Partner Highlight: Ariel Wesley
Things are always exciting when you’re deep in the creative trenches, working on awesome branding and design projects. Nothing new there. However, nothing makes it more exciting than having more creative minds and perspectives along for the ride.
With that, we’re excited to highlight our newest addition to the team: our very own design apprentice, Ariel Wesley!
Hailing from East Providence, RI, Ariel is a budding designer with a knack for 3D motion and graphics. He’s an alumni from University of Rhode Island with a degree in Film/Media who keeps his creative mind sharp with every project and opportunity.
We’re getting the deep dive on him and what he’s about below:
To start, tell us about your background and what brought you here.
I went to a technical high-school (Providence Career & Tech Academy) where my tech focus class was pre-engineering. While in pre-engineering, I made friends with someone with an interest in game design; eventually the SkillsUSA competition came along and my friend had asked me to participate with him. My role in this project was creating assets and art for the game, including; Characters, Posters, Animations, Level Textures, and a promotional video. We won gold in the statewide competition and I found that I have a knack for video editing and overall creative intuition.
So when it came time to apply for college, I decided I wanted to pursue a Film/Media degree at the University of Rhode Island. While in school and after graduation, I juggled a variety of digital media mediums, from 3D modeling to graphic design. I eventually met Chris Santoro through my father, Ty. Chris took a look at my portfolio along with some personal projects and had decided to take me in as an apprentice so that I could refine my intuition for design and knowledge of Film/Media practices into a well-rounded multimedia designer.
What sparked the idea for your freelance identity (AW Media)? What did it take to get started?
After graduating from URI, I found myself struggling to land a decent job. Film/Media is a risky investment with a complicated job market. I found myself having to work menial jobs until I ended up at a jewelry store that had interest in my 3D Design capabilities. This was my first opportunity to work in-house doing creative work. I learned how to create better renders and videos then created a portfolio using samples from the job. I decided to leave the job due to depression and overall dissatisfaction with pay and how I was treated. This, along with the overwhelming pressure to be successful, Student debt, and a recent breakup had landed me in an outpatient clinic.
This was a nice chance for me to settle down, but also reflect on what I was going to do in life. I was encouraged to continue my design work by peers in the clinic, Chris Santoro, my family, and a graphic design professor from URI who I stayed in touch with. With this support, I decided to stick with my strengths and just go all-out in my design work, which led me to creating my alias, AWMedia. I made myself a really cool logo animation in Blender and put together a portfolio website and new demo-reel to market myself as a multimedia designer. With this new identity I began to gain freelance work that helped me grow my portfolio and skills overall, which is what gave me the recognition to be hired by Chris as an apprentice.
Overall, what it took me to create AWMedia was support, a lot of it; along with grit and the need to be successful,
Your experience as a 3d graphics and motion designer have had you working on some interesting projects. What’s your favorite part of working in the 3D space?
It’s hard to say what my favorite part about working in digital 3D space is. There are so many aspects to it and my love/hate for each of them fluctuates. Sometimes messing with texture nodes is really fun to experiment with, other times it feels stressful and overwhelming-same thing with modeling. I would have to say my favorite part is animating; I haven’t really done any character animation which seems to be a skill in itself, but I have animated a lot of products with multiple parts. I think it’s really satisfying taking these products apart and watching the pieces come back together. The cool thing is, getting to do this over and over since I have to get the timing right, so I’m essentially watching these products come together gradually and on repeat, which really scratches a certain part of my brain in a good way.What has been your favorite project to date? Why?
I’m constantly working on some kind of personal project and those can be really rewarding because I have full control over them. Many of the studios I work with already have an idea in place and they hire me to be the hands that make it, expand upon somebody else's idea, or follow a brand guide that’s already established. Many of my favorite projects to date are the ones where I'm not just the hands making stuff, I’m also the mind deciding why things are done the way they are. Working with studios/agencies on big clients is incredible but there is just something that hits different about doing a freelance project solo and coming up with an idea by yourself that directly results in a business completely changing for the better.
Take us through a day in your life. What does that look like?
My schedule is honestly hectic and changes frequently. When I have a client project to work on, I am up at 8AM and will work until 5PM or later trying to get it done. I then try to wind down by working out or rock climbing/bouldering at an indoor gym in Providence. When I don’t have any projects going on, I spend a good amount of time combing through Indeed and LinkedIn, trying to land a gig, whether it be part-time or full-time. On days where I work my less fulfilling part-time retail job, I find it harder to network or design as I try to fit in time to draw and work on my comic book. I hope to have a consistent working schedule at some point soon, where I can say I get up at 6AM and get to bed at a reasonable time every night.
I’m constantly working on some kind of personal project and those can be really rewarding because I have full control over them. Many of the studios I work with already have an idea in place and they hire me to be the hands that make it, expand upon somebody else's idea, or follow a brand guide that’s already established. Many of my favorite projects to date are the ones where I'm not just the hands making stuff, I’m also the mind deciding why things are done the way they are.
What is your favorite part of the design process?
I really enjoy the execution phase of design, where I have my ideas thought out, my storyboard written up, my moodboard completed and it’s time to start creating. I think this is where the state of “play” comes in, where I have a clear idea of what I am creating, but there is still an element of problem-solving and putting things together. It is extremely fulfilling to solve these problems and to slowly start to see your final project come together, especially when working with Blender, where there are so many avenues for creation and so many different factors to be in control of.
Design has changed leaps and bounds over the years, especially the need for great design in business. What are your thoughts on that, and how have you experienced this in the work that you do?
The importance of visual identity and cutting-edge graphics has been big for the clients that I have worked with. I think this is great in the regard of job security. I have had a few clients that were enthusiastic about being able to talk through their ideas with me, while also receiving my own personal flavor of design. I think this is what makes designers important with the rise of AI, it is still important to have a trained eye with technical ability.
Top 5 Favorite Artists/Bands. Go.
I listen to a bit of everything!
Cage The Elephant
Mac Miller
Pierce The Veil
The Last Ten Seconds of Life
Suicide Silence
Where can people find and follow you?
Portfolio: https://awmedia.framer.website/
Instagram: @ariel.wesley_
