Author of the Month Interview: Motion Box
Interview with July's featured designer, the wonderful Belen.
July has arrived, so has our time to get to know the wonderful outdoorsy soul from Argentina, our author of the month - Belen (Motion Box). She’s been the part of our authors community since October 2019, and her Videobolt portfolio has already reached 32 templates. Belen is in love with camera shootings, which makes her designs the powerful combo of ‘real footage’ and motion graphics. Read on to find out what she has to say about her hobbies, work process and life. :)
Milica Popovic
Let's start this interview with a short introduction - tell us a bit about yourself.
The Motion Box
Hi everyone! My name is Belen and I’m 38 yo visual designer from Argentina, although we (me and my boyfriend) are a bit more nomads following the waves… except this 2020 which made it kind of hard to be travelling.
Milica Popovic
You’ve made quite a lot of slideshows that are inspired by memories and occasions. If you were to fill your album template with photos - what would be your favorite ones, how do you like spending your time, do you have any hobbies?
The Motion Box
Friends and family for sure and lots of travelling memories. Surf, ski and I play field hockey and I love it, so a lot of outdoor sports without a doubt. And shootings! For clients, templates or passion projects (which is pure magic when the 3 of them coincide). I love the energy of shooting days!
Milica Popovic
When did you know that motion design is something you’d like to do and how did you set out to achieve your goals?
The Motion Box
My mom tells me that when I was 3 years old I used to play with a cardboard box with a hole in it as if it was a camera (cell phones didn’t exist yet, and I’m not that old…). So I guess I kind of always knew this was my passion. Years later I went to film school here in Argentina, where we kind of learned to do all jobs being on a tight budget: producing, directing, editing… cell phones didn’t have cameras yet and YouTube didn’t exist, so no tutorials or anything like that and motion graphics was still too raw. As soon as I could buy my first kind of power computer for editing I started playing with motion design and I automatically fell in love with it. I could do so much more! It was the perfect complement for my other skills. Flash forward to the present, I don’t know how did we do it to survive without After Effects or online tutorials/resources! Lol!
Milica Popovic
What would you say is the most challenging thing about being a designer?
The Motion Box
I guess one of the most challenging things for me is letting go a lot of good ideas. I sometimes feel I need 3 more of me to download them from my head and get them done. Getting ideas in order and set a long term timeline is key. I also still today feel that a very challenging thing for me is to manage the inevitable mood swings that come with a project’s process: first you love the idea, then you procrastinate a bit and might even feel guilty, then you feel you can't do it good, then you nail it for a bit, then you hate it and procrastinate a bit more, finally you’re done and loving it again. Is anyone else going through this rollercoaster?
Milica Popovic
Since when have you been a part of the Videobolt authors community and how was your experience so far?
The Motion Box
I’ve been a part of Videobolt’s authors community since October 2019 and It’s been a fun ride since then. VB team is always super helpful and ready to solve any problem. I also love and applaud how it has grown in this few months since I´ve been a part of it: more templates, fun contests and awards, awesome author tools and now a brand new cool script to help make perfect templates!
Milica Popovic
You made 2 gaming themed templates, which are distinctive in its retro-tech design compared to your other designs. How would you describe your own style when it comes to design and are you into gaming (which games you prefer)? :)
The Motion Box
I’m not really into gaming; I’d rather do sports outdoors as I said before. I think lately my style is more real-footage live and stop motion templates, because I always have my camera with me and I think anything can be made into a template, lol. Besides real-footage, I also like to experiment and try new styles all the time. Themed contests are also a chance to research a new visual world, like gaming, and try some new designing styles.
Milica Popovic
Let's finish it off with an advice would you give to someone who is just starting to learn about design?
The Motion Box
The first advice would be: love the roller coaster mood! It will always be there and I think it’s a beautiful part of the creative process. I would also advise to never stop learning: research, watch, read, ask, try, fail, try again. Repeat. And always enjoy yourself!
Milica Popovic
Thanks Belen. The pleasure was ours to talk to you and have you in our authors community!
The Motion Box
Thank you guys! This was fun!
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