prioritized, yet her response to these challenges has been to lean into continued learning and adaptation, demonstrating how experience can be paired with innovation to create new paths forward. “I think I’ve come to terms with the fact that you have to keep evolving,” she reflects. “You can’t rest on what you’ve already done. It’s about what you’re doing now and what you’re willing to explore next.”
You can’t rest on what you’ve already done. It’s about what you’re doing now and what you’re willing to explore next.
Paula has embraced reinvention, returning to her roots as a generalist. She’s expanding her skill set beyond her specialization in lighting and compositing, which defined the last two decades of her career. Earlier this year, we both took a certification class in Unreal Engine and her more recent exploration of AI technology, particularly in creating artistic compositions, demonstrates her adaptive approach.
Leveraging AI tools like Midjourney, she’s revisiting her earlier creative works and transforming them into something entirely new.
“I took some of my images that I created and put them into this tool, not even giving it a prompt, just seeing how they blended them,” she explains. One project she revisited involved frames from an experimental film she created in college, which featured dancers interacting with projections and light. As she spoke, she got up with clear excitement, grabbing her phone to flick through several of these new blends of images, each a pretty stunning fusion of past and present.
“It was very cool… taking something from years ago, these dancers with projections and movement and layering it with superimposed, AI-generated elements. A lot of lights and textures came through, and it felt like discovering a new dimension of my old work.”
The result is a captivating dialogue between her traditional techniques and the cutting-edge possibilities of AI, a testament to her adaptability and artistic vision.
This creative synthesis represents more than just adaptation to new technology, it's also a return to her artistic roots. "I'm giving it a lot of stuff," she says about her experimental process with Midjourney, approaching it with the same curiosity that drove her early artistic work. "It's playtime," she adds with enthusiasm.
As I listen to Paula, I am reminded that every tool, whether traditional or cutting-edge, can serve creative expression when approached with curiosity and purpose.
This openness to experimentation extends beyond technology, of course. Goldstein sees value in combining different methods, much like her early days in motion design. "I'm not interested in AI taking over," she clarifies, "but I do see its potential to enhance what we do."
I'm not interested in AI taking over, but I see its potential to enhance what we do.
Her perspective on industry evolution is both pragmatic and philosophical. "I've been around long enough that I've seen that," she says, comparing current changes to past technological shifts.
“I remember when the Macintosh came out, and it completely transformed graphic design and publishing,” Paula recalls. “People who had spent years mastering paste-up techniques with rubber cement and typesetters were suddenly faced with this new technology that made their skills feel obsolete. It’s probably how portrait painters felt when photography emerged in the 1800s, both awe and a sense of being displaced.”
Despite the challenges facing LA's animation community, Paula remains committed to her craft and her city. Her journey demonstrates that resilience in creative fields isn't just about survival, it's about continuous reinvention and feeding curiosity. As she explores new artistic directions and embraces emerging tools, her story offers inspiration for others navigating similar transitions in their creative careers.
"I'm not ready to stop," she declares, even as she contemplates what comes next. Her ongoing exploration of art, technology, and creativity suggests that even after four decades in the industry, there are always new horizons to discover.
For Paula, resilience isn't just about surviving industry storms. It's about maintaining the courage to keep creating, learning, and evolving. "I like collaboration and I miss working with people," she admits, highlighting how even in transition, the creative community remains vital to artistic growth. Her approach to change embraces both independence and interconnection: while she explores solo projects with new technologies, she's also seeking ways to share her work and engage with other artists.
Her advice to others facing similar transitions reflects this balanced perspective: "You have to be flexible," she says, but equally important is maintaining your creative voice. As her former colleague advised her, "The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to go out and just be your own creative person... No one, not even AI, can't take your story away from you."
The best thing you can do to protect yourself is to go out and just be your own creative person... No one, not even AI, can't take your story away from you.
In an era where the entertainment industry faces unprecedented change, stories like Paula Goldstein’s highlight a path forward through uncertainty. Her journey from network television to feature animation to independent artistic exploration demonstrates that creative careers aren't linear paths but rather continuous evolution. Through every industry shift and personal transition, she's maintained what matters most: the drive to create, the willingness to learn, and the courage to reinvent herself.
As the animation industry continues its transformation, her story reminds me that resilience isn't found in resistance to change, but in the ability to grow with it, accept it, and find new ways to express creativity no matter what challenges appear.
It inspires me to persist in working on this project, for instance, or to continue nurturing my photography, which is something I always cherish. It inspires me to keep exploring and staying curious.
For artists at any stage of their career, Paula offers a powerful reminder that every ending can lead to new beginnings and that the creative spirit, when nurtured with curiosity and adaptability, knows no limits.
And I personally can’t wait to work with her again in the future.
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If you found Paula’s story compelling, please consider sharing this article with others. I’m actively seeking more voices willing to share their journey, struggles, and triumphs within the creative fields surrounding this industry. Reach out via my website if you, or anyone you know, might be interested in joining this project.
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SIGGRAPH, short for the Special Interest Group on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques, is one of the most prestigious conferences in the world for computer graphics and interactive technologies. For decades, it has been a cornerstone event for the CG industry, showcasing groundbreaking innovations in animation, visual effects, virtual reality, and other digital media. In the early 2000s, it served as a critical hub for networking and talent discovery, connecting artists, researchers, and studios at a time when the industry was rapidly evolving.