My DPS Journey

Trevor Chadwick - IVM

​Since embarking on DPS in February and preparing myself for the year ahead I have done a lot of reflecting; in my work, myself, and where I’d like to see myself in the upcoming year.
In terms of where I am currently, I am in the process of refreshing my portfolio and making it more applicable and focused for what I’d like to work in; using the year ahead to explore illustration, animation and motion graphics opportunities, as well as others.
I also want to use the year to collaborate with other students to create work that isn’t restricted by clients briefs, and use this as a means to investigate more playful options in our work. 
 
Since planning my first proposal I feel that a lot of things have changed with how I originally wanted to spend my DPS year, and due to the devastating circumstances of the world currently with COVID-19, I had to change some things around, such as using Erasmus to travel and work abroad, as this is not currently possible. This being said, I am open to the possibility of traveling abroad sometime within the DPS year if at the time I feel that it is safe to travel.
 
When searching for some internships around me, I was able to find a few that I would like to apply for such as Blue zoo studios who are an animation production company that have worked with Disney, BBC, and others to create advertisements, tv shows, or short films. As well as DW studios, who are a CGI Visualisation company who have worked with Network Rail and Dyson, and currently have an opening for a junior motion designer.
I also want to use the opportunities to build up my skill in software that is quickly becoming industry standard for my field of practice, such as After Effects, blender, Maya, and others.
 
Later in the DPS Year depending on the global situation, I would like to look into Erasmus, internships abroad and residencies, as I feel that this would help to take me out of my comfort zone, and allow me to meet new people and network globally.
One place I have been eying up is the Swedish BluBlu Studios, a multi-award winning animation production company, who have worked alongside clients such as The New York Times, Nickelodeon and others; from doing research, they don’t currently have any internships available but I will do more research, and will send my portfolio to them when its ready.
 
Overall from the beginning of DPS to where I am currently, not a lot has changed. Though the state of the world has changed drastically, my goals for the upcoming year to build my skill set and professional experience haven’t changed, and I feel that this is still obtainable. Even though things may have changed and will continue to change, I want to make the most of this year and feel that the best way is to dive in, headfirst.

Pictures from portfolio and recent projects.