SHORT PROFILE
Name : Nick Bentley
Birth year : 1976
Country : UK
Company : Somewhere
Position : Co-Founder + Managing Director
Website : www.wearesomewhere.net
[ Sélène Vilaseca ]
Nick is the co-founder and creative director at Somewhere, bringing a wealth of expertise in architectural visualization production. He leads the visualization team, combining artistic flair with technical know-how, which has helped build Uniform’s stellar reputation with renowned architects like Foster + Partners, Zaha Hadid Architects, Santiago Calatrava, and Skidmore Owings and Merrill.
With a background in guiding award-winning teams on big projects worldwide, Nick brings architects’ visions to life through CGI, film, and VR. His unique creative approach has also made him a sought-after speaker at global events and conferences.
Let’s get to know Nick!
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Hi Nick, welcome to InterViz!
Can you introduce yourself to our readers? Tell us a bit about who you are, your role as the Managing Director at Somewhere, and your career journey leading up to this position.
Hi Sélène – Lovely to meet you, and thanks for having me in this series!
So I lead the team at Somewhere. I’m one of the co-founders of Uniform, and I’ve been working in the design, property + architecture world for the last 25 years. To start at the very beginning, I was always interested in understanding how things worked – as a kid I was always building lego models, taking toys apart, mending bikes and building radio controlled cars. This fascination with understanding how things worked was the catalyst for thinking how designs could be improved.
This led to me studying Product Design at university, where I became good friends with the other 2 co-founders of Uniform. We all had a passion for making things, and we’d spend hours in the workshop machining metal, working with wood, and forming plastic into furniture and lighting. When we first started, this was our goal – to design and sell our own products. We didn’t have any money to support this though, so we put our design skills to good use designing interiors, bars and nightclubs in Liverpool in the late 90’s. We’d started using 3dsMax (version 2.5 had just been released!) to visualise our designs, and became hooked on it! It brought much of the satisfaction of making things in the real world, without the physical constraints.
“Our passion is rooted in exploring how we can better connect people and places, and over the past 5-10 years we’ve been using technology to engage audiences in more immersive ways.“
Nick
Over the next few years we became more engrossed in the world of CGI, growing the team and starting to work on films and images to tell the stories of architectural projects around the world.
Our passion is rooted in exploring how we can better connect people and places, and over the past 5-10 years we’ve been using technology to engage audiences in more immersive ways, from VR and AR to Realtime and online interactive. Whether it’s a brand, an image, an animation, we’ve always been passionate about pushing what’s possible and asking “how can we tell stories in new and better ways?”. If we can create something that’s effective, truly engaging and memorable, and aligns to our clients brand then that’s a success. Although I’m not directly involved in production any more, I now get my creative satisfaction from helping our clients communicate in more effective ways, and being immersed in the amazing work the team creates.
“The Somewhere name expresses the positive impact we aim to have on the spaces we’re helping create – to help turn them into somewhere memorable.”
Nick
Could you share the story behind the creation of Somewhere? What inspired the establishment of this creative agency for property and place?
To many in the industry we were known as Uniform for the first 20 years. Over that time we’ve diversified from initially working in property and architecture, to defining and creating brands and experiences across a whole range of sectors from sports and fashion, to drinks and consumer goods. To make these sector specialisms clearer to our clients, we now have 2 business units that both sit under the Uniform group:
– Somewhere is a creative agency totally focussed on property & place. We help developers and architects better connect people and places.
– Continuous is a brand agency working across all sectors. We help ambitious brands thrive when faced with significant change.
Our shared mission is to help clients understand, navigate and better prepare for the future.
Additionally, is there a special significance or story behind the agency’s name?
In terms of the actual naming process, it’s something we often do for clients but doing it for your own company was very difficult! We tried to find names that had meaning, communicating our goals and the benefits of what we do, and something that was clear and easy to understand.
The Somewhere name expresses the positive impact we aim to have on the spaces we’re helping create – to help turn them into somewhere memorable.
Likewise, for Continuous, the name expresses the need for our clients to continuously adapt and evolve to an ever changing world, and strong branding and brand strategy is key to thriving in today’s world.
Many industries are increasingly focusing on sustainability. How does Somewhere incorporate ecological considerations into its work? Is sustainability an important factor in the projects your agency takes on?
Absolutely – The world as we know it is changing fast, and so are our personal and corporate responsibilities towards the environment. We want to make sure the Uniform Group has a positive impact on the world, and as a business our aim is to be climate positive by 2025. We’re also on the journey to B-Corp accreditation which has sustainability as one of its key strands.
As for our work, we do have a selection criteria for vetting the work we take on. But these days sustainability and ESG is such a priority for our clients that they’re already very much focussed on, particularly as the construction industry has such a significant impact on shaping sustainability outcomes. For example all of the commercial projects we’re currently working on in London have incredibly high sustainability credentials, and we help them amplify those messages through their brand and content, from films to CGIs to immersive. We hope the stories we tell for our clients can help increase awareness and behaviour change, and further prioritise sustainability issues within both the development and creative industries
“A key to our success has been embracing new technology and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible – that has become part of our culture and is in our DNA.”
Nick
With the rise of artificial intelligence and technology, how has it impacted your day-to-day work at Somewhere? Do you see AI as a tool that enhances your creative processes, or do you perceive any potential risks or threats it might pose to your line of work?
We’ve been around long enough to have gone through some fairly big shifts in technology over the years – When we first started we were shooting photos on film and drum scanning them to get a digital backplate to camera match CG content to. We’d deliver animated films at 640 x 480 pixels! We only had a 56k dial up connection in the studio and I probably only got a handful of emails a week!
A key to our success has been embracing new technology and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible – that has become part of our culture and is in our DNA. That said, it feels like AI will bring about some seismic changes to our industry. We’ve been exploring AI for over 8 years now, and in the past 2 years we’ve been using AI tools heavily in our workflow to both inspire us at early stages of projects and also refine details towards the end. As long as we’re embracing AI, I believe it will enhance our creativity, whilst we are still adding all of those human subtleties and nuances, like humour and playfulness to inject into our storytelling. So whilst AI will certainly impact on some of the visual craft, the most important parts of storytelling will still be conceived by our human brains.
“As long as we’re embracing AI, I believe it will enhance our creativity, whilst we are still adding all of those human subtleties and nuances, like humour and playfulness to inject into our storytelling.“
Nick
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about significant changes in how many industries operate. How has it affected your approach to work and your broader outlook? Have there been any particular challenges or opportunities that have emerged for Somewhere?
Even before the pandemic we had a flexible hours policy, and some of the team were already working fully remotely – so that change was not such a challenge for us, but I think what did come out of that time was an even greater focus on team wellbeing. Our stance is that a flexible working culture means better balance for people between their personal and professional lives, which results in a happier, more creative and more productive team.
In terms of some creative opportunities which came as a result, was the acceleration in adopting digital – Before the pandemic most people wouldn’t have dreamed of buying a home without seeing it in person, but through tools like the modular house configurator we created for Urban splash using gaming and cloud computing technologies, it enabled people to design and specify their ideal house without leaving their sofa. In a similar way, it became more important than ever for architects and developers to communicate digitally with tools like our immersive 3D maps for Greenwich Peninsula and Canary Wharf.
Looking back on your career journey, could you share what you consider to be the most rewarding or memorable moment thus far?
A tricky one! It’s difficult to pinpoint a specific moment. Some of the most rewarding times have been when we’ve started projects which really push us out of our comfort zone. Ones where we don’t know the answers at the start, or even the direction of the end result until we’ve started that journey. But by being confident, curious, willing to experiment and embracing the unexpected, means that things can change course along the way. Where the end result turns out better than you’d imagined, which is where the innovation happens.
“Where the end result turns out better than you’d imagined, which is where the innovation happens.”
Nick
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to your younger self?
When stepping out of your comfort zone is difficult and doesn’t always come naturally, I’d say be brave and bold, don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because through experimentation is where some of the best opportunities and magic can happen.
A heartfelt thank you, Nick, for bringing an exceptional close to our 12th InterViz edition! Beyond his impressive portfolio and renowned collaborations, Nick’s wisdom resonates: “be brave and bold, don’t be afraid to make mistakes.” Truly inspiring!
Learn more about Somewhere by visiting their website and stay updated byf ollowing them on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Thanks again, Nick, for concluding our year with such insightful perspectives!
Interviz #12 – 18.11.2023 by Sélène Vilaseca