Trey Trimble
3D Artist Trey Trimble’s work combines the past, present and future to create 3D renderings inspired from retro Pepsi ads and other designs from the 80s/90s. His designs are playful and a reminder of the days when things weren’t so serious. Trimble’s aim is to bring people back to the happier times of being a child with zero political worries and more colour and he does just that.
How did you get started in digital design?
It started pretty organically, actually. I didn't like, have a dream of working in the graphics world. I was making goofy things for fun and posting them on Facebook. Things like a picture of me posing a certain way then cutting me out and putting me in movie scenes, etc. Then this Youth Pastor contacted me and asked how long I'd be doing graphics which was like a year on Corel Draw. Long story short, he got me hired at this large church to do the graphics for the youth, kids, and adults. All of the sermon series intro videos, handouts, posters, in office things, around the building art/signage, website.
That's pretty much where it began. Most of it, learned on the job and over necessity of needs. Now, I've been solo freelancing for over 3 years and definitely feel blessed to have been able to keep up with getting projects.
When making your rendered images, how do you normally start the process, in terms of references and inspiration?
I usually start by being intentional about what crosses my mind in the day, in terms of what might be cool to make. Random thoughts like of an old PS1 game I hadn't thought of in years. It will just hit me and I'll write that down on paper or in my phone and try to make an Everyday using that in a scene. Other times, I'll just scroll through Pinterest or something and just get my mind in that mood and mode of nostalgic things and just shape a scene like clay. Changing and moving lights, different camera lenses and angles, etc.
Most, if not all your work follow a neon nostalgic 1980s & 90s theme. What is your connection to this era and style of work?
I just loved being a kid. I feel like a lot of us can relate to the good things we had when we were little. The games we escaped into were a staple. I'm in love with how simple things seemed back then, every thing in life wasn't tangled in politics constantly. I love how commercials and TV weren't afraid to have these sweet, touching, serious moments. If anyone goes on Youtube and watches these 80s/90s commercial collections you'll see what I'm talking about. Now it seems SO fake and put on and what they consider "funny" is so forced and predictable, it's nauseating. So I love escaping into the past where things seemed to matter. We didn't have anything close to awesome graphics, but we didn't care, it was awesome and we were content with that. The Blockbuster things, when it was a treat to go and hope they had a movie you'd been dying to see, then actually SEEING it on the shelf with that blockbuster case behind it; the excitement that hit was awesome, then getting pizza, a Pepsi, and getting home to enjoy. Now, (which is definitely a blessing and I use), with Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Crackle, IMDB TV, etc. Everybody sort of already has everything. It really zapped the fun and treat aspect of it because you just… have it already. Sorry if I rambled too long on that, I just LOVE the life back then and bringing it to today!
Another theme in all your works we’ve noticed is that everything seems to float in open space. What’s the significance of this?
That started because when I was putting work into my models I didn't want just one aspect to be seen. I designed it on all sides, so I started floating them. That way everyone could enjoy the whole thing. Plus then I could put a fun background to it sometimes.
Which of your pieces is your favourite and why?
That is SUCH a hard question! Hmmm... one of them would definitely be the piece "Ever After You". That one really turned out beautiful in the end, for some reason, that one just sends me. It's a scene that I want to just dive into fully. Other favorites would be the ones that look like I'm literally looking down at my bedroom floor when I was little. I love those and love creating those.
Where do you see yourself taking your art in the future?
Well, last summer, I had the amazing opportunity to get contacted my Sony/Netflix to work on 6 promotional pieces for Stranger Things 3. Needless to say, I was beyond excited and blown away to have been asked. They've asked me for work 3 times now (Stranger Things 3, Ozzy Osbourne, Prince) and I would absolutely love continuing to work with Sony on more projects. Also I would enjoy making random models seen in games that don't "matter", like in Call of Duty, the items just seen in houses, etc, just made to fly around when things get blown up or shot. I follow a few 3D modelers, that's what they do, make general 3D items seen in the background. I'm not sure why, but I enjoy finishing up a nice clean model.
courtesy TREY TRIMBLE
interview ANISHA KHEMLANI
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