Local graphic designer makes it big in Chicago (Published May 2016)
A HOLIDAY visit to a high-end visual effects company in New York led to a dream job offer in Chicago for Port Elizabeth graphic designer, Udesh Chetty. Chetty is now the visual effects supervisor at Chicago’s The Mill, one of the biggest post-production houses in the world.
Since completing his BTech in Graphic Design at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University in 2003, Chetty has worked primarily on television commercials as a visual effects artist and supervisor. In 2014, he won a craft gold Loerie Award for his visual effects work on Prudential’s “South Pole” TV commercial directed by Velocity Films – it was the only visual effects craft gold awarded that year. Before moving to Chicago, Chetty worked as a graphic designer and motion graphics artist at Searle Street Post Production in Cape Town.
Some of his work includes the Jeep ‘4x4ever’ TV commercial, Alfa Romeo’s ‘If emotion made a car’ commercial, and the Cadillac Escalade ‘The Herd’ TV commercial. Chetty creates digital pop art, exploring visual parodies and narratives through illustration, 3D rendering, and photo manipulation. He does this using among other apps, Autodesk Flame, a software application which allows artists to manipulate digital film footage.
NMMU Alumnus creates opportunities for students (published May 2016)
What started in a Port Elizabeth garage by two students in 2012 has morphed into a business with a growing international customer base and an annual turnover of more than R300-million.
SMSPortal, the bulk SMS marketing business used by the likes of Pick n Pay and Anglo American, was the brainchild of students Charles Stretch and James Pearce.
The two remain loyal to their roots employs eight NMMU graduates in its broader team which has offices in Port Elizabeth and Cape Town. The company has also kicked off enticing paid internships in Cape Town for NMMU Computing Sciences and IT students or graduates.
Golf marathon for charity-minded student (published May 2016)
NMMU alumnus and golfer Mike Usendorff will soon embark on his longest round of golf yet: an attempt to play 180 holes in just 10 hours. But its all for a good cause.
Half he money raised during the BTech Marketing student's golfing chllenge on May 16 will be put towards NMMU's costs to participate in the upcoming University Sport South Africa (USSA) golf tournament, the other half is going to the ErnieEls Centre for Autism.
Graduate joins international leadership programme (published May 2016)
A post graduate NMMU student has been given the opportunity many could only wish for after being nominated for a regional leadership programme set up by US President Barack Obama.
Sibonio Dlamini a postgraduate maritime studies student, returned recently from a regional meeting in Johannesburg following his nomination to the Regional Leadership Centre of Southern Africa (RCLSA). This is part of the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) programme set up by Obama in 2010 which seeks to invest in the next generation of African leaders.