Meet Alexandra Tretiak | Illustrator and Animator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alexandra Tretiak and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alexandra, how does your business help the community?
I have always wanted to make art that would make a difference, even in a small way. Aside from freelance work, I seek out non-profits and offer my services to boost others to the best of my ability. Most notably, I lent my skills to The Sydney Library of Things, a community organisation that allows the general public to borrow items (like you would with a regular library), as their marketing coordinator. I created graphics for their social media platforms, online campaigns, and collated images and graphics for local news articles. I have also worked with other local small businesses, community events, and larger organisations such as Clean Up Australia, also providing graphic and animation services. How my artwork is utilised and who or what benefits from my time and energy is greatly important to me and an aspect of my career that I am extremely conscious of. I plan to continue to make art and animation that would raise awareness of other community or social initiatives and create content that is educational and that will positively impact others.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am an illustrator and animator based in Sydney Australia. I graduated with a Bachelor of Design in Animation with Honours from the University of Technology Sydney. In my Honours year, I wrote, directed and designed my first animated shortfilm that has been featured in film festivals around the world, and was a finalist at Waterford International Film Festival in Ireland for best cinematic image.

My skills have allowed me to venture into many aspects of the creative sphere, from film, photography, design, to marketing, branding, and advertising. What I value most is the freedom to choose where I find work and I get try everything at least once. That being said, the life of a freelancer is not by any means easy, and for the average creative, choosing work isn’t like picking apples from a tree. My greatest lesson is that you need to have resilience and patience to succeed in the industry, and say yes to every offer that interests you. I have been extremely lucky in my career so far, and hope to continue seizing every opportunity that comes my way.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would love to shout out The Sydney Library of Things, located in Waverton, and now, Lane Cove in Sydney, Australia. There are lots of tool/item libraries and similar community initiatives found across the country and the world that deserve to be recognised.

Website: alexandratretiak.com

Instagram: @alexandratretiak