The Kinetic

We caught up with the dynamic trio Estian Fourie, Stephen Galloway and Jano Booysen, Creative Directors and Partners of The Kinetic. The trio tells the funny story of how they named their studio hanging at the local bar; they give some great advice on not limiting your ideas based on your skills, and we discuss the benefits of throwing your self in the deep end.

Where did you study and what were some of your first jobs?

The 3 partners at The Kinetic all studied at The University of Pretoria in South Africa and to be honest I think we’d all like to forget those first jobs… haha. When we had just started out we did any and every job that came across our desks with only a few that were interesting. Unfortunately, that’s the slog of starting out in the creative industry.

*How did you name your practice and what does the name represent to you? *

Funny story actually; we had already decided on a name, done the branding and started the website when we stumbled upon an established company with a very similar name. “Oh sh!t” we all thought. So to avoid starting the branding process over, with a dictionary in hand, we sat at the local bar until we found a name that started with the same first letter and ’The Kinetic’ was born. We liked the name, and wouldn’t you know it, it all fell into place. Our name says a lot about what we do and how we do it.

Design work by The Kinetic The Design Kids interviews The Kinetic work-2

What are some of the best and worst parts of your job, day-to-day.

We have the amazing privilege to work from a beautiful studio in an amazing part of Johannesburg, it really creates an inspiring atmosphere and doesn’t make it feel like we are working hard at all.

One of the frustrating parts of the motion industry is troubleshooting problems during a project. “Why the f*$k is that layer flickering?” “Why is this render taking so long?” “After Effects crashed again… SERIOUSLY?!” These phrases are all too frequent in the daily life of The Kinetic.

What’s your take on internships? (do you take interns now?)

We are always supportive and open to interns. When we started in the industry we would have loved to be a fly on the wall in an inspiring agency, to see how they work. So when interns come through our doors we try to be as open and supportive as possible to give them a taste of the industry works.

Design work by The Kinetic The Design Kids interviews The Kinetic work-4
Design work by The Kinetic The Design Kids interviews The Kinetic work-4

Don't limit your idea or concept by your skills. Create an amazing idea first and then figure out how to do it.

What's the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Don't limit your idea or concept by your skills. Create an amazing idea first and then figure out how to do it.

Also, do incremental saves… they’ll save your butt one day.

Who’s on the team, what are their roles and why do you love them?

The Motion Design and Animation industry is built on teamwork and without our amazing designers, illustrators, project managers, animators, 3D gurus and our partner teams that do sound, help on shoots, etc etc etc we wouldn’t be able to deliver the amazing work we do. That’s why we freaking love them!

Design work by The Kinetic The Design Kids interviews The Kinetic work-6

What is the design landscape like on your city and where do you fit in?

Johannesburg is an amazing city for design and creative-minded people. There are so many studios and people doing incredible work and there is always something happening in Jozi. It really is a blend of African, South African, and some European design sensitivities. At The Kinetic we like to think of ourselves as the studio that will take the vision of a client and turn it into the best damn thing it could be, with a truly unique look and feel.

2019 for you in a sentence.

2019 is our 10th year and we will keep on living by our motto ‘If it doesn’t move, it doesn’t count!’

Design work by The Kinetic The Design Kids interviews The Kinetic work-8
Design work by The Kinetic The Design Kids interviews The Kinetic work-8

Where to find The Kinetic online.

Website: thekinetic.co.za

Instagram: @thekineticstudio

Twitter: @thekinetic

Get involved

>