Danny Casale

We’re extremely happy to be speaking today with acclaimed viral digital creator/artist and Forbes 30 Under 30 winner Danny Casale (aka Coolman Coffeedan); greetings and salutations, Danny! Before we meander too far down the Q&A pathway, can you tell our ever-inquisitive readers how you landed the unforgettable and altogether memorable artist moniker of “Coolman Coffeedan”?

Howdy! Ah, great question. Pretty much, in my junior year of high school, I learned how to use Photoshop. What was the first thing I did? Photoshop a skeleton face onto my face, of course. It was Halloween time, so it made sense. I made it my Twitter profile pic and changed my display name to Coolman SkeletonDan. It was 2012, so it felt hipster and quirky. The following week, I changed my Twitter pic to a selfie of me drinking coffee (I discovered coffee around that time, so I was very much in the honeymoon phase), and I changed my display name to Coolman CoffeeDan. “How fun!” I thought, “Every week I’ll update my profile picture and display name! Twitter is so awesome!”

I literally never changed it again, out of sheer laziness. I became Coolman Coffeedan forever. We have Twitter to thank for that, I guess.

Major congratulations on the highly successful launch of your debut global institution exhibition Dumb Dreams and Messy Hands from V/Collective in partnership with chi K11 Art Museum! What was the genesis of this jaw-dropper of an exhibition? How did it all come into being?

A few years ago, I noticed my art/animations were being discovered in China in a powerful new way. Videos that I created earlier in my career were being translated and re-dubbed into Chinese, which allowed millions of new people to enjoy my work. I suddenly had tons of new fans on the other side of the globe, who previously were unable to even access my content on Western-native platforms like YouTube and Instagram. Around the same time, V/Collective and I connected. It was clear that the demand for an IRL Coolman experience in China was through the roof. And so, we got planning.

Does Dumb Dreams and Messy Hands feel like a culmination of years of hard work on your end?

What does it mean for you personally to introduce this exhibition to the world at large?

The exhibition itself took a few years to come together. Between planning stages, navigating the COVID situation in China, and manufacturing the actual materials… it was no small feat. It’s largely why the opening night felt so special to me. It finally happened! It was finally real.

But as for the years of actual content and career growth leading up, it’s definitely a magical feeling. I uploaded my first animation that went viral in 2017. But even before that, I was creating and experimenting for as long as I could remember. I uploaded my first YouTube video in 5th grade circa 2006. My goal was always to make something, get it in front of people, and enjoy watching people experience or react to it. It’s been my life’s mission. So the fact that it’s all accumulated to this… is nearly unbelievable.

The Dumb Dreams and Messy Hands exhibition launched earlier this month on July 7. Precisely how long will it run through?

The k11 Shanghai venue will be hosting the exhibition through October 6th.

Can you take us behind the scenes of the launch day for Dumb Dreams and Messy Hands? Did everything go off without a hitch?

Over 1,300 people attended the show’s opening night, which broke all previous K11 records. That’s mindboggling to me. I’m grateful to my incredible team for making it all go so smoothly. Seeing everyone interact with my characters, take photos with the figurines, and immerse themselves in my animations nearly made me burst into tears.

What made chi K11 Art Museum the perfect venue to host Dumb Dreams and Messy Hands?

K11 is one of the few major institutions in the world that truly celebrates art and the artist. When you step into K11, it’s no ordinary experience. You truly feel like you have stepped into another world, filled with incredible architecture and wondrous displays. It puts art on a pedestal, in every sense of the word. When I first visited, I knew I wanted it to be the home of my first exhibition in China. I’m honored that they had me.

You made a huge impression early on with your efforts on YouTube. After your tenure at film school, what led to you making the decision to hang your fedora on this specific and very public shingle?

If it wasn’t for my passion for film, I don’t think my animations would’ve ever come to life. I remember being as young as 6 years old, picking up the family camcorder, and filming homemade movies with my younger siblings. I was obsessed with telling stories and turning ordinary life into something larger. The main reason I dropped out of film school was because my animations took off online. The only reason that happened is because I was itching to tell stories and create in general, outside of the classroom. I believe whether it’s an animation, a short film, a music video, a photograph, or a poem… it’s all storytelling hoping to captivate the viewer enough to ideally create an emotion so strong that they can’t help but remember it forever. The medium that ended up being able to do that, at least for me, was animation. But I do have a desire to pick up the camera someday again soon. I try not to get too comfortable!

Dumb Dreams and Messy Hands is sponsored by brand partners FARFETCH and Hisense. What made these two the ideal partners for the exhibition?

Since my animations require the optimal digital viewing experience, especially on a larger-scale screen, we needed top-notch equipment. Hisense coming in as a partner was a home run because it feels like you are nearly stepping into my Universe when you stand in front of the screen. On the same note, we needed a partner who celebrates the vibrancy of everyday life. Since people love to express themself through their fashion, a major form of self-identity and expressing yourself to the outside world, Farfetch also coming in as a partner was a dream come true.

Can you give readers a hint or three as to what you have coming up in the future?

Getting Spesh and his “UR SPECIAL” message to touch the lives of his many humans as possible is, and always has been the goal. The main difference is in years past this felt like a pipe dream, and now it’s actually happening in real time. In 2021, this was done through publishing my book “Ur SpecialAdvice for Humans”. In 2022, it was done through my web3 project Coolman’s Universe. In 2023, it’s done through massive IRL experiences with industryleading brands and culture-paving people. And the ride has still only just begun! I expect the next few years of my journey to be some of the wildest yet.

You came of age on Long Island. How do those roots inform you as a digital creator and artist?

Long Island is a quiet place. It forced me to create my own fun and adventures. I chose to do that through moviemaking and drawing. Anything to get out of my day-to-day boredom. I knew I never wanted to feel that feeling, so I had to create my own ideal reality. It also instilled many of the thoughts/feelings/emotions that my animations cover. Discussion around feeling alone, anxious, depressed, ect… these are all very real things I felt growing up. My art, creations, and characters helped make me feel better. It makes sense that now, they are helping millions of other people feel better too.

What did it mean to you professionally and personally to land on the vaunted Forbes 30 Under 30 list?

To be honest, that was the moment it became real to me. Millions of followers don’t mean much to people anymore. But the recognition from Forbes is what made people take notice. Which is kind of funny to me. Things have different meanings for different people. But all that aside, it made me realize that my works have amounted to something larger than just social media. That was back in 2019. In hindsight, it was truly a foreshadowing for how big things were about to become.