In the summer months, Bill Torgerson is kind of like a professional clown, sans makeup. For about a decade, his full-time job has been making balloon animals, ninja swords, and other balloon objects for kids at birthday parties, bar mitzvahs and public festivals.
At a Labor Day barbecue in Fairbanks, Alaska, he was wearing a big yellow bowtie and towering over a long line of kids that looped around his booth. He could make them just about anything they wanted.
"The only thing that really ever holds me back is the amount of balloons and the amount of time that I've got," he said as he effortlessly twisted together another balloon sword.
Nearby, a pack of kids were whacking each other with Torgerson's swords. But 10-year-old Ellen Schreiner asked for a hamburger.
"I don't think he's like, really made that one before, because he was like, 'Hmm,'" she said. "But then he made it for me!"
About this time of year, that type of work drops off. Torgerson still gets booked for some indoor events, but business is slower.
Winter in Fairbanks is brutal, with lows in the minus 30s and sunsets in the early afternoon. That can be tough for people who live with seasonal depression, like Torgerson.
With snow already starting to fall in Interior Alaska, the part of the year that's hardest for him is getting started.
In Fairbanks, cold air can create a temperature inversion, trapping wood smoke and other pollution close to the ground like fog. On the coldest days, touching exposed metal can give you frostbite in an instant. That's when Torgerson feels the most vulnerable.
"Right after the holiday season, a lot of people end up getting really depressed during January," he said. "I have a lot of struggles with that. The darkness that just eats away at you, especially if you're isolated from your friends."
What helps keep his spirits up are bigger and wilder balloon art creations that he does just for his own enjoyment. For example, an almost 13-foot-tall Godzilla costume – made of balloons – that covers his whole body. Or a giant balloon chandelier. Or a car-sized replica of the Eiffel Tower.
"It really helps keep me going," Torgerson said. "It is basically the fresh breath of life that I'm kind of hoping to put out there, that I need for myself."
He shows those projects off on his TikTok, IncrediBilloons, to an audience of over 30,000 followers, and his most popular videos have around half a million views.
"I like the idea of being able to bring something so unique and so literally big to my small town," Torgerson said. "I may never be the best balloon artist — I may never be the fastest or the most artistically inclined or groundbreaking. But I can at least hold on to how many people I get to bring joy and inspiration."
This winter, he said he'll try to break the Guinness World Record for the tallest balloon costume. He's doing Godzilla again. Only this time: spikier, greener, and 15 feet tall.
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