Now and Then: Georgia Shattky
Brought to you by Portfolio Recruitment
Now and Then is a series where we catch up with designers who’ve been recently placed, via Portfolio Recruitment. We get their thoughts and feedback about their new roles and their work. Our latest Now and Then is with Georgia Shattky who joined the team at The Hatchery a few months ago as a Motion Designer.
Tell us a bit about yourself Georgia. Why did you choose Motion Design?
Motion design was something I kind of fell into! I studied digital design at AUT where I was exposed to all kinds of stuff like animation, graphic design and video production, but not specifically motion graphics. I did an honours degree there as well which was awesome for learning how to critically analyse my work (and put off the scary stuff like getting a real job for another year) but, by the time I graduated, I still had no idea what I really wanted to do.
My first role after uni was an internship-turned-contract at Warner Brothers NZ working on TV shows as part of the graphics team there. I learned heaps on the job there and found out I really liked the motion graphics work I was doing, since it combined animation, design, illustration and basically everything I was interested in. I like the jack-of-all-trades nature of it which means projects can end up being completely different — keeps you on your toes!
Since then, up until a few months ago, I was either working in very small teams (sometimes a team of 1) or freelancing, and while I still enjoyed what I was doing I felt like I wasn’t creating my best work. I moved around a bit between different companies in Auckland doing short term contracts but things weren’t really sticking. I didn’t always have other designers around me to learn from, or develop ideas with, so I felt a bit stagnant, especially as a solo freelancer, where I was tending to rely on what I already knew how to do instead of pushing myself. A lot of this came from fear of being fully to blame if I took a risk and something went wrong, which I wasn’t sure I could handle as an intermediate designer, nor was I sure how to properly communicate this to the people I was working for.
Luckily, I started working at The Hatchery a few months ago which has been a really welcome change. The agency setup suits me a lot more than freelancing did. I feel like there’s a lot more freedom to experiment under an art director rather than being under pressure to create as well as having to budget for time and be wholly responsible for everything. And I get to make some cool stuff!
Your role at The Hatchery seemed to have been meant to be. What are you loving about it the most?
The peeps! I’ve met some really cool and talented people here, that I get to collaborate with! It’s really awesome talking about ideas with people who I can learn from and being able to bring my own skills to the table. I joined the team of about 7 here at the same time as two other full time staff so it’s been exciting seeing it grow and being a part of some cool changes too.
I find advertising very different to TV but I think I prefer it. I have a good mix of a few projects that are more about efficiency and working within a set of rules, plus some really interesting stuff that I get to lend a hand on. I get to practise more skills too! Video editing and making online content were two areas I hadn’t got to work in before now but wanted to, and now I get to do both pretty frequently.
Has there been a piece of advice you were given that you still follow or hold true to?
It’s an obvious one, but a good friend who I met during my time at Warner Bros told me to ‘always go with your gut’. When I left that role to try take on something new, I’ve tried to keep it in mind whenever I have to make a big decision and it always seems to result in the most rewarding outcome (or most annoying letdown when I ignore it against better judgement!). I don’t think I would have learned nearly as much as I have if I’d only done what other people told me to, or what was most convenient at the time.
Also, this bit of advice about the gap between taste and skill from Ira Glass is a long-time fave for me:
http://vimeo.com/85040589
If it wasn’t Motion Design, what would you like to be doing, perhaps?
I just really enjoy making things, so if not motion design then probably some other creative/crafty thing. I’ve been taking pottery classes recently and I really love it, I could see myself as a potter! As long as I didn’t have to make a set of anything that all had to look the same…
The Hatchery is multi discipline creative agency delivering world class solutions. See more at: thehatchery.co.nz
And to help further develop your own creative career visit: www.portfoliorecruitment.co.nz
