Valeria Moreiro
“I truly believe that role models and representation are key to more gender diversity in the industry. ”
Valeria Moreiro
Co-Founder, Creative and Art director at Not Real Studio.
How did you get started in the field (art direction, animation and CGI)?
At the moment I moved to Buenos Aires after graduating from college the motion graphics industry was in a very good moment there, so the best job openings and opportunities were related to animation, broadcast and/or advertising. I learned a lot about art direction at a studio that back then was focusing on branding for tv channels, mainly it was all 2d motion but at the same time I always kept very curious trying to learn on my own new techniques like 3d and rendering engines. So I would say that it was basically a mix of different things: personal interests, studying, and the actual context that led me to the opportunities.
What is it like being a woman business owner?
Answering this one could take forever, so I would like to start by highlighting that I’ve been very lucky to find the right people beside me that helped and worked hard to build the studio I own and share with Milton, Roberto and Eugenia. When starting, I never actually pursued the idea of being a women business owner. It just happened. Sometimes I do look around and find that most of my friends or women colleagues in the industry are not in the same or similar position as I am currently, and it feels kind of lonely and definitely weird. I know this has been changing during the last few years, but there is still a lot to do in the industry, especially for gender diversity on leading roles in advertising, animation and CGI. Because we see a lot of women graduating from design schools, plenty of women designers and art directors but just a few make it to creative directors or decision making roles.
What do you do as a female business owner to try and help other women in the field?
I truly believe that role models and representation are key to more gender diversity in the industry. At NotReal we are actually more women than men, and in part because from my place I always try to bring women I believe in into the team. Sometimes it is not even related to the actual portfolio but the potential of the person to adapt to the studio’s vision and work.
What is it like running a studio that has people working for you living different continents as well as clients all over the world?
Dealing with distance and time zones seems to be a challenge, but we found a way to make it work and even take advantage of it. We’ve really gotten used to it. It requires to be well organized, to develop a process and a working system that is suitable for these conditions.
After the pandemic started, it became very common for all companies to work remotely. We’d been working this way since we started as a studio, providing services to foreign companies and bringing external resources to our team, so we didn’t have to do a big change, only to keep improving the way we work and finding new ways to make it even more productive with larger teams and more complex projects.
What advice do you have for women trying to break into this field, as well as women who want to start their own design studio?
During the evolution and growth of the studio I started noticing that there were themes related to self-respect, power, confrontation, and money, where I had to put an extra focus on how to assemble those into my identity as a woman studio owner. I noticed that men were a bit more comfortable talking and dealing with certain subjects. As I started reading more about it I came to the knowledge that this was culture-related and connected to the way boys and girls are raised, not only by their parents but from what society speaks to them. I realized that I had some preconceptions very rooted about my idea of what it is to be a woman that I needed to review in order to unlock and pursue my full potential and power. I wish I could pass this knowledge and power along to other women and that this could help generate confidence and new ways of self-perception, because in the end, it is all related to how you see yourself and the things that you do to make those ideals become real.
What is your favorite campaign that you have worked on and why?
I honestly don’t have A favorite campaign. All of the projects that we have in the studio’s portfolio mean something special to me and were part of our growth. For example, the Nike Gumball Pack was a super challenging one to do but it led us into a growth that we had not seen coming. The identity and branding projects we have done for Google took our team into a different and more conceptual and functional approach to design, which combined with our graphic and CGI skills eventually led to beautiful and also conceptual projects like the Microsoft Loop launch video. So it is all connected. I would say it is not about one particular project but the evolution of our studio living, growing, developing new, beautiful and challenging things. That brings me true joy.
What inspires you and your work?
Working with an amazing team of self-motivated professionals that push harder every day. We take every project as a unique opportunity for creating something new, fresh, and for exploring new styles and techniques. Also, the work of other artists and the main studios are always a great source of inspiration, for keeping us updated on the visual trends and pursuing to produce content that we like.
Are there any podcasts/books etc that you recommend to someone entering the design field?
I really enjoy reading. Coming from a family of journalists, information and knowledge was always encouraged at home. Lately, the books I've purchased are not so much about design but rather social issues and or/self-growth.
For a while I’ve been following Argentinian Maria Florencia Freijo and definitely recommend her book “(Mal) Educadas” (translation would be something like ill-mannered women) on feminism and female power. Also some basics like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie “We should all be feminists”, or even something deeper on feminine archetypes like “Godesses in evey women” by Jean Shinoda Bolen. And then a little bit more into the creative process and overcoming fears I would encourage reading Brene Brown “The gifts of Imperfection”
Those four would be top on my list for creativity, introspection and self-growth.