“To be very blunt, try not to be a dick.”
— KATE WILLIAMS
How did you first get into design?
I started out as a theatre designer. I studied set and costume design at WAAPA, worked for a few years on some small independent projects, and then moved to Canada for a year and decided I wanted out of theatre. It was a huge commitment, I didn’t love it enough to make the sacrifices necessary, but I still wanted to be creative while earning a living wage. I tried architecture and hated that and then was advised by a friend to look into graphic design. Turned out to be a perfect fit.
What project are you most proud of?
I was one of the designers for the West Australian Ballet 2016 campaign, which was a huge challenge. When I started working at The Mad Empire I watched the then Art Director create the 2015 campaign. It was a huge departure for WAB from their previous, more conservative and corporate look. I had minimal involvement in the 2015 campaign, but was lucky enough to watch him go through the process. He did a great job getting them out of their comfort zone and helping them reconsider their message, which meant that the next year we were able to push them even further.
For 2016 I was lucky that I got to work with an amazing Art Director, who was from outside the agency. There were four designers in total. I helped with the development of the concept ‘Find Yourself’, and got to see every step of the journey, from pitching to photoshoot to layout design. The best part was the chance to work with more senior designers. My art director was a typography master and he took the time to sit down with me, show me his process, develop ideas with me and talk me through all the confusing parts of the process so that I could then design the layout of the campaign brochure.
We had a senior designer come onboard to create the images and so I got to work with him and help keep the concept consistent while also asking about his Photoshop skills and seeing how he created these incredibly complex images. This was probably my favourite collaborative work and at the same time my most frustrating. I grew a lot as a designer and learned a lot about the industry and working with multiple stakeholders. As designers we are sometimes shielded from the politics, and with this project I got an insight into how many peoples opinions need to be considered, and how details that seem irrelevant to you are crucial to others.
Advice for TAFE’s current students?
Start treating your time at TAFE as an extension of your career. Think of yourself as a designer, not a student. Start looking for opportunities now. You need to put yourself out there. Go to the event nights, apply for internships, ask people for advice. People think networking as a student is handing out business cards and asking for a job (don’t do that, it’s incredibly awkward) but it’s actually more about being seen, getting to know people and looking for opportunities. I volunteered as an AGDA student rep and served drinks to pretty much every AGDA member in Perth at events and it helped me stand out from the 100 other students they met.
Your personality absolutely affects your job prospects. Design is an incredibly competitive industry. Be professional, even at TAFE. Your lecturers know people, your classmates will one day be your professional peers. I have been asked by an employer whether I would support hiring someone I graduated with. Thankfully it was someone I knew was capable of great work and had a personality that would fit in that agency. But there were other people I would not risk my career recommending, and it’s nothing personal. I know of someone who told their boss they didn’t want to work with a guy they studied with because he regularly made sexist jokes on Facebook. Don’t be rude. Don’t be boring. Have an opinion. Respect the opinions of others.
What is Perth design in need of most?
Designers who are willing to give Perth it’s own voice. Creatives in Perth can spend too much time worrying about the rest of the world, places they visited, wanting to make it more like Melbourne, Sydney, London, New York etc. Perth has changed so much in the last 10 years, and a lot of it has come from creatives being inspired by other cities, and a bit of research can be great. But now I think the design community needs to focus on helping Perth be itself. I live overseas now, and the best creative works I see coming out Perth are the ones that are embracing how different the west coast is.
In terms of finding your first job after graduating, what worked best for you?
My first six months out I didn’t find a full-time job. I filled in for a designer who went on holidays at a studio and did a few freelance jobs, but to pay the bills I worked part time at JB hifi. I was a strong graduate, I won the AGDA folio award (brag moment), I had industry connections from my AGDA work, I interned at a great place and I had a lot of positive feedback. But before I got the job I wanted I had to accept the jobs on offer, which was selling DVDs in the suburbs with design on the side.
A lot of people get disillusioned when they don’t get a job straight away. It sucks, you’ve spent so long working towards something and you end up working retail. Many people I graduated don’t work in design. It’s not an easy industry to get into and it’s not an easy industry to stay in. Persevere if you love it. Keep reaching out to people, asking for feedback, going to interviews and building your folio. Even if you’re not being paid, produce work so you can keep your folio up to date.
My first ‘real’ job actually came from Seek, which is ironic, because all the advice I was given was ‘You won’t find a job on Seek’. If you see a design job apply, but be wary. I applied for a few on Seek, and most of them were duds. I actually received a rejection letter for a job with the signature written in Curlz. I also contacted all the agencies and studios I wanted to work at and asked them for folio advice. It was months of trying and generally hearing great feedback followed by ‘but we’re not hiring right now. We’ll keep your resume on file.’ But then in April I ended up getting three amazing offers all at once.
