3D designer: "Take small steps and don't fall in love with your work"

Alexander Bereznyak (aka OneSkullADay) works in video game industry. He came across 3D printing as he was fascinated by the opportunity to materialize his ideas and believes the technology will go as far as printing humans. His disappointment with reality inspires him to create well-known characters in a form of skulls. Alexander is aware of the trends that can please the crowd and is quite sure of what one should do to be as popular as the cat videos on YouTube...

Can you tell us a little about yourself and how you got into the 3D printing industry?

I am a professional 3D artist, with most of my life dedicated to video games industry. Taking ideas to material world... how can you not get into that?

How do you approach a project? Where do you get inspiration from?

Me and reality, we're not too adjusted to each other. So when there's tension between us, we both get thorns and splinters. My works are results of my upsets with so-called real world. It's not the inspiration, it's just getting rid of them thorns.

What kind of research process do you have?

Once you grab the concept of how 3D printing works, everything else is fairly self-evident. There are several basic rules; I have found online help pages quite useful.

What are your daily challenges as a 3D designer and what are the best parts of the job?

For OneSkullADay project, the particular challenge was to find the characters, which would still be recognizable in skull form. Not always was this a success. The best part is the inadequate reactions on forums - the rebound ideas and ricocheted opinions.

On the overall with models for 3D printing, the trick is to get the sizes correct (in case of iPhone cases, for example), value your materials (making things hollow) and being careful with thin walls and small details.

What do you feel are the most important lessons you have learned during your time in the industry?

The most important lesson in the industry is very well translated to overall life: people like to walk familiar paths, hence many replicas of the same idea can be created independently. People get used to common ideas and stop reacting. If you want to hook someone up, you need to be unconventional. Not surprisingly, this may very well mean getting no attention at all.

Mona Liza may be famous, but people will always spend more time looking at cat pictures instead.

Who are your customers or clients? Do you design with a particular customer profile in mind?

My main job pays quite well, so 3D printing for me is a hobby. I shoot my arrows where it's pleasing. Then I draw the target mark around the arrow in the ground. This way, every experiment I make is a success to my only customer.

What kinds of objects have you 3D-printed for your personal needs?

Some of my works are made for me alone. I keep them as trophies, as sculpts of the mood of day I've made them.

What’s your favourite thing about 3D printing?

The best about 3D printing is the potential it has to change the world. Some day - and that day is soon - we will be printing our food at home; our organs right inside our bodies. Most of the objects we will have will not be limited by what's on the shelves of our nearest supermarket. Brand-based market as we know it will evolve.

What do you feel are the most important tools for young designers trying to break into the industry to learn today?

Google is the most important resource to master. Everything else will follow.

What software do you use?

Most of my works are made in 3dsmax and Photoshop, plus a touch of ZBrush.

Do you believe in 3D printing revolution? Why?

This tech went from science fiction to reality within a decade. Hell, with the pace it's evolving now, we might be printing our own replicas in some 10 years.

How do you see 3D printing changing people’s lives in a decade?

I've covered a part of this answer already. The list of printable object types expands every day. Food, living tissue, cars and clothing; flowers and weapons, and some day - inevitably - humans. It is hard to overestimate the revolutionary potential of this technology.

Any last bits of advice for designers just embarking on a 3D career path?

Take small steps. Every next project must not be more than 20% harder than the previous completed one.

If you've put something on hold and haven't touched it for a week, call it done and start something new.

If you work for money, don't fall in love with your works. They will come and go; you will have to adjust them multiple times, not always liking the change. In this case, do some for yourself, to keep the vibe.