MEET THE MAKER: MISLAV MIRONOVIC
Jul 02, 2023
You may have noticed some incredible animations on the Ponto social media pages lately, and not only are they cool to look at, but they help highlight the unique look and make of The Pacific shoe.
Click on the image below to check them out on Ponto's Instagram:
The artist behind these animations is Mislav Mironovic, a content creator living and working in Zagreb, Croatia. He is the creative director and owner of MMstudio–an agency that specializes in creating stop motion animations, videos and photos as well as consulting creative athlete projects, and general art direction.
We feel so lucky to have been given an opportunity to collaborate with Mislav at Ponto and we wanted to take a chance for you all to meet the maker behind the art. We were able to ask Mislav some questions about his work, his artistic process and of course his favorite animated TV shows. Check out the interview below:
What is your favorite project that you’ve ever worked on?
My favorite project I’ve worked on so far was creating animations / digital posters for Red Bull, especially one particular animation/video that I shot using my friend's robotic arm. I usually keep the camera steady and move the pieces in front of the camera to tell the story, but this time It was the opposite, I told the story by just changing the angles of the camera.
What is your artistic process?
Usually, when I see a product or receive a pitch I immediately react to it with some ideas about what would be cool to do with it, and most of the time that’s exactly what I do. The first step is always pen and paper, there is always problem-solving in animation so soon as I figure out how to solve all the problems I continue with building sets and rigs, then light everything up and start animating the idea I had in mind. That’s the hardest part and it takes the most of the time. Afterward, it’s the postproduction that usually takes an hour per sec of animation.
Who is an artist that inspires you?
The artist that inspires me is Casey Neistat, Van Neistat, Tom Sachs, and Spike Jonze.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome to be where you are with your work now?
Uhh it was changing careers, I was a professional MTB freeride athlete riding for Red Bull, and that was my identity, my life, and my focus. After so many years of doing that, you become that and suddenly you have to stop it and find something else that lights that fire in you. Luckily I think I found it in creating cool and creative photos, videos, and animations.
What drew you to animation as a medium?
I think in photos, I am a very visual person, I loved taking photos, and shooting videos, so when I started exploring the stop animation I realized its all those things together plus It feels like magic. If you can recall being a kid and playing with toys, cars, etc. You played what you imagined in your head, now with stop animation, I can make those imaginations come to life.
What is your favorite animated film/tv show?
I have to say Cowboy Bebop, Love Death + Robots, Family Guy, and Robot Chicken.
When you’re not creating, where might we find you?
If I am not creating I am training, riding my bike, or watching other creations.
What other artistic endeavors do you enjoy?
I paint sometimes, explore architecture, coming up with creative projects for athletes.
Do you ever suffer from creative block? How do you overcome that?
I have to say not really because my work is very versatile, so it keeps me fresh all the time. So how to overcome creative block, make sure you have other outlets, and different playgrounds.
How has your practice changed over time?
First, it felt like I was just playing, didn’t see it as something special until others started pointing out that I do really cool and unique things and projects. Then feeding that part of me resulted in this becoming my daily work and now my practice is definitely becoming more professional as I grow and push my limits, better tools, more experience, and bigger projects.
What memorable responses have you had to your work?
I am happiest when I hear that my work has a soul. I love to believe in that.
To learn more about Mislav and his fantastic work follow these links:
https://mislavmironovic.com/