I grew up in a quaint village close to Böblingen, a small city in South Germany. I don’t know who the client for my first character design job here was (probably my mum) but I loved playing around with pencils back then already. This satisfying feeling as they move back and forth a white piece of paper and a simple idea is coming to life bit by bit is something I couldn’t get enough of. I began drawing colourful artworks using every medium I had access to.
15
Youtube
Over the years I used my pencils less and less. YouTube and its creators grabbed my attention. As a result, I uploaded my first YouTube video about my favourite video game back in 2012. Looking back, it was this very moment when my love for creating became so big that I wanted share it with the world. My first video was a vital boost because after a few months it had over 92k views. While other kids delivered newspapers or moved the lawn, I earned my first money on the still young video platform. It felt like I discovered a secret universe with endless opportunities and inspiration wherever I looked.
19
University
I entered my communication design studies in Stuttgart with a clear goal in mind: turning my passion into an actual job. The university courses allowed me to learn everything about design, professional videos, pictures, animation and illustration. I started working on the first design projects for my friends and I found myself scribbling ideas again. It felt great to have a pencil in my hand after such a long time, and I remembered the amazing feeling of being able to create entire worlds on a piece of paper with no limitations or rules. Then, after two years of studying, I decided to spend all the money I had been saving for months on my first iPad.
22
Dreams
After graduating in autumn 2018, I designed my first professional website and kept illustrating on my iPad and creating content for my first portfolio and my Instagram account. The dream of being a professional illustrator was still there but if it wasn’t for a life-changing call with Alexandra, it probably would have remained a dream for much longer. She convinced me to join their representation agency and start working for clients. This call marks the beginning of my freelance business as an illustrator and clearly the best decision I could have made in regard to my career. Alexandra, who is still my agent today, and the whole team were all fantastic advisors, always with my best interest at heart, which I am very grateful for.
25
Today
A lot of things changed throughout the years but one thing never did. I always loved creating content and turning my stories into artworks, designs and videos. When I’m looking at the path that has brought me here; at the projects I had worked on and at the creative team around me today, I’m very proud and very happy, but I’m also really excited for everything that’s still to come.
Sometimes it feels highly surreal to see what we’ve achieved so far and how fast-paced this digital world is. But when the light goes out in the studio in the evening and I’m closing my laptop after a long day of work, I couldn’t be happier that I set out on this journey, all the way back in 2012 with my first YouTube video ever. And if I could travel back in time to the moment I clicked on the upload button, I would whisper into my ear that this journey that’s about to start is going to be wonderful.
Remember I said we’re a team now? If you want to know how this story came about, you should definitely check out our new crew studio website!