The Peter Lamont Award – Spotlighting New Talent – 2020

During a career talk with a tutor at college, the Design for Film and TV course at NTU was suggested to me. It wasn’t until I walked into their design studio at an open day that I not only realised what I wanted to do, but I also found a place that I felt my creativity belonged.

Life from then seems a bit of a whirlwind; I have learnt so much and loved every minute. From my first television job at Eastenders as the Art Department Archivist to my current role as Graphic Designer on Midsomer Murders, I have met a myriad of wonderful people who have been incredibly keen to share their knowledge and so encouraging of the development of my skills and designs.

It was on my second job, The Capture, that I discovered my love for graphics. From the moment I read a script and begin to imagine the variety of things I will get to design, to researching existing graphics and how they are made, to learning new skills that allow me to produce convincing designs and finally, seeing the finished product set, I feel an ever-expanding enthusiasm to push myself, my work and my creativity that I didn’t think was possible from a job.

I love what I do, not just because of the people I work with and the variety it brings to each day, but also because it allows me to constantly develop my skills and challenge myself.

I hope the future brings more work with encouraging teams of creatives who help nurture my creativity and expand my world.

I think film remains a medium dedicated to human narrative, although it can be fantastical or epic there must always be a sensitive quality to the work that allows it to resonate. I feel proud to be part of an industry that is dedicated to keeping storytelling an imperative and important part of our culture. I have a very tangible approach to working, I love being the person on the ground who is running around and I especially love trying to hunt down an item at a market or antique store. I think this has served me quite well when it comes to an eye for detail.

My growing list of weird and wonderful contacts, as well as my growing list of weird and wonderful colleagues, continue to broaden my view on the world, from art to architecture, to the domestic and the historical. Learning how to research through varied sources and weaving together these fragments of ideas has become something I love.

I would like to continue to learn more about what it takes to make a technical and creatively competent set. I think there is a certain playfulness and assurance that comes with time that I hope to achieve working in this field, with the end results being credible, sensitive and artistic.

In a small village in Bradford West Yorkshire, I was asked what I saw myself doing in the future. Working in a creative industry wasn’t considered a real job where I was from, but I was fascinated by film and decided going to college to study art & design was a step in the right direction! Fast forward to Film School I specialised in Production Design and wrote essays on filmmakers, I could never dream I would one day work with.

After lots of pestering and being tireless to learn on placements and courses, I have been fortunate enough to work on some beautiful TV dramas, commercials, and short films, but it was “Tom & Jerry” where Set Decorating became the department for me.

I love how Set Dec presents unique backdrops that are challenging and daring. It demands attention to detail, imagination, vision, historical context, and reason while working in harmony as a team in a pressured environment. It brings stories to life and turns magic and fantasy into reality with props, fabrics, colours patterns and textures. It has everything I like and more!

I’m incredibly lucky to be working with the most prestigious and renowned HOD’s and Art Departments that I learn from every day, and my 10-year-old self’s Harry Potter dreams were made working on Fantastic Beasts! Sometimes I can’t believe this is my job! Years from now I’d like to be a HOD, making creative decisions and to work more integrally with other departments. I’m also very passionate about improving and challenging the holistic side of the industry that involves changing certain cultures around employee’s well-being and making a more balanced working environment.