I teach video editing including colour grading, audio editing assembly and general usage of Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Audition.

Learn more about Tonks

• 1) Can you tell us about your first experience using a computer?

  We got the Windows 94 when I was about 4. I don't think I used it until much later however and at that time only to play games. I got into computers properly when I started high school ans bought my first laptop, and soon after that I discovered windows media maker, my first editing software and gimp, the free photo editor. I used it to create circus videos for myself.

• 2) What is the technological evolution that has marked you most and what will be, in your eyes, a turning point in this field?

  The accessibility to own a camera and be able to create on a budget is for me the most important step of technology. That everyone can do it and it is not gatekeep by people with money anymore.
  I think AI will be a turning point whether that is good or bad, I can't say, to the accessibility to create media.

• 3) Explain your expertise, your interest in it and, more broadly, its importance in the computer world.

  Video editing and photography is where my expertise lies. I am a generalist so working on projects in all stages of filming, editing, sound and colour. I work on smaller projects with lower budgets where it is important to be broad in your knowledge and skills rather than specialised in one area. I always been excited about experimenting with art and what I can do within different softwares. I spend a long time just pushing my limits within film and media to explore all different opportunities, so now when I create film, I know what my options are.
  I try and create media that is unique and original and I think that is very important in a world of reposting and memes to have a style that is your own.

• 4) Do so-called 'visionaries', such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg inspire you or do you have other role models?

  No, is the short answer. I think a lot of what they do is really damaging to the world and especially the arts. My role models are people who are visionaries, creating a world which we can all thrive in. Not just a few.

• 5) Provide a valuable anecdote related to your subject or your days at school.

  I remember when I got my first proper editing computer. I was working on my short film Are you Watching and I wanted to make an intro for the film. I created a video with 7 face tracking lettuces, something my old computer would never be able to process, and I was so excited to show my partner when he came home from work. Safe to say, he didn't fully understand my excitement! It opened up possibilities of editing to a whole new level.

• 6) What would you say to an uncomfortable person in front of a screen who says that "IT is too complicated"?

  I would say that they are right to feel that way, but it's like with any other skill, you just have to take one thing at the time, and then repetition, repetition repetition, until it becomes like a muscle memory. I have taught people how to juggle for many years, and it's a very similar process.

• 7) What are your other passions, related or non-related to computers?

  I love practicing circus, play guitar and travel the world to build my experience and meet new people to better understand the world.

• 8) What makes you a Superprof in IT?

  My deep knowledge about art and how to create media comes from my many years in the circus and theatre, where I have studied how to build a story, arts and marketing. I have been practicing video editing, photography and circus for many years. I also have over 15 years of experience and a degree in teaching. I understand how to break things down and walk you through difficult processes in a way that feels manageable and fun. I work directly with your projects to help you progress while learning and I also offer extra support with your project that stretches beyond just learning.