We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Vidhi Bansal. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Vidhi below.
Vidhi , appreciate you making time for us and sharing your wisdom with the community. So many of us go through similar pain points throughout our journeys and so hearing about how others overcame obstacles can be helpful. One of those struggles is keeping creativity alive despite all the stresses, challenges and problems we might be dealing with. How do you keep your creativity alive?
I would be lying if I said that this was not a constant struggle for all creatives. Inherently, everyone has a creative side that manifests in different ways but it’s difficult to tap into it. For me, it was my architecture education that taught me how to constantly keep that creative side active. By surrounding myself with people who constantly thought creatively and were always on their toes trying to ‘think out of the box’ I found the few who actually did so naturally. One discussion with such a person was enough to have me thinking in fresh perspectives, becoming curious and staying curious. Curiosity is the essence of creativity.
Another major factor that always had me thinking creatively was creative writing. Crafting stories was quite unrelated to my work however it was something I did regularly and it always kept my imagination sparking and creativity alive. Building virtual worlds was something I drew from my love for creative writing. Thinking in stories and words is often considered not creative enough, especially compared with people who think in pictures, but I believe it can really unleash the deepest and most hidden creative imaginations.
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 am a Real Time 3D Artist and World Builder. I work with game engine and real time technology to désign and build worlds for brand stories, film and game cinematics. I am the Chief Experience Officer at Curiouser.AI, where we aim to build a multi user 3D immersive experience for users to interact with conversational AI, and truly reinvent how humanity engages with AI.
At Curiouser.AI, I also work on branding and product UX design. We aim to build an AI that can help humanity think for themselves, powered by a truly exceptional and immersive user experience that helps foster creativity. It is a challenge, but also the main motivator driving all of us, including me. I had moved to LA to work for the entertainment industry, never imagining that I would find myself working in the daunting realm of tech- now realising that this is probably what brought me here in the first place. I could not have asked for a better purpose.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
There are so many skills I still need to hone as my journey is just getting started. However the three main skills or areas of knowledge that have helped most are my passion for worldbuilding and creative environment design, real time technology and its various purposes as well as my background in design and architecture. My architecture education has helped me develop design thinking as a necessity and part of daily life. My love for fiction, storytelling and worldbuilding has equipped me with a unique skill set that can be employed across various realms like branding, filmmaking and game cinematics.
One advice for fellow folks early in their journey to not underestimate technical tools especially 3D tools. Being technically skilled to be able to effectively and efficiently express your vision is incredibly important and should be a focus, alongside developing a basic design ideology.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
It is incredibly easy to feel overwhelmed in the world of design. Dealing with having to be constantly creative, clients who all want to be ‘unique’ but ultimately exactly like something interesting they saw on TikTok last night, and micromanaging your every move, being a designer in a world where everyone thinks they are one is not easy.
In times like these, it is incredibly important to stand your ground, take a step back and get in touch with yourself and why you wanted to become a designer in the first place. Getting some kind of outside perspective and a break from getting sucked into the vortex of chaos is a good way to recharge. If your self esteem has taken a hit from constant criticism, it is important to remind yourself that it may just be a difference in perspectives and in this situation, talking it out with a group of people helps tremendously. You tend to lose faith in yourself when your work gets crucified and altered heavily however in most cases it is not you or your skill set but just a subjective difference in thinking.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.vidhibansal.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/vid_hi_
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/vidhibansal21
