Pankaj Gupta
www.radicalreflex.com

Where are you from?
Live in Capital of India, New Delhi.

Tell us a little about your background?
Well, I am 80 born Leo. I think my studies took a lot of time but those 5 years also taught me many of the good and the bad things. I played a lot of basketball and video games though, there was a time when I could do almost anything to just go to the game zone and play for hours. That was fun. In college I studied vocational commerce with subjects like Marketing Strategy, Consumer Behavior, Salesmanship, Business Studies la blab la but I surely enjoyed making reports and projects on market strategy and product analysis. I think that was a total different trip all together. I am happy it's all gone for good and I did quite well surprisingly.

After I finished my graduation I didn't know what I was going to do next but I also knew that I was not going to pursue my studies anymore and not getting into something even more patient. I was good at painting and other creative streams in school but I never realized what I could do with it. I remember after I finished my graduation, there was a sort of trend to do some computer course on either designing or programming. Lol, I really didn't know what was happening. Well, I learnt to turn on the computer when I joined one of the crash courses for professional graphic designing and development.

Design education:
After graduation, I got enrolled in a professional graphics designing and development course from IIS Websity. That was a fast track course for six months but I left it after I finished my first 3 months of designing. I didn't want to do the other 3 months of programming. In just 3 months I realized what all I could do with all that was right within me.

How did you start out as a Flash Artist and Graphic Designer?
After completing my 3 months of designing course I joined a company called Quadra mind Technologies. The company was running a web portal related to online betting. My job was to create theme banners, collages and layout designs for the website. At that point of time I use to work on Macromedia Director for animations and presentations. In free time I use to pick up album covers of bands like Tool, Dishwalla, and Nirvana. Scan them and make a presentation of that entire album. That's how I started with graphics and animations but flash was still a very new concept for me at that point of time. While working with Quadra Mind, my company's Director had a corporate meeting abroad and he asked me to make a presentation based on their portal in Flash. That was the first time I used Flash.

Since the basics of Flash are quite common to Director, It didn't come out to be a surprise to me but I surely realized that with Flash I had a lot more freedom and possibilities to explore in animation. That's it, then I just got into it and even the small banner animations that I use to make in gif animator, I started making it in flash. In a very short span of time after I got my hands on flash, i figured there was lot more than just banner animation I could do in flash.

How long does it usually take you to create a flash / hybrid website?
Mainly it all depends on the scope I have within the parameters of the theme. I think I get very excited working on themes, which have a lot of creative freedom and scope to express with multiple elements. Take abstract art and hi-tech themes for example. There are so many things one can do with it because there is no end to the madness you can get into while designing and animating. Today if a client is in urgent need of a flash intro, presentation or a complete website, I can do it as quick as in 5-6 hours but its always fun to work with themes with a lot of scope and freedom.

As a designer, I believe the only masterpieces ever created were the time when there was 100% involvement while creating it, both spiritually and physically.

What's your main source of inspiration?
Anything and everything inspires me. Colors just drive me crazy. State of mind is everything for me and I just can't do without music. It'll always be a BIG DADDY.

There are a lot of things I relate to in like general life. For instance, I have always been fascinated by huge road side neon board advertisements, caf's interior, television commercials, movie trailers; HBO promos are awesome for that matter. To capture all that, I'll soon be doing photography also. It's been my passion but now I can afford it I guess so it's never too lateJ. But above all my main source of inspiration is web. I have seen some of the craziest animations and graphics and truly respect all the great designers around the world who follow their instinct and design with intense passion and emotions. Other designers have always been a great source of inspiration for me and I think whatever I see on net only teaches me to do better and better next time. I think besides my own style of working that every designer has as their identity, I learn a lot of things everyday by seeing other designer's creations.

The very idea of molding my designs in various different directions and moods really inspires me a lot. I don't believe in keeping a very rigid and straightforward approach in designs but rather try to make it in a way that would indulge viewer's senses and gets him in the same mood that I followed while making it.

Everything in life, which communicates with me, leaves some part of it behind and I just don't know what the hell I am going to make next but I got to take it out. I have bothered a lot of people talking about what's made on their t-shirt if you know what I mean J

Can you share with our viewers the history behind Radical Reflex?
Radical Reflex is everything to me since I decided to do some serious designing. The name didn't come out to me so easy though. It took me more than a month of crazy thinking, lot of tripping and discussions to finally decide to keep Radical Reflex. I think for the first time in life I was about to start something of my own and I just didn't want to be another name in the list of corporate houses like here in India.

Radical Reflex is a place where I never created anything just for the sake of it. Everything has been my state of mind at some point of time and it's all piled up together like a volcano of thoughts. I launched Radical Reflex late in the year 2002.

Before Radical Reflex I had another portfolio online, which I named "Downtown Jamming" It was up for a year, till dec1999. That was the place where I had a huge gallery of wallpapers and loads of downloads. That's where I tried my hand on everything I could possibly think of under the sun. I use to make about 5-10 abstract designs a day in Photoshop to dig out new ideas to create better graphics.

You can check out some of the graphics from Downtown Jamming here:
www.radicalreflex.com/downloads/dtj/graphics/index.html

On the basis of Downtown Jamming, I got a job as a senior. Graphics designer in Rediff.com where I worked for few months only because I was not able to adapt to the same old standards of designing which every portal based site has got. Same old banner and layout designing was no more my interest and I wanted to do something more radical. At this time I decided not to just make websites but also try my hand on corporate CD presentations, Software Interface Designing and print designing.

These are some of the clients for whom I had a chance to design corporate presentations and software interfaces: Indian Army, Polaris, Shiv Khera, Eicher, Amplify Audio Architects, Independent Software Solutions, VS Worx, Classic Informatics, Zavida and Flavor Coffee Co. Inc. and many more. So, after leaving my job I started working as a freelancer to be able to work on many different themes of designs and not to kill my appetite for graphics. I decided to make another portfolio where I'll experiment on all what I learnt in those few months in a completely different perspective so that I could stand myself in the international market as well as Indian. I wanted to have a website where I could experiment with most radical of the ideas and people I come across and express it through graphics. I think it took me about 2-3 weeks to make the complete website but I kept on updating it and I still do. Sometime back I launched Radical Reflex's flash version 2.0.

You can have a look at it here: /www.radicalreflex.com/flashv2/ After I got my site hosted, I started promoting it through all possible mediums and started getting good response. A company called XFriday invited me over to join them as Creative head. I worked with them for about 6 months and then I left the job because I decided to work full time as Radical Reflex. Finally I knew what I wanted to do. :)

How has flash benefited you and your website?
Flash has been a great help for me and my website. Without it I wouldn't have been able to express my ideas to the fullest. Photoshop still rules though. Right from the beginning I used their two software the most for creating an overall good impact. It's a wonderful combination. Creating interfaces and storyboard in Photoshop and incorporating in Flash has become my ideal way of working.

I still have lot to learn in flash, especially action scripting. I think whatever I know about Flash so far is good enough to create an impact but I am sure after I explore more I'll be surprised again with the possibilities. No doubt, flash is a very interesting and concealed tool as well, but if you get the hang of it, you can do almost anything you think of. Flash has surely given me an edge and I'll never stop learning more.

What was the most difficult piece you ever created?
Well, a lot many times you have to make modifications to the design according to the client's remarks and that the time when it becomes tough like hell for me to cope up with it if it's unnecessary. I think every designer learns from their experiences and try to be better next time so clients should trust them for what they create, because that's what they are best at. Still I like challenges and it makes me even more aware of what's widely accepted and what's not. So I learn a lot with these incidences. There are some designs and animations that took me a lot of time to complete. In animation, Radical Reflex's flash version 2.0 took me about a week to finish and about 10-12 hours a day.

As far as designs are concerned I really enjoyed spending time on these designs:
www.radicalreflex.com/ng/sense.html | Personal
www.radicalreflex.com/twaisers/sports/ | Client: SDH Solution Group
/www.radicalreflex.com/twaisers/agalight/ | Client: SDH Solution Group
/www.radicalreflex.com/splash.gif | Personal

What are your thoughts on community sites such as DIK, Urban Collective and Pacdesco?
Communities like DIK, Urban Collective and Pacdesco rocks big time!!. I truly respect and appreciate these communities for making such an effort and spending so much time in connecting all the designers through out the globe. I strongly believe that these communities are playing a major role in establishing a very decent base for deserving designers who are struggling very hard to come out with their skills.

These sites give them a platform to start with and also gives them tremendous amount of positive energy and encouragement to do better ahead. Undoubtedly, words are not enough to thank for what such platforms have done for many designers throughout the world. I wish them good luck and hope they always keep the designer's spirit rocking :)

What do you do besides Art?
I like to play guitar and sing as well. I like to travel to hills and spend some quality time with friends at rock shows and tours. I can say that Music is another source of living for me. Without it life sucks!!

Do you have any tips for those trying their hand at Flash Design?
Well, I think those who are trying their hands on flash should try looking at it in this way. 'Flash is not just an animation tool, it's a lot more then that. It's a power to express you in terms of motion, design and even music. You can try using Photoshop and flash together to make complete ambience and very creative and interactive interfaces. Play a lot with text animations. Sometimes real good effects come out and you'll know what to do with it. Its like one thing leads to another. I think more you work it out, more you dig in, more you learn. You just got to find your way out. Good Luck :).

How important is action script for the Flash Designer:
Action Script is an ocean of possibilities. It's a value addition to the animators; surely it plays a major role in making interactive presentations. For Flash Designers Action Script is a very strong tool to use and create hi-end interactive presentations and animations. If you are a Flash Designer, you can do with its general overview of its functionality also but undoubtedly it's a value addition to the one who knows it even better.

If there were one thing you could change about Flash MX what would it be?
I agree with what Yamo said in his interview. I just can't help feeling the impression that Macromedia guys are slowly forgetting totally that designers use Flash too, not only developers. But its good for full time Flash Designers and Animators. Billy Bussey is a great Flash Designer and Animator. I really adore his work and I think if that's what you are looking forward to then its just getting better. I like its attitude though! Use it how you like it.

Your work seems to have a lot of 2Advanced.com influences. Can you comment about that?
LOL, I think somewhere inside 2advanced has left a very intense impact on me when I started as a Flash Designer and Animator. As I mentioned earlier I like working on hi-tech interfaces and animations myself. 2advenced Studios are really good at what they do and they deserve to be where they are. There are a lot of other designers and animators out there who are just not as popular as 2advanced but they are friggin' amazing in whatever they create. 247Media freaked me out man.

Do you have any new projects coming up that you can tell us about?
Well. Currently I am working with two companies on project basis. For one I am designing software interfaces and themes and the other with whom I am working on website designing projects. It gives me a great satisfaction of working on so many different kinds of themes all together. It's amazing. Besides that I am also planning to open up a firm with a friend of mine in United States. We call it m@d - minds at development!!.

I am working on the website part now and the company is already registered. Minds at development will provide complete web / multimedia / print / software designing and development solutions under one roof. Radical Reflex will always be there and m@d will add fuel to fire :)

Thanks again for doing this interview, any last comments you would like to add?
Keep Rocking!! | Graphics Rules!! I hope all the designers find what they are looking for and I wish Pacdesco all the very best for future prospects. You guys Rock!

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