We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Dez Miller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Dez below.

Alright, Dez thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I always knew I had a passion and talent for art, specifically illustration, but as I started to make this my career it took years of practice, time, and effort to get to where I am now. I honestly am constantly learning and improving my skills, but I would say what has been most helpful for me is studying other artists’ processes and using that knowledge to improve my own work.

It’s tough for me to pinpoint what exactly I could have done to speed up my learning process because I sort of fell into the Themed Entertainment indistry. If anything, I wished I could’ve given myself the online resources and started learning the programs I use sooner. Being an Illustration major at SCAD, helped me practice drawing, brand myself, and connect me to other artists in the industry. On the other hand, I also felt that it took up time that I could’ve used to teach myself skills and limited my ability to explore other subjects that I later discovered could’ve been beneficial for me to know now.

The skills that are most essential to me are persistence, adaptability, and kindness. Being persistent pushed me to keep going even when my artist’s block and imposter syndrome told me to stop. Being adaptable has brought me a long way because I do not limit myself to one box. I can draw, paint, create vectors, animate, and even 3D model. While I am not an expert at most of these, knowing at least the basics has helped me stand out to others and has been of use on different projects. Finally, being kind is always something I find extremely important. I love connecting with other people and I feel that everyone should learn how to treat others with the care and respect you would want for yourself. You never know who will be a new friend and who could be an important connection for the future.

The obstacles I struggle with the most when it comes to learning more is motivation and time. It’s hard to stay motivated to learn when it is a lot easier to put it off or do something else instead. I really have to be in the right mindset and aware of how I prioritize my time. When I have 9-5, I barely find time or energy to do much more when I get home for the day. Weekends tend to be when I do most of my learning, although it gets hard to be consistent on social media and practice since I can get busy or am spending time with others.

Dez, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I never imagined myself in the Themed Entertainment industry in the past. I originally came into college wanting to do Visual Development for animation and games, but the longer I was in school the more I felt that I needed to explore other options. I looked into Production Design my Junior and Senior year because I was interested in Set Design, since I enjoyed world building in my illustrations and wanted to make something physically. This led me to take a class offered by my school in Orlando that introduced me to this industry. I liked that Themed Entertainment was a combination of all the careers I was interested in, and the market had a need for creative multi-faceted people like myself.

I have been interning and contracting at Universal Creative for the past 6 months in the Themed Finishes Department and the Concept Design Department. Themed Finishes is in charge of creating the final look of building facades, selecting paint colors, painting maquette samples, etc. I am a Color Designer, my job is to take Revit drawings / 3D Models and use Photoshop to create colored elevations, queues, buildings, and props for the park. These color boards are then used to select paint and are sent to fabrication vendors to be created physically.

I also have been working as a Concept Designer where my job is to sketch visualizations for new rides, buildings, and key art for projects that are to be developed. The Concept Design Department is in charge of creating the ideas and art for projects whereas Themed Finishes is more about the production of an already finished idea.

Overall, I am an independent Illustrator, but I also work in Fabrication, Production Design, and Live Entertainment. I love telling stories and creating experiences through environment design and color. I am most known for creating 2D assets and illustrations using Procreate, Photoshop, and Illustrator. I dabble in 3D modeling using SketchUp or Blender. I also have experience painting and working with my hands.

I am most proud of how far I have come from drawing fantasy worlds as a kid to being able to work on projects that actually create them in real life. I almost had a period where I gave up, but I kept pushing and learning and I eventually fell right into the spot I felt I was meant to be.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is being able to work on something that I love. Being an artist is not easy; you do it because you love the craft and bringing these projects to life. For example, I grew up playing Nintendo and watching Dreamworks films, but now, since I have been working at Universal, it feels full circle that I have had the opportunity to work with IPs that inspired me to make art in the first place. It’s rewarding to get to work on unique projects, having fun collaborating with creatives, and finally getting to see your work be enjoyed by others.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I feel that although I worked really hard to get where I am today, there was definitely a sprinkle of luck that got me this position. My managers really liked my portfolio which was a plus, but what also helped was that I was recommended by a friend who works there and I applied at just the right time when they needed an intern with my skills.

There are other artists I know that are extremely qualified for positions, but won’t be hired just for the reason that they don’t have a connection, haven’t worked there in the past, or don’t have enough work experience. This makes it extremely hard for new artists to tap into the industry and in worst cases end up having to give up a career in art entirely.

I feel that the art industry is extremely gate kept, and is based more around publicity and connections rather than skill. Even when you are in the industry, you never feel 100% stable because there’s a possibility companies could let you go on a whim whenever they stop needing you or want to save money. If the industry was more open to artists, no matter the amount of experience or connections, and respected artists instead of overworking them like tools, I feel that being an artist would be a lot more supportive and stable overall.

In addition, more companies are starting to use AI to cut corners when it comes to producing art. AI I will admit can be a great tool, but society needs to realize that AI can never replace artists. AI does not have the ability to develop new ideas, rather it just takes information from what is already existing. An artist’s job is similar where we also take ideas and references from what has already been done, but the difference is that we find creative solutions to make it new and better.

Contact Info:

• Website: dezmiller.art
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dinolimes/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dezmiller/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/dinolimes