New Team Member Spotlight: Jessica O’Neill

Welcome to the Animation Explainers Toronto Team Jessica!

Jessica O’Neill based in Toronto has become a Sales & Creative trainee for our business. Jessica is from Ireland, like Aaron & Dylan. She has a great interest in Fashion, Art and Business. Jessica graduated in her Communications Degree in Dublin City University in 2015 and has built up her experience in the corporate world since then. She was previously an Assistant Manager for Enterprise Rent a Car in Ireland covering 2 branches. She motivated teams daily and also mentored new employees there. Jessica lead her team to become within the top 3 branches in sales performance and customer service in Ireland. She has also worked for Benefit Cosmetics in Dublin where she advised and assisted customers with suitable beauty products. She has experience creating and promoting specialised events on various social media channels. Jessica is looking forward to leading our team in Toronto and managing projects in Canada and the United States. We have conducted a short Q&A with Jessica where we learned more about her.

Q&A with Jessica

Who is your hero?

Dave Grohl! I love Dave Grohl and everything he does in music with Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age and obviously Nirvana. Personally I think he was much much cooler as a drummer!

What is your proudest accomplishment?

Moving to Toronto from Ireland and not getting frostbite. When I arrived last January it was minus 30 degrees so it was a bit of a change from the mild Irish weather. A lot of Torontonian’s complain about the snow but I still think it’s a novelty and loved the first big snow this November.

Would you rather ride a bike, ride a horse, or drive a car?

Oooh I’d drive a car, with cruise control and heated seats. A Tesla would be ideal. I love the way the motor industry is slowly moving towards the electric car. My own mam has a hybrid car and it’s amazing how it switches between the electric and fuel part of the engine. I think in a few years we’ll all be driving electric cars.

Would you rather win the lottery or work at the perfect job? And why?

While I think winning the lottery would be really great I think I’d prefer the perfect job. That being said my perfect job would be to do something I really enjoyed for like a million dollars.

How would your friends describe you?

They would describe me as fun, friendly and the life & soul of the party! I would consider myself a nice balance between an introvert and extravert. I like going out and being sociable and normally never say no to a party, but I do love not talking to anybody and being by myself.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Probably I’d be a Hollywood movie star, married to Dave Grohl and I’ll be a millionaire. But seriously I imagine I’ll still be living in Canada. Toronto is a great city, I’ve met some genuinely lovely people and made so many more lifelong friends here. I plan to stay here for the next few years anyway and possibly stay here for life, I just won’t tell my mother that!

If you could go back in time to change one thing, what would it be?

I probably would have moved country a lot faster. I lived in New York for a few months and absolutely loved living in a big city with so many opportunities. I planned to move away from Ireland but sometimes life throws you curveballs and you have to go with it. I am very happy I finally moved to Toronto, It’s the best desicion I made.

What’s the most daring thing you’ve ever done?

Probably move country and start fresh. But it’s been the best and I’ve made such good friends with people in Canada, Canadian’s are so nice! I think it’s a challenge to move out of your comfort zone and move to completely different part of the world. Before I moved here I’d never been to Canada at all so I literally did not know what it would be like.

Do you love or hate rollercoasters?

LOVE rollercoasters! The first time I went to Canada’s Wonderland I got season passes and went on the Behemoth 6 times. I have not yet been to Universal Studios in Florida so it’s next on my travel list. I think my love for rollercoasters stems from my Uncle, he loves theme parks! This summer a big group of us, adults and kids, went to Canada’s Wonderland and he was the most excited out of everyone.

What song would you say best sums you up?

Like A Girl – Lizzo. This year she has exploded as an artist. I’ve seen Lizzo twice in Toronto and New York. Myself and my best friend went to see her in Radio City Music Hall in NYC and it was amazing. This song is motivational and empowering towards women with the message that you can do anything, “Like A Girl”.

How many languages do you speak?

Sadly not too many apart from English but I can speak the tiniest bit of French. Unfortunately I do not understand any Irish and can’t speak it. I would love to go back and learn Irish from scratch again as it’s an interesting language and a part of our heritage.

Who knows you the best?

Definitely my best friend Kelly. We text all the time and sometimes we don’t need to write full sentences to understand each other. She has lived in New York the past few years so it’s great we’re finally in the same time zone! I’ve gone to NYC a few times already this year which is great because I love New York.

If you would like to speak to Jessica about how an animation video could help your business, you can contact her here!