Hello, my name is Roko Kuzmanović and I’m a student in Communication & Multimedia Design, from Pula, Croatia, studying at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands. My work focuses mainly on photography, film, visual storytelling, and creating projects that make people feel something rather than just look at something.

Curiosity is one of the main sources of inspiration for me as a designer and artist. I love everything about people, places, moods, nature, and those little things that always have a deeper meaning than what can be seen right away. By using both photos and films, I try to convey the mood of the moment.

I would say that my exchange experience turned out to be one of the most significant in terms of personal and creative development. In South Africa, besides wildlife management, I learned photography by working on landscapes, nature, and wildlife-related projects. Being there was crucial for my understanding of conservation and sustainability in general.

What is more, during the trip, my perception of photography has changed. Not only it gives an opportunity to document and share the beauty of our world; it makes people care about things, which they do not think about normally. Thus, visual storytelling becomes one of the means of creating awareness about various important topics, and I am going to apply it in my future projects.

In Bali, I had the opportunity to continue the exchange program by studying mindfulness at UNTRM International. Being aware of myself, the way I act, and behave in any circumstances, and what influences my behavior is essential both from the personal and professional point of view. Thus, it will help me manage pressure and stress better, become a better member of a team in terms of communication, as well as take time and make thoughtful creative decisions.

All these have contributed to defining how I would like to work – with more mindfulness, patience, and responsibility. I wish for my portfolio to represent two aspects of my personality – the artistic one that enjoys creating emotions through visual art and the environmentally conscious one that cares for the preservation of natural life and the creation of meaning from visual images. This is regardless of whether it’s filmmaking, photography, or visual design that I’m doing.