Tell us a bit about yourself. Where did you study and what did you study?
I studied BA Design For Film and Television at Nottingham Trent. I loved being involved in the behind the scenes of my local theatre productions, so I decided to pursue a degree that would give me a wide range of art department skills including technical drawing and graphics. After doing some art department work experience I knew I wanted to specify in prop and model making. I then took a short course in Props Making Essentials by Creative Media Skills.
How did you get involved with Art of Football and interning for them?
I saw the Art of Football internship on Nottingham Trent's careers website, Future Hub, and I thought it would appeal to me as it sounded really creative as an animation job so I applied.
What has it been like interning for them?
It has been really fun, intense and creative to intern for Art of Football. I took on more responsibility than I expected and there was never a dull moment as we went from project to project, staying ahead of the World Cup hype.
I assisted in making short animations of exciting moments during the World Cup. There was a fast turn around to keep up with the matches and fans emotions. I learnt how to balance meeting deadlines while maintaining the quality of work to portray the emotional moments. During my internship I have assisted in making an animation of key World Cup moments which consisted of 900 frames. This involved cutting out footballers, learning how to use Adobe Lightroom, and learning how to set up lighting in NTU's filmmaking studio.
I have also helped set up their 'World In Colour' exhibition in London. I learnt how to print t-shirts and got to print my own.
I have really enjoyed everything about working at Art of Football. I love how there are so many varied creative projects going on, and how everyone is so passionate about what they do. Its just a great atmosphere to work in.
What has it been like working on the Art of Football Red Square scenery?
I had to turn Sneinton Market into Moscow's Red Square for Art of Football's World Cup Fan Zone, where people could watch the England games on a huge outdoor screen. This included making rough technical drawings of key elements of Saint Basil's Cathedral and the Saint Historical Museum from Moscow, and painting the shapes onto MDF. I had to measure the height and width of each building, and then scale my drawings to fit, so that the MDF shapes would be the appropriate size. It was a challenge to compromise how much of the Cathedral to recreate with the limits of wall space.
I had to select elements of the buildings that would fit on the wall and be instantly recognisable as the Cathedral and Museum from Red Square. To make the shapes resemble parts of the iconic buildings in Moscow, I had to workout ratios and scale my reference images. For example, to draw the spherical shapes I had to work out the ratio of the stripes running across them.
This was my fist time making scenery and I felt completely in my element with the mathematical and artistic challenge.
How did it feel to see your artwork up at Sneinton Market for the World Cup screening?
It felt amazing to see my scenery on the walls at the Red Square Fanzone in Sneinton Market. I really enjoyed being a part of making the events' atmosphere, and I can't believe it came on TV when they showed Sneinton Market on 'Match of the Day'!
What inspires your work? Where does your creativity come from?
The motivation behind the Fanzone scenery came from wanting to portray Russia's Red Square and make the people who came to watch the game feel like they were watching England in Russia. We wanted to bring the World Cup in Russia to Sneinton Market.
What is next for you after you've finished your internship at Art of Football?
Interning at Art of Football has given me more confidence in working for a fast-paced creative company. After this internship I hope to do some work experience with theatre scenery or prop making companies. In five years time I'd love to be making sci-fi and fantasy creatures for theatre, film and TV.
@danimac_makes
