
about_jan
Jan Hrodek | Czech | Prague | Male | 33
My primary area of expertise is automotive design consultancy and polygonal modeling, my deep passion being car design history, particularly restomod movement merging traditional and modern technologies. I seek to pursue the most efficient way of execution and precise delivery, from concept to CGI. With continualy evolving design I keep on discovering new methods of approaching challenging design tasks, constantly pushing forward, accelerating and mastering the design process.
During my time in the industry, and through many talented and inspiring people I met, I learned the crucial value of teamwork and management, taking on designing, initial modeling, work distribution and effective pipeline workflow. During the years I refined my design taste and developed modeling skills, being able to guide team members through challenging modeling tasks, up to the point of leading a modeling course for an italian design studio, integrating blender into their workflow as a powerful design tool. Very proud of the our years-long collaboration and exciting projects that followed. My responsiblity in the process is to supervise and discuss the most efficient approach, process feedback and distribute the work in order to ensure the output is a unified solid piece of quality design. In recent years my interest inclined towards the restomod movement, offering great potential and allowing to reinterpret perspective features or shapes into the modern world. I highly appretiate my experience in Zicher Team (former Superiore Design) for having the opportuinty of working on such projects and being able to work with professionals in the area of design, modeling and CGI. From more personal side, I am a simracing and motoring enthusiast, very keen driver appreciating any chance to get behind the wheel of varying vehicles. Excited about history of transportation and how progress and manufacturing influenced shaping of the vehicle. An F1 fan interested in modern technologies. Overlapping traditional exterior design, I am profoundly interested in the corelation between exterior and internal structure of components, powertrain, materials and technology. I appreciate AI integration into design and manufacturing, but also hand craftsmanship and using traditional crafting methods, I consider however none of those should become exclusive. My hobbies include swimming, hiking, mountain biking, skiing or go-karting.
my_design_taste
Design itself is strongly subjective area with just a few tasks that can be objectified. In my design kodex, I prefer simple volumes that are easily read and support the external elements of the car. The design should speak straightforward message towards the observer. The sculpture of the product should immediately reveal it's character, define the powertrain/technology involved and create elegant transitions between crucial volumes, with delicate placement of the creases and shutlines. I strongly dislike purely decorative elements or unnecessary complicated surfaces or patterns, the sort of baroque archetype that distracts or removes your focus from the overall perception of the product.
/ INSPIRATION
Harley Earl, Malcolm Sayer, Marcello Gandini, Gordon Murray, Chris Bangle, Adrian Newey, Daniel Simon, Oilstainlab, Colorsponge, Alan Derosier, BoromeodeSilva

I believe experience and self-improvement combined with inspiring community can boost an individual significantly more than relying purely on one's talent. Talent needs to be developed and explored. Only then we can achieve personal growth. I considered myself talented as well, however after gaining experience in the field I realised it is not the only ingredient for success. Being part of an inspiring team, where individual knowledge becomes community knowledge, paves the way for great design inspiration and transforms creation process into exciting journey for everyone involved. If we pursue a path of passion, put our efforts and hard work, success does not become a milestone, but a natural step on the way. My dream is to create or to be a part of such team or community, where initial ideation forms in time into something solid you can touch, feel, admire it's beauty while radiating unique emotions for the driver or common bystander. Only then, you know you created an icon.
"Hard work beats talent."
/cv_overview

2017
AUFEER Design s.r.o.
Intern
2018
University of West Bohemia
MgA. title, Design
AUFEER Design s.r.o.
Designer
2019

ŠKODA Design
Development modeler
2020
Superiore Design
Designer / modeler
2021

GranStudio S.p.A.
Blender course leader
2022
Superiore Design
Lead modeler
Designer
GranStudio S.p.A.
3D support & workflow assistant
2023
2024
2025
Prague studio
Team leader
GranStudio S.p.A.
Designer / senior modeler
animation specialist
Zicher Team s.r.o
Prague studio
?
/ EDUCATION
2006 - 2010
2010 - 2013
2014 - 2015
2015 - 2018
/ CERTIFICATES
2012
2015
2016
2017
/ WORK EXPERIENCE
2018 - 2020
2019 - 2020
2020 - 2025
2021
2022 - 2025
2023
2024
/ DRIVER LICENCE
/ LANGUAGES
/ PROGRAM SKILLS
Secondary graphic Art school in Jihlava
University of West Bohemia - Industrial design, BcA.
AFAD Bratislava - transport design
University of West Bohemia, Design, MgA.
AutoDesign & Styling workshop (T. Hatter, P. Stevens)
Maurizio Corbi workshop
Clay modelling workshop J. Korabečný (Porsche)
Sketching workshop with Maurizio Corbi
Certificate from Jablotron and Logic Elements
Presentation of selected designs at Škoda
International project (TH Deggendorf)
3-month internship at Aufeer s.r.o.
Aufeer DESIGN s.r.o. - Designer / modeller
ŠKODA Design - Designer / 3D support (exterior / MMI)
Superiore Design - Designer / 3D visualisation / modeling
GranStudio S.p.A. - Course leader - automotive modeling
GranStudio S.p.A. - Designer, senior modeler
RULES ARE CHANGING - Speaker on AI in automotive
Zicher Team s.r.o. - Team lead, senior modeler / designer
B, active
Czech - native
English - advanced
Italian - basic
Blender (Cycles/Eevee/Octane)
Rhinoceros 5 (Grasshopper / Octane)
Rhinoceros 7 (SubD modelling)
KeyShot
Autodesk Maya
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe InDesign
Affinity Designer
/software



/realisation
JiDU / Charger design development
JiDU Robo-1 / Interior development & Animation, GranStudio S.p.A.
CRRC / Subway exterior / interior design
SKODA FABIA Rally 2 / Eterior design development, polymodeling
SKODA - Miscelaneous Interior/Exterior modeling
SQUAD MOBILITY / exterior design & CGI
DRAKO DRAGON / Exterior development, GranStudio S.p.A.
KOMMA design support / rigging / design development
REEFILLA FILLEE / design support & CGI
VOLTAB Energy / design + CGI
+ Other projects bound by NDA




/area_of_expertise
DESIGN
Sketching
Exterior design
Product Design
Corporate Identity
Graphic design
MODELING
Polymodeling
Animation
Rigging
Texturing & CGI
Game modeling
3D Printing
AUTOMOTIVE
Design process
Exterior Design
Technical Knowlegde
Package Assembly
Design Consultation
PERSONAL SKILLS
Project leading
Project planning
Technical execution
ai_experience
Artificial intelligence opens many opportunities and possibilities for design and development, especially in automotive industry. I found the integration of AI into the design process phase fluent and able to boost productivity and efficiency. We should not consider AI a threat, rather as a tool, considering we have inputs and outputs under our control.
The neural networks and computational power have come a great distance to be publicly available, granting us possibilities we have today. While being a presenter on the topic on an event in Pilsen, I had the chance to familiarize myself deeper into the neural networks and machine learning to study how AI processes the user data, aids distribution, or helps to manufacture technical components.
For further information about AI in automotive industry, or integration into the design process, feel free to contact me.




