Are you a maker in the making? Designing your designer life? We asked alumni from Costume, Props and Effects, Sets, Make-up and Design to give us advice for anyone applying for one of these courses and this is what they said:
“Don’t worry about where you have come from, what you have learned, or if you are ‘good’ enough to apply. I was a homeschooled young girl from the Central Coast with no ATAR and I am heavily dyslexic. NIDA didn’t care about any of that, they cared about my passion and drive to learn what they had to teach me. As for the sewing skills, just practice. Sewing is a skill that you can only learn by doing, over and over again. It doesn’t matter if you started sewing a year ago on YouTube or 10 years ago with your mum, just keep going at it. If you get the chance to make for other people through community theatre or just for friends, take it, and practice what it’s like working with the body. And learn how to unpick (because you will be doing that a lot).” – Lily R Mateljan (Costume, 2022)
“The first thing anyone ever said to me when I first started out was, “If you have any questions – ask”. It opens that line of communication between you and your colleagues, and you never feel like you’re going to fail. For those thinking of studying props at NIDA that’s my advice. You will learn more and grow as a maker the more you ask. In my experience makers love sharing a process or a cool new technique, just the other week I learnt how to make safety retractable syringes from another maker all through asking questions. So be inquisitive and have a desire to learn more, because there’s never not a new way of making.” – Brittany Worboys (Properties and Objects, 2018)
“I think the biggest piece of advice I can give is to love what you do. NIDA is such a great place to meet people and learn more about your chosen field, but it can be challenging at times. Keeping in mind that you’re there because you love what you do and you want to learn more will definitely help you push through the tougher elements of the course, and you’ll come out the other side all the better for it.” – Eryn Douglas (Scenic Construction and Technologies, 2023)
“Always be open to exploring and pushing your thinking. Not everyone is going to be on the same train as you are, but with an open mind and some good collaborative skills, it’ll make the whole process quite exciting. For those keen to study at NIDA, it is quite challenging but if you are willing to put in the work, it’ll be worth it in the long run.” – Ruru Zhu (Design for Performance, 2020)
“Be excited, make stuff, break stuff, overthink, jump in head-first, whatever works best for you! It’s hard to find a career more jack-of-all-trades than prop-making, so the more variety in your skills and knowledge, the better, in my opinion. If you like to work with your hands, are passionate about cosplay or movies or painting or programming or whatever else might be tangentially related to the art of making stuff (that’s the technical term), and are keen to learn new things, then you’re set.” – Ari Gilbert (Properties and Object, 2023)
“I spent my whole three years trying to develop my style and I think it’s the best thing I ever did. I was told on my first day “experiment and try everything you want to create in the course because you will not get an opportunity for a long time to do it afterwards”, which is true! I did some whacky stuff in my time at NIDA, from a short film about a cannibalistic cult, to 5 set changes in the studio theatre. NIDA is the place to do it when you have to resources and the support of the teachers and your peers to help guide you along.” – Paris Jade Burrows (Design for Performance, 2023)
“If you don’t have passion and excitement, then you’ll burn out quickly but if you’re excited to be creative and make things then I don’t think there’s a better course for it.” – Matthew Hinton (Scenic Construction and Technologies, 2021)
“Surround yourself with people who support and believe in you, and don’t be afraid to take risks and try new things. I have found the best opportunities are the ones that scare you and push you out of your comfort zone! Learn from every experience, whether it’s a success or a failure, and use it as an opportunity to grow. Most importantly, stay true to your vision and don’t give up on your goals. The film and TV industry can be tough, but if you’re passionate about SFX makeup, when you see your work on screen and your ideas come to life, it’s all worth it. Keep pushing yourself to be better and never lose sight of why you started in the first place. You’ve got this, and I believe in you!” – Kiarna Strauss (Screen and Media, Specialist Make-up Services, 2022)
If you’d like meet our teaching staff, tour NIDA’s facilities and ask questions about applying for one of our courses, join us for Designers & Makers Day on 18 September.