About the Authors
Growing Up Aspen - Adventures of the Unsupervised
Andy Collen
Andy cut his entrepreneurial teeth at 16 when he started Snowboard Brothers of Aspen and became Burton Snowboard's first snowboard distributor in the valley. He moved off the mountain, attended UNC in Greeley, Colorado, then UCLA and worked for Animation Magazine before gravitating to Portland, Oregon, inspired by its growing number of indie animation studios. He went to Pacific NW College of Art and took classes at the NW Film Center where he met his animation mentor, Tom Arndt. Andy worked at TekniFilm Lab, the local 35mm film processor at the time, and through this gig, began connecting with local talent. He produced, "It's About Peace," a collaborative short film, which is how he and his wife Amy met.
Andy started Happy Trails Animation with Amy, creating for local agencies, then national, then international. The studio became known for its innovative blend of multiple media forms which fit with the growing trend of Transmedia storytelling. Andy and his team developed a method of bringing static art to life, aka Motion Comics and made digital Motion Comics for some pretty great properties. The art of animation carried him all the way to his studio's work in digital organics, a full-circle experience since being inspired by Nick DeWolf as a kid in Aspen, when he first saw art and tech flow together as one.
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Chris Pomeroy
Chris was born in the mountains and raised from infancy in Aspen, Colorado. He left the valley in the 1990s to pursue a career in Newspaper management. He worked at three newspapers over the span of a decade, The Aspen Times, the Fort Collins Coloradoan and the Athens Banner-Herald. He shifted away from the industry in the early 2000’s with a short stint in agency work, and then to his current job of 15+ years, consulting in Internet Banking for Digital Insight, Intuit and, now NCR.
He has won many awards for campaigns, layout and illustration throughout the years, and has done illustration for national companies, newspapers, and magazines for a myriad of uses.
When not “slaving for the man” he has worked in the art of animation, one of his true passions, for the better part of 30 years. As any animator can tell you, animation is a love of the art, and the art of the sacrifice. Caffeine and bad music are a staple for projects with near-impossible deadlines and endless pressure to not only meet the challenge, but to walk away proud of the effort and the finished project. In the end, the work is fun. But it is work. Lots of it.
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He currently resides in Athens, Georgia with his wife, two sons, dog, cats, and a bunch of fish. He is proud to boast that he can still pull off the coveted “bedhead” style of the late 70s, and often does.
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Dean Jackson
In another life Dean Jackson was a professional actor, voice over artist, and puppeteer. While living the life of a starving artist in New York City was an adventure, that life transitioned into a more traditional career once he got married and discovered that Ramen was not a lifestyle choice.
Dean and his lovely wife, Kyra, now live in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has managed high rise buildings and since applying those skills to create the project management division of a local community management company, is the point-person for managing their team and a multitude of community living challenges. He wrote for an industry magazine for sixteen years, and wrote the travel blog, “So I Married a Tour Guide.” He has begun dabbling in voice overs and acting once again.
In their spare time Dean and Kyra enjoy traveling, gardening, reading, listening to Jazz, and slow dancing in the kitchen.
Lo Semple
Lo arrived in Aspen in 1974 in the back of his parents green Volvo station wagon. He currently writes a local column every Saturday for the Aspen Daily news, and can be spotted around town or on the bike trails and ski mountains of Aspen and Snowmass.
He also helps travelers from all over the world via Suit Yourself, Aspen's premier mobile skiwear outfitters—renting clean, well-maintained skiwear for fun in the snow and sun for over 21 years.