promoting other creatives because they are just WOW: featuring DANIELA LEITNER
if your are working in the creatives industries you constantly find yourself searching the internet for other creatives, other projects and great portfolios. at least that is what happens to me. you want to see what they are doing, to understand how they are cooping, you want to get behind their secret of creativity and staying motivated. maybe that is just me, but i can get obsessive over people who’s work i admire. i also can wast a lot of time over the fact that i want to dismantle their work, their process and basically their life. for me it is not about fame when i get hooked, it is more about understanding how to find a personal voice, doing what you love, being authentic and happy - all at the same time.
i guess this obsession is good to some extent but unhealthy to another.
to be honest: doing that i can easily avoid the work i should be doing at that very moment.
these days i always find it interesting, how all the portfolios look the same. nobody lets you look behind the curtains and a lot of times there is no personal inside included - what so ever. so for me it becomes more of the same instead of people differentiating them from each other. on the other hand i get to work and know so many great creatives (all sorts of them: from illustrators to craftsmen, programmers, chefs to artist) who are unable to show off their work and what they are good at, because they are uncomfortable doing it or don’t know where to start. my response to them is always the same: „the hottest shit does not matter if nobody has a clue it exists.“
so i decided it is time to not only write and show of my work but also push and portrait other people i adore, work with and respect for the things they are doing.
first off: daniela leitner
dani's dgree film: "late season" (out soon)
i met daniela whilst studying. but by the time she started, i pretty much left university. only after I realized, what a crazily talented girl she is. that was, when she started to collaborate with salon alpin. It is hard to put a tag on what she does, but I will do my best to describe her work. daniela is one of the most talented character designer, modeling artist and craftsmen I have met in a long time. everything she touches, no matter what material (weather it is real or computer generated) has a soul of its own. immediately. her sense for proportions, gestures, materials and colors is amazing. though she is constantly dissatisfied with herself. a perfectionist to an extreme.
no matter if she is working with paper, that gets animated afterwards or with clay just because she can. her artistic approach combined with commercial purposes becomes magic. especially if we are talking moving images.
one of the things that completely blew my mind is daniela’s degree animation "late season"(will be out soon). where she pretty much combined everything i honor about her works. what i like most is that she does not fit a box but for sure every project she starts will have something special about it. i think her knowhow will be of great benefit for all sorts of projects and clients in the future. no matter if it is animation, visuals, installations or whole store fronts. I am really looking forward to see were this one will reappear and pop up with her work.
mont blanc winter tale in collaboration with salon alpin
I also set out to ask dani a couple of questions.
things and insights i always tend to miss when i find about creatives:
best place to work:
I like to work alongside other people. I love workshops full of tools and materials of all sorts where i can get my hands dirty. At the same time I also appreciate a clean and silent place, a desk with nothing more than a computer and a tablet, but not for too long.
daily routine:
A great complete breakfast and a clear meal agenda throughout the day rises my efficiency by a lot.
I try to split my day in 4 working parts/sessions with breaks full of good food in between. also I do one exercise break. The last session of the day mostly goes into personal work and experimentation.
dani’s insight (for whatever):
If you spend a lot of time carving, wrap your tools into silicone (heel-patches work just fine).
It releases the pressure and the fun stays much longer. In general, invest in your working space, it pays off in the short and longterm. Tip: a standing desk is not only great for your posture but will also make you dance along your favorite music while working - no matter if your coworkers may start giggling.
book her for:
Style development with focus on non-conventional materials of visual approaches, no matter if traditional or digital.
STAY TUNED FOR DANI'S SOON TO BE RELEASED DEGREE ANIMATION
AND HOMEPAGE, THAT WILL BE UP SOON.