We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Akshay Tiwari a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Akshay with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
As a designer, the lines between work and play often get blurry which always brings work ethic into question as discipline is not something generally assumed to result in creative genius. But for me personally, work ethic stems from curiosity and being acutely aware of which aspects of my craft I wish to elevate. Design is part sport, part profession so keeping at it with a focused curiosity became second nature once I truly found a flow that balances the fun with the challenge of it.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m a designer and experimental artist who loves diving into the world of design in all its forms. The thrill of crafting and designing worlds and experiences is what fuels my work, especially when it’s applied commercially to TV series, ads, and tech projects, helping them bring their creative visions to life. Just as traditional art has unique mediums, I see digital art as a space with its own distinct qualities beyond just replicating reality. That’s why, as a 3D designer, I’m all about procedural design—it’s like cooking up recipes that make art! Instead of manually tweaking every detail, I use code and visual scripting usually in SideFX Houdini to build things step by step, which opens up endless possibilities for abstraction and innovation.
This method allows me to delve into the creative process early on, truly understanding what my clients are after, and expressing it through innovative design and careful direction. During my time at The Mill, one of the top studios, I have had the chance to work on a variety of projects, from Google Pixel ads to Netflix title sequences, blending storytelling with technical expertise. I contributed to effects and simulations for a few Google ‘Best Phones Forever’ campaigns, which have racked up millions of views on YouTube and even won a Webby award in the ‘Experimental & Weird (branded) Video’ category! My experimental approach has also been a perfect fit for RnD projects with IBM Immersive Experiences, outdoor advertising for the Oculus x Billie Eilish campaign, spherical content for MSG Sphere Vegas, BMW Mini campaigns, Delta X Starbucks at CES, and many more. A standout moment was working on Guillermo del Toro’s *Cabinet of Curiosities* for Netflix, which was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in ‘Main Title Design’! This journey has been incredible, and winning gold at the Australian Effects & Animation Fest and an AICP award has been incredibly rewarding. I even had the chance to share my process in an interview with *Art of the Title*, a platform that highlights the best in main title design.
In my personal projects, I follow the same path, exploring my own ideas and passions. Some of these projects, like the titles for the NODE festival and a *Moon Knight* fan film I directed, have won awards at festivals like Promax North America, Applied Arts, and Motion Awards. Leading a team on these projects and seeing them earn such acclaim is a joy. Collaborating on projects like *Existence* has been amazing too, where I delved into interface design, earning a feature in Stash Media. Growing up, I was inspired by premier motion design publications like *Stash Media*, *Motionographer*, and *Art of the Title*—so being featured in them now is incredibly encouraging for me. Being able to judge on awards such as Collision Awards & Emmys are also opportunities to help interact with my peers and give back to the community. As the medium rapidly evolves, I believe it’s crucial to be equally invested in creative thinking and the technical know-how to execute it, ensuring nothing is lost in translation as artists take on the role of directors.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
‘Eat that frog’ – not only in your daily schedule but also in terms of your entire artistic journey. If possible, frontload your artistic journey with skills and knowledge that is tough yet fun to master. This will help in creating enough creative opportunities for you to find your unique place and possibly even your own style.
Stay dedicated to being curious – the more detailed your learning is the more nuanced your design outlook will be. Great design spans across the spectrum from fresh to timeless and irrespective of what one aspires for, the common denominator is fluent intention. The only way to achieve that is by expanding your palette of influences and playing with the connection between unlikely entities or an original connection between likely elements that hasn’t been made before.
Contextualise everything that you learn and relate it to the fundamentals of the craft. Trends can come and go, and the design world definitely sways with those but what is reliable is having strong fundamentals that can be molded into something new to adapt faster. Contextualising also entails understanding how your work fits into a society, an economy and still brings you fulfilment. Invest in each aspect of your work’s context even if you are early in your journey.
How would you describe your ideal client?
The ideal client is paradoxical- someone who can communicate their problems related to communication and perception. The execution of a direction needs to mesh with the creative framing of that problem and it usually requires the client to trust me as a thinker and a maker. Having that mutual trust where I can truly bring my own ideas without fear to the table is something that makes an ideal client relationship. Before making images, design is all about making decisions.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://akshaytiwari.design/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/9_to_phi/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akshaytiwaridesign/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/9toPhi
Image Credits
Akshay Tiwari
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
