From Minecraft thumbnails to a creative career

After high school, Joel was experimenting with Photoshop and trying to work out what came next.

Then he stumbled across videos about professional branding and logo design - and suddenly saw where his creativity could take him.

“It was the spark that showed me I could turn tinkering in Photoshop into a real career,” Joel said.

Growing up in Port Douglas, Joel knew that to pursue his dream of becoming a designer, he would need to move to Brisbane.

After researching his study options, he discovered TAFE Queensland’s Diploma of Graphic Design (CUA50725) which stood out for being practical, accessible and affordable.

“TAFE Queensland gave me the start I needed. The course was hands-on, relevant and closely connected to the kind of work I wanted to do,” he said.

The Diploma gave Joel skills he still uses today - from typography, layout and colour to print specifications, Adobe InDesign, contracts and intellectual property – and of course, Photoshop.

“The Diploma built the scaffolding for everything I learned later - through university, my print shop job and my professional career,” he said.

Just as important were the people around him, with his classmates quickly becoming a close-knit group, and by the end of the yearlong course, Joel had produced a physical portfolio he was proud to take into the next stage of his career.

He also credits TAFE Queensland teacher David Toleman with supporting him throughout the course.

The manageable workload also gave Joel time to start building industry experience.

Working part time at a digital print shop meant he could put what he was learning into practice straight away - and discover an even greater appreciation for print and production.

The course also taught him how to put his best foot forward with employers and clients.

“The portfolio and personal identity projects were incredibly practical. They taught my classmates and I how to attract the kind of work we wanted,” he said.

After graduating, Joel kept building his skills through TAFE Queensland, completing a Bachelor of Digital Design (Visual Communication) (ARB007) delivered in partnership with the University of Canberra.

The degree gave him room to try new disciplines, work on live industry briefs and broaden his portfolio.

“I’ve always been interested in exploring different tools to create visual media, particularly in the digital realm,” he said.

That curiosity had been there from the start. As a teenager, Joel made stop-motion animations with an iPad and toys, created Minecraft videos and designed memes using Photoshop.

Today, the same curiosity drives work across graphic design, print, animation, 3D, video and Webflow.

“That experimentation continued through my studies and into my professional practice. It has had a measurable influence on my success,” he said.

Now qualified and working in the industry, Joel does not like to box himself into one job title.

“I try not to see myself as a graphic designer, but as a creative problem solver,” he said.

For him, it is about finding the right tool for each challenge - even if that means learning something new along the way. That flexibility has opened doors in both his full-time role and freelance work.

Joel recently returned to TAFE Queensland to share what he has learned with students studying graphic design, architecture, games, media and visual communication.

Invited by Senior Lecturer Higher Education Visual Arts Ola Pak, Joel spoke about importance of networking and encouraged students to think less about chasing opportunities and more about making genuine connections.

“It’s about meeting designers and making friends, rather than getting a job and finding opportunities,” he said.

Drawing on his experience attending, volunteering at and running creative events, he shared practical ways to meet people online and in person, along with resources from his platform, Off The Grid.

Above all, he wanted students to feel less alone at the start of their careers.

“I hope they felt seen - that their worries were normal and there are industry professionals ready to listen and welcome them in,” he said.

His advice for aspiring designers is refreshingly simple: there is no single right way into the creative industries.

“This career is what you make of it. Whether you are here for fun, still working out what you want, or have dreamed of a creative career since you were five - all those paths are okay,” he said.

“The people who succeed - and will continue to succeed in the Artificial Intelligence era - are the ones who follow their curiosity and support their local creative community. Take your time, have fun and keep making things.”

These days, Joel works at creative studio Type + Pixel, where he combines graphic design with motion and 3D across a range of client projects.

He is also branching further into branding and web work, including a freelance project with Quinn Beaulieu from DSR Branding that brings together identity, web design and motion graphics.

From Minecraft thumbnails to multidisciplinary design, Joel has built a career by staying curious, trying new things and never stopping at just one creative path.