I’m Nalena Kumar, a San Diego-based senior motion designer and creative lead with 16+ years of experience across brand, product, marketing, and executive communications.
My foundation is in traditional animation, illustration, and drawing, shaped during my time at CalArts, where I earned my BFA in Character Animation. That training still informs how I work today, giving me a strong sense of timing, story, and visual clarity that carries through everything I make.
Over time, my work has expanded beyond animation itself into storyboarding, motion systems, narrative development, and the kind of cross-functional collaboration that helps ideas become clearer before production begins. I’m especially interested in motion that does more than add polish. I think of it as part of how a brand communicates, sets tone, and becomes recognizable over time.
I’ve worked across a wide range of projects, from brand campaigns and launch films to product storytelling and presentations, with clients and teams including Microsoft, Cartier, Disney, Capital One, and Sun Bum. The common thread for me is a focus on clarity, pacing, and making motion feel specific to the voice and context of the brand.
As a first-generation woman shaped by both Ukrainian and South Indian influences, I know that perspective has informed the way I think about image, mood, and storytelling. I’m drawn to work that balances structure with feeling and brings a distinct point of view to the brand or story it belongs to.
When I’m not working, I’m usually surfing. Time in the water is where I reset, and it continues to influence how I think about rhythm, flow, and balance in my work.
