Takeover Tuesday with Kristina Sharabinskaia
An interview with Kristina Sharabinskaia, a Motion Graphics Designer and Concept Illustrator at The Mill.
Q&A with Kristina Sharabinskaia
Read time: 8min
duck Pond, 2021. Kristina Sharabinskaia.
Madison Caprara:
Hi, Kristina! If you don’t mind, let’s start the interview with an introduction to yourself. Who are you, what do you do, and how did you find yourself in the current position that you are?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
I’m Kristina Sharabinskaia! I am a Junior Designer at The Mill. My role in the company is to storyboard, design concepts, and illustrate for motion. It's a fun job! I personally am not fond of animating things, this works well so that I don’t need to. I’m originally from St. Petersburg, Russia. I think the biggest reason why I’ve ended up in motion design is that my experiences in international schooling encouraged me to look for an escape through art.
When I was 12, I was sent abroad to England. At the time, I didn’t know English so art was something that allowed me to be busy while not speaking to people. I was that one student who draws during classes instead of paying attention. On the side, I used to go to fine art curriculums which helped me to get the principles of design down. So I took off to high school wanting to “draw cartoons,” and eventually got into college.
At SCAD, my major was Motion Media Design, and because I am an international student, ICE requires me to work in a major-related field. After graduation, I landed a few jobs as a freelancer for Scholar and State Design, however, I needed something more full-time. An HR rep from the Mill Chicago reached out to me and asked if I would be willing to work for the Mill. During the first go-around they found out that my visa was expiring soon, so they retracted the offer. A week later I saw through an old contact, Stephen Winters, an HR rep for the Mill NY, that they were hiring the same position. I DM’d him letting him know that I was interested. When I applied he vouched for me, and after three interviews, I got the job! This second time around, they looked a bit deeper into my visa situation and realized that I could extend it for another two years, so we’re good now.
Madison Caprara:
From eye-catching motion graphics to stylish designs and illustrations, your work is channeled in a variety of ways, yet still holds a pretty distinct style. How would you go about defining it?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
My personal work explores redefining dimension. I like to play around with different scales of objects to reinforce the effect of a deformed reality. The end result is this surreal, imaginary dimension. I normally go about the process half-intuitively; I have an idea in my head of what I want to create and I vaguely sketch it out. After, I gather a lot of references based on the sketch and start drawing while copying aspects of my mood board. I then choose a style direction and use it as a guide for creating my artwork. In the end, I might apply some patterns, change the initial idea, or even evolve it into something else entirely. I often refer back to the color theory and the rules of composition. These make my decisions not so intuitive, but rather practical to reinforce the most interesting illustration that creates a new realm; bending rules of physics and logic, while still looking pleasing to the eye.
Madison Caprara:
You’re a recent university grad. Congratulations! How was your experience at SCAD?
empathy bro, 2021. Kristina Sharabinskaia.
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
Thanks! Tough question. I don’t know how much I can talk about it, but in a few words, it's a great school to connect, network, and find jobs. After all, the only reason I’m here in the epicenter of the motion graphic industry is because of SCAD's relationship with others within the creative world. They throw a career fair every year specifically for motion graphic students, so you can really network. There are so many cool resources, like a swimming pool, gym with real instructors, and even free late-night cabs from campus to your house. They host festivals where you meet celebrities and student shows exhibiting their works. SCAD definitely appeals to the masses.
There are, however, some downsides that you couldn’t imagine being there until you become a SCAD Bee. SCAD doesn't offer enough support for students. The student body has been asking for an increase in mental health services and altering tuition fees since the pandemic began. Other changes to be had are allowing plus-sized models to be cast in fashion shows, providing funding for student clubs, and softening absence rules. It just felt like the school didn’t necessarily do anything for students that didn’t benefit them cost-wise. Even when suicide rates skyrocketed, there was no change in the way SCAD handled the issue. Most of the university, if not all of it, is a big marketing scheme; a business, a modern-day “nonprofit” corporation. So by entering this academic community, you agree to be a part of the show.
With all of this being said, this money-hungry infrastructure benefits graduates. There are so many job opportunities and perks that come from this agreement after you have graduated from this nightmare. It’s a win that comes at the cost of students’ mental well-being, creative blocks, and countless sleepless nights.
Madison Caprara:
That’s disappointing to hear, and an issue many who have chosen the more “traditional” path of education are being forced to make peace with when the realization strikes that these large entities really don’t care about the individual.
Madison Caprara:
Now, do you have any tidbits of advice for students who may be thinking about entering the motion design world?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
I feel like you really need to understand what it is about before entering it. Figure out what exactly you want to do as your job. Try to reach out to some people in the industry, invite them for a coffee, or even email them to ask questions. If they’re not busy, they will be happy to get back to you. Most of us professionals are happy to connect, even through email. But don’t frown if a person doesn’t get to you, I’m sure they feel bad for not doing so.
Madison Caprara:
If you had to choose one creative collaborator for an important project, who would you count on?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
When I had initially started working at a Scholar, my guide from the start was Madison Ellis. She worked as an Art Director for my first Taco Bell project. Madison was incredibly positive and encouraging. She had also graduated from SCAD two years before I did. We hit it off right from the start. She is a talented director and her feedback helped to improve my work by miles. In the end, she would always ask if you were happy with your result. It really showed how much she would listen when solving creative problems together. I’ve never actually met her in person, but her memes would always crack me up and make my day!
Black Lives Matter, 2021. Kristina Sharabinskaia.
Madison Caprara:
What do you believe are some of the benefits of working with colleagues as opposed to going at it alone?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
Working with other creatives helps me keep myself accountable for meeting deadlines and the precision of my work. Processes like brainstorming and overcoming creative blocks as a team are easier as opposed to facing the struggle alone. Your capacity of work goes down when with colleagues because you're not made to wear multiple hats. So yeah, I love teamwork! It’s efficient, fun, and your opportunities to come up with ideas are expanded with multiple points of view.
Madison Caprara:
You’ve worked with some top-tier studios: Scholar, State Design, and as you said, you are currently working at The Mill. How have those experiences been for you?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
Everything I have expected and, at the same time, very different. I had a good understanding that the motion industry had a certain structure of work: the advertising agency sends a script, then you pitch to the agency. If you win, you first would start with mood boards, gathering references, creating style frames, and sharing the overall vision of the project. After the client’s approval, you move to animation. Normally, designers would work almost simultaneously with animators and slowly connect all the pieces of the puzzle together. Art and creative directors oversee the project, share notes with the clients and the team while keeping everyone on schedule. This pretty much sums up the process.
Studios like to keep a similar routine and follow a similar creative process, despite the size of the company. So I found myself fitting into the routine easily. The transition began after I gained more experience with different studios. I found that people had a huge impact on the energy in the company. If there was a micromanaging producer, it would impact the speed of communication. If a creative director is stressed about the project, it would cause the whole team to be nervous too. It’s never really about business and money, but the time you get to know your colleagues as people, not employees. I learned to appreciate a good afternoon of laughter and discussion of new Netflix shows.
Madison Caprara:
That’s a great takeaway. Humans really are at the heart of every company.
Madison Caprara:
With your history of landing work at various reputable studios, what is your opinion on showreels vs. individual clips when landing a gig? In your experience, which should be prioritized?
2021. Kristina Sharabinskaia.
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
I mean, you need both. I’ve gone to college fairs and other opportunities to land gigs with both ready to show, and STILL wouldn't end up nailing an internship. My friends did, though, in some instances. So, I’d say it’s helpful to have them, but they’re not a guarantee to magically find work. Sometimes all that matters is networking and knowing the right people to be the applicant who lands the job.
Madison Caprara:
Do you have an all-time favorite project that you have worked on?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
I haven’t been in the industry for long enough to fall in love with a specific project, yet. Most of the time the ideas get so diversified and changed throughout, that you can barely take credit for your own input. I guess I have an idea for a perfect project where I would be an art director for the project, and so far those have been social media pieces for Instagram during my free time. If I had to pick a favorite, it would probably be an illustration for a podcast cover I did a year ago called “Empathy Bro”. I really liked it because the host of the podcast was a small business owner, and the process of working with her was more to the ground and personal. We would facetime each other, I’d film myself sketching ideas, and we’d brainstorm together.
Madison Caprara:
In your opinion, what are some of the current visual trends motion designers should be focusing on?
planeta., 2020. Kristina Sharabinskaia.
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
A mix of 2D and 3D has a certain appeal. The combination of the different stylistic approaches uplift art to be more unique, and being unique is always something people look out for when trying to find inspiration.
Madison Caprara:
What is your favorite thing about working in motion design? Are there any misconceptions that come with being a designer?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
Yes. One thing in particular that I wasn’t necessarily surprised to find out was truthful but confirmed what I’ve heard before from many teachers and designers in motion. When you create something in a group of people, not all of your ideas get heard or even executed. Sometimes I would spend weeks designing characters for an environment, but in the end, the idea just ends up dusting away on a cloud. And sometimes it’s hard not to take it personally, but it’s work, there is always tomorrow.
Madison Caprara:
Where do you get inspiration from when creating this work?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
Pinterest, mostly. And Netflix’s Arcane: League of Legends. But I intensively follow artists I like and get inspired by their work. A few of the great ones in motion design are Ori Toor, Sarah Beth Morgan, Rune Fisker...Their work is unified by bright colors and the appeal to animation, meaning their work looks like it could move.
My personal art style is just a repetition of other artists’ work. I pick the inspiration, mix, match, and imitate. In the end, it still comes out differently, even though almost none of my ideas are mine in the beginning. References rule!
Madison Caprara:
I love the self-awareness, Kristina! It’s really refreshing!
We’re reaching the end of our time together, unfortunately. Is there anything in particular that you would like to touch on before we go?
Kristina Sharabinskaia:
Yes! I’d like to end with a piece of wisdom for fresh talent. There is nothing wrong with promoting your work on social media. For me, my presence on socials has helped me to make a lot of friends in the industry as well as to find work and even be discovered. Marketing my Instagram and Behance, and posting projects on Linkedin played out very well for me. After all, I got my art on a beer can because of social media!
Abstract+Architecture, 2021. Kristina Sharabinskaia.