Sagewolf Interviews
The dirtiest secrets. That's what's happening here. Well...not entirely. Humans have always fascinated me. I'm most curious about what drives us creatively forward in our lives. When others share their stories with me, I arrive a little closer to knowing how many parallels we all share - how big this human family is, and that comforts me. I hope that by sharing these with you, you might know that too. I also hope that I'm able to present these in a way that you have a visceral experience - like you're there with us at the time and place of the interview - inside these beautiful human exchanges. These moments of connection are truly everything we humans seek when life is all boiled down to it's essence. I included the full audio, with the exception of minor edits of extremely personal information, as requested by my subjects. Many of these interviews are told "between the questions" - as is life. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do <3 XOO, Sagewolf
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Sagewolf Interviews
Annie Motel: Tattoo Artist / Painter / Filmmaker / Santerita (young female Santero)
@littleanniemotel
@moteltattoo
littleanniemotel.com
The scene:
We are sitting in Annie’s tattoo shop, six stories above downtown Los Angeles, and she is giving me a tattoo during our interview. The piece we chose together is one of her recent original works of art. Annie is my recent girl crush spirit animal and here’s why: she’s a total fucking badass at living life fully expressed and creating endlessly from her heart. Join us in the shop as we talk about how a sensitive, kind-hearted female learns to set boundaries to become a fierce business owner in this day and age.
Highlights:
+ I experiment with tattoo gun background noise in this recording…you might hate it but what Annie has to say is worth it
+ Tattoo business name: Little Annie Motel Tattoo Parlor
+ Annie has a huge collection of paintings and is manifesting an art show
+ Annie tells the story of how we met: I talked her into a hot tub
+ Art History is her first love (mine too)
+ Dad was an art teacher and encouraged her to not give up making art
+ Tattooing for nine years, lived in LA since 2009, grew up in Seattle
+ “I got what I like going on…I’m well-blended”
+ Books tattoos through instagram DMs
+ Referencing artists at an art show using only their instagram names
+ Annie loves old Hollywood
+ Good read: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Luz (A. Luz)
+ Kindness and being walked on
+ Learning to be protective and use masculine energy
+ The challenge of being taken seriously as a female business owner
+ Learning hard lessons about not getting paid
+ “If I were a man, I wouldn’t be having this problem”
+ Dropping the energy of being upset and moving forward
+ Hating depending on people
+ Making short films and learning to make your own scores
+ Women are inherently creators (of literal life) and that energy propels us
+ Been a filmmaker since 2013, biggest influence: John Waters
+ Youtube channel: Annie Motel, 27 short films
+ “Motel Vampire” just won an award at the Roma Film Festival for “Best Horror Short”
+ How we use ourselves as our own muses to experiment with creating
+ Annie describes the tattoo she’s giving me
+ Artist collaborations that are unique to the moment and personal
+ “The more you do it, the better you get”
+ Shaping your life by the way you live your art
+ Tattooed in Italy and fell in love with walking to work
+ The freedom of being your own boss…and dealing with personalities
+ Everyone who works for her represents her business
+ Showing up on time and being kind shouldn’t have to be a conversation
+ Drake says it best: “A boss is a role that I’ve grown into”
+ Her role model: The Godfather - show no emotion, don’t let them know your next move
+ Depression happens because you’re focused on the past
+ Anxiety happens because you’re focused on the future
+ “If you’re upset by something you did in the past, just say, “That was the old me’”
A taste:
“I like to be a nice person and I like to be sensitive, but I also don’t want to be walked on. A big part of the last 10 years has been me being very protective in a way and putting on a very tough exterior in a way and assuming masculine energy to be a business owner. […] So I have to be really tough when on the inside I’m just a sweetheart.”
Favorite sayings:
“God is good.” “God’s got it.”
To self: “You got this - don’t worry. It’s fine.”
Thank you for listening!
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Love, Sagewolf xoxo