A senior motion and digital designer with over 10 years of experience in the industry, Nor Mira Canales is a man loaded with total dedication and passion for what he does.
From brief to render, he takes care of every part of the process and is also a long term VJ that performs under the moniker hypervj and plays the Glastonbury main stage at Shangrila most years.
How did you get into the industry?
I had just finished my master’s degree in Design and AV Digital Production, and it was the beginning of the VJ movement scattering through Europe. I started working as a post-production operator in a production house and Vying at the same time, experimenting with new formats and creating content in the early days of After Effects and Premiere Pro.
From there I started moving my skills to a more professional and client base environment and the rest is history.
Where are you based now and who do you work for?
I have a space in a bigger studio at Miller’s Junction in Dalston, we’re all designers, illustrators, animators, etc. It’s a great atmosphere and work ethic, we bounce ideas off each other and have lots of fun socially so big up to the Miller’s crew.
I operate from my own limited company working for clients, mostly advertising agencies but I also do music videos and content creation for the events industry. I also VJ, performing live video in events and festivals throughout the country and beyond.
If you weren’t in your current industry, what would you be doing?
I would love to be a paramedic and drive an ambulance in London, I have always been attracted to it, don’t ask me why.
Can you explain your creative process? What makes it unique?
It depends on what type of project I’m working on and the level of ideas generation and concept creating I must do for it. When I work for clients on projects, where they give me a storyboard with the concept and the action already defined, I’d normally start by working on a quick animatic of how things should move and transition to the next scene, working on the timings and making sure animation principles are always followed.
For a project where I’ll be doing all the groundwork from concept to delivery, the process is slightly different. For instance, for a music video where I have total creative freedom, I’d start by listening to the song several times and with a synesthesic like process, start imagining what visuals would work with that sound or riff or chorus or bridge, then I’d create a storyboard and follow the process aforementioned.
So, I guess the uniqueness of the process boils down to imagining the sounds in a synesthesia like process.
How would you describe your style?
Again it depends on what project I’m working on. For a more commercial motion design project Id say my style is crispy and sleek. For a more underground music video or VJ set I’d say it’s glitchy urban technological.
Which individuals do you gain inspiration from? Do you have any heroes in the industry?
I do indeed, special mention to the OG Saul Bass. My favourite studio of all times is MK12, they were one of my first inspirations when I started, trying to replicate their motion graphics was a massive influence for me to get into the industry.
Ash Thorpe has always been a massive inspiration for me and Matt Black from Coldcut, he was a revolutionary when the VJ movement was starting and his music and visuals have always been spot on.
What tips would you give to aspiring creatives looking for work?
Never give up, persevere and persist. Even on the darkest days the light from your monitors will guide you!
What tips would you give to other professionals to get more clients?
Always keep your work and reels up to date. Treat them like you would treat any other client project.
What kind of tools/kit/software could you not do without?
There are 4 plugins for After Effects that I use ALL the time, Overlord by Battleaxe, Trapcode Particular by Red Giant, Key Cloner and Motion Tools. When it comes to software, obviously After Effects, Cinema 4d, Illustrator and Resolume Arena.
What’s your secret to staying inspired and motivated?
Keep growing as an individual and produce better and better content for me personally but also for whatever audiences will see my projects, whether hundreds of thousands at Glastonbury or 20 views on YouTube.
What’s the work achievement you’re most proud of?
To have built a working business from the ground up and to be able to make a living out of my craft.
What is the one thing that you would change about the industry?
I would limit the round of amends to 3.
Any websites, books or resources you would recommend?
Books: The Animator Survival Kit has been with me since day one!
Websites: School of motion is a great resource for tutorials and courses.
Resources: archive.org has always been a massive place for resources. I’m a big copyleft advocate. All wrongs reserved.
