YG15 Showcase: Henry Busby

Shining the spotlight on this year's Young Guns winners

Young Guns 15, arguably the most prestigious portfolio-based competition for creatives under 30, is going out with a bang! This year's winners were unveiled last week, and it's safe to say that this is one of the most eclectically talented classes in Young Guns history. 

Next week is the traditional Young Guns ceremony and party, (you've scored your tickets, right?) and nearly all of this year's winners will be travelling from across the globe, across the country, or across the Williamsburg Bridge to attend. Ahead of the festivities, the One Club for Creativity is highlighting many of the winners you'll be able to meet.

HENRY BUSBY
Director
Based In: Brooklyn, NY
Originally from: Tuscaloosa, AL
henrybusby.com

SEE HENRY'S YG15 PROFILE + WORK

What does winning this award mean to you?

You never really know what something means until you’re looking back on it. I can’t wait to look back a year from now and see how this shaped my life. I hadn’t entered before, but I knew about Young Guns and what it could mean to become part of the family.

What sorts of challenges have you encountered to get where you are today?

There are choices you make for your career and choices you make as an artist. They’re not mutually exclusive, but sometimes they are. I’m learning how to balance them so I can have a sustainable, happy career. On a basic level though, we’re all just people. We want to work on things we love with people we love. The more you put yourself in those situations or bend situations around you to fit that set of criteria, the better off you’ll be. Play nice. Make friends. Bring passion to the table.

Since Young Guns 15 allowed you to submit six projects for consideration, some self-curation was required. How did you decide what to enter?

I’m really happy with the way I’ve navigated my career so far. I was patient for the right opportunities to make work that I feel reflects parts of who I am. The pool of work may be smaller, but it made the curation pretty easy.

Can you name any past Young Guns winners who you look up to?

I’ll be diving through the archives for a few weeks. I love Young Guns because it pulls all these different creatives out of their boxes and into one big sandbox. It’s cool to spend time exploring animation, design, typography, and other disciplines I don’t explore as much.

"I love Young Guns because it pulls all these different creatives out of their boxes and into one big sandbox. It’s cool to spend time exploring animation, design, typography, and other disciplines I don’t explore as much."

What keeps you going, creatively speaking? What drives you and your work?

Discomfort and a sense of specificity. Feeling uncomfortable in life inspires me to move, make, and grow. The fun thing I’m chasing in my work now is to keep refining a sense of specificity. Does it feel like me? Do the choices I make in my work reflect who I am as a person? Those are important questions for me.

Now that you’re a Young Guns winner, what’s next?

I don’t feel in a rush to be anywhere for the sake of getting there. Right now, my life is changing a lot, and I want make as much art as possible about this time. I’m feeling more confident in my voice and more willing to experiment in my life. I want to carry that into more short films and music videos this year while I’m growing my commercial career.

Henry and his fellow winners will be honored at the Young Guns 15 Ceremony + Party, taking place on Thursday, November 16 at Highline Stages in Manhattan's Meatpacking District. 

Young Guns 15 is presented in proud partnership with Shutterstock, Levene/Leavitt and MTV.

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