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Oftentimes, creativity and design aren’t just skills — they’re a whole life story!
And some of the most powerful stories come from the Designity creatives who’ve had to overcome challenges, take big risks, and follow their passion to build the career they want.
Oscar P. is one of those creatives! He’s a designer and motion graphics artist whose creative journey took him from freelancing for companies all across South America to a new life — and a thriving creative career — in Miami, Florida!
So how did Oscar go from a kid experimenting with CorelDRAW to a Pro Creative who shapes brands at Designity every day?
You’re about to find out!
Today’s blog is a 1:1 interview with Pro Designer, Oscar P. so you can hear his story, see some of his work, and find out why he’s such an important part of our creative community!
Pull up a chair because it’s time to meet Oscar!
How did you get into design? What is your origin story?
This is a long story, but I knew that I wanted to be a designer since I was a kid.
I am from Venezuela, and when I was 11, I traveled to Puerto Rico — I had an aunt who had an event company, and they used to do events for Direct TV or big gas stations, that kind of stuff.
I saw my aunt using CorelDRAW software — nobody uses it now, but it was popular then. And the difference between Puerto Rico and Venezuela was huge. My aunt had three cars, a house with a pool, everything. So, I thought, “Okay, I want this lifestyle too.”
So, from that moment — I was around 12 — I started to play around with CorelDRAW.
My neighbor was studying graphic design at the time, and he gave me the software, and I started to play with it. CorelDRAW had a tool, it wasn’t like a suite, but it was like Photoshop. And I started with photo editing, and I would create compositions; something like me dunking a basketball and stuff like that, and I really loved it.
My mom used to work for a spa, and, after some time, she asked me, "Hey, can you help me with the flyers for the spa?"
I was like, "Okay!" I was 13 or 14. Of course, the work was terrible, but I knew how to use the software. So, since I was really young, I knew that I wanted to do this.
Then, when I turned 19, I went to Caracas to study graphic design, and I loved it.
Where did you study design?
It’s one of the most prestigious schools in Venezuela, and I got to work with really, really good graphic designers from all over South America; Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia.
What was your first job as a designer?
I've been working in graphic design since 2009.
My first job was an internship with a really good design studio called Factoría Gráfica in Venezuela. They also had a magazine that I would work on as well. I was working closely with one of the biggest graphic designers over there.
That was pretty nice. I learned a lot in that company, but they weren’t paying, which was frustrating. Then, a few months later, I found a job in an event company called EvenPro. This company put on concerts — they brought Beyonce, Justin Bieber, and other big artists to Venezuela.
So, I was hired to work on some banners for the website. But while I was there — and I had only been there for three or four months — there was a situation with the senior designer, and they ended up getting fired. So, then I was the only one working on the website.
I grew a lot there. And I was super proud because, for graphic designers, we like to have our work seen by a lot of people. So seeing my work on social media or seeing my art at the box office was super exciting.
While I was there, I also created the aesthetic for one of the biggest cinema theaters. I made the website and did graphic design, and that was another project I was super excited about.
What made you start looking for work outside of Venezuela?
The situation in Venezuela was getting worse.
Around 2014 or 2015, I created an animation in Venezuela (shown above) that showed the impact of dictatorships on a country.
It was an explainer video; I wanted to show why dictatorships ultimately fail and the negative consequences they bring to society. I also created an illustration that was a critique of what the government was doing at the time. It was a period of intense political tension, and I felt I needed to say something to express how I felt about it.
I know that these projects really resonated with many people and left a meaningful impact at the time.
But I also knew that I needed to start thinking seriously about leaving Venezuela. So, I had to find another job to pay for a move to the United States.
I found work with an insurance company in Venezuela, and then I got my first animation job — it was something for HBO Latin America, and we did some great stuff there.
Then, in 2015, I decided to work remotely because I was still looking for better income and, in Venezuela, because of the political situation, the average person was making around $10 per month. At the job I had, I made $100 a month, but it still wasn’t enough. I thought, “I need to find a way to survive."
So, I started sending over cold emails to different companies around South America and Spain. I sent maybe 300 or 400 emails, and one company in Paraguay answered me, and I thought, “Okay, let's see what happens with this.”
So, because I was in Venezuela, it ended up being cheaper for them to hire me than someone local. On average, a graphic designer made $600 per month over there, so they offered me $500.
And for me, in Venezuela, it was like “Yeah, let's take it!”
So, I worked remotely for two years, living off of $100 or $150 a month and saving money all that time so I could have the chance to come to the United States and make that change.
How did your career lead you to Designity?
When I got to the United States in 2017, I lived in Miami, and I was still working with that company from Paraguay, but $500 per month might have been a lot in Venezuela, but here in the US, it was nothing.
So, I did the same thing. I started to send over some emails and found a really small marketing agency in Boca Raton, and I started working with them on top of the people in Paraguay.
And then my boss from Venezuela moved to Miami, so I started to freelance with him too.
I had a really good client with him. There, I created my baby — these characters, logo, and animations for a medication company here (shown above). I enjoyed it, but when COVID happened, the company went bankrupt, and my boss didn't have a chance to send me anything anymore.
So, again, I had to start from scratch.
I started working for Uber and other side jobs for almost a year while I looked for graphic design work.
At one point, I found a really good company that offered me a lot of stuff like, “Hey, Oscar, I can send you a computer!” and I was excited because the offer was good … but then it was too good, something was off. And it turned out to be a scam.
And I was so disappointed, but I kept looking and looking. So, when I got an offer from Designity, and I was talking to Shahrouz (Designity’s CEO), and he was telling me something like, " I'm going to send you VR goggles," I was like, “This is a scam too."
So, I was excited, but cautious. But they didn't ask for any money or anything, so I just kept going to see how far they’d take it.
Then I got hired to be a Creative Director (CD) and finally was like, "Okay, I guess it turned out to be real after all."
It was a really huge jump for me, because I've been working freelance all this time.
You started as a Creative Director here at Designity?
I did. I started in 2021 and was a CD for just seven months.
I knew how to work as a Creative Director because, working freelance, I had to create a concept, execute the project, just do everything from scratch. So, I knew the process.
But I was very nervous because it was a big change, coming to Designity and working directly for Shahrouz. We spent a year working closely, and I created the brand guide for Designity, and worked on the emojis, all the stuff that we have right now at Designity.
And then Shahrouz decided that it would be better for me if I were a Creative. Because one of the things I mentioned was that I really like to work with different clients and create different projects. Working for only one brand was kind of driving me crazy.
So, then I started as a Creative, and I'm super happy with that arrangement because I can work on different projects; I can be more creative. I think, as a designer, if you’re stuck with just one brand, your brain is going to be on loop, working on the same projects over and over again, and you’re not creating new things.
What is your favorite type of project to take on as a Creative?
What I really like to work with is branding — and not just the logo, but everything behind it, like design elements and creating the personality you need to communicate the right message.
Thank God I've been working with CDs who believe in my work and listen to me, because I really like to create the branding from the inside out. You need to first find the personality and what makes the brand unique, and start from there and create everything around it.
I love that.
Another thing that I really like to work with is animation; motion graphics, 2D motion graphics, and AI.
How do you use AI in your motion graphics work?
Right now, I’m using a lot of AI (artificial intelligence).
I’m very passionate about that, and that we need to keep ourselves up-to-date with technology. I don’t want to get behind, so I work hard at that. Because every day there’s something new. Even with video. It’s insane what some companies are doing.
I did a project with one of my clients here in Miami, and everything was created with AI. Obviously, I did the compositing, but I trained the AI to create the same character each time, and I added a prompt to keep the consistency the same throughout the video.
I’m excited to see where it goes.
What’s your favorite part about working at Designity?
I like that I can manage my own time.
I know that we need to be connected during the day, but it gives me the freedom to organize my schedule. For example, if a CD says, “Hey, Oscar, I need this by tomorrow at 2 PM,” I can arrange my schedule around meetings and work, and my salsa class.
I work more than from 8–5, because I work on Saturday, Sunday, almost every day. But I really like to have the freedom to do things, like if I have to go to the doctor, I can just go to the doctor, and then come back and work.
The other thing is that I really like to work on different stuff. So, with Designity, I have the opportunity to play with different kinds of projects.That's good for me, because at the end of the day, for graphic designers, your portfolio is your business card. So, it helps me to create a better portfolio. And now with all of this new technology, I have the chance to explore it and get paid for it.
Designity gives you that flexibility that other companies really don’t.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
I do a lot of stuff.
I'm a dancer, so I dance salsa, bachata and Kizomba.
During the week, I teach Kizomba to urban kids here in Miami, because it's something that was created in Europe, and it's not really popular here in the US, and I'm trying to create a community around it.
So, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I teach that at night, and then on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I train in boxing and kickboxing.
When I finish learning about striking, I also want to learn jiu jitsu to be an MMA fighter. It’s just for fun — I’m 36 years old, so I don’t think I’m going to make it big, but at the end of this year, hopefully, I’ll compete.
I’m not planning to make it my career or anything, it’s more something I just do for me.
<div class="c-blog_comp-cta cc-component-2"><div class="c-blog_comp-cta-left"><div class="c-blog_comp-cta-left-wrap"><img src="https://global-uploads.webflow.com/61cdf3c5e0b8155f19e0105b/63695243d096983691046ac3_Potential-Creative.png" loading="lazy" alt="" class="c-blog_comp-cta-left-img"></div></div><div class="c-blog_comp-cta-right cc-dark"><div class="c-blog_comp-content"><div class="c-text-wrapper cc-mb-32"><div class="c-title-4 cc-bold"><strong>Like to work as a freelancer with consistent income?</strong></div></div><div class="c-text-wrapper"><div class="c-text-2">Designity's collaborative model is designed to give you all of the perks of being a freelancer without the income instability.<br></div></div></div><div class="c-blog_comp-wrapper"><a href="http://designity.com/creatives" target="_blank" class="c-button w-button"><strong>Join Our Creative Community</strong></a></div></div></div>
Do you have any words of inspiration for aspiring creatives?
I used to watch a lot of news about graphic design and what’s coming up.
Whether we like it or not, AI is going to replace a lot of people in a lot of different fields and, right now, the toughest part is going to be for the newbies, the rookies.
It's really important for the people who are starting out to try to learn as much as possible about your profession, not just graphic design, but whatever your profession is, and then try to find your “essence” — your unique value.
There are a bunch of graphic designers here at Designity, but I think everyone has their own signature style.
So, try to find your essence and transform it and create extra value that AI can’t replace. For me, I try to work closely with my clients or CDs, and show the process and talk and really communicate things. I think that helps me to be present all the time.
It’s going to be hard because we don't know what is going to happen next year, because everything is changing so fast.
But if you find your unique value, you're going to be the difference.
I also think that if you love what you're doing, you’re going to find a place to work. I love what I do. For me, it's a game. Every time someone asks me “Hey, Oscar, you need to do this video,” I enjoy it.
It's not a chore. So, I think my advice is that: do what you love, and try to find your essence.
