I chose to do graphic design at university because I knew that I loved to design unique and interesting art. My evenings after school were often filled with making movie posters on Photoshop or making logos for my friends. My inspirations were primarily films; I was amazed by how designers created the VFX and artwork and so I entered my first year eager to learn how to do it myself.
During my first year, I didn’t find exactly what I wanted to specialise in. I experimented with UI/UX design, creating branding packages on Illustrator and drawing on Procreate. The first project of my second year, Post Growth, was where I took my initial step into motion design. I had never opened After Effects before, and I spent a lot of that time at university watching every tutorial on YouTube before our final presentation to Imagination Studios, where I received great feedback on what I had learnt. Since then, I have never looked back.
As my interest grew, I landed my first design job with Bournemouth "Poppies" F.C., where I was in charge of the club's visual output. John, the media manager, encouraged me to continuously explore new methods, which ultimately led me to my 3D journey with Blender. This was the ideal environment to apply my new skills, and I would recommend this kind of role alongside university to any designer. Not only did it push me with my technical skills, but my networking and confidence grew massively during this time as well – I directed photo shoots, had my work spoken about in articles and was part of a great creative team, which propelled me into the start of freelancing.
I have since gone on to work with clothing brands in Paris and America, studios around Bournemouth and some VR projects with Rival, where I got to see my work showcased on Meta and Apple VR headsets, which, alongside my studies, put me in a great position approaching the end of my time as a student.
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Accept to viewMy time at AUB taught me the importance of the meaning behind my work, and the process I need to go through to make the best work possible. I found a passion for making things that people not only like looking at but also thinking about, and that’s something I will continue to develop in my early career to make the best work I possibly can. The projects for the D&AD New Blood Awards gave me a chance to flex both of these muscles and were by far my favourite projects at university. I think my work for the Christopher Ward brief is my proudest so far.
All this work allowed me to produce a great showreel, which I emailed to a studio that had inspired me since my first year – ILOVEDUST. I was lucky enough to receive a four-week internship over the easter break. In that time, I learnt an incredible amount about all styles of design and animation and was pushed out of my comfort zone, I also got to work on some dream clients and briefs and am extremely grateful for my time there. I am working on multiple projects, including the branding for the AUB graphic design event and briefs set by Design Bridge and WMH&I as my final weeks as a student get closer, and I will then rejoin ILOVEDUST as a junior animator in June.
My one piece of advice to someone looking to impress in any studio opportunity is to be a sponge and get as much information from as many different experienced designers as possible, as you will not only learn a lot technically but will increase your teamwork and communication in design teams which is very important.
See more of Matt's work on his website.
