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Sally King at UCA recently, giving a guest lecture to BA (Hons) Illustration students.
Sally originally studied Illustration from a desire to draw for children’s books, but it was during those studies that she discovered the world of character building, concept art and storyboarding. This combined with her love for cartoon – particularly Disney – films, that turned her attentions to a career in film and television, within the art department.
Since then, she’s worked her way up the industry ladder to become an Art Director, and has worked on television shows from Eastenders and Poldark, to The Thief, His Wife & the Canoe, and Death in Paradise.
Sally on the set of The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe
She also helped create the immersive world of Star Wars for Secret Cinema, and the London Specials for the Late Late Show with James Corden.
We caught up with Sally after her guest lecture to find out more about her career so far.
“When I was at UCA I was really into exploring children’s book illustration - character design, scene setting and compositions - and as I progressed, I became more drawn to storyboards and concept art,” she said. “The course was supportive in helping me transition those ideas from being a children’s book illustrator into working for the art department in film and television.
“I really got to dive deep into Photoshop which I use virtually every day. We had one class on it, because it wasn’t so popular back in the day but I just ran with it! I am so grateful I had the chance to play with it while I was on the course as I certainly don’t have the time to play with it now!
Sally, left, with colleagues on the set of Alan Carr's new sitcom, Changing Ends, where they had to build a Wimpy shopfront.
“I progressed into my career from my love of film and TV and by researching how one would get into that industry. Turns out it’s a lot of networking and talking to people. After I graduated, I phoned every production company I could and went to see whoever I could, to show them what I could do and hope that someone would eventually give me a job - which I did, and I progressed from there.”
Sally said she has had too many highlights to really narrow down particular favourites but said living and working in the Caribbean for Death In Paradise was “out of this world” and has loved working with big stars such as Tom Cruise, Kate Moss and Justin Bieber as much as working with comedians like Kayvan Novak and most recently, Alan Carr, for his autobiographical sitcom, Changing Ends.
Over the years, and accelerated by COVID-19, Sally says the biggest changes within her industry has been the care, health and safety of crew.
“When I first started out in the industry, I was working really long days and not even thinking about doing a two-hour drive on top of a 12-hour day, whereas now there’s more looking out for the crew and making sure they are getting home safe at night and that they are thought about outside of work hours,” she said.
Sally’s advice for current students was to not give up. “If you want to do this job you have to be set in your ways of looking for work and networking. It’s difficult to gain confidence in the beginning - to speak to people about giving you work - but it’s just the way we do it in the industry. You need to knock on doors, you need to email people and never give up and eventually you’ll get there.
She also shared the best advice she had ever been given – staying true to herself. “For example, don’t watch films that you don’t enjoy, just watch films you love and want to research. I mean I love cartoons and Disney films, and actually they do play a big part in what I do now, whereas I think there’s kind of a temptation to go for what’s popular or what’s cool, But, if it doesn’t speak to you, then it’s not going to reflect positively in your work.'
Away from her work, Sally’s big hobby is hula-hooping, a skill she and her troupe hold a world record for. But, she concluded, hobbies are actually a really key part to successs.
“Having a physical hobby was a good mental release for a stressful job. I fell in love with it,” she said. “I think it’s important for anyone working in a creative capacity, to have that outlet of something physical, whether its rock climbing or swimming or running, just to get out in the world and play.”
To find out more about our Illustration degrees, see our course pages.
Sally, left, with actor Ardal O'Hanlon during the filming of Death In Paradise.
More advice for illustration applicants
- How to make a perfect Illustration portfolio for university
- How to write a great UCAS personal statement for an Illustration degree
- What careers can you do with an Illustration degree?
- Can I apply for a Illustration degree through Clearing?
Want more support with your UCAS personal statement, building a portfolio, exploring creative career opportunities, or anything else related to life at UCA? Come along to one of our upcoming Open Days for one-to-one advice from experts across the university.