Your introversion isn't a barrier to making social video; it's actually an asset. Discover how to conquer the world of video content with these expert tips and strategies.

For the last couple of decades, the creative profession has been broadly kind to us introverts. Many of us who enjoy spending a good part of the day alone, quietly working, have found that working as an artist, illustrator, designer, animator, musician, or writer provides plenty of opportunities to do so. And those of us who shrink from the notion of pressing the flesh and networking in public have found that we can achieve similar results on social media behind the safety of our own keyboards.

We did, at least, when social media was primarily text-based. In the last couple of years, though, that's all changed.

The rise of TikTok has meant that other social media platforms, including Instagram and Facebook, have rushed to become TikTok clones. That means they've been heavily promoting anyone who posts videos to their feed. Many people who haven't followed suit have seen their follower and engagement numbers plummet.

One response might be, "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em". Yet making your first video can be daunting for any creative, especially for introverts who feel overwhelmed by the idea of putting themselves out there.

Pivot? Or exit?

The first thing to note is that you don't, of course, need to do this. As art director Craig Sanderson points out: "There is no requirement to be out there on video. You don't have to make content. Think, are you trying to build a personal brand or a career? Or both? Plenty of people are doing great work and building strong relationships without a TikTok following."

We'd heartily agree: that's why we published this article on How to promote and build your creative business without using social media. However, at the same time, that doesn't mean you shouldn't make video for social media.

After all, you don't have to be a professional TikToker or YouTuber to make video content. In fact, you don't need to post on TikTok or YouTube at all. In truth, there's a much lower quality bar for posting videos on platforms like Instagram and Facebook, where you can be much more relaxed and casual about it. And the potential rewards are great.

Working with your introversion

Creative entrepreneur Reesa offers a good example. "I'm an introvert and built my career as an illustrator and creator of things on social media," she says. "I felt video was very annoying when it was first being pushed. But now I'm all for it. I look at it as another creative outlet."

Indeed, rather than working against her introversion, she says it's actually worked with it. "As a more introverted person, sometimes it's hard to express what I really want to in person or social situations," she explains. "But behind the lens of my phone, I can do take after take and make sure I'm saying what I mean. The most important switch for me was when I decided to make it fun, showcase my personality, my sense of humour, and let folks into the reality of what goes on behind the scenes in ways I'm comfortable with."

In fact, even if you don't see direct results from uploading video, it can still be worth doing anyway, just for the experience of pushing yourself outside your comfort zone. That's certainly how illustrator Kohenoor Kamal sees it.

"As someone who is introverted and has seen how most apps are pushing for video content, I've been using it as a good excuse to learn a new skill in something I'm not too familiar with," she says. "Something that worked for me with this in mind was a skills exchange with someone who works in this field, where I've been able to learn skills first-hand and give something back in return. Overall, I've been really enjoying the experience of learning how I can combine my design skills with this in mind."

So… fancy giving it a go? Then read on as we offer tips on creating video content as an introvert.

1. How to find your style and voice

With half of the planet uploading videos to social media, it helps to make your personality stand out. So rather than hiding your introversion, why not embrace your uniqueness? There's no rule to say you have to be an extrovert to make videos. So don't be: be yourself instead.

Introverts typically excel at deep thinking and self-reflection. So, use this to your advantage by infusing your personality into your content. Whether it's a calm, thoughtful tone or a quirky, creative style, let your true self shine.

Begin with short, simple videos to ease into the process. These don't have to be any good. Often, mega-successful YouTubers who've been going for years leave their early stuff up, and it's usually rubbish, which proves that people are much more forgiving than you might think.

If it really worries you, though, consider using Instagram Stories, where the content disappears after 24 hours; that way, you can experiment without any real pressure. And remember, it's not just you: everyone goes through this.

Take illustrator Niki Groom. "I don't mind talking to the camera sometimes on Stories," she explains. "But I did one of my first grid ones the other day, and it makes me cringe when thinking about it. My tip is to decide from the start it won't be perfect. I was boiling and had frizzy hair. I didn't do my makeup. I just decided: 'This is me, and so what?' Stayed on me for seconds, then moved to my work."

Composer Amy Balcomb agrees. "The best thing ANY of us can do is be authentically ourselves," she stresses. "I see people trying too hard to push products and sell things. Yes, I have a store, too, but I don't make every post about my wares. I love the authentic posts where you get to know people. I'm a sociable introvert. An omnivert actually. And Threads lets me be myself without fear of confrontation or judgement."

2. How to get confident on camera

Of course, it's all very well telling people not to stress out. But there's no avoiding the reality that, like getting married or buying your first home, making your first video is probably going to be mega-stressful. You can minimise the torment, though, by following these simple tips.

Firstly, practise off-camera, perhaps in front of the mirror. Don't take it too seriously; try to have a bit of fun with it. Then, get out your phone and record yourself, but without the intention of posting.

Review this footage to understand your body language and tone and gradually build confidence in front of the camera. This may take a lot of time, but there's no rush—you're not on a deadline. Again, try to enjoy the process. Sleep on it if necessary.

Secondly, most people find that writing a script, or at least noting down bullet points, can help keep you focused and reduce anxiety. You don't have to stick to it word-for-word, but it will give you a structure. In fact, sometimes, just having the script there as a backup and not even looking at it can be all you need.

Thirdly, practice maintaining eye contact with the camera. And here's a tip from experienced designer Nuria Quero to make the process feel less intimidating: "Don't think about an audience," she advises. "Imagine you are talking to an individual person or even a friend."

If that freaks you out, photographer Ed Clews points out: "You don't have to talk on camera; a simple voiceover is fine." Or, if you specifically don't want to show your face, you might follow the example of DJs like Marshmello or deadmau5, and wear a fun mask or animal head. You could even turn your head into a cartoon with a tool like Video Cartoonizer.

Ultimately, though, we'd urge you to at least try speaking to camera in the traditional way because it's the most straightforward way to engage your audience with your content. And although everyone (introvert or not) thinks they look weird on screen, the rest of us will think you look totally normal.

The same goes for the way you sound. As creative strategist Matt Box points out: "Everyone hates the sound of their own voice. But you'll get used to it." He adds these tips for making your first video. "You can edit it as much as you like, so you don't need to memorise a full script. And remember, the first will always be your worst, so make three before you put one out."

3. How to set the scene: lighting and sound

You don't have to be a professional lighting technician to make videos for social media. No one expects this to be an epic Oscar-worthy production. Yes, you'll see a lot of professional-looking videos on socials from big-name YouTubers and TikTokers. But you don't have to match this quality. Ultimately, people will probably like the fact it doesn't look too polished as long it's not completely unwatchable.

You can avoid this by following a few simple tips. Firstly, if you're filming at home, position yourself near a window where natural light can illuminate your face evenly. If natural light isn't an option, invest in a ring light or softbox lights. They don't cost much and provide even lighting without harsh shadows.

Secondly, choose a simple, uncluttered background to keep the focus on you or your work. Adding a few personal touches, like plants or artwork, can make the space feel more inviting to the viewer.

Thirdly, your smartphone camera is more than sufficient for most social media content. But its internal mic probably won't deliver very good audio, so consider using a wireless Bluetooth microphone, such as the Rode Wireless GO II or the DJI Mic 2. Even the cheapest mic, ultimately, will usually be better than the one built into your phone.

Fourthly, you'll probably find it easier to position your phone in the right position by getting a tripod. We like the Joby GorillaPod 3K. It's very flexible, as its legs can wrap around objects, making it useful for creative angles and outdoor shooting, too. If you only want to record from your desk, though, a simpler option is the Manfrotto PIXI Mini Tripod, which is small, sturdy and very stable.

4. Video content ideas for creatives

The question of how to create video content is pretty straightforward as long as you're familiar with your smartphone. What can cause people to struggle more is what your content should be about.

Well, the simple answer is that social media should be authentic, so make content about what you know. For many creatives, that could be sharing your creative process. Showing behind-the-scenes work can be captivating for viewers who are in the same game as you or wish to be. If necessary (e.g. you're doing a 10-hour painting), speed up the footage, and it's always good if you can add voiceovers or text to explain your steps.

As artist Katie, aka Skudaboo, says: "I usually just leave my camera running and try to forget it's there. It helps capture my process and me just pottering around naturally. Sometimes, I even ask my friends to film me randomly when I'm not paying attention! This way, I end up with lots of candid clips that show my personality, which is perfect for B-roll footage, without the pressure of having to talk to the camera."

Illustrator Ollie Hirst takes a similar line. "I think people associate 'video' with having to show their face and the whole TikTok scene," he says. "I've never done that really and instead focused on process. Use video as a window into your work process and how a project came to life.

"I don't make video content often, mostly because it's so time-consuming," he adds. "But when I have done, it's been for the sole reason of a process post, with my voiceover. I rarely get direct leads from an individual action. It's all about collective action and building an identity, brand and presence for me. Consistency is key."

Here's another tip from career and job happiness coach Jenny Holliday "Get a friend to be your 'videographer' for the day," she suggests. "This is with Instagram reels in mind. Get them to take video when you're walking around, aka B-roll, to take some video of you talking about your work. It takes the 'self-filming' ick away."

Other ideas for content might include:

• Tutorials and tips: For instance, if you're a graphic designer, create short tutorials on using tools like Adobe Illustrator or Procreate. Share valuable advice related to your craft, which will help establish you as an expert in your field.

• Portfolio showcases: Create a montage of your best work, using engaging transitions and music to keep the viewer's interest. This is a great way to visually communicate your style and capabilities to potential clients.

• Timelapse creations: Set up a camera to record a timelapse of your work, from start to finish. These videos are typically very popular and shareable on social media.

• Q&A sessions: Engage with your audience by answering their questions on camera. This not only provides value to fellow creatives but also helps build a personal connection with your followers.

5. Tools for editing your video

When it comes to video editing, complex software like Premiere Pro can be quite intimidating for beginners. The good news is that there are now a lot of easier tools to use. We like Capcut, which is free and offers a user-friendly, AI-driven interface, perfect for short-form video content.

Another excellent mobile editing app is Inshot, which makes it easy to trim, split, and merge videos on your phone. It also offers a variety of filters, text options, and music to enhance your videos.

If you don't want to appear on camera, Canva has some pretty good tools for putting together videos with animated text, graphics and music. Or there's Adobe Express, which is purpose-built for making promotional videos, social media posts and short animated videos with minimal editing skills or effort.

6. Building confidence over time

As I mentioned earlier, your first videos will be pretty crappy, and that's fine. But obviously, you want them to get better over time. So how do you manage it?

Firstly, video for social media needs to be, well, social. So, engage and interact with your audience. The more you do so, the more confident you'll become and the more ideas you'll get for great content.

That means responding to comments, asking for feedback, and letting positive responses boost your confidence. Negative comments can also be useful if they make good points you can learn from. If they don't, just ignore them. It's easier to hate than create.

Over time, you should look back at your old videos to see how far you've come. Reflect on how you've improved and identify areas for further improvement. Every video is a learning experience, but don't go overboard. Take breaks when needed and step back if you're feeling overwhelmed. Consistency is important, but so is your well-being. Create a content calendar that allows for breaks and downtime.

7. Promoting your videos

There's no point in making videos if no one sees them. So, make strategic use of hashtags to increase their visibility. Research popular hashtags in your niche and include a mix of broad and specific ones.

Think of ways you can share your videos across different platforms to reach a wider audience. For instance, you might repurpose content by trimming it down for Instagram Stories or using snippets for X. Also, partnering with other creatives for joint projects can introduce your content to new audiences and provide you with additional confidence.

Conclusion

Ultimately, making video for social media might seem intimidating, but it's pretty straightforward, really.

It isn't about becoming an extrovert; it's about leveraging your unique strengths as an introvert – your thoughtfulness, creativity, and ability to connect deeply with ideas and people. Start small, be authentic, and allow yourself the time and space to grow comfortable with this new medium.

Expect everything to be a bit rubbish at first. That's fine. People will be forgiving. In fact, they'll probably prefer it to the kind of overpolished stuff they're used to seeing on YouTube and TikTok.

More importantly, remember that your perspective and voice are valuable. The world of social media needs more diverse voices, and that includes those of introverts. By sharing your creative process, insights and authentic self through video, you're not just adapting to a changing digital landscape – you're enriching it. So take a deep breath, press that record button, and let your introverted light shine through.

The Münster School of Design graduate discusses her creative journey so far and how she has developed her unique style.

Julia Wand is an illustration and graphic design graduate of the Münster School of Design in Germany. In her work, she always aims to combine these two disciplines: a conceptual approach and visual storytelling.

"In my opinion, illustration and graphic design go hand-in-hand together," she explains. If I'm working on an illustration project that includes text elements, it's super helpful to have an understanding of typography, design rules, and so on.

"At the same time, I love adding illustrated elements to a more typography-heavy project, and I think in that case, it's always helpful to have an understanding of visual composition, colour theory, etc. If it makes sense for the project, I love to combine the two disciplines."

Developing style

Julia has been drawing since she was little. "In 2014, I started sharing my illustrations online, and I think that's when I began developing more of an original style and taking it more seriously," she remembers. I went through many phases and tried out a bunch of different styles and media until I found the ones that I liked – although that's ever-changing."

Looking closely at other work she admires has helped her shape her own unique style. "Instead of thinking, 'I wish I could draw like this', I began asking questions such as, 'What is it exactly that I like about this piece, and how can I implement that into my own work?'" she explains.

She lists her inspirations as "nature, the people and things that surround me in my everyday life and the experiences that come with that. They give me ideas for my work".

"Style-wise, I'm inspired by the amazing fellow illustrators and graphic designers I follow on social media," she continues. "I also own a growing collection of picture books, some of which I've had since I was a child."

Space for spontaneity

Regarding the process, Julia doesn't have a 'one size fits all' approach. "Each creative project looks a bit different," she explains.

"If I'm sketching on location, I usually don't have a set plan but decide which media I'll use when I'm there. I base those decisions on the lighting, any colours I want to pick up, or simply my mood. Giving space to spontaneity is what I find most exciting and relaxing.

"If it's a bigger project, I always start with visual brainstorming, through little scribbles prioritising quantity over quality," she continues. "I make sure not to let my first idea win but rather to try many things before settling on one.

"Based on my first scribbles, I create more refined sketches and choose a technique, colour scheme and so on for the final illustrations. What's most important is having a clear structure and project plan, as well as always checking in for feedback."

The importance of sketching

Sketching is pivotal to her overall design process today, but it hasn't always been that way. "A few years ago, I didn't really understand the point of sketching," she reveals. "I viewed it as a waste of time and paper. But now, my mindset has completely shifted. Sketching allows me to try out new things, teaches me to not be afraid of making mistakes and ultimately helps me become a better illustrator.

"When sketching just for myself, I feel very at peace," she adds, "which reminds me why I started drawing in the first place. Sketching has improved my skills, making my work more time-efficient. Slowly but surely, it is also helping me overcome my perfectionism and be more open to trying out new ideas quickly."

Over the last few years, Julia has tried many different media, most of them traditional. "I definitely still prefer working in analogue techniques such as gouache, pencil, or markers," she enthuses. Recently, I have been exploring mixing my analogue work with digital media, which I've really been enjoying, as well as working in collage. And printmaking is also something I love experimenting with."

Good Phats is a new brand aiming to disrupt the world of cooking oils. Office of Overview's founder, James Sedgwick Taylor, explains how they positioned it with a focus on consumer education.

Nowadays, most people think of fats as bad, things to be minimised and avoided. But two friends, Ben and Tom, didn't see it that way.

They were both on the Keto diet, a high-fat, low-carbohydrate regime that helped them lose weight. Struck by the apparent paradox of eating fat to lose fat, they started to realise that the problem wasn't fat itself but the dangers of poor-quality fats versus healthy fats.

More specifically, when searching for quality fats and oils, they found them difficult to find. That led them to launch Good Phats, a company producing fine artisan cooking oils. For the brand identity and packaging system, they turned to Office of Overview, an agency specialising in culturally led branding, which was founded three years ago by James Sedgwick Taylor.

The brief

"Traditional health has taught us that fats are bad," says James. "And the offerings in the market reflected this. Seed oils, olive oil, and not a lot else. But, Ben and John thought, if they could de-stigmatise the world of fats and broaden people's understanding, they could open up a category of different flavours, use cases and qualities."

The brand's aim was to be educational and accessible yet fun, punchy, and reflective of a new movement of health-conscious eating, with a tone of voice and an identity to match.

The brief centred around helping Good Phats navigate the challenges of launching a range of different fats with a vision of the future that people can believe in. As James puts it: "To articulate the vision for the brand and plan its delivery."

Brand concept

There was one thing that mattered above all else, he adds. "Education. Education. Education. No one will buy these products if they don't know what they taste like, what they're used for, and how they can transform both a recipe and your diet.

"Understanding the educational barriers, we wanted to ensure that Good Phats customers had all the information they needed to make a more informed choice. What to use the fat for, what kind of flavours to expect and where the fat was from."

They came up with an innovative approach to this problem. "We borrowed a lot from the world of coffee, where flavour, varietals, and origin play a larger role in people's understanding of product and brand," explains James. "We dissected this information and reformatted it against the business challenges in education."

Visual elements

The visual identity pares a weight logotype with more informative architecture to ensure on-shelf presence and understanding. For typefaces, they went with GT Presurra for the body copy and Megazoid for the logo.

As for the colour palette, Overview shied away from the greens, yellows and browns typical of the olive oil space. "Our aim with Good Phats was to disrupt this space," says James. "So we wanted to introduce vibrant colours that represent the freshness of the produce and the bold flavours of the fats."

"We also delved deeper into their mission, 'to make health a tasty pursuit'," says James, "and gave the brand confidence in their message that permeates all communications. Taste first, health second. But not one without the other. And definitely no compromise."

He adds that the reaction so far has been very positive. "Businesses of this scale rarely invest in brands. And it shows that a little good thinking and a lot of confidence behind your message go a long way."

Leeds-based agency Robot Food has redesigned German health-food brand More. The new identity is based on a message of joy and self-empowerment.

More Nutrition was founded in 2017 and quickly established itself as the leading provider of healthy weight-management nutrition in Germany. Along with all-vegan label Foodist and high-performance supplements provider ESN, German holding company The Quality Group owns three core brands, including More Chunky Flavour, a flavour powder based on vegetable fibre inulin.

The popularity of its products has led to a number of new ranges being introduced over the last seven years, including high-protein food and beverages, zero/low-sugar tasty alternatives, and beauty from within supplements. However, these products and packaging types needed a stronger brand identity to tie them all together—as well as a design system that would help customers navigate their options.

So More turned to Leeds-based creative agency Robot Food, who'd previously worked to rebrand their sister brand ESN in 2024, to update its visual and verbal identity across its wide product range.

Brand concept

Food ranges designed to assist weight loss have traditionally emphasised subtraction: less fat, fewer calories, and removing unhealthy foods from one's diet. Therefore, they were shopped solely on values—nutritional and financial.

But in the process, the joy of food is typically subtracted too. 'Healthy' foods typically have little aesthetic appeal, a fact reflected in bland, neutral-tone packaging.

The new brand identity then replaces subtraction with celebration: healthier living, more choices, and joyful eating. The aim is to change consumers' perceptions and alter our relationship with healthy, better-for-you food.

Robot Food's work is built on the brand positioning work established by brand intervention company Alchelab. The organising concept is that "More Nutrition believes that food is not an enemy – bad diets are."

Visual elements

Typically, the health-food category aesthetic is plain and neutral, and the language and messaging are about communicating stereotypical health and beauty standards and how to achieve a 'better you'. Robot Food wanted to challenge these ideas, making More a brand that celebrates the individual as they are.

"'Joy outside, Better for you inside" was the driving idea behind the new identity, starting with the wordmark," explains Robot Food creative director Martin Widdowfield. "The expressive 'M' is instantly distinctive, becoming a lifeline thread that runs through the whole design.

"We complemented it with lots of colour, emphasising that joyful feeling," he continues. "As well as being an impactful counterpoint to the neutral tones of the category, the colours are a key part of the design system, helping customers navigate the product ranges."

Tone of voice and photography

The brand concept was developed into a tone of voice and messaging that's energising, reassuring, and encouraging.

Robot Food's senior copywriter, Lizzie de Jong, explains: "The brand is a cheerleader for those looking for more nourishment, more freedom, more confidence and more 'mmm'. So, the voice had to be unwaveringly positive – celebrating the consumer and empowering them to be their truest self. We focused on heroing the transformational nature of More's products and their many roles in people's everyday routines."

More's wide product range includes feel-good choices that catch the eye, and Robot Food embraced this by putting the food itself front and centre—not just as a functional weight-management product but as something desirable to be celebrated and indulged in.

"Photography played an important part in capturing the taste appeal and versatility of the product range," explains account director Libby Goodyear. "We worked closely with the More team to capture the joy of the products in all their vibrancy, which was lacking from the minimal and science-led aesthetic of their previous design."

"More represents the love and joy found in food while also loving your body and being proud of it," says Christian Wolf, founder of More Nutrition. Having options that taste great and make you not only feel great but actually be in great health. The new design really embodies these core values."

With over 7,000 students completing their courses this year, the London Studio developed a unique identity to celebrate their experimental spirit.

University of the Arts London is known for incubating some of the world's most creative students. And so their graduation ceremonies are a big deal. Recently, UAL tasked Kind Studio with creating an identity for these ceremonies to celebrate the experimental spirit of more than 7,000 talented graduates completing their courses this year.

It was a dream gig for the studio, which was founded in 2015 by Sean Vellacott-Murphy and James Stockton. They'd originally met at Nottingham Trent University for their BA. Sean then went on to do a course at UAL himself: a master's in Graphic Communication at Chelsea College of Art & Design.

"Although I wouldn't recommend starting with no clients lined up, money to pay the rent and ten months of industry experience between us. I feel the lack of 'formal' experience has been a great thing and resulted in us approaching all of our projects in a really unique way," says James. "One of our founding principles was to always be close to the client, working collaboratively to help them feel like part of the design process, which has worked really well for us."

Along with an eclectic mix of industries and clients, from Premier League football teams to small charities and arts organisations, they've worked with UAL a number of times over the past nine years.

"It's been an organisation that's always been really close to my heart, so it's great to be doing creative work together," says Sean. "We were lucky enough to be added to their roster of design studios last year and have won a few projects since then. For instance, we created a brand and guide for CSM's undergraduate open days late last year."

The brief

The brief for the Graduation Ceremonies 2024 was to create an engaging, unique, and memorable visual theme to help celebrate the achievements of graduating students across UAL. This would provide graduates and their friends and family with a joyous moment to mark the completion of their courses.

This was to be carried across social media, internal communications, print, and throughout the day at the Royal Festival Hall.

Visual design

Kind crafted an identity that reflects the unique and exciting characteristics that make up each of the 7,000 graduates leaving UAL this year. Abstract flora made from unexpected and exciting materials blooms into life, representing new growth and the next step in their journey. This "interactive garden" was brought to life throughout the ceremonies at The Royal Festival Hall across print, environment, motion and social media.

The use of florals, Sean explains, was inspired by "the blossoming of a highly creative cohort leaving UAL, embarking on their next step. We've also always associated the concept of flowers, or bouquets with graduation and celebration in general. To reflect UAL's pedigree of producing both unique and experimental graduates, we took the floral theme and used abstract and unexpected materials to create the flowers."

The designer really wanted the flowers to feel unexpected and different, so they experimented extensively with materials to create unexpected pairings.

Sean adds: "UAL has a pretty extensive secondary colour palette, which we used as inspiration for colour and lighting. We worked with Stee Shaw, a frequent and talented collaborator of ours on the 3D and animation of the flowers."

Bringing popular culture together with graphic design, photography, illustration and typography, movie posters enjoy huge popularity with creatives and fans alike, and this new book selects 1001 of the very best examples.

We're not sure when the last survey was taken, but it's pretty safe to say that 99% of creatives love pouring over well-designed movie posters. Secretly, some love them even more than the films themselves. And so 1001 Movie Posters: Designs of the Times from Reel Art Press will be sought-after inspiration material for design studios everywhere when it's released on 3 September 2024.

The 640-page book is the opus of Tony Nourmand, an authority on the subject whose previous works include books about film posters through the decades, along with tomes dedicated to James Bond posters and Audrey Hepburn. Blade Runner, Star Wars, The Exorcist, The Silence of the Lambs, Barbie, Moonlight, 12 Years a Slave, Scarface, The Godfather – no matter what your genre or era, if the film had a great poster, Tony and his team have included it in the book.

"I wanted the book to cover the last 100 years of film poster design from around the globe," says Tony. "I limited the selection to final posters that were actually used for the promotion of films at the time of their first release and tried to pick out the crème de la crème from all genres and periods."

Along with the artwork itself, 1001 Movie Posters does something many other books of this ilk do not – it provides anecdotes and information about the designers, photographers and illustrators who worked on them. In many cases, they're being credited for the first time in decades. Over 150 art directors and illustrators feature work from over 20 countries, and occasionally there is the opportunity to compare posters for the same film from different countries.

"For example, the original French poster for Jean-Luc Godard's Alphaville in 1965 was by the illustrator Jean Mascii, who chose to depict the leading actors against a futuristic backdrop in black and white, highlighting the film noir aspects of the movie. In contrast, the original Polish poster by the noted innovator of the Polish School of Posters, Andrzej Krajewski, has a more pulp/comic book look and is straight out of the Pop-Art movement," explains Tony.

Similarly, Star Wars fans can compare the original American Style A poster by Tom Jung, created in 1977, with the poster made for the film's first official release in Russia in 1999, with art by Aleksandr Koulov.

Honouring cinematic history, Tony has included the very first poster created to promote a film shown to a paying audience – that for Cinématographe Lumière, with art by Marcellin Auzolle, in 1896. The most recent effort is Erica Dorn's' design, with illustration by Javi Aznarez, for The French Dispatch in 2021. "The resulting poster perfectly blends illustration, typography and overall design. A modern classic," says Tony.

As always, when curating a monumental tome of artwork like this, there will be one or two that escape. For example, he would love to have included the poster for Yorgos Lanthimos' Kinds of Kindness with its poster campaign by Vasilis Marmatakis, but 1001 Movie Posters had already gone to press.

1001 Movie Posters: Designs of the Times is published by Real Art Press on 3 September, at £85 or $93. It's available to order from the publisher's website.

Elves, dwarves, wizards, a lich and an owlbear all feature alongside an iconic red dragon in what could be the most unlikely stamp collection ever issued by the Royal Mail – and role-players and fantasy art fanatics will love it.

The British fantasy illustrator Wayne Reynolds has painted a set of eight monsters to feature on stamps issued by the Royal Mail to commemorate 50 years of the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. Although conceived in the United States by Gary Gygax in 1974, the game has enjoyed enduring worldwide appeal and still has legions of players across the UK.

"I've played D&D since the early 80s and have had the privilege to illustrate many D&D books since the late 90s," says Wayne. "Being asked to design the D&D stamps for Royal Mail was a massive honour. As a British artist, it was a wonderful opportunity to contribute artwork to something I consider an iconic institution, and I got to see it on a stamp!"

One of the things that has made D&D so popular over the years is undoubtedly its strange, genre-defying monsters. Appearing alongside the silhouette of King Charles III is original artwork by Wayne depicting a gelatinous cube, a mimic, a mind flayer, an owlbear, and the character Vecna – a lich king. Three further images were chosen from his existing D&D folio, which includes a red dragon, a beholder, and a displacer beast.

"I'd have to say that the mimic is my favourite on the basis that this is the first time I've had the opportunity to illustrate that particular monster," says Wayne. "Mimics assume the shape of everyday objects – mainly treasure chests – in an attempt to lure unsuspecting adventurers close so they can make a surprise attack with their many-fanged mouths. I even included the clasp and lock on the mimic because these creatures pay attention to detail."

In addition, Wayne has painted a piece of key art to accompany some of the Royal Mail's limited edition stamps. This forms a miniature sheet out of which stamps featuring key characters in the game can be peeled, including a Tiefling Rogue, human bard, halfling cleric, elf fighter, dwarf paladin, and Dragonborn wizard.

A whole variety of special edition sets of the D&D stamps can be purchased from the Royal Mail site, along with postcards of the artwork. Framed editions are available, and Wayne has signed some.

"My art is all hand-painted – pencil and acrylics on artboard – I don't use any digital techniques at all," says Wayne. "I start with a very loose sketch, which may just show an outline or form of what I will paint. I then start adding detail until I have a very precise sketch. The final stage is painting over the sketch with acrylic paint. I tend to work in detailed sections rather than painting the whole thing at once. I'm unsure if that's good, but it works for me."

The project had a deep personal resonance with Wayne. His father, Terry, was a keen stamp collector, but shortly after Wayne accepted the commission, Terry was diagnosed with late-stage lung cancer. He was able to see his son's sketches for the project but sadly passed away before the final stamps were issued.

"I knew it would mean a lot to him to know that his son had created artwork for stamps, so I'm dedicating the artwork I produced for these stamps to the memory of my Dad," adds Wayne.

Wayne's other work includes artwork for Magic: The Gathering and the Pathfinder role-playing game.

The Falmouth branding studio's fresh designs help transform the Asian-inspired cider into a character-driven sensation.

Based in Kent, Kingfisher Drinks was founded more than 30 years ago to distribute the iconic Indian beer of the same name. And as Kingfisher Beer has become one of the world's biggest beer brands, the company has expanded its horizons further.

With consumer tastes becoming increasingly sophisticated, the Kent-based company has continued to scour the globe in search of intriguing brands to bring back to the UK. Today, it has a portfolio of ten drinks brands, from lagers and ales to ciders and spirits. One of these is Peacocks, a cider crafted to complement Asian cuisine with a classic apple flavour or lively exotic fruit blend.

The brand was all about taste but lacked the category recognition it deserved. So the company approached award-winning design agency Kingdom & Sparrow for help.

Research and brand concept

The brand faced a number of challenges, explains co-founder and creative director Johnny Paton. "Despite having the Kingfisher Drinks name behind it and an excellent reputation for taste, research showed that the brand didn't have the fun feel and personality a younger consumer expected from a liquid meant for a social occasion.

"With consumers drinking less and being selective about spending, the team felt it was important to create a brand that felt as unique and spirited as the consumer, reflecting that right back at them," he continues. "And it goes without saying that the brand's name and icon weren't working cohesively."

They settled on an approach that centred around the peacock itself. "We'd have been wild not to have capitalised on this opportunity," says Johnny. "Our research demonstrated that character-led brands have a competitive advantage, gaining new consumers, market share, and increasing profit at a higher rate than those without. You might say they ruffle more feathers."

Illustration and typography

The Peacock character was drawn by hand in Kingdom & Sparrow studio in Falmouth, Cornwall. "It takes the lead and invites you to discover something new," explains Johnny. "Strutting into the frame, the illustration looks the consumer in the eye, evoking the brand's confident personality and challenging the consumer to get involved.

The illustration is complemented by bold type that delivers assertive, tongue-in-cheek messaging across the brand world. The hand-crafted wordmark distinguishes itself by featuring subtle gestures to the brand's roots and reminds the consumer that while the brand grows a broader consumer base, it continues to be the cider of choice for pairing with Asian cuisine.

Built from a sans-serif, the wordmark is often seen nestled within the illustration, sitting among the Peacock's feathers. The letters are locked up together with intentional and considered positioning, creating a unique and identifiable shape with a playful nature. Featuring flourishes in the 'K' and 'P' to mimic feathers and a characterful tail flick, the logotype appears in the brand world as a stand-alone wordmark, delivering the Peacock's distinctive movement and attitude.

Packaging design

On-pack, the brand builds on its reputation in the on-trade by retaining its striking colour palette and dialling up the zesty flavour profiles with fruity, gold, and spot illustrations.

Leaning into the drink's Pan-Asian character, the label features a unique die-cut referencing architecture and the brand's Asian background. Also echoing the Peacock's tail feathers, the label shape gives a point of difference to cut through in a competitive bar and restaurant environment.

"Peacock's rebrand positions the brand as cider's biggest personality," says Johnny. "With a little attitude and a lot of vibrancy, it exists to grab your attention – just like its avian counterpart.

"The packaging now speaks better to the 60% of cider drinkers who prefer a flavoured cider," he adds. "And gold foiling and embossing increases the premium feel, communicating quality to the 87% of cider drinkers who will spend more if they know the quality is second-to-none."

"Working with Kingdom & Sparrow on the rebrand of Peacock Cider was an absolute pleasure," says Andy Sunnucks, senior brand manager at Kingfisher Drinks. "The team's extraordinary attention to detail ensured that every aspect of our new brand identity was thoughtfully crafted and perfectly executed.

"From the initial brainstorming sessions to the final design, Lenny and the K&S team were delightful to work with, always bringing creativity, professionalism, and a deep understanding of our brand objectives. We couldn't be happier with the outcome."

The minority-owned motion studio BIEN has created a new animation highlighting the talents of wheelchair basketball players for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, which start on 28 August.

Diversity and inclusion are topics that are talked about in nearly every industry, but how inclusive and diverse is the design industry, and what's being done to change things? Well, the Los Angeles-based motion studio BIEN is pushing the agenda with its 'Make it BIEN' initiative and has released a new IG video that champions wheelchair basketball at the Paralympic Games as well as diversity and inclusion behind the scenes on the production crew.

David Jeffers, a quadriplegic sound designer, played a key role in the project, providing audio expertise and acting as a disability consultant.

"Typically, when you hear about disability representation, most creatives gravitate towards the image of a person in a wheelchair," explains BIEN co-founder Ricardo Roberts. "With David, we had the opportunity to dive deeper into the nuances, researching the rules of wheelchair basketball, the kinds of wheelchairs used, the various disabilities players have and how the athletes move."

The ambition was to give this Paralympic sport the same treatment any other Olympic sport, or NBA Basketball, would receive in terms of creative execution, and BIEN has included the animation in its latest sports reel. The organisers of the Paralympic Games loved the spot, and it has been shared with positive reviews by thousands of sports fans, creatives, clients and BIEN collaborators.

David Jeffers refined the creative approach to focus on a form of dynamism specific to wheelchair basketball. Many other basketball tropes simply didn't apply.

"From a sound design and proper presentation perspective, I can definitely say it was all about the bounce! The rough animatic had the player bouncing the ball several times, which didn't correspond with the typical wheelchair basketball bouncing cadence based on their travelling rule. Wheelchair athletes must pass or bounce the ball after every two pushes on their wheelchair to avoid being penalised for travelling," says David.

He continues: "The other nuance was the overall court ambient sound. You still have the roar of the crowd, the announcer, etc, but you have to replace the constant sound of squealing sneakers across the court with faint wheelchair sounds, so that means you can't just go to the sound library and get basketball ambience. You really have to take the time to build it from scratch."

BIEN specialises in 2D character animation. The concept for the spot was developed by co-founder and creative director Hung Le, with Elena Dreyer as producer. Nico Piccirilli developed the characters and storyboards, with Alejandro Imondi, Deanna Reilly, Chris Saez, and Ricardo Mendes all contributing to the animation side.

Since its founding in 2017, BIEN has offered its clients a methodology called InMoDe—Inclusive Motion Design—which is centred around the pillars of representation and accessibility. This methodology recognises that the largest minority group is people with disabilities, who make up 15% of the world's population.

'Design with, not for,' is one of the company's mottos. "Our industry isn't diverse, so we must be intentional and find ways to train and onboard junior talent and help them overcome barriers to entry," says Ricardo.

At the time of writing, BIEN is collaborating with the Paralympics on further projects that will surface during the Paris Games. The studio is also working on a project for Instagram, an integrated brand platform for Hulu's Hispanic & Latinx Heritage Month, and a live-action project with Google about diverse founders.

The German agency explains how it crafted a new name, identity, and website for the creative recruitment agency Undiscovered.

Based in Berlin, Undiscovered is a recruitment agency specialising in creative roles. Specifically, it matches talent in design, product, engineering, and marketing with startups, agencies, and corporations across Europe.

They recently changed their name and began expanding into new regions. To uphold these lofty ambitions, they felt a rebrand was needed.

And so they turned to Hyperfocus, a young and eager boutique agency based in Hamburg that sits at the intersection between brand and product design.

Hyperfocus worked on strategic positioning, character and brand development, naming, and website design.

The brief

Initially, Undiscovered was called MR Recruitment, named after the business's founder. But after many years in the industry, carving out a successful track record, it was time to make the big leap forward and rebrand.

"At first, it was uncertain whether we should rename the company, as they were already established," recalls Paul Watmough-Halim, co-founder and digital brand director of Hyperfocus. "But as we drove further into the ideas and directions we were having, it became clear it would be a smart thing to do."

Consequently, the name became a driving factor in the brand's storytelling. "We wanted everything to spark interest and joy at all touchpoints," he says. We here at Hyperfocus believe in creating brands that are bold, brave, and also fun. So that's what we wanted to do for MR Recruitment: create something people would remember and love."

Naming process

So, how did they go about naming? "We have a process here at the studio which is kind of like a mass round of eliminations," Paul explains. "We categorise words and names into groups: names that connect and names that also are nonsensical. Pairing words and building new ones helps us find candidates. This takes a very long time and is often the hardest part of the process.

"Often, when you find a name, it's already taken," Paul continues. "There is a local, regional, and international registration and checking part, which is a killer. There were a few names in the running at the end, which we also put to a vote internally and on social media.

"Ultimately, though, the name appeared as we discussed other names near the end of the process. This can often be the case with naming: you can create a structure and process around it, but sometimes it just appears whilst being part of the overall mindset of discovery."

Fun character

They based the new visual identity around a detective character who, with relentless persistence, finds the best jobs and talent for his candidates and clients.

"Our little protagonist is a personification of the founder, synonymous with wearing a little pork pie hat," explains creative director Paul Watmough-Halim. "He's been wearing it for years. He's a big French guy and can be spotted very easily from afar. So that hat had to be in the concept. Plus, it was a carryover from the old logo, which had been a black hat."

The team also looked at old French comic books to find inspiration. "Some people have said it reminds them of Inspector Jacques Clouseau from the Pink Panther," muses Paul. "This was never in our moods or research, but we find it a huge compliment that people have found a loveable connection there. We know that in real life, Mathieu works damn hard to look after his clients and candidates. So the story was already there; we just had to make sense of it and lock it down."

In short, the Undiscovered claim became, 'We go to extraordinary lengths to find you the right job'. "So with this claim, the adventure begins, as our character does exactly that. Jumping out of planes, looking under rocks, trees, cafes, behind cactuses... his relentlessness is unprecedented."

Strategic positioning

Undiscovered has two focus areas when it comes to acquisitions: talent, and those looking to hire talent. "The storytelling of the brand facilitates this through our every-ready protagonists, out there doing the very best to find those talents," explains Paul. "The main part of solving these challenges, though, is mainly in the overall user experience at a digital level."

Careful attention was paid to UX to keep this straightforward and easy to understand as Hyperfocus split the overall experience into two chapters, one for 'Candidates' and one for 'Talents'. "Our mission was to make applying for jobs easy, maintain open lines of communication, and build strong, lasting relationships with clients and hiring managers," says Paul. "Our goal was to create a simplified, accessible, and personable hiring experience. This was routed in everything we consider when developing the overall branded experience."

Typography and illustrations

For typography, Hyperfocus used the serif from the STK Bureau font and then customised it for the wordmark. "The font was created by Smuss Studio and was the perfect choice for us," says Paul. "It's a real workhorse, as well as being rather beautiful."

Meanwhile, the sans version was used for body copy and smaller titles across other brand touchpoints, including the website. "This font establishes a very recognisable logo lockup for us," says Paul. "It adds an air of sophistication yet sits happily next to our playful and fun protagonist".

As for the illustrations, says Paul, "We knew they should be really simple and stylistic, but still, the character should have emotion and be very flexible and easy to animate. The hat and the eyes allowed us to do this; eyes can say so much!

"We have multiple expressions of the eyes in our character set," he adds. "The hat also adds a level of humour to the character and plays an important part in communicating situation and emotion. Our character also has a hand, which was an extra factor so that it could interact with the environment we placed it in."

When it came to motion, everything was done in After Effects and again kept as simple as possible. "We wanted to create loops that would become infections," says Paul. "Little stories help us keep telling our story. Motion is super-important in the brands we build, adding a layer of fun and lovability to the whole experience."

We chat with the fine art photographer about her new book, Candyland, which offers a fresh, empowering perspective through collaborative portraits that celebrate female sexuality and individuality.

It doesn't matter how much we tell ourselves to be "sex positive", as the modern phrase goes. Most of us have never met and probably will never meet an adult entertainment worker, and so we harbour all sorts of deep-seated prejudices about them, even if we don't acknowledge it.

Well, Los Angeles-based fine art photographer Elizabeth Watermanis out to bust some of those preconceptions, with the release of her latest book Candyland on 30 September, through Unicorn Publishing Group. This 128-page art book presents a series of vibrant portraits featuring female porn stars and offers a fresh perspective on an often misunderstood industry.

In her own words, Elizabeth's new series aims to showcase these women as "goddesses of sex and light, fully owning their bodies and sexuality with innate empowerment". We chatted to the photographer to find out more.

From stripping to sex

The genesis of Candyland emerged in 2020, during Elizabeth's previous project Moneygame, which explored strip clubs across the United States. "While shooting for Moneygame, I met quite a few adult film entertainers in Los Angeles who were moonlighting as dancers," she recalls. "They had an undeniable magnetism – audacious in their sexuality and enthusiastic about their work in porn.

"I immediately wanted to capture a bit of their spirit for myself," she continues. "By photographing them, I reasoned, perhaps I could glean some of their confidence and sexual zeal, which for me was both exotic and exciting."

Her discussions with the porn stars gave Elizabeth a glimpse of their personal lives and the vast LA porn industry. "Once the fog of COVID had lifted, I began staging shoots in my home and back yard in Santa Monica and invited these and other notable women in the business to pose for me. My fascination has never stopped growing."

Delicious excess

While Elizabeth is not the first fine art photographer to tackle this subject, Candyland stands out for its collaborative nature. She worked closely with her subjects, including well-known stars like Stormy Daniels and Kenzie Reeves, allowing them to contribute ideas and express their personalities through the shoots.

The result is a series of playful, authentic images that dramatically celebrate female empowerment and individuality.

"I liked showing them in deliciousness, excess, fun, and glory," Elizabeth explains. "The porn stars that I photographed were happy to be doing what they were doing, they loved having sex, and they were good at it."

While Elizabeth generated the basic concepts for the shoots, the actresses were free to innovate through their wardrobe, makeup and pose choices. "This, they reported, was refreshing. The resulting images reveal their personalities and sense of style very differently than their on-screen work."

Avoiding the male gaze

From Moneygame to Candyland, critics have praised Elizabeth's ability to present a female gaze on a subject typically defined by male perspectives. Bridgette Redman, who critically assesses the latest book, notes that her work "transcends the superficial allure of the sex industry to reveal the humanity and agency of her subjects".

And this was no accident but an integral part of Elizabeth's creative approach. "Clearly, most imagery of female porn stars targets male desire," she says. "We see little that reflects a more exploratory, human perspective," she says. "So how, I asked myself, could I capture the female form through a lens of idolatry? Admiration? Reverence?"

She shares a memorable example of how this worked in practice. "At the beginning of our shoots, I would invite the women to position themselves however they liked," she recalls, "and they tended to assume the standard 'booty pose'. Laughing, I'd tell them to turn around. I wanted to see their faces, eyes, and sense of humour. I wanted to see who they were."

One moment, in particular, stands out for her. "The setting for the cover shot, with Kenzie Reeves, was against the magical backdrop of a golden Los Angeles evening sky," she narrates. "After spending the afternoon cavorting with blow-up pool toys, Kenzie put on her cowgirl outfit, took off her pants, and holding her lemonade glass full of sugar cubes, tipped her hat and gave me a look . . . well, a look that says it all."

Busy entrepreneurs

So what did she learn about adult entertainers in general; what shared characteristics did she spot? "Adult film stars tend to be unapologetically unconventional," she responds. "And all the women I worked with are busy entrepreneurs, representing themselves and managing the details of their careers.

"For instance, Spencer Scott organises her own press release materials, London River orchestrates her own content production, and Stormy Daniels is expanding her brand by directing her own films and starring in biographical documentaries. As I got to know these women better, I came to see them as much more than their film personas."

It's a topic that continues to fascinate her, and that fascination is partly borne from difference. "I was raised in a very conservative household, and even as a young girl, shamed for any enjoyment I showed in being naked," she explains. "Sex was rarely discussed, certainly not portrayed as joyful, fun, or creative. Even now, cleavage, short skirts, and crop tops are frowned upon at family gatherings. This might help to explain my interest in adult entertainers."

Many people, of course, can relate to this story. "And this is why I believe Candyland has so much potential. So much of our culture is still rooted in repressive Puritanism and insensitivity towards women. With this project, I wanted to celebrate the positive and joyful aspects of porn and to share what it gave me: a refreshed perspective on sexuality and personal freedom."

Candyland also includes a foreword by Stormy Daniels and a reflection by Kenzie Reeves, adding depth to the visual narrative. A portion of the proceeds will benefit the Sex Workers Outreach Project USA, a national social justice network dedicated to the fundamental human rights of sex workers and their communities.

A recent graduate of Nottingham Trent, Isobelle Farrar is catching the eye with projects like HAG, which combine imagery, textiles, and storytelling to challenge the way older women are dismissed and ignored in society.

Congratulations go out to Isobelle Farrar, the newly graduated artist who won the Association of Illustrators' Spotlight Award at New Designers 2024, held at the Business Design Centre in London this July. In due course, the AOI also named Isobelle one of its 10 UK Illustration Grads to Watch in 2024.

These accolades are merited by Isobelle's growing portfolio of projects driven by strong concepts, executed using a varied range of media and materials, and which softly suggest a different way of looking at things.

One that really catches the eye is HAG, which began as a young person's perspective on feminism but evolved into a project aiming to give older women a stronger voice in society. "It got me thinking about textiles and how they are associated with women and older women but aren't as celebrated as finer forms of art," says Isobelle.

Isobelle often explores fantasy and folklore in her work, and her research led her to the Celtic character Cailleach – the crone goddess. "She's an outspoken yet nurturing old crone goddess who guides the heroes on the right path or punishes them if they stray," Isobelle explains. I made her the main figure in this project and had her retelling these tales to modern audiences."

The aesthetic, meanwhile, was inspired by feminist artists of the 1960s and 1970s, such as Judy Chicago and Miriam Shapiro. However, there is a modern element to the look through Isobelle's digital drawing techniques. The imagery was printed onto fabric, then stitched and quilted to tie back to traditional storytelling.

"The banners feature Cailleach front and centre, taking back the word 'hag' and encouraging audiences to listen to older women and not see them as meek or bossy but simply as people with wisdom to share and people to learn from," says Isobelle.

Another strong project in Isobelle's portfolio is 'This wonderful disaster', which comes from a line in the poem The Kitchen Table by Lureen Kithen. It's the perfect starting point for a tableware collection Isobelle is creating, which imagines the kitchen table as the meeting place of love and chaos – where we not just eat but work, talk, laugh, cry, and celebrate.

"The collection draws on that nostalgia with designs in colours reminiscent of vintage homeware but with a modern vibrancy and objects representing those different occasions littered in the design in organised chaos," says Isobelle. "I would love to collaborate with a company and create a collection, whether homeware or textiles, although plenty of friends and family have been after a tea towel or two!"

Alongside working at a children's publisher to learn more about the children's books market, Isobelle would love to progress further in surface design and try her hand at murals. Already, she has been experimenting by designing patterns that might be applied in future tableware projects or on garments.

"So far, my designs take inspiration from nature and natural forms as I find them calming, and you can be quite abstract with the shapes. Nothing in nature is 100% perfect, so I find the practice of making these patterns quite therapeutic, and they allow me to just have fun and create," she says.

What better way to brand a sweet treat than through a bespoke typeface that literally looks good enough to eat? Yes, the rhyme was intentional.

Beirut-based food processing company Gandour founded its baked goods range Yamama in the 1980s, and since then, the brand has established itself as a family favourite across the Middle East. By leveraging Gandour's 150 years of expertise in confectionery, the sub-brand garnered a reputation across the Middle East for providing great quality cakes at affordable prices. However, the competition on the shelf has recently stepped up a notch.

With new entries from local and global players alike threatening Yamama's coveted position in the market, it was definitely the right time for a refresh. While it has managed to keep pace through a combination of value, nostalgia, and long-standing salience, it lacked appeal to the new generation.

That was until Clerkenwell-based design studio Derk&Eric stepped in. The design team aimed to bolster Yamama's credibility, setting it apart from competitors as a trusted, family-run business, while ensuring the brand's visuals were unique and distinctive.

"We love working with brands that haven't yet looked their best," says Derek&Eric managing partner Jon Gibbs. "Yamama had all the history and heritage but wasn't expressing it in a way that connected to today's consumer, and since there's a lot of love for the brand, we wanted to recreate that emotional connection through the design."

Gibbs notes that a key challenge when redesigning a local jewel is "getting the balance of modernising the brand whilst retaining recognition with consumers who have bought it for years". To avoid straying too far from what loyal consumers know and love, Derek&Eric worked closely with the local team, ensuring that the consumer was at the forefront of all design decisions.

The studio found that connection has always been at the core of Yamama's offering, particularly between parent and child, where shared cakes bring a little joy. Gibbs explains how they used this idea as a foundation for the identity, visible from the "smooth and creamy infinite pattern" of the Y to the addition of the word 'love' in the brand's refined and modernised logotype.

"The new style is expressed with colourful energy and generous abundance, building layers of excitement on top of the refreshed blue background", says Gibbs.

The studio commissioned type guru Rob Clarke to work on a bespoke (and delicious) logotype for Yamama. The smooth, looping letterforms of the new typeface take inspiration from the piped cream that Yamama's cakes are famous for, giving the brand an ownable and distinct asset to leverage in brand communication and on pack.

For the colour palette, Derek&Eric took a gentle approach, keeping it familiar but fresh to retain some of the brand equity that Yamama has built up over the years.

The studio also designed the packaging for the confectionary brand. Gibbs explains that the cakes have "an interconnecting pattern inspired by the creamy logo form that creates an endless creamy pattern when stacked together".

According to Gibbs, the Yamama brand has grown since the relaunch of the new identity, which points to the success of the design work in attracting new buyers.

Award-winning UK illustrator Elly Walton's quirky style brings whimsy and depth to her editorial, advertising, and design work. In our exclusive interview, she reveals how she crafts these storytelling visuals.

In the world of illustration, Elly Walton stands out as a virtuoso of playful storytelling. This award-winning artist has made her mark across various mediums throughout her career spanning two decades. Her distinctive style, characterised by whimsy and charm, has graced the pages of publications like Time Out, Reader's Digest and The Guardian, as well as advertising campaigns for major brands such as Nestle, Bayer and Sky.

We chatted with the Derby-based illustrator to learn more about her creative journey to date, how she gets inspired, and where she sees the profession heading.

Quirky influences

Those of a certain age won't be surprised to learn that Elly's journey as an illustrator is rooted in the colourful and sometimes eccentric world of the late 1970s and early 1980s children's television she experienced in childhood. "There was an abundance of innovative animation going on around that time that was fearless, fun and unique," she recalls.

"The Magic Roundabout, Bagpuss, Mr Benn, and Camberwick Green are just a few of the shows that seemed totally normal at the time but, looking back, are actually quite bonkers. That kind of quirky stuff still appeals to me."

Her love for illustration was further nurtured by children's books, which offered layers of visual storytelling. "The illustrated books I most loved as a kid were those you could come back to, find more stories within stories in the art," she enthuses. "Like the brilliant illustrations created by Joseph Wright for the What A Mess books, where tiny birds argued in the background behind the main character. Absolutely hilarious."

This early appreciation for hidden stories within illustrations would become a hallmark of Elly's work. But the journey to developing her signature style was one of growth and self-discovery. "I started out creating quite scratchy characters with wobbly black outlines and tiny faces," Elly remembers. Their faces were so small, like they were trying to shrink inwards!"

She attributes this initial approach to a lack of confidence and skill with her tools. However, as her pen control improved and her understanding of figures and movement deepened, Elly found herself better able to translate the characters from her imagination onto paper.

Narrative approach

One of the most striking aspects of Elly's work is its strong narrative element. Her background in editorial illustration has significantly influenced her approach to all projects. "With editorial, you're starting with someone else's story, building on that and visually interpreting the piece of writing in an entertaining way, trying to bring something extra," she explains.

This storytelling approach extends beyond merely illustrating the given text. "Once I've decided on a route to take the illustration," she explains, "the fun part is developing from the sketch and adding fun extras, little side stories for people to spot later."

As her career has progressed, Elly has become increasingly aware of the power of illustration to shape perceptions. "I've realised over the years that showing a wealth of diversity in the characters I draw is really important," she states. "Illustration as part of larger pop culture has some power to shape how we all view the world and do some good."

This realisation has led to a conscious effort in her work to make thoughtful choices about representation. With each illustration, Elly carefully considers what she's depicting. "It's a work in progress, but with each illustration, I try to make good choices about who I'm showing, why, and how," she says.

Inspirations

When it comes to staying inspired and generating new ideas, Elly takes a pretty relaxed approach. "Inspiration is probably a kind of osmosis," she explains. "It filters in through my pores whilst I'm generally distracted with life. I really should be feeding myself a diet of high-brow content, but if I'm honest, it's probably fed by Netflix and Instagram."

That's not to say she doesn't seek out more traditional sources of inspiration. "Occasionally, I enjoy going to a gallery, theatre show or flicking through art books," she adds. "I remember seeing a fun play about Spike Milligan's life a few years ago. The way they treated the staging of people lying in bed, having the beds standing upright as though we were looking at them from a bird's eye view, struck me as so funny and clever. I was conscious of trying different perspectives in my work for a while afterwards."

Routine also plays a crucial role in Elly's creative process. "I have a walk around my local area every morning, which really does help get me ready for the day," she says. "It's a truism, but letting your brain wander can actually help to come back to a particularly chewy brief and find a solution."

Golden age of illustration

Many people are worried about the future of illustration right now. But personally, Elly is feeling pretty positive right now. "I'm not sure whether it's an evolution in the industry or that I've just become more aware of the possibilities for projects, but it does feel like we're in a really golden age for illustration," she says.

Her reasoning? "It's being used across so many media," she explains. "I've recently illustrated a map for an indie video game based in a dystopian future and a welcome card for a luxury hotel that had previously used photography but wanted a more bespoke, quirky feel. I am constantly amazed and delighted by the range of projects I am lucky to be offered."

Meanwhile, the rise of digital platforms has profoundly impacted Elly's approach to illustration. "I started out using traditional media, pencils, ink pens and a paper pad and have gradually moved to be completely digital now, drawing directly onto a tablet into various software," she reveals. "There's a temptation to share personal work on social media as soon as it's created. But sometimes, it's best to let it steep, think about it, and consider what needs tweaking, refining or binning altogether.

She notes how social media and online portfolios have democratised the industry. "It feels easier to share work, get instant feedback, get work in front of potential clients. I've had work from surprising people and places I would never have reached without an online folio presence. When I started out, I was only in touch with a tiny group of contacts, sending out printed mail packs to lists garnered from printed publications. That's still a part of my promotional work, but there are so many more opportunities now."

Challenges to overcome

At the same time, Elly is acutely aware of the challenges facing illustrators today. "Top of the list has to be AI," she says. "There's a lot of concern about the impact on illustrators' careers and anger that these tools scrape original human creativity to generate seemingly 'new' images that are actually only an amalgamation. I imagine AI as a monkey with a pot of glue, making a really poor collage from magazine scraps, or a robot mixing all the colours of the rainbow to make a nice poo-brown colour."

Yet she remains hopeful. "It's too soon to tell how many clients will choose to use AI imagery rather than commissioning bespoke work and what impact it will have," she believes. "From my limited trials with AI image generation, it's hard to direct and get a specific outcome, but I'm sure it will improve. I'm hoping that art directors will still want the creativity and craziness of working with a flawed, individual human person."

As an example, Elly enthusiastically speaks about her recent work on maps for a local hotel. "Their vision was to use local illustrators for each of the hotel locations of their larger brand," she explains. This struck me as a really charming idea: each location has its own unique visual persona but is united by illustration.

"It was a challenging job," she adds, "as the maps had to be both functional and beautiful, showing quite a lot of information about rooms within the hotel, the grounds and the wider local area without overloading with information. They're not out yet, but I'm looking forward to hearing feedback on how useful customers find the maps. Hopefully, no one ends up getting lost in the shrubberies."

Sustain the mindfulness of a screen-free summer as you transition back to work by following this advice from the creative community.

As the golden days of August fade into memory, many of us find ourselves at a crossroads. Whether you've been abroad or staycationing, the past few weeks have offered a respite from the constant digital chatter that dominates your daily work. That will have led you to spend less time staring at your phone. And… doesn't it feel great?

Whether you've disconnected by accident or made a conscious effort, a break from screens typically gives you a sense of calm, enhanced creativity, and improved focus that can feel all too fleeting once work routines resume.

So, as September rolls around, it's worth making an effort to avoid reverting to bad habits. In this article, we'll share some of the community's best advice on how to limit your screen time permanently. You can also read the full discussion on X and Threads.

1. Set clear boundaries

Establishing clear boundaries is the first step in maintaining a healthy relationship with technology. This doesn't mean swearing off screens entirely. But it does mean giving yourself guidelines for when you should use them.

One effective strategy is to adopt a "digital sunset": a set time each evening when you turn off screens. Culture journalist Emily Bond is among those who've found this a useful strategy. "I leave my phone in another room before I go to bed now, which keeps me distracted from reading – which I typically do for work," she says. "It's also been helping me brainstorm for a work-in-progress."

Writer, editor and speaker Rosemary May Richings takes a similar line. "I have a do-not-disturb mode on my phone that shuts down social media and email notifications at night," she explains. "Before bed, I put my phone as far away from where I sleep as possible."

This practice not only helps improve the quality of your sleep but also gives your mind space to unwind and process the day's events. You might start by turning off screens an hour before bed, gradually increasing this time as you get used to the practice.

2. Create screen-free zones

A related strategy might be to designate specific areas of your home or workspace as screen-free zones. These could include your bedroom, dining area, or a dedicated creative corner. By associating these spaces with relaxation or creativity rather than digital distractions, you can build an avoidance of screen time into your muscle memory.

For example, you might create a cosy reading nook where phones and tablets are not allowed or set up an art station with traditional materials like paints, pencils and paper. These screen-free zones can become havens for creativity and mindfulness, allowing you to tap into ideas and inspirations that might be drowned out by digital noise.

3. Adopt mindful use of social media

There's no getting away from it. Limiting phone use is inescapably linked to limiting our use of social media. Because while these platforms can be valuable tools for sharing work, networking, and finding inspiration, they can also become major time sinks that detract from actual creative work.

To achieve this, consider setting specific times during the day to check social media and stick to them rigorously. You might also explore apps that limit your social media usage or at least make you more aware of how much time you spend online. The goal is not to eliminate social media entirely but to transform it from a passive time-waster into a tool you use intentionally and productively.

If you're finding it difficult to stick to the plan, take inspiration from Aime at Studio Cotton. "I regularly remove social media apps like Instagram and Reddit from my phone," she says. "Otherwise, I just find myself opening up and doomscrolling out of habit."

Ann Koppuzha of Powerhouse Strategy takes the same approach. "When I feel like using social media, I download the apps and then immediately delete them when I'm done," she says. "I also use an app called Cold Turkey Blocker to force my computer to shut down at 10pm, so I don't stay up late working or browsing the internet."

Don't want to delete apps? "Free apps like ScreenZen work for me," says Natalie Kent, design director at Focus Lab. "I need social apps on my phone, but they allow me to set custom time/open limits and question prompts to ensure I'm not just engaging mindlessly."

Author Evelyn Scott, meanwhile, recommends "an amazing app called Forest, where you have to leave your phone for a certain amount of time, or your tree won't grow. It sounds simple, but it's very effective."

4. Prioritise real-life connections

One of the best things about summer is the quality time spent with friends and family, without the constant interference of screens. But this doesn't have to end in September.

As you return to your regular routine, make a conscious effort to prioritise face-to-face interactions over digital ones. And you'll doubtless find that your screen time will magically slump, too. This might mean having lunch with a colleague instead of messaging, attending a local art class instead of watching online tutorials or joining a creative meetup group in your area.

Real-life connections like this not only enrich our personal lives but can also significantly benefit our creative work. They expose us to new ideas, perspectives, and inspirations that we might miss if we constantly focus on our screens.

5. Incorporate analogue creativity into your routine

While digital tools are essential these days, there's something uniquely enriching about engaging with the physical world. So consider incorporating more analogue methods into your creative process to reduce screen time and stimulate different parts of your brain—a win-win.

This could involve sketching ideas on paper before moving to digital design, using a physical whiteboard for brainstorming sessions, or taking up a hands-on hobby such as pottery, painting or sculpting. These tactile, screen-free activities can refresh your mind and often lead to unexpected inspirations that you can then bring back to your digital work.

Sanjiv Sirpal, designer at Thinkable, is a big fan of displacing his screen time with analogue methods. "Instead of grabbing your phone every time you have a thought," he urges, "grab a piece of paper and pen to write things out in long form. This slows you down and lets your ideas breathe."

More generally, he explains, "You need to learn the difference between your brain and your mind. It's your brain that has been hijacked: it's lazy, so it loves the mindless scrolling. This is fast thinking, System 1 stuff, where your body pushes things into muscle memory. You can unlock a device, swipe to an app, start scrolling, and not even remember doing it. Your mind, on the other hand, is where all your future thinking happens. You need to bring it out more often."

Ross Middleham, creative lead at the Met Office, has been doing just that. "I've been trying to get lost doing more tactile stuff," he says. "I like to collect retro 80s and 90s things. Soaking up the random inspiration of tinkering, cleaning, messing, playing with old radios, handheld games, comics, bikes, and signs is a welcome distraction and fun."

6. Swap screens for paper

One of the most obvious ways you can swap digital for analogue is to go back to the thing screens replaced in the first place: paper.

For example, Louisa Tan, co-founder of Common Exception, has been getting into collaging. Because, as she puts it: "I can't look at my screen and use scissors and glue at the same time." Similarly, design partner Fabián Sanabria says: "I've been joining life-drawing sessions every week, it's a nice group of people quietly drawing together for a few hours. I find it calming as it requires a nice soft focus; I get to draw and still use my creative skills but in an analogue medium."

Illustrator and designer Isaac LeFever adds: "I've been picking back up with printmaking. Once you're actually carving your design into the block and printing it on paper, it's just you and some tools working with your hands. Throw some music on and vibe out. Also been getting back into other physical mediums more. Especially gouache painting. Nothing I'm really able to bring into my work right now, but possibly in the future when I get a bit better with it."

7. Take regular breaks with the Pomodoro Technique

One difficulty separating yourself from your phone screen is that we spend so much of our days at our computer screen. The cumulative effect of all that screen time can be catastrophic for our mental and physical health. Hence, the Pomodoro Technique, a time-management method developed by Francesco Cirillo, is well worth checking out.

The basic premise is simple: work for 25 minutes, then take a 5-minute break. After four "pomodoros". Then, take a longer break of 15-30 minutes.

"I find the Pomodoro Technique helpful to keep me on track and guarantees tasks get done when I do," enthuses designer and illustrator Xavier Segers. "I write notes of ideas and plans almost daily, especially in the run-up to a time commitment or deadline. Using this technique, along with a pencil and notebook to write notes, removes me from iOS Notes. It guarantees me an hour away from screens."

8. Let your mind wander

In our constantly connected world, we've nearly eliminated moments of boredom from our lives. Any spare minute can be filled with a quick check of social media or a few minutes of a mobile game. However, boredom can actually be a powerful catalyst for creativity.

When we allow ourselves to be bored, our minds begin to wander, making new connections and stumbling upon fresh ideas. By reducing our screen time, we create more opportunities for this kind of productive boredom. Next time you find yourself with a few spare minutes, resist the urge to reach for your phone. Instead, let your mind wander and see where it takes you.

9. Redefine the idea of 'productivity'

Ultimately, as creatives, it's easy to fall into the trap of equating screen time with productivity. After all, most of our work happens on computers or other devices. However, it's important to recognise that true productivity isn't about the number of hours spent in front of a screen but the quality of the work produced.

Time spent away from screens – whether that's taking a walk in nature, having a conversation with a friend, or simply sitting quietly with your thoughts – can be incredibly productive in terms of generating ideas and solving creative problems. By redefining productivity to include these off-screen activities, we can reduce our screen time without feeling guilty or unproductive.

"One of the best things that I have worked into my routine is a walk in the middle of the day," says Michael Villa Sison, founder of Kuya. "It's so simple, but popping on some tunes, going for a stroll, getting some sunshine, and getting lost in my thoughts is a great way to spark some inspiration."

Finally, remember why you work in the first place. Illustrator and designer Anna Hamill says: "I'm doing this for myself and for the example I'm giving my kids. I have bought an alarm clock and charge my phone downstairs. I've designed a reading journal to keep track of my reading instead of Goodreads.

"I don't have social media apps on my phone, just my iPad, so I don't spend ages just scrolling," she adds. "Instead, I read books, paint, get on with productive work and go for long walks exploring outdoors. All have some wonders for my mental health. I'm prone to depression, and it all really helps."

Growing the bacteria using kombucha, lion's mane, household food waste, and swabs from skin and soil resulted in some sleepless nights for creative director Chris Collicott.

If somebody had told me that you could use live bacteria to create brightly coloured patterns from the 1980s and '90s, I would have been a bit sceptical. That was until I came across the drinks and flavour agency Crucible's identity, which was designed by Madalena Studio.

It took me a minute to understand why a company would use bacteria to encourage drinks businesses to work with them, but then I learned more about Crucible's experimental methods. In addition to developing new products for startups and larger drink brands, it provides operational support to bars, restaurants, and hotels through fun brand engagement tactics.

Crucible has tried almost everything when it comes to brand experience. Most recently, they ran a Jägermeister cocktail competition with sessions exploring the sounds picked up from plants, and entrants could create their own ceramic vessels, using the lab equipment to create their drinks.

The combination of science and creativity results in "totally unpretentious artistry", says Madalena Studio creative director Chris Collicott, adding that everything remains centred around "creating something enjoyable and fun as an end product" despite the "huge amounts of research and process".

"A natural partnership"

Collicott reveals that he actually worked with Crucible founder Stuart Bale at a previous job, which they both left at similar times to pursue their own ventures. "It felt like a natural partnership for us to create the original brand identity for them from the start back in 2017, and we've collaborated on projects with them for various drinks brands, bars and restaurants over the years", he says.

While the initial brief only included a website refresh, Collicott felt that Crucible also needed a new visual identity to reflect its evolution from being "the first bartender maker space […] to an award-winning innovation hub for the drinks industry". The overarching goal was to create something impactful, visually reflecting Crucible's fun and experimental approach to flavour.

Taking a risk

To represent the company's unique ways of working, Madalena Studio wanted the brand to be visually engaging with impact and authenticity. Creating digital graphics didn't seem to hit the mark, and they didn't align with the physicality of Crucible's own methods.

"Once we arrived at the idea of growing the logo from bacteria, it was an idea that just sat right", says Collicott. "We didn't know if it would work or how it would turn out, but for those reasons, it felt exactly the right way to go."

Once the studio had confirmed this idea with the Crucible team, who felt the same way, they presented some originally grown bacteria tests, which had been manipulated as little as possible by humans. Achieving bright colours requires only a significant level of human interaction.

"We pushed and pulled the colours, inverting and maxing out the saturation", says Collicott. When they arrived at the fluro pink and green combination, it was an obvious favourite as "Crucible have a bit of a thing for neon", he adds.

To balance this out, the studio chose black and white as a backdrop to the visual language.

"From science project to graphic design project"

Collicott describes how some of the colours blocked together, resulting in "layers of almost 80s-90s-era patterns along with the natural organic textures". Another interesting finding was that many of the samples changed colour over time, meaning the studio could apply one colour set to each sequence to amplify the natural colour change rather than creating it artificially.

"I felt this helped take the project from science project to graphic design project," he says.

The logo's shape uses the original graphic designed by Madalena Studio in 2017. To grow the bacteria in that specific shape, the design team pressed laser-cut cork logos swabbed with samples of aged kombucha, a liquid culture of lion's mane, household food waste, and swabs from skin and soil solutions into Petri dishes.

This was all done in relatively lo-fi lab conditions and then left to grow in a makeshift incubator in Collicott's basement.

According to Collicott, the initial tests of five samples worked surprisingly well, so the studio started to work on creating a time-lapse video to be used as the main visual for the website's homepage. Shots of the samples were captured every few hours as the bacteria grew quite quickly in some cases.

The challenges of home-grown graphics

"The logistics of shooting 30-something samples at regular time intervals presented a few challenges," says Collicott. "Each sample took 1-2 weeks to grow, so we had to do them in batches rather than one at a time, which meant manually taking off the Petri dish lids, moving the sample into position and shooting each frame individually."

His close home's close proximity to the studio made it a little easier to get home during the day to shoot, though Collicott admits that "getting up in the middle of the night for weeks was quite tiring after a while, and frankly, it all felt a bit over the top at times".

It took "a bit of faith" to see the project through to the end", he reveals.

A font inspired by collectable Czechoslovak chains

When creating the logo, a large number of frames were captured across a variety of samples, and, by the end, the studio had amassed a library of bacteria images. These were repurposed as part of the visual language, ranging from relatively C-shaped graphics with natural variations of form and texture to some completely unrecognisable patterns.

According to Collicott, the latter was perfect for use on the wider visual identity as backgrounds and other elements. He says, "The natural forms are all completely unique to Crucible, so it was nice that all of these elements feel authentic."

Madalena Studio opted to use a combination of Klim's sans-serif typeface Söhne and the rather abstract Plastic by Ivana Palečková and Jitka Janečková, a typeface reminiscent of collectable Czechoslovak chains. Collicott feels that "the contemporary look and feel from Söhne" works well with Plastic's "fresh and playful take on the 'science font' typographic style", resulting in exactly the right tone of voice for Crucible.

Digging around in the archives revealed some interesting and ownable brand stories that the studio used to solidify its position as 'THAT juice'.

Bath-based brand and packaging design agency Sunhouse has redesigned OG orange juice brand Tropicana, using heritage in a contemporary way to position it as the category leader and aligning with its new campaign, 'THAT juice'.

The studio became involved in the project through its longstanding partnership with Tropicana Europe senior vice president Mick Van Ettinger. "We love Mick's drive, ambition and trust in our ability to unearth something meaningful and differentiated to transform a brand through the identity, having originally experienced this with Mick leading the revolutionary brand redesign for Magnum ice cream," says Sunhouse creative director James Giles.

According to Giles, working with a brand as iconic as Tropicana was a no-brainer, although he admits that the notorious and highly publicised redesign failure in 2009 added "an element of design-press jeopardy that ignited the creative team".

Tropicana's rebrand coincides with a shift in the category, likely due to the turbulent economy of recent years. Branded juices are increasingly being viewed as a commodity and in decline, with consumers opting for own-label juices instead.

Giles observes that the juice landscape has become "a sea of sameness". He explains how Tropicana relied on communicating its functional benefits to compete rather than investing in the brand and looking toward long-term growth.

"With an ambitious innovation pipeline and eyes on transforming to a beverages company, it was high time to re-establish their authority in a category they created in the first place," he says.

To strengthen Tropicana's position as 'the original' juice brand and differentiate it from competitors, Sunhouse essentially had to "look backwards to move forward", says Giles. After delving deep into Tropicana's history, the studio unearthed a variety of ownable narratives that they could use to breathe new life into the brand's visual assets.

"The care, craft and expertise that has been poured into every glass since 1947 was something we wanted to capture with a rich suite of assets to bring richness and depth to the identity," Giles explains.

One example is the story of Tropicana founder Anthony T. Rossi, who arrived in the U.S. from Italy with just $25 in his pocket and a dream to make fine fruit accessible to all. He founded the company in 1947 and found a way to package fresh juice and democratise what was considered a luxury until that point.

"He was a pioneer and an absolute original," says Giles. "That backstory, plus the fact the brand had never wavered from delivering fresh, pure juice straight from the source, kept pointing us back to 'originality', and we looked to celebrate this emotively with the brand's origins and functionally."

To do this, the orange was repositioned as the protagonist in the brand story, and the iconic straw, sticking straight into the fruit, was reintroduced. By amplifying what makes Tropicana unique, Giles says Sunhouse sought to create something "the copycats couldn't come close to".

He believes that the orange puts originality back at the heart of the story. The new logo now features an orange dotting the 'I', with 'The original since 1947' typography creating a roundel for the identity.

The roundel shape informed the graphic language across the rest of the brand world. Giles notes how Sunhouse also reintroduced the arch to the logotype in a bid to create "a more unique and uplifting symbol in line with the moments of joy and positivity the brand aims to spark daily across the globe".

"We refined the logotype and brought back the arch to optimise impact without compromising memory structures – always a challenge when working with a brand with such iconic credentials," he says.

To reflect the craft and care that goes into the product, Sunhouse chose Brother 1816 as the primary font. Its rough, handmade finish immediately signals authenticity and heritage. This is complemented by a set of display fonts, which are used sparingly to elevate the brand.

The studio also added new visual elements to the identity, such as Anthony T. Rossi's signature, a hand-drawn illustration of oranges, and a photograph of the original grove. Giles says: "Revisiting the brand's roots was integral to the evolution of the identity and reasserting leadership status in the category Tropicana created.

"The discoverable details amplify authenticity and elevate the brand as a beacon of quality and expertise in a category full of generic, function-led design codes."

Very subtle changes were made to Tropicana's colour palette to emphasise the role of orange. The hue was incorporated into the brand mark and pack lids to help increase visibility and ownability.

From contemplative cats to wide-eyed bat skeletons and even Santa on an exercise bike, Ilya Kazakov's cartoony characters are helping the artist build his own community of fans and clients around the world.

Originally from the Russian territory of Sakha – also called Yakutia – Ilya Kazakov is one of the most northerly illustrators we've featured in a while. Over 40% of his homeland sits in the Arctic Circle, close enough to the North Pole that we're willing to accept Ilya as an expert on the topic of Santa Claus, a character he's illustrated numerous times. He even designed a set of Santa installations for a Moscow shopping mall back in 2020.

However, there's a lot more than snow and long white beards to this artist's story. With his army of cute characters, Ilya has become a pioneer in NFTs, catering to a community of supporters who back projects like his recent Fake Trading Card Game (FTCG) on the Ethereum L2 platform. People can buy packs of five digital character cards to trade and ask for specific artwork from Ilya.

"The unique feature of my NFT projects is that they are built on collaboration," says Ilya. "Anyone can request or come up with, for example, a character, and I will draw it. This makes my projects even more diverse because one person alone could never come up with as many variations as several hundred people."

Speculative ventures like this earn revenue streams alongside Ilya's client projects – such as his aforementioned Christmas campaign for the Avenue South-West shopping centre in Moscow. Here, he concepted a variety of Santas, each of which was associated with a brand operating in the mall. "It was my first experience designing physical objects," says Ilya. "I worked with a team of sculptors who created these large Santa Claus figures. The process had many technical nuances and constraints, but everything turned out well."

When the OFFF Festival came to Moscow in 2021, Ilya had the honour of creating the opening titles – a job many illustrators and animators would envy. Directing and animating the project took six months, with sound design by Daruma Audio, and it's one of his favourite projects to date.

Like many illustrators, Ilya takes inspiration from nature and people-watching, but deep inside him is a fascination with ancient peoples, their art and architecture. It goes back to his earliest years in Sakha, where his grandfather taught him to draw and where he learned about the magical creatures and spirits of Sakha mythology – elements of which remain in his work.

Though he became an art director working in UI/UX and moved to Moscow in 2005, the urge to draw stayed with Ilya, and as 2019 turned to 2020 and the pandemic hit, he became a full-time illustrator. In 2023, he was granted a talent visa by France and moved to Paris, where he now lives and works.

As for his cute style, he didn't choose it; it chose him. "My style has constantly evolved and simplified over time, and even now continues to develop," says Ilya. "It allows me to work fast and capture my emotions on the go. It's true that the 'cute' style is popular right now, and it helps me find clients who resonate with my approach. This allows me to tackle creative challenges while staying within a visual style close to me."

Ilya's next NFT project will be a personal one. Entitled GM – Good Morning – it features a sketch drawn first thing in the morning each day for an entire year. Rife with cute characters, the vibe is generally positive, but it also reflects the ups and downs of settling in Paris. "Not every morning is great. One day, you might break a cup, have an allergy attack, or simply wake up in a bad mood.

"Now I'm revisiting these images; I look at them like a photo album full of memories. Each illustration means something more to me than just a picture – it's a reflection of my emotions and mood at the time of drawing," says Ilya.

You don't need to be a musician to learn from the rapper's recent adventures at Paris 2024. We list seven tips for following in Snoop Dogg's footsteps and unlocking your creative potential.

If you work as a creative freelancer, many people will be seriously jealous of you. Let's face it: you get to spend all day doing the thing you love and get paid for it. How many people can say that?

On paper, at least, you're living the dream. As the modern parlance goes, you're certainly living your best life.

In reality, though, it often doesn't feel like it. The life of a freelance graphic designer or artist can be exhilarating, but it can also be challenging and, at times, isolating.

Times when you're bogged down juggling multiple projects and facing seemingly impossible deadlines. Times when you're short on sleep because you've been up all night working or worrying about a nightmare client. Times when you're stuck doing boring, repetitive work that makes you feel like your life has become just one endless loop.

At times like this, it's easy for the creative passion that got you into the field in the first place to dim. And you often find yourself searching for a jolt, a kickstart of some kind to reignite your creative mojo. Sometimes, these come from the most unlikely of places. And here's one that really hit home with us at Creative Boom.

Snoop Dogg's presence at the 2024 Paris Olympics as a special correspondent for NBC was unexpected, to say the least. Yet the 52-year-old rapper fully embraced his role, participating in a range of unlikely activities and providing entertaining commentary throughout the Games.

From carrying the Olympic torch during the opening ceremony to getting swimming lessons from Michael Phelps, Snoop brought his unique style and enthusiasm to every aspect of the event. His commentary went viral, his support for Team USA athletes was unwavering, and his ability to find joy in every moment was infectious.

In short, Snoop's approach to this new challenge was nothing short of inspirational. And while we can't all be global music stars, we can learn many valuable lessons here and apply them to our freelance careers. Read on as we share our seven big takeaways.

1. Take risks: step out of your comfort zone

Snoop Dogg's Olympic commentary was a masterclass in not playing it safe but embracing risks. No one anticipated the iconic rapper taking on this role, yet he made it his own, blending humour, insight, and authenticity. Snoop's ability to thrive in an unexpected environment reminds us all of the value of stepping out of our comfort zones.

Because let's be honest: it's easy to fall into a routine, sticking to what you know and what has worked in the past. Yet true growth often comes from pushing your boundaries and taking calculated risks. This could mean, for example, experimenting with a new design style, working with a client from an unfamiliar industry, or tackling a project that feels a little intimidating.

Consider how Snoop approached sports he wasn't familiar with, such as badminton. He didn't shy away from commenting on these events; instead, he brought his unique perspective and enthusiasm, creating memorable moments for viewers. In the same way, don't be afraid to take on projects that stretch your skills or challenge your usual way of working.

Here are some practical ways to force yourself out of your comfort zone:

• Set yourself a goal to try one new technique or style in your next project.
• Reach out to potential clients in industries you haven't worked with before.
• Consider collaborating with other creatives whose skills complement yours.
• Start a side project that pushes you out of your comfort zone.

Remember, growth often happens at the edge of discomfort. By embracing new challenges, you not only expand your skill set but also open yourself up to new opportunities and inspiration.

2. Support others: build and lift up your creative community

Throughout his Olympics journey, Snoop was more than just an observer; he was a genuine supporter of the athletes and his fellow commentators. His enthusiasm for their achievements and his willingness to share the spotlight through actions like gifting them custom pins and doing affirmations together are lessons in the power of community.

In the freelance world, it's easy to view others as competition, but fostering a supportive community can be far more beneficial. Just as Snoop cheered on Team USA athletes and celebrated their victories, we should learn to celebrate the successes of our fellow creatives (however unnatural that may feel at a gut level).

And this isn't just about feeling like a better person (although that in itself is a good thing). In practice, building a strong creative network tends to lead to new opportunities and collaborations. Just as Snoop's interactions with athletes and other commentators enhanced the Olympic experience for viewers, your connections with other freelancers can enrich your career and creative output.

Not sure where to start? Here are some practical ways to support your creative community:

• Share and promote the work of other freelancers you admire.
• Offer constructive feedback when asked.
• Take part in online forums or local meetups for creatives.
• Can't find the right group? Consider starting one of your own.
• Collaborate on pro bono projects.

Remember, community is not about "What can you do for me?" but "What can I do for you?". The benefits of helping others might not be immediate, but overall, a rising tide lifts all boats. By supporting others in your field, you contribute to a more vibrant and supportive creative ecosystem, which ultimately benefits everyone and helps you learn and grow at the same time.

3. Embrace the fun: find joy in what you do

The essence of Snoop Dogg's Olympic experience was the sheer joy he brought to the table. Whether he was reacting to the drama of the events, cracking jokes, or simply enjoying the moment, Snoop reminded us all that having fun is a vital part of the creative process.

As a freelancer, that's something that's easy to deprioritise when deadlines and client demands bog you down. But it's crucial to find joy in the work you do. When you approach your work with a sense of fun, it becomes more enjoyable, authentic, and impactful. And that, ultimately, is what will help you succeed over time.

Despite being one of the hardest working and most creative people in show business, Snoop is the poster child for having fun. His ability to find humour and excitement in every situation, from his impromptu dance party with gymnasts Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles to donning equestrian wear with Martha Stewart for the dressage, showed us the power of maintaining a playful attitude. This approach not only made him more engaging to watch but also seemed to energise him throughout the long days of Olympic coverage.

Here are some practical ways to inject more fun into your freelance work, too:

• Create a playlist that energises you and listen to it while working.
• Take short breaks to doodle or sketch ideas that are unrelated to your current project.
• Set up your workspace in a way that inspires creativity and joy.
• Incorporate elements of play into your brainstorming process.
• Challenge yourself to find something enjoyable in even the most mundane tasks (you like a creative challenge, right?).

Remember, clients typically choose freelancers not just for their skills but for their unique perspective and energy. By embracing the fun in your work, you're likely to produce more creative results and enjoy a more fulfilling career.

4. Stay authentic: be true to your unique voice

Snoop Dogg is known for his authenticity, and his Olympic commentary was no exception. He didn't try to copy the style of a traditional sports commentator. Instead, he brought his unique style, voice and perspective, which resonated with viewers of all backgrounds. If you didn't hear it, here's a snatch of his badminton commentary: "As you see, it don't stop 'til the casket drop. They rocking and rolling. Back and forth. Give me that. No, I need that. Nope, over here. No, over there. What about over there? Nope. What about over there? Nope. Give me that. I need that." You get the picture.)

Similarly, your authenticity is your greatest asset as a freelancer. In a world where trends come and go and where it's easy to feel pressure to conform, staying true to your creative vision can set you apart.

Snoop's signature slang and laid-back demeanour might have seemed out of place in the context of Olympic coverage. But it was precisely this authenticity that made him such a hit with viewers of all backgrounds. Similarly, your unique approach to design or art will attract clients of all kinds and keep them coming back.

Here are some practical ways to maintain authenticity in your freelance work:

• Develop a personal style guide that reflects your unique aesthetic.
• Be honest with clients about your strengths and limitations.
• Share your creative process and inspirations with your audience (warts and all).
• Don't be afraid to turn down projects that don't align with your values or style.
• Regularly revisit and refine your brand to ensure it represents you.

Remember, clients often choose to work with freelancers because they want something unique. So your authenticity is not just a personal asset; it's a professional one, too.

5. Embrace collaboration: work with others to create something special

This isn't actually Snoop Dogg's first Olympics rodeo. His collab with actor and comedian Kevin Hart during the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 was pure entertainment gold. Their chemistry and dynamic partnership added a layer of enjoyment to the coverage that neither could have achieved alone.

In the freelance world, collaboration can be just as powerful. While there's nothing wrong with working independently, partnering with others often leads to unexpected, innovative solutions and exciting results. Just as Snoop and Kevin brought out the best in each other, collaborating with other creatives can push you to new heights.

Here are some practical ways to embrace collaboration in your freelance career.

• Reach out to other freelancers whose skills complement yours. Just send an email or DM. If they don't reply or aren't interested, you haven't lost anything.
• Participate in design challenges or hackathons.
• Consider forming a collective with other freelancers for larger projects.
• Attend industry events or workshops to meet potential collaborators.
• Be open to feedback and ideas from others, even if they're outside your field.

Remember, collaboration doesn't mean compromising your vision. It's about combining diverse perspectives and skills to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

6. Keep It light: don't take yourself too seriously

Snoop Dogg's ability to keep things light and humorous was one of the most endearing aspects of his Olympic coverage, from invading the Spanish commentator's booth to comically fibbing about being the volleyball team's coach. And more generally, his laid-back demeanour, even in the face of intense moments, is a reminder that it's okay not to take yourself too seriously all the time.

As freelancers, we often put immense pressure on ourselves to be perfect. We worry about making mistakes, disappointing clients, or falling behind our peers. But ultimately, you're not a brain surgeon or an aircraft engineer, and you have to ask yourself: what's the absolute worst that can happen? In this light, maintaining a sense of humour and lightness isn't really that difficult. It doesn't just lift your own spirits and that of others; it can also be pivotal to achieving long-term success and satisfaction in your career.

Here are some practical ways to keep things light, even when times are tough.

• Find humour in challenging situations when possible.
• Share your mishaps or learning experiences with other freelancers (with a smile)/
• Create a 'wall of fame' for your rejected ideas or designs. While this might be painful at the time, it can be fun and often enlightening at a later date.
• Take regular breaks to do something completely unrelated to work.
• Remember that even 'failures' are opportunities for growth and learning.

If you take a lighthearted approach, you'll probably find it makes you more relatable and approachable to clients, leading to stronger working relationships. It can also help you navigate criticism more easily and bounce back from setbacks with resilience. So, really, there's a whole lot of upside and very little downside.

7. Embrace new experiences: dive into the unknown

One of the key takeaways from Snoop's Olympics journey was his willingness to embrace new experiences, whether commenting on sports he'd never engaged with before or interacting with French culture. His openness to the unfamiliar is a valuable lesson for us all.

Similarly, in your creative career, it's vital not to shy away from trying new things. Whether learning a new skill, exploring different design genres, or working with diverse clients, new experiences can spark creativity and lead to unexpected opportunities.

Here are some practical ways to embrace new experiences:

• Learn a new design tool or technique each month.
• Take on a project in an unfamiliar industry.
• Travel (even locally) for inspiration and fresh perspectives.
• Attend workshops or conferences outside your immediate field.
• Experiment with combining different art forms or mediums.

Staying curious and open to the unknown is the best way to keep your creative spirit alive and your work fresh and exciting. Every new experience, even if you don't end up enjoying it, is an opportunity for growth and inspiration.

So, the next time you face a challenging project or an unexpected opportunity, ask yourself: "What would Snoop do?" The answer might just lead you to your next big creative breakthrough.

Want to use the professional network to boost your freelance career? These tips from fellow creatives will help you leverage LinkedIn authentically and effectively.

Social media isn't what it used to be, especially for creative freelancers wishing to grow their careers. Instagram is dead to us, thanks to frustrating algorithm changes that seem to have decimated everybody's engagement levels. Changes at Twitter since Elon Musk took over have meant that creatives are leaving in droves. And while some have migrated to Threads, Bluesky, Cara, Mastodon and others, the increasingly fragmented nature of the social landscape means that it feels like wherever you are, it's hard to get traction.

As a result, many creatives are turning to LinkedIn instead as a platform for networking, self-promotion and professional growth. However, LinkedIn can sometimes feel overwhelming or even cringeworthy for those new to the platform or hesitant to fully embrace it. In fact, you might not even realise that designers, artists, filmmakers, animators, and photographers are also using it.

The short version is that lots of them are, and many have found it a useful tool for growing their careers. If you haven't used LinkedIn yet or have tried but just "don't get it", this article is for you. It contains eight practical tips to help you navigate the professional network effectively, offering tips and insights from industry professionals who have successfully leveraged it for their own careers.

1. Embrace the positivity

One of the first steps to using LinkedIn effectively is understanding its benefits. And one of the most obvious right now is the lack of toxicity and negativity you find on so many other social platforms.

"I love Linkedin, and as cheesy as it sounds, you get out of it what you put into it," says performance coach Matt Follows. "For the past couple of years, I've posted a video every day as a way of giving back to the community, and so far, I've had no negative comments whatsoever."

Copy and content writer Divine Laoye agrees. "I'm tired of everyone calling LinkedIn cringe and boring," she says. "I've seen creators kill it on the platform. LinkedIn is home to one billion members in more than 200 countries. Your message can be amplified over there. Stop secluding it from your content strategy."

2. Understand it's ALL work-related

The positive atmosphere isn't the only differentiator, though. LinkedIn is fundamentally different from other social media platforms because it's overwhelmingly focused on work.

"It took me a while to get used to how different LinkedIn is to other social platforms like Twitter or Instagram," says Martin Boath, co-owner and creative director at Imaginary Friends. "There's a much greater emphasis on talking about oneself or our work. There's not really the back-and-forth that Twitter used to be great for. And in terms of displaying imagery, especially multiple images, it's quite poor. Also has that annoying tendency to change URLs to its own shortened version.

"All that said," he adds, "it's nowhere near as toxic as Twitter and isn't full of memes and nonsense like Instagram. For me, right now, it's the best platform for finding out what other creatives are doing, hearing opinions, and sharing our own work."

Creative coach Katherine Scott has a similarly balanced take. "LinkedIn isn't sexy or fun," he explains. "It serves the purpose of networking and is incredibly effective for finding your people. It's just a bit boring, and once you get over the fact it's not as engaging as Insta, it becomes a really useful tool.

"Everyone is playing the same game," she adds. "It might look like people are bragging, but most are probably cringing too. No one else will shout about you, and to get in front of the people you want, there's not a better playground."

Freelance motion designer Fee Sheal agrees. "I, personally, prefer posting about my work on LinkedIn to any other platform," she says. "Everyone's here for the same reason, whereas somewhere like Instagram, you're stuck between posts of last night's dinner and holiday snaps.

"I chose to really lean into LinkedIn and make a conscious effort to post as much as I can to remind clients old and new that I exist and to remind myself that it's actually quite good to shout about my work and what I do. Because if I don't, no one else will!"

3. Start posting and commenting

LinkedIn can be helpful, then, but only if you put the work in. As designer Sophie O'Connor puts it: "I have found a lot of success as a freelancer using LinkedIn, but you have to be dedicated to posting consistently. Building a strong network helps, too. I've used it in the past to contact employees of companies I've been interested in working at, too."

Illustrator Daniel Sulzberg, meanwhile, has found it the best place to get his work in front of professionals who hire illustrators. "Add art directors connected through a friend and then try to build a relationship with them by commenting on their posts," he advises. "This goes a long way and keeps you top of mind."

In terms of day-to-day interactions, career coach Jenny Holliday adds that you should: "Treat it like an IRL networking event. Don't 'stare' at someone and not say hi; for example, send a hello message when connecting. Also, ask for recommendations. This is huge. They count for a lot, and it feels great."

Not sure what to share? Work in progress usually works well. "I've found people have really enjoyed seeing regular updates on my projects as they develop," says Michelle Lyons, founder of Point North. "I like to call this approach Progress Marketing. It's relatively low effort, as I'm simply sharing what I do and what I learn as it happens. It's almost like a professional diary, so it feels authentic, too. It's not the best approach for client work, but it's been perfect for personal projects."

4. Don't be shy

There's a lot of OTT bragging on LinkedIn. But while we wouldn't recommend you join in, you will need to talk confidently about your achievements – even if that feels unnatural.

"I totally get why sharing successes can be cringeworthy for some," says graphic designer Damian Graham. "But at the same time, we freelance designers need to win new business, and you can't be preoccupied with what someone else thinks, especially when bills are to be paid.

He believes the rewards can be great. "I feel LinkedIn has untapped potential for creatives," Damian stresses. "I've obtained more work through LinkedIn than any other platform due to its organic algorithm."

But if you're still shuddering at the thought of self-promotion, then brand identity designer Lauren Rasberry can empathise. "It can be super cringe and it takes me weeks after writing something to actually post it," she admits. "But then I force myself to. I usually think about how many of the world's most successful people don't give a bleep about what others think. So I'm trying to adopt this mentality more."

Don't know where to start? Jess MacIntyre, co-founder of Mac+Moore, offers the following tips. "Find your voice. Don't try to be somebody else. Don't focus on what the competition is doing. Talk to your customers' pain points. Only post something you believe or care about.

"Lastly, I see writing posts on LinkedIn as a way of building my writing and communication muscle," she added. "A way of getting better each day. And if you feel the cringe... fight it."

5. Curate your community carefully

Even though LinkedIn isn't packed with trolls like other social networks, there is a lot of noise to cut through. So Matthew Stanners, animated director of Bearded Fellows, believes that carefully curating your network and feed is crucial to making it all work.

"For a long time, I felt it was a cringe-fest," he says. "I didn't judge the people posting; I just couldn't participate. But then I deleted about 1000 connections and started to find people in my world. And now, I think the knowledge and access I have are incredible. Lesson learned: curate your feed."

It was a timely lesson, too. "Our agency has struggled over the last year," he says. "Inbound sales just tailed off, and guess what? All the people we want to work with are here. Seeing so many of my peers making excellent work with different value propositions has forced us to sharpen our focus. Now, I like it here."

In short, LinkedIn is never going to be the most fun place, but when managed correctly, it could be the most useful. "LinkedIn can definitely be dreary," says Nicki Field, joint MD at Jelly London. "There's so much formulaic click-baity post-writing out there, and I can't bear the chest-beating. But there's also a side where it's just humans trying to communicate about their work and business, explain some of it and why they care about it, and to their circle of clients and peers as it's a business platform. And I quite like that.

"I think what LinkedIn does do," she adds, "is give an environment to talk about the business of what we do, which is creative and, most valuable of all, keep up with connections. There's so much moving around in this industry, so keeping in touch with folks here is invaluable. We just all need to be a bit kinder about it and to each other in between all the rest of the noise."

6. Avoid LinkedIn cliches

While LinkedIn is refreshingly free of insults, obscenities, and backbiting, it does have a bit of a problem with business jargon and marketing speak. There are also many tropes that quickly become boring and repetitive.

So don't add to this. Instead, use plain and unfussy language and frame your stories like a normal person, not a post-writing robot. This will help enormously in getting people on your side.

"LinkedIn has so many cliches, so be aware of them," says copywriter Guy Lambert. "The ones I dislike the most are posts that start 'I made a mistake', then some rambling story. You've got to open with something original."

Barry Tranter of Bbelief cites another common cliche: "'Thrilled to announce my contribution to this thread, humbled to have had the opportunity to contribute. It has been a privilege to have worked with you and your exceptional team.'" Barry would prefer you just use your normal tone of voice to communicate. "Who says 'humbled' in real life?" he asks.

7. Use the headline space

Here's a specific tip from Leslie Carothers, CEO of Savour Partnership. "Utilise the headline space to describe who you are and/or what you do because that is what people see when you comment on someone else's feed and helps establish your authority." Below, she shares an example from her comment on someone else's post who recently had her as a podcast guest. "See the second line below my name? That's the headline space. Look for it when filling out your profile."

8. Get someone else to help

Finally, if you have neither the time nor inclination to engage on LinkedIn, you could always get someone else to do it. Someone like Anna Stanford, marketing director at Vault49.

"As the marketing person for a design agency, I can confirm that for 99% of creatives, self-promotion does NOT come naturally," she says. "But personally, teasing out stories and celebrating the amazing people I work with is my favourite part of the job.

"So if you don't have a 'me' in your agency to help you do it, or you are freelance, then my advice is to rope in a friend to help," she adds. "Even if it's simply to read the words before you hit 'post', they will be able to see things more objectively than you, and hopefully give you the confidence to say: 'Yeah, actually, I AM awesome!'.

Conclusion

While LinkedIn may initially feel daunting or cringeworthy to some, it does offer unique opportunities for professional growth, networking, and self-promotion. By embracing the platform's positivity, understanding its differences from other social media, consistently engaging with your network, overcoming shyness, curating your community, and maintaining your authenticity, you can leverage it effectively without feeling uncomfortable.

Remember, everyone on the platform is there for similar reasons – to connect, learn, and grow professionally. By focusing on providing value, sharing your genuine experiences, and engaging meaningfully with others, you can create a LinkedIn presence that feels natural and beneficial to your freelance career.

As you navigate LinkedIn, keep in mind that it's okay to feel a bit uncomfortable at first. Growth often happens outside our comfort zones. With time and practice, you'll likely find that LinkedIn becomes an invaluable tool in your professional toolkit, helping you connect with peers, find new opportunities, and showcase your creative work to a receptive audience.

The legendary speaker manufacturer partners with Barkas to amplify its digital presence while preserving its rebellious spirit.

The world of rock music has been altered beyond all recognition by the digital transformation of our society. While vinyl might be popular amongst hipsters, it's no longer the huge, mass-market banker it once was. And while bands may be able to earn a few pennies on Spotify, that's not enough to make music a career for more than a few global megastars.

The only serious money, then, is in live performance. But the vertical integration of Live Nation and Ticketmaster – currently being sued for monopolising the market by the US government, no less –means that even most of that money goes elsewhere.

In a world where everything has changed, and not for the better, Marshall amps represent a rare thing: a comforting symbol of nostalgia that's still relevant today.

The client

Marshall's long-lasting, high-quality amps have been prominent since the 1960s. For those who came up during the 1960s-1990s in particular, when health and safety had yet to bring decibels down to a tolerable level – they evoked the all-enveloping "wall of noise" that rock and roll was all about for previous generations.

And it's not just what they sounded like, but what they looked like too. The distinctive Marshall logo and the classic look of their amplifiers were instantly recognisable, triggering positive associations and memories for fans and musicians alike.

In short, Marshall is a rock music icon, as much as the Beatles, The Stones or Led Zepellin. Yet it couldn't become a relic: it needed updating to bring it in line with the modern day.

After all, it's no longer just about amps. Marshall delivers its iconic sound to stages, studios, and the streets with audio equipment, headphones, and speakers while supporting musicians in creating, recording, producing, and promoting their music through its record label and live agency.

So the company teamed up with Barkas, an independent brand studio founded ten years ago, which now has offices in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Oslo. Marshall asked Barkas to future proof their identity by crafting a new design system, a full remake of marshall.com and a deeper understanding of the core of the brand. It was a project that involved over 100 people.

The brief

The brief from Marshall was to future-proof its legacy and attitude through a ground-up identity refresh, with the ambition to unite two businesses under a common brand. "The aim was to bring Marshall into a new era and build an online platform that sells Marshall's epic products to the world," explains Luca Rasmussen, partner in Barkas.

"They'd already done a great amount of work on their brand platform and what they are all about when we got on board," he adds. But that didn't mean the task was an easy one. "Marshall is an icon and has die-hard fans, so you have to come at it with respect," he stresses.

"It is like rebranding or working with a football club; people literally have the crest or logo tattooed onto them. So the challenge is: how do you stay true to the essence while also pushing the bar in an authentic way?"

Brand concept

"In the middle of rock n roll, you find a rebel," says Luca. "But that rebel can listen to any type of music today; it's more of an attitude than a genre."

This insight set the foundation for the design principles that laid the foundation for the visual identity. "A rebel is bold, dynamic, loud and rough around the edges, all those expressions we wanted to infuse into the design system," says co-founder and creative director Mike Wittrup.

The design system aimed to structure a free approach to art direction, which was kept deliberately open to embrace all genres of music and modernise the overall brand perception and relevance for a new generation of fans and music lovers.

To develop it, Barkas worked closely with the in-house Marshall team. "We'd check in at least once a week to jump into our Figma doc and share our progress," recalls brand designer Miriam Nicole Zirignon. "We started wide – conceptual ideas on what rock n' roll looks like in the digital age – zooming into smaller and smaller details once we'd cracked the conceptual nut. A lot of sketching, scrapping, and sketching again, looking back to the brand's history and looking forward to what it can become."

"This tight and collaborative approach, with regular check-ins rather than big presentations, ensured that we kept good momentum and energy throughout both explorative conceptualisation and the detailed production phase," adds Didrik Persson, digital director and partner.

Logo

Senior designers Miriam Nicole and Mafalda Remoaldo led the charge in bringing Marshall's legacy to life. To them, staying true to the brand was extremely important.

"We didn't touch the design of the iconic box logo; there was no need," says Miriam. "Rather, we made sure to solidify it as THE Marshall logo by minimising the use of secondary versions, unifying the brand. The box also became a playground and an element we could use through communication online and offline.

"We used the box logo as the starting point to determine the grid – margins, gutters and some spacings," she adds. "However, within the grid, there is now more flexibility for text, graphics and image placement than before, moving from print-first to digital and expanding use cases.

"Our main objective was to build a brand that can live for another 60 years," she adds. "And for that, you need a balance of a consistent base layer and flexible art direction."

Design system

The design system consists of a small number of components on the box grid, explains senior digital designer Morten Rosendal. "We stuck to one typeface family with loud and confident headlines in all caps, contrasted by technical and functional body type. The colours are black, grey and white. And when we get down to product specs, we have icons and technical illustrations.

"This is what we call the base layer, supporting and contextualising the expressive content created by the Marshall team and their community," he adds. "Mixed media image manipulation, disruption and distortion – all is allowed in this art direction layer."

"Motion design also plays a big role, tying it all together in a fast-paced rhythm. Inspired by Marshall as a cultural amplifier, we also created an animated treatment of the logo where it plays as a magnifier over an asset."

Website redesign

"The brand identity set the foundation for the website," says Morten. "Once that foundation was complete, the work into creating a concept for the website began."

The rethinking of marshall.com was all about welcoming a whole new portfolio of products to live side-by-side with the iconic amps. "Marshall is more than headphones, speakers and amps," explains Morten. "It's a stage for music and music lovers — and we wanted that to shine through by introducing the Backstage article hub, inspiring product listing pages and a modular storytelling system that can be utilised throughout the website."

The aim, then, was to merge an iconic and tactile heritage brand with its global consumer base. As VP of eCommerce Thomas Farnstrom puts it: "We collected all Marshall's product categories, offers, a solid 60-year history, and experience of music, all in one place."

"The brand new marshall.com is more than headphones, speakers and amps," says Morten. "It's a stage for music and music lovers, and we wanted that to shine through. Not only can you purchase your favourite product, but you can also read about upcoming and established artists, find useful content as a music professional, and dive into the world of Marshall music history. All of this is made possible through a dynamic and modular system that opens up for storytelling through engaging words, punchy quotes, and exciting images and video material."

Didrik adds, "With the new Marshall.com, we wanted to introduce a more immersive shopping experience – one that blends extensive product storytelling with best-practice e-commerce across all product categories."

A specific example is the flow of the product listing pages, which consists of a product gallery and a buy box with all the need-to-know information above the fold. "Below the fold the product is unfolded through an immersive storytelling area that can be expanded based on the needs for that specific product. In that way, the system can then cater for everything from product accessories to hero products where more storytelling is needed.

"In other words, Marshall.com now both converts through optimised conversion flows and inspires conversion through artist and music storytelling."

Collaboration

"It's been fantastic and exciting to work with a brand that wants to be more than just clean, functional and minimalistic," says senior digital designer Morten Rosendal in conclusion. "Marshall's legacy and history provided us with ample motivation to deliver a digital experience that respects the brand's heritage while embracing its future."

"When we started the project, it soon became clear to us that rock n roll is not just a music genre, it an attitude, a way of being," adds Mike. "This attitude doesn't only wear black leather jackets; it looks in many different ways, and it's actually more about what values drive you than the aesthetics."

Here Design recently worked with a group of young offenders in prison to design a new identity for Untold, a charity that offers vocational training for young men in UK prisons.

London-based studio Here Design works hard to balance profit and purpose and has always made time for pro bono work to support charities and social causes, according to its senior designer, Eleanor Robertson. So, when the chance to partner with the Design Against Crime Research Lab (DAC) at Central Saint Martins came about in 2021, the studio saw it as a great opportunity to use creativity for good.

Headed up by UAL professor Lorraine Gamman, the DAC provides graphic support on initiatives designed to support effective rehabilitation. Through this relationship, Here Design was introduced to the governor of HMP Isis, Emily Thomas, and the work of her revolutionary charity, Untold, which operates inside the prison walls.

The studio was invited to participate in a DAC × Untold workshop with young offenders, which Robertson described as "inspiring, thought-provoking and, ultimately, motivating". After the success of this first collaboration, Here Design and Untold decided to extend their partnership, with ongoing support from DAC, leading to the rebranding of the charity itself.

The potential for creative rehabilitation

Untold works with creative institutions to provide vocational training for young men in UK prisons, building skills required for entry-level roles with industry partners, including The BRIT School, Guildhall School of Music & Drama, and The Young Vic. To put it into perspective, England and Wales have the highest imprisonment rates in Western Europe, with a total prison population of over 85,000.

Even more shockingly, around a third of prisoners are young adults (aged 18–24), while 97% are male. Notably, people from a black or minority ethnic background are nine times more likely to be in prison than other groups, a number that rises further when looking at young black men under the age of 21.

At HMP Isis alone, 75% of the men belong to BAME communities, and these offenders are typically serving longer sentences than their white peers for equivalent crimes.

In Robertson's opinion – and considering these statistics - Untold has the potential to change the creative landscape for the better as well as the young adults, as its model supports "inclusivity and diversity in an industry that sees a chronic lack of representation".

"The evidence also demonstrates that the system – with its emphasis on punishment rather than rehabilitation – isn't benefitting anyone", says Robertson, quoting the fact that around half of all UK prisoners spend more than 22 hours a day in their cell. This surely does not help that less than a fifth are employed six weeks after leaving prison, and after six months, two-thirds are still unemployed.

Unsurprisingly, almost half (42%) of those released from prison are reconvicted of another offence within one year of release. Robertson says: "Untold believes that we can break this cycle and that a brighter future is possible."

An exercise in patience, adaptability and understanding

Despite all the good work that Untold is trying to do, its chief executive, Comfort Ayankoya, felt that its identity failed to demonstrate the potential of creative education in prison. "Crucially, it didn't resonate with the prisoners, limiting the number accessing our programmes and opportunities", says Ayankoya, which is why Untold began working with Here Design.

If the charity's problem was a disconnect with the prisoners, what better way to rectify this than to involve them in the redesign process? Here Design thought exactly that and involved the young offenders enrolled in the training programme in every aspect of the design, from strategy to creation.

"Working in prison presents its own set of unique challenges," says Robertson. "On the most basic level, getting inside is hard work, requiring a lot of form filling and security checks, and there can be a lot of hanging around while kit lists are triple-checked, with all visitors requiring a staff escort."

There was even an outburst of gang violence on one occasion – which is an ongoing challenge at HMP Isis – and the Here Design team were 'locked down' for over an hour. "Thanks to these systems, we never once felt threatened or unsafe, but you have to have patience and accept that time will run at a pace beyond your control", says Robertson.

Getting information on the young men they would be working with in advance was also tricky, so the team wasn't made aware of any serious literacy issues or whether English was their first language. In addition, no details were released about previous experiences of education, whether those enrolled in the programme knew each other, or how they'd behave around new people.

Not only this, but HMP Isis has an average turnover of 80 arrivals and departures each month, so there was no guarantee that Here Design would work with the same group of collaborators throughout the process.

"We had to plan for all eventualities and work flexibly from one week to the next, adapting as we went along."

Preparing as much as possible was key to making the collaboration work for both the young officers and the design team, so Here Design used what information they could to inform the process. For example, Robertson says they were aware that around a third of the young offenders at HMP Isis are dyslexic, neurodiverse or have special educational needs, which is typical in UK prisons, and that almost half have been excluded from school and missed significant parts of their formal education.

As a result, the studio purposely avoided traditional classroom settings and considered that some participants might be self-conscious about reading and writing in a group. "We wanted everyone to feel comfortable, so we tried to make all our teaching and workshop materials as visual as possible, we created informal educational games, and we never put pressure on the young men to put pen to paper, instead offering to act as scribes and record their voices", Robertson explains.

Despite these challenges, she describes the project as "incredibly rewarding" and says the team were reminded that "you don't need a computer to do great design, that great design is born from strong ideas, that strong ideas can be found in the most unlikely places, and that in these places creativity can be powerful and transformative".

Back to the drawing board

Here, Design favoured a less conventional approach to this project, as this didn't fit how they'd work with the young offenders. According to Robertson, there were many questions to consider, such as how to co-design with people who have no formal design training, how to build a brand identity without computers, and how to collaborate without open channels of communication.

Naturally, a level of design education would be needed to carry out the design work effectively, so Here Design kicked things off with eight classes at HMP Isis covering the fundamentals of design, from strategy and logos through to colour theory and basic typography, supported by the DAC.

Since electronic devices aren't allowed in the prison, Here Design had to rely on analogue methods – printed materials, paper, pens, Post-its, piles of magazines, stencils and geometric shapes, glue sticks (but no scissors) – and the group's imagination. For each design decision, the group produced sketches, mood boards and notes, which were returned to the studio between shared sessions.

"Our role was to facilitate the young men, bringing their ideas to life with digital technology – and we worked very hard to do their creativity justice, putting our own preferences to one side", Robertson reveals.

"Under the direction of our collaborators, we refined an incredible twelve 'big ideas' into four creative territories, which became two clearly defined concepts and – after a heated debate – merged to become our final brand."

The design process between Here Design and the young offenders took 18 weeks from start to finish.

"Honest yet hopeful, bold yet relatable"

Untold's new brand strategy – devised by the young offenders – was the result of a group brainstorming session. After pinning down the audience and objectives, the new designers explored the idea of brand personality.

Robertson says: "We used a wide range of idea generation techniques to stimulate lateral thinking and gathered dozens of words on Post-its, which we attempted to group into categories.

"Eventually, we defined five 'key themes' aligning with Untold's values and aspirations: proud, bold, transformative, radical, and optimistic."

Every design choice made after this was evaluated against these pillars, which were visually displayed on mood boards.

Untold's new logo uses speech marks to communicate the importance of giving a voice to those who are routinely silenced. Robertson feels that it reflects the voices of the young men with whom Here Design collaborated while also representing hope for many others.

For the hero brand colour, the group chose yellow (Pantone 107 C) for its warmth and optimism, pairing this with a sans-serif typeface called Söhne Schmal by Klim, which the group felt represented confidence and pride.

Robertson notes that the brand voice "plays a similar balancing act with a tone that is honest yet hopeful, bold yet relatable". Alongside core assets, Here Design also delivered a website to help attract industry partners, influence policymakers, and demonstrate the power of creative education.

With more options for pet nutrition popping up, Nutriment's new brand hopes to make it easy for owners to choose the best science-backed food for their pets.

Pets have become a huge part of many people's daily lives, with the number of pet owners in the UK reaching record highs during and after the pandemic. At the same time, shelves have become flooded with options for pet nutrition, making it hard for owners to know what's best for their furry family members.

Although raw diets for pets are not new, the concept is now recognised as a serious option in the pet nutrition conversation. However, claims, counterclaims, and influencer opinions are still making it hard for consumers to navigate the space. Pet food brand Nutriment was founded in 2013 when raw diets were still a small niche within the category.

Since then, the brand has grown considerably and contributed to making raw food more mainstream. Its new target is to be the go-to brand for raw nutrition and provide more clarity for consumers shopping in-store and online.

Robot Food was brought in to update Nutriment's visual and verbal identity, including a new packaging design, with the goal of better communicating its science-driven approach, which differentiates it from competitors.

The studio's account director, Emma Collingswood, highlights Robot Food's work on other brands in the pet food category, such as Harringtons, NAW, Wagg, and YuMove. She also recognises that The Nutriment Company is doing "some really exciting things that present unique and interesting brand challenges" across its portfolio, which comprises ten different brands.

It was immediately clear that, while Nutriment takes a very science-driven approach to nutrition and raw feeding, "that level of quality and attention to detail wasn't really reflected in their visual identity", according to Robot Food creative director Ben Brears. The studio recognised that foregrounding this information could be the key to making the raw food diet more accessible and less daunting to pet owners while positioning Nutriment as the category leader.

Brears says that balancing these tension points - "science and simplicity, expertise and accessibility" – underpins the whole identity and the design system. He also describes how the nutritional breakdown of Nutriment's pet food, which is 85% raw meat and 15% fresh vegetables, informs the design by providing "building blocks of nutrition".

"It gave us a framework for breaking down information, separating product facts from benefits, and highlighting what was really important to give real clarity to pet owners", he adds.

Colour is used in the brand to provide "an accessible entry point", says Brears, and also has a functional purpose as it showcases the diversity of the Nutriment range. For the typography, Robot Food opted to prioritise simplicity and clarity of communication to align with the brand's values.

On pack, the bowl photography serves a dual purpose, according to Brears, as it not only showcases "the quality and care that goes into each dish and demystifies raw food for customers" but also looks "damn tasty".

Photography was another important visual aspect leveraged to break down barriers between pet owners and the brand, like concerns over convenience and practicality. Brears says: "We consciously chose to show Nutriment's real, natural food within the context of real lives, as part of the candid moments where bonds are forged with our pets."

Nutriment's verbal identity was devised to complement the more visual assets, communicating the complexities of pet care. Robot Food's copy director, Clayton Davis, notes that the language of pet food can often feel "a bit insincere, with lots of brands promising happy pets with simple one-size-fits-all solutions."

To avoid this, Nutriment's tone of voice was developed with clarity and compassion in mind, allowing the brand to "confidently show expertise without exerting pressure or guilt and empowering customers to choose", says Davis. He adds that by focusing on moments that really matter to pet owners, Robot Food ensured that the brand could be "celebratory and joyful in an authentic and sincere way".

The Bristol agency put their design skills to work, developing a visual identity for craft brewery St Austells that can scale as it grows.

Right now, the demand for decent craft beer seems to keep growing and growing. And so St Austells, a family-owned Cornish brewery deeply rooted in traditional brewing and community values, was looking to expand by investing in like-minded breweries such as Harbour Brewing Co.

This presented a new opportunity to collaborate and launch a new brand for a series of tap rooms that could appeal to a broad, diverse audience.

To help create this new brand, they turned to ORCA, a Bristol-based brand agency with whom they'd already worked on a previous project.

ORCA was founded by two friends, James and Joel, in 2011. However since 2020 James Ewin has solely taken the helm of ORCA. His focus has been on creating an agency that specialises in helping challenger brands make an impact whilst ensuring we look after our environment and people along the way. In 2023 they achieved B Corp certification.

The brief

The brief was to create a robust and scalable brand identity for a new craft beer house with the potential for the brand to be applied to various sites in the southwest.

The beer house would need to be an experiential destination that draws in both locals and beyond. It would be a Harbour Brewing Co-led concept, and the beer house would house a wide range of Harbour Brewing Co and other independent brewery beers and be a place for people to experience their love for the craft.

"We were somewhat tied to the existing Harbour brand identity," says Max Harding, senior designer at ORCA. "And this new offer had to include recognisable cues from the master brand while also being enough of an evolution to distinctively stand out in a crowded market.

"As we are a team that loves all things outdoors, from wild swimming to weekend walks as well as the odd craft beer along the way, we felt passionate about our ability to create something special."

Brand strategy

The design process began by crafting a brand strategy that would underpin everything ORCA did, ensuring they delivered a project that connected with their audience.

"This process involved a trip down to Charlestown, where the venue is located, and immersing ourselves in the coastal culture that surrounds the Charlestown area," recalls Max. "We toured the brewery, which is only 15 minutes up the road, went for a dip in the ocean, as well as spent some time visiting other taprooms on a safari-like trip."

The resulting identity was anchored around a theme of 'Deeply connected'. Deeply refers to the seas and rivers where the tap rooms are based, as well as the immersive experience they will provide. Connected refers to the local produce, the people behind the beer and the togetherness and sense of community that the beer house will promote.

Colours and typography

The illustrations, created in-house by Yoana Puleva, were inspired by vintage coastal holiday imagery, which resulted in a set of playful characters that are quirky and feel nostalgic to anyone visiting.

They combine coastal activities with the craft lifestyle while also nodding to the skate and surf culture that underpins the whole Harbour Brewing brand.

When it comes to typography ORCA tapped into the vintage coastal aesthetic in a similar way. They created a number of typographic lock ups that were used across merchandise allowing customers to take home a piece of the brand, whether that be on a sticker or a pint glass.

They also spent a lot of time refining the colour palette, which became a natural way to connect the brand identity back to the environment. "We took inspiration from the colours you often see spending time by the coast," says Max. "It was also important that the interior of the space be aligned with the brand colour palette, making for a seamless brand experience, so you'll see from the photography a lot of the colours were used throughout the space."

The London-based studio collaborates with renowned illustrator Hedof to create upbeat and engaging branding for the Comedy Garden Festival.

57 Festivals is a London-based company specialising in live comedy. Since 2005, it has delivered comedy shows and festivals to select cities across the UK.

Last year, the founders collaborated with Oat Studio – a London-based, multi-disciplinary studio founded in 2022 by husband-and-wife team Owen and Tori Phillips-Walmsley – to revamp the branding for a series of nationwide comedy festivals, starting with the Brighton Comedy Garden.

With a combined 40 years in the industry, Owen and Tori's experience spans from global and national brands like Nike, Converse, Apple, Lego, Everyman Cinemas, and Gail's Bakery to arts and cultural institutions such as Green Man Festival, Southbank Centre and Arts Council England. They aim to "bring big agency quality to smaller businesses and founders, giving them the best start possible and level the playing field".

The brief

57 Festivals tasked Oat Studio with refreshing the visual identity of their events, which features some of the biggest names in UK comedy, including Josh Widdicombe, Sara Pascoe, Fern Brady and Phil Wang, and to better reflect their vibrant and fun nature.

"They wanted a standout design that was fun and engaging without falling into comedy clichés or childishness," says Owen. "A key challenge was differentiating each festival location while maintaining a cohesive aesthetic. They also needed the design to be versatile enough for various applications, from posters to social media."

He adds that a specific challenge for working on events or festivals is that lineups can sometimes change at the last minute. "So we needed to have many illustrated elements and mini-illustrations, so designs could be updated easily if needed."

Finding an illustrator

The design process started with in-depth discussions with the client to establish a new direction centred on a heavily illustrated poster border design. The research involved finding an illustrator who could create the right feeling for the festivals. This led them to illustrator Rick Berkelmans, known as Hedof.

"We'd long admired Hedof's work and felt this project was the perfect opportunity to collaborate," says Tori. "Rick proved to be an absolute pleasure to work with, consistently delivering exceptional work that often exceeded our expectations. His professionalism and enthusiasm were evident from the start.

"Hedof's style was ideal because it balances imaginative, striking illustrations with thoughtful compositions," she adds. "His work has a surreal, fantastical nature aligned perfectly with the festivals' atmosphere. His illustrations are both visually appealing and adaptable for various applications, which was crucial for this project."

Illustration brief

Owen says Rick's brief was clear: "Create illustrations that were 'twisted, colourful, full of fantastical, freaky exotic plants, flowers, and foliage, with surreal characters.'

"We also asked him to capture the garden theme with festival vibes, incorporating elements like comedy, laughter, bars, drinks, beers, flags, circus tents, cocktails, and street food. And the illustrations need to balance absurdity and fantasy with a touch of darkness. We aimed to avoid anything too childlike or pagan/folky, favouring the absurd and fantastical over the twee."

He responded with enthusiasm. "Rick Berkelmans is such an enthusiast and perfectionist that he kept sending us revised versions of the designs," recalls Owen, "even though our team and the client were really happy with his initial designs and everything had been signed off. His work totally blew us away, providing the right mix of fun and creativity without veering into childish territory."

The results are a delightful mix of the fantastical and whimsical, carefully crafted to capture the festival's essence. They include elements like dancing legs, spilling drinks, friendly ghosts, and oversized plants hiding various creatures. These surreal touches create a sense of discovery and perfectly represent the Comedy Garden Festival's spirit.

"We hadn't previously seen any comedy festivals using this type of illustration style or type of poster layout," says Tori. "The closest reference we found was music festivals, which helps set the design and branding of the 57 Festivals events apart from anything in the same category."

To ensure they were flexible enough for various applications, they asked Hedof to complete all individual illustrations that composed the main borders of the lineup poster, even those that were partially hidden. This allowed Oat Studio to repurpose these elements for different outputs, such as social media posts.

"From our experience working with illustrators, we know this detail is really helpful for briefing these types of projects," she adds. "Although we typically don't mandate pixel or vector formats, Hedof's use of vector art simplified the creative process, resizing and recolouring new compositions for various applications."

Logo and typography

Once the illustrations were approved, Oat Studio extended this style across all festival materials, including social media assets, T-shirts and signage. These designs were organised around a curvy, characterful logotype with chunky letterforms that filled the top space of the posters, ensuring the event name stood out.

"We also introduced a bold and playful secondary typeface," says Owen, "with the descenders on the y's and g's designed to look like big smiles, adding a playful touch throughout the brand identity. We wanted the typography to complement and enhance Hedof's playful illustrations while ensuring the festival names remained prominent."

The curvy logotype with chunky letterforms echoes the organic nature of the illustrations, while the secondary typeface, with its smile-like descenders, reinforces the comedic nature of the festivals. As Owen puts it: "Our typography choices reflect the fun, dynamic nature of the festivals while maintaining a professional edge.

"The combination of the bold logotype and playful secondary typeface creates a balance between whimsical and contemporary, in the same way that the festivals balance showcasing both established and emerging talent."

Colour palette

One significant challenge was differentiating the Brighton Comedy Garden from the other four events in the series while maintaining a cohesive overall aesthetic. Oat Studio addressed this by developing five complementary colour palettes tailored to a specific festival location. "The vibrant colour palette we developed is impactful yet warm, striking a balance between standout aesthetics and approachability," says Tori.

Oat Studio developed a limited palette of strong, bright colours, including a warm yellow and playful candy pink, and then adapted it for each location. Brighton has a blue base to reflect its seaside setting, Greenwich a green base inspired by the Maritime Museum gardens, Bristol pink, Cambridge red, and St Albans yellow. This approach gives each festival a distinct look while maintaining overall brand cohesion.

"The vibrant colour palette reflects the festivals' energy and playfulness while avoiding feeling too childish," says Tori. "By limiting the palette to carefully chosen colours, we created a striking, memorable look that distinguishes the Comedy Garden Festivals from other events. The warm, inviting tones also reflect the welcoming atmosphere of the festivals."

Toolkit and templates

To share the branding across different touchpoints, Oat Studio utilised a toolkit of additional illustration elements from Hedof, including abstract shapes, patterns, and individual characters, to create adaptable borders and backgrounds for any size or format.

"For social media, we designed customisable templates that allowed easy swapping of act names and portraits, ensuring varied compositions for different shows," explains Owen. "Select elements were adapted for merchandise, giving visitors a tangible piece of the festival's identity. For printed menus and large-scale on-site signage, we focused on simple layouts that highlighted the illustrated graphics."

The result is a unique and exciting brand for Brighton Comedy Garden that beautifully captures the essence of the event. The vibrant illustrations and playful typography convey a sense of fun and creativity, inviting attendees to a festival filled with good times.

The new branding not only grabs attention but also enhances the festival's personality, setting the stage for memorable comedy experiences. The distinctive branding has helped the festivals stand out in a crowded events market, attracting both comedy enthusiasts and those drawn in by the eye-catching design. No wonder, then, that the year's festival tickets sold out in record time, and there has been a significant increase in public interest and engagement.

This meticulously researched book explores how Blackheath and Greenwich in London became a post-war haven for modernist architecture, green spaces and community living.

Blackheath and Greenwich, located in southeast London, emerged as pivotal grounds for modern architectural innovation in the decades following World War Two. This movement reflected a broader cultural shift toward social housing that embraced modernist principles, promoting functional and shared spaces that contrasted with the existing Victorian and Georgian styles previously associated with the area.

Now Studio Blackburn has launched a new book, published by Park Books, that delves into both the residential and community-focused buildings that flourished in this period.

Authored by esteemed Portuguese architect Ana Francisco Sutherland, Modern Buildings in Blackheath and Greenwich spans 416 pages featuring 64 buildings by 38 architects including Eric Lyons & SPAN, Peter Moro, Patrick Gwynne and Allies & Morrison. Her engaging narrative not only showcases architectural masterpieces but also examines the relationships that influenced their creation.

The book as a whole has been long in the making. "Sean Lock once asked, 'When does a leaflet become a pamphlet?'" says Paul Blackburn, CEO and founder of Studio Blackburn. With this project, what began as a leaflet somewhere along the line became a book, which grew to 416 pages."

Key challenges

Paul reveals that the key challenge initially was to establish a process for the book's development. "As a brand design agency, we don't do many books now, and it's been so long since I did one that I'd forgotten just how much process needs putting in place, particularly with regard to project management and deadlines."

Once that was sorted, there was the question of what the book should look like. "We tried to prioritise a contemporary and rigorous aesthetic rather than create a pastiche of the era," Paul explains. "The spirit of the design of the buildings was one of modernity and utopian ideals; the aim was to design a book that contemporary architects and graphic designers would like to own."

And it certainly couldn't be done in a hurry. "Books need constant and focused attention; there are so many moving parts and contributors to consider before you even get to the design aesthetic. We went off course a few times with this book, plus we were doing it pro-bono and trying to fit it in around fee-paying projects."

Design and content

In the end, they decided to hire designer Rita Pereira full-time for around six weeks. "We created the design vision and key page layouts and then briefed and art-directed Rita to a final design and artwork."

As for the content, author Ana Francisco Sutherland drove the project and had begun the research aspect some years previously. "When we got involved, there was still talk of it being a modest and low-budget guide to the area," he recalls.

"We took it on the understanding that we'd create a more substantial book and get it published by a world-renowned publishing house. I visited Park Books in Zurich, and over a bottle of wine, we quickly agreed to publish it through them."

From a design point of view, Paul has enjoyed giving the team at Studio Blackburn the permission to work on the concept and overall design of the book, without the pressure of client deadlines and requests. "It's also been great to see the photography study by Pierce Scourfield come to life, providing a unique and slightly eerie set of images for the book."

Audience and purpose

Paul feels there are several audiences the book will appeal to, including architects, graphic designers, historians and residents of Blackheath and Greenwich. "When combined with the walking tours and talks that Ana Francisco Sutherland organises in the area, the book will serve as a cornerstone of the understanding and appreciation of post-war modernist architecture in Blackheath and Greenwich," he says.

"It will also impact how people more widely view these modern houses as buildings that are part of the area's architectural heritage to be cared for. People who have lived in the houses for decades are only now beginning to realise and understand their architectural importance."

"Designing it has been a privilege," he adds. "It has allowed the whole studio to further our interests in architecture, typography, design and print. It has reminded me that our industry enables us to collaborate with a vast array of interesting and talented people and determine the projects we take on.

"It's also been a reminder of how difficult books are to design and produce," he adds. "But the story of Modern Architecture in Blackheath and Greenwich needed to be told. Ana Francisco Sutherland has brought it to life with a thoroughly well-researched and sensitively constructed narrative. We've tried, and hopefully succeeded, in producing a book that reflects the architectural subject matter whilst delivering a contemporary and rigorous book design."

This inventive restaurant branding reimagines the idea of a vegan eatery in a refreshing and enticing way.

Across the course of the 21st century, the image of veganism has quickly gone from 'cranky and weird' to 'mainstream and cool'. Nowadays, you can find vegan options in most bars and restaurants. And that's all to the good, whether you're a vegan or just appreciate more healthy options on the menu that are kinder to the planet.

But vegan restaurants specifically still suffer from the perception of being overly worthy and health-obsessed: not somewhere you'd naturally head for a rip-roaring night out.

It means we're delighted to see graphic designer Jens Nilsson present us with this fun branding for a vegan junk food joint that offers an entirely different image.

"Dirty Vegan, a Swedish restaurant and bar concept entirely devoted to vegan fare, specialises in unhealthy junk food such as burgers and craft beers," Jens explains. "The idea of the restaurant's identity, with its lip-licking mouth symbol, draws inspiration from a questionable nightclub vibe rather than conforming to the conventional image of a traditional all-green, health-centric vegan culture."

We absolutely love these designs, which had our mouths drooling at first sight. So, we were keen to chat more with Jens about how they came about.

Logo and design system

"The business founders, Laura and Tyronne, wanted to create a different kind of vegan place," Jens begins. "They aimed to move away from an uptight, health-focused vibe and instead embrace classic fast food and craft beers with a more laid-back, 'divy' feel."

Consequently, the mouth-licking symbol is obviously the key component of the whole identity. "I think it perfectly captures the feeling of yummy food while adding an edgy nightclub vibe without going overboard," says Jens.

And the mouth is a great starting point for creating a wider design system, allowing the lips to take on different dynamic expressions. "From the original lip-licking mouth to the kissing mouth and drink-related expressions for the coasters, the possibilities are sort of endless."

In designing it, Jens was mindful of all the potential outcomes and executions. "I aimed for a less corporate, more illustrative feel while ensuring it remained clean and functional," he explains. "This way, it could easily be produced as a layered neon sign, work for smaller prints as pins, multicoloured screen prints on beer glasses, and more."

Colours and typeface

When it came to colours, his main goal was to move away from the typical eco-friendly green that has been wildly overused in this sector. "Red and purple were chosen to really set us apart, but also logically match the colours of lips and a tongue," says Jens.

"I also liked the bold combination of strong red and warm purple. The forbidden, low-contrast look felt like a perfect fit for this project."

For the main typeface, meanwhile, he chose Adieu by Good Type Foundry. "Looking at other similar burger joints and their current trends, it seemed like everyone was moving towards a 'Burger King' style with soft, retro-styled serifs," Jens reflects.

"While I love Cooper Black, it felt similar to the green colour that is overused in this context. So, I decided to go with a more contemporary sans serif to create an interesting contrast with the mouth symbol and the use of brown paper."

Photography and printing

As for photography, Jens pushed things as far as I could. "While thinking of the storytelling and the red thread of it all, I also wanted every image to feel like 'hit'," he recalls. "Like something really worth saving or pinning.

"I actually counted, and it took me 5894 RAW files, months of photography sessions and retouching, and around 1,2 terabytes of disk space to complete around 40 images."

As such, when he sent the final print files of the sign to the signage producer, he got quite nervous about the outcome. "Did I get the depth of all the parts right? Is the size perfect? I ended up staying up late that night, making a 1:1 scale paper prototype of the sign just to make sure I got it all right."

Combined with animation, created in partnership with Brikk Studios, it all adds up to a strong, confident visual identity that knows what message it wants to send and does it in style. Unfortunately, the restaurant itself, which has mixed reviews on Tripadvisor, is currently closed but plans to reopen in a new location soon.

With Elon Musk and X seemingly fanning the flames of violence in Britain, we canvas how creative people are feeling about the controversial social platform.

It's been an ugly summer of violence and thuggery in the UK. And while the reasons for that are detailed and complex, the spark that lit the fuse was certainly the misinformation that spread like wildfire on X. Platform owner Elon Musk, meanwhile, has added extra fuel by sharing inflammatory and false claims with his millions of followers.

This is just the latest chapter in Musk's apparent campaign to upset as many people as possible. His ardent support for free speech has upset those who feel that speech needs to be moderated. Yet free speech supporters are upset too because Musk's actions have stood in stark contrast to his words; arbitrarily suspending journalists and others whose speech he doesn't like.

So, it's not surprising that people are wondering whether this is the time to leave the platform in protest. And it's not like this is a new or unprecedented idea.

End of an era

As we've been reporting a while now, the consensus from the creative community seems to be that X, and social media in general, is not what it used to be.

On a basic level, the days when you could simply choose whom to follow and then see their posts in chronological order are now long gone. Instead, our feeds are manipulated by algorithms that don't seem to have our interests at heart.

It means we're not getting the content we expect, nor are our followers. Consequently, we're getting only a fraction of the engagement we used to enjoy.

Social media, in short, is getting less social.

The instinct to leave

For this reason alone, it feels tempting to chuck it all in. The idea of cancelling your X or Instagram account seems like you're taking positive action, a blow to your personal liberty. "The algorithms shall not control me!" you cry in your head.

But then, in the cold light of day, you realise that's probably self-defeating.

It's a bit like if your train service became seriously unreliable. You'd rant, you'd rave, you'd tell yourself, "Screw them, I'm not going to renew my season pass!" But when that time came, you'd realise that driving to work would be a massive pain, and sticking with the train is still the best choice overall.

That said, if people insulted you or shouted abuse every time you got on the train or were just plain annoying, you might opt for the car anyway. So is that where we're getting to with X, now?

To take the temperature of our community, we asked those still on X whether they were thinking of jumping ship and those on Threads how they felt about the new place. We share some of their thoughts below, while you can read them all on X and Threads.

Creatives! Due to recent events, loads of people seem to be leaving X/Twitter. Is this the end of an era? Are you thinking of going, too? What are your thoughts? I'm pulling together an article for @creativeboom. Reply below, and I'll include your quotes with a link. Thanks!

— Katy Cowan (@katylcowan) August 8, 2024

"I'm staying for positive reasons"

We'll start with some positivity. Our experience of any social media platform is ultimately about the people we interact with. And it seems there are still plenty of good people and good discussions to be found on X.

As writer Emma Lee points out: "Within days, a crowdfunder on X for a library exceeded £150k, another has replaced a carer's car destroyed by vandals, Five Leaves is offering a safe space in Nottingham and the #WritingCommunity are wonderful." To her, the message is clear: "Amplify what you want to see, not the clickbait."

Social media marketer Julia Bramble takes a similar line. "Given what the person who owns X has been sharing recently, I want to leave," she says. "But there's still a fantastic community here, and that's why I'm staying."

As does freelance designer Peter McCollough·. "There are still lovely people here, and I have Twitter friends I'd miss," he says. "Yes, there is a lot more nonsense on here these days, but I think it's important to hear what people think even if you disagree with them entirely. Kindness and hope."

In particular, it seems that anyone involved in words, whether that be authors, copywriters or journalists, still sees value in X. As writer and editor Allison K Williams says: "There are still writers here. There are still readers here. It's the easiest and lowest-hassle social network and where I can most smoothly interact with people I don't already know, which feels important.

"I don't want to just see the people I know," she adds. "I want to see tangents and new ideas and the moveable middle, and it's worth dealing with – ignoring – spambots and crypto ads to do that." And publicist Dara Avenius speaks for many in saying: "I'm on Twitter because so many journalists are still here and announce their new jobs, as well as their #journorequests. I haven't found Threads as helpful and energetic in that way yet, so I haven't moved over fully yet."

"I'm staying because I have nowhere to go"

Many others, though, are less enthusiastic about remaining on Twitter. Only they don't feel like they have a better alternative.

Freelance illustrator and UI designer Ollie Hoff, for one, doesn't mince his words. "I hate that I'm still here," he says. "I would happily leave, but it's been so useful over the years to find work as a freelance illustrator. Plus, it doesn't feel like there's anywhere else to go."

Software consultant Allen Holub is equally explicit. "I'd love to leave, as even Tech Twitter gets increasingly toxic in line with the rest of the platform," he says. "But I don't see anywhere to go. I feel trapped."

And UX consultant Becky Colley tells a story that will be familiar to many. "Like everyone else, I tried Threads, VERO, Mastodon, and Bluesky," she says. "But none of them stick because they simply don't have the community X has. Unfortunately, that takes time to build, so there's no lift and shift. We'd all have to agree where we're going and move simultaneously."

"I'm staying but stepping back"

Many, then, are responding to X's changing nature more subtly by simply stepping back from the platform and using it less.

Illustrator and designer Paul Johnson tells a typical tale. "I'm still here to see news and people I follow, but I really engage only in the areas I want to. I post my illustration and design work here, but the interaction is generally low across all social media."

Illustrator Matt Richards puts it more bluntly. "It's turned into the crazy bar at the end of town that I can't resist popping in," he says. "I barely interact now, just spectating the madness."

Staying but stepping back, in a way, offers the best of both worlds. You don't waste your work time on X when you could be doing something productive, but your account is still there if you need it. Like growth strategist Darnell Brown, who explains: "I 'left' this place in January in terms of treating this as a serious platform on which to build my professional network and audience, and I don't post any more. But I do come here to see updates from my favourite brands."

"I'm limiting what I see on X."

A variation on this theme is to stay on X but use the existing features to limit what you see and whom you interact with. For example, illustrator Niki Groom says: "I've always loved it here, but this week I've finally put my account on private. I don't consider it a safe space, and I use it less and less. I think it probably is the end of an era. I'll spend more time on Substack, Instagram and – shock horror – out in the real world."

Similarly, photographer Gill Moore says she's "staying for now, but using the Lists feature. Curating a 'Nice Twitterer List' so I never have to actually view my For You timeline. I'd love to leave here, but all other options are either still owned by megalomaniacs or have low user numbers. Although I am trying to engage more on my BlueSky."

This nuanced approach can be particularly useful for agencies, who may feel pulled in conflicting directions with all of this. Collateral Damage Studios says, for example: "We are still on Twitter, for now. We have learned that being liberal in blocking accounts with awful content makes for a significantly better Twitter experience. This practice is great for any social media platform. That said, ultimately, studios go to where their clients will be. No other platform can claim to replace Twitter in sheer volume yet."

Rather than leave, then, they're trying to grow our presence on alternative platforms such as Threads instead. "So that when the day that X truly dies, we already have something elsewhere. But for now, we are still on X. Our attention span has been spread out, but we still maintain some presence there."

Nathalie Crease of Fiasco Design is taking a similar attitude. "X hasn't been my go-to platform for a while," she says. "'Design Twitter' no longer seems to exist, with many having made the jump over to LinkedIn, Threads or even Cara, so there's not much of a community left. Since the Musk takeover, I've seen a real change in tone and a huge increase in explicit content, and an algorithm that seems determined to serve me up far-right ideals. Yet despite this, we've kept Fiasco on X. Not investing much time into content, but we're still doing the odd post to keep our profile alive."

Why? "It felt important that we still had a presence on one of the biggest social media platforms in the world, with 350+ million active users, supposedly," she says. "But the events of the last week or so, and Musk's words and actions might be the tipping point. So for now, we will pull back on engaging with X. We'll leave our profile live, but I won't be sharing any content there or engaging in the near future."

"I'm enjoying using Threads."

So what about Threads? Of those who've made the move, we're hearing generally positive things. Writer and content marketing expert Ashley R. Cummings says: "I've been spending way more time on Threads, as @travelwithashley. Threads is so wholesome. It's positive, not run with a political motive at the forefront, and hasn't been taken over by ads yet. I think Threads is what Twitter used to be."

Strategic marketing leader Mike Allton agrees. "I am absolutely turning my time and attention to other platforms, particularly Threads, where actual, healthy connections and discourse are happening, and users aren't being milked for every dime," he says.

Threads is linked to Instagram, and designer Patrick O'Leary sees it as logical to use both. "My aim going forward is to show my work on Insta and talk about it on Threads," he explains. "The connection between the two has the potential to be more powerful than the best version of X ever was. I left X last week: I want my time online to be spent sharing work and engaging with a like-minded community, not whatever awful thing is 'trending' on Twitter today."

Most people agree, though, that Threads doesn't feel quite fully formed yet. Designer Nigel Ball points out that: "While Threads is a lot more of a pleasant experience, and I'm enjoying many of the interactions I'm having here, the single hashtag function isn't particularly good for academic research or developing connections. It doesn't feel like Threads has fully found its mojo yet, although nothing could tempt me back to X while Musk is at the helm."

"I'm staying on X for good"

The idea that Threads hasn't "found its mojo yet" will ring true with even its most ardent fans. And realistically, that's largely because most people are still on Twitter, like it or not.

As we've detailed, some of these may be unhappy and looking for an exit strategy. But others are quite clear that they're in it for the long haul.

"I'm absolutely not leaving Twitter under any circumstances," says SEO specialist Gemma Brunson. "It's so easy to curate your timeline here. And for those who are overly sensitive or too emotionally unstable, they easily use the available tools: mute words, mute accounts and block accounts."

"It's still the best social media platform," says Nick Entwistle, founder of the Bank of Creativity. "It now has more freedom of speech whereas before they controlled what people said and who could say it." And design consultant Joseph N. Wagar states: "I'm never leaving this app. There is no better platform for finding business opportunities. There is no better platform for exercising your right to free speech."

Photographer Mark Krajnak adds: "This platform is still a great way for me to find news and creative content from websites, magazines, books, people that I may otherwise miss. Yes, some nastiness on here, but the good still outweighs the bad for me. I'm stayin'."

And author Dr Sara Lodge strikes a note of defiance. "I hate giving in to bullies," she says." I don't like being evicted from a community where I have made so many friends. I think of all the horrid stuff as racist graffiti. The town ain't that."

Firedrake Studio adopts a similar metaphor. "It's like reading the spray paint on a grimy Berlin Wall, but hey, that's kinda where creatives hang out. If you can turn a blind eye to the politics, I think X is still popping. Follow the ones you want, and block the ones you don't. Just like in life."

Want to see your graphic design work featured in this online magazine? Here's how to do it and some tips for standing out from the crowd.

As a graphic designer or branding studio, getting your latest project featured in Creative Boom can significantly boost your visibility and reputation. But I'll be perfectly honest: We can't cover everything.

As editor, I receive hundreds of emails daily. It would be lovely if I had time to read them all thoroughly, respond intelligently, and chat at length about how we could best cover each project on Creative Boom. But I've crunched the numbers, and to do so, I would need about 47 hours every day. And even then, I wouldn't have time to eat, sleep, or have any sort of life outside of my work.

At the same time, we do want to hear about all the great work happening in the creative world right now. And as we explain in our article What we stand for, we don't just want to narrow it down to the biggest agencies, the biggest brands or (God forbid) the biggest cities. We want Creative Boom to be a truly curated, diverse mix of all the most interesting and inspirational creative work, regardless of where it comes from.

So, we've put time and effort into crafting a workable system to make that possible. You'll find all the technical details here. And if you use this system (as opposed to just emailing us and saying, 'Check out our work!'), you'll have a MUCH better chance of being featured.

That said, it's no guarantee. Given that we receive so many submissions, we can't possibly feature them all: that's not how curation works. So it's crucial to make yours stand out.

In this article, I'll guide you through crafting a compelling and comprehensive submission that's more likely to catch the attention of our editors and increase your chances of getting your brand identity project on Creative Boom.

1. Start with a strong introduction

First of all, start strong with a captivating introduction that immediately grabs our attention. This should briefly describe your project, introduce the client, and outline their main objectives.

For example, the pitch for this work by Havas London might have read something like this: "Havas London has rebranded supermarket giant ASDA, focusing on the retailer's core values of value, quality, and community. The new identity aims to modernise ASDA's image while retaining its approachable and familiar feel."

In this and everything else, please don't worry about trying to write everything in flowery language or typical "marketing speak". We're journalists, and we're primarily interested in facts. So, the more facts you include and the simpler and clearer the language, the better.

2. Provide detailed background information

Following this brief introduction, dive deeper into the project's background. Share the story behind it, including information about the client's history and what makes them unique in their field. Explain the problem or challenge they were facing and how your design solution addressed it.

For instance, the background for this visual identity by StudioDBD might have begun: "Stockport is getting a new addition to its town centre. Stockroom is a new cultural hub in the Merseyway Shopping Centre, spearheaded by Stockport Council, that will house a library, children's learning area, a café bar, and more."

In other words, don't assume we know this stuff already. All context is useful.

3. Describe the design process

Next up, take the readers through your design journey. Discuss the initial brief, your research and brainstorming phase, and how you developed the final concept. Highlight key elements or inspirations that influenced your design decisions.

For instance, for this branding for Fertility's at-home egg testing kit, you might have started: "Universal Favourite wanted to understand how people felt about at-home testing. So they began the design process by working with VML to conduct a series of focus groups, one-on-one interviews and stakeholder research."

4. Focus on visual elements

As you might have noticed, Creative Boom is a very visual website. So, while we want to know something about the concept and strategy of the project, we also need to know about the visual design and how it was made.

So, tell us as much as you can about the visual components of your design, discussing the colour palette, typography, logo, and any other key visual elements. Explain why these choices were made and how they contribute to the overall brand identity.

For example: "We chose a vibrant blue, #0022EE, as the primary colour to convey trust and intelligence, complemented by a warm orange to add approachability. The custom typeface we developed, which was inspired by Myriad Pro, features subtle curves that echo the node motif in the logo, creating a cohesive visual language across all brand touchpoints."

Honestly, the more on this stuff, the better. We are all design nerds, so you simply can't write too much here.

5. Highlight collaboration and roles

If your project involved collaboration with other designers, illustrators, or studios, be sure to mention this. We don't want lots of angry emails from people who contributed to the project asking why they didn't get a mention in the article, and neither do you!

Also apply the same logic internally, highlighting the contributions of different team members where relevant. This not only gives credit where it's due but also showcases the breadth of talent involved in your organisation.

Taking this rebrand as an example, you could say something like: "The collaboration with Koto on the rebrand of Fluz involved a multidisciplinary team, including graphic designers, illustrators, and motion designers, to create a vibrant and dynamic identity."

On this note, we love to get quotes from individual designers on the specific tasks they were involved in. Our pet hate, in contrast, is quotes attributed to multiple people, to teams or to the agency as a whole. That just sounds daft. People don't talk in unison; well, not outside of this sketch by Monty Python, anyway.

6. Explain the implementation and impact

It's more interesting for readers to learn about a brand project if they know where it exists in the real world. So, it's important to describe how the new brand identity was implemented across different platforms and mediums.

Also, discuss the reception of the new design and any measurable impact it had on the client's business or audience engagement. Include as many facts as possible, as opposed to fluffy statements like "Audience reaction has been overwhelmingly positive", which don't really tell anyone much.

7. Include high-quality images

High-quality images of your work are crucial. Submitting text without images is basically a waste of your time and ours.

In short, ensure your submission includes high-resolution images that showcase the various elements of your branding project. Include the logo in different contexts and other real-world applications of the brand. (For help with presentation, check out these quality websites that offer mockups for your projects.) We also love to see work-in-progress images and things like colour palette swatches and typography specimens, although we recognise that clients don't always like to see that stuff shared, so it's not a deal-breaker if you can't.

Most importantly, send everything we need first time – don't put obstacles in our way! An email that says, 'Let us know if you want pics' is the bane of every journalist's life because we're too time-poor to chase, and it's most likely to get deleted.

Don't make it difficult to access images, either. WeTransfer is problematic because often, by the time we click on the link, it expires. Typically the need to seek permission to access files on Google is a hassle we just don't have time for. So please think about how to make things quick and easy for us.

8. Follow the submission guidelines

I shared the link to our submission guidelines at the start of this article. Now, I'll share it again. Here's how to get featured on Creative Boom. So now you have no excuse.

Please don't just scan these guidelines. Read them carefully, and follow them as closely as you can. This includes providing all necessary credits, contact information, and any additional assets we require. Failing to follow these guidelines could result in your submission being overlooked, no matter how strong your project is.

9. Provide comprehensive press materials

Include a well-written press release that encompasses all the points mentioned above. This should be a comprehensive document that Creative Boom could use as the basis for their feature, with minimal editing required.

10. Be ready for follow-up questions

That's not, however, the end of it. After all, we are journalists and won't just copy and paste your words onto the site automatically (unless they're very well-written indeed). In reality, we'll probably need to know extra information that's not in your submission, and we may want to gather quotes from specific people or have specific image requests.

That means when you submit, don't disappear for a week! Our writers have deadlines, and they might spot your story and think, 'Great! I'll run that and send you an email'. But then, sometimes, they hear nothing back. And when you do finally respond, it's too late: the story has been shared elsewhere. So if we were to run it, we'd look outdated and that we were just "copying" other rival magazines who have already covered it.

11. Consider an embargo

Indeed, if you're sending to multiple media outlets, then you're always going to have the problem of no publication wanting to be second with the story. If you want to avoid this, consider setting an embargo, which says that none of us are allowed to publish until a certain date and time. (Make sure you are time-zone specific here.)

This means every magazine or blog has a fair chance of running the story on the same day, and it allows the journalists time to gather what they need. This will give you a much better chance of wider coverage and bigger splashes.

Final checklist

Got all that? I appreciate it's a lot. But hopefully, you'll understand that this isn't me being precious. It's just literally the only way we can deal with the huge volume of submissions, and ensure everyone has a fair crack at being featured on Creative Boom.

Just to make it a little easier, here's a checklist summarising the main points. Once you've prepared your submission, use this to make sure you've included everything. Do all this, and while I can't guarantee your project will be featured on the site, your chances will be significantly higher, I promise!

1. About the project

   • What is the project about?
   • Who is the client, and what is their background?

2. The brief

   • What was the client's original brief?
   • What were the main objectives and goals?

3. Design process

   • What were the key stages of the design process?
   • What research and inspirations influenced the design?

4. Visual elements

   • What is the colour palette, and why were these colours chosen?
   • What typography was used, and how does it complement the brand?
   • How was the logo developed or modernised?

5. Implementation

   • How was the new brand identity implemented across different platforms?
   • What were the key features and functionalities added?

6. Impact

   • What has been the reception of the new branding?
   • How has the new branding impacted the client's business or audience engagement?

7. Collaboration

   • Who were the key team members and collaborators?
   • What were their specific contributions?

8. Challenges

   • What challenges did you face during the project?
   • How did you overcome them?

9. Additional information

   • Are there any interesting anecdotes or stories from the project?
   • Can you provide high-resolution images for publication?

One final note

If you've sent us the details of your project and haven't heard back, please know it's nothing personal. As I mentioned, we get a high volume of emails daily, and it's simply impossible to respond to everyone individually (even though we wish we could!).

Given the sheer number of submissions, we have to be very selective. Sometimes we might not share your work because we featured something similar recently – we want to give everyone a fair chance! Other times, your project might be too similar to others we've just shared, whether in industry or theme. That's just how it goes.

Reaching out to me on LinkedIn, Threads, X, Instagram, or Facebook is nice, but it won't help your chances, as I'll just redirect you to our submission process. Keeping everything in one place helps streamline things and makes my role as editor a little easier.

However, if you need a quick social share or some advice, I'll always do my best to assist. Creative Boom was founded to support the creative community, and for the past 15 years, we've proudly helped thousands of creatives. I simply want to be realistic about what I can offer. That's why we have submission guidelines—to give you the very best chance of being featured on Creative Boom.

Want to get involved in printmaking? The Postcard Printing Press is premium, perfectly portable, and other things beginning with 'p'.

In these times when everything in our lives is being digitised, the lure of the analogue, the physical, the tangible, has become ever greater. Hence many are looking back longingly at the days of physical paper.

Traditionally, though, printmaking requires heavy, large, and expensive printing presses, which are out of reach for most creatives. To alter this paradigm, Cologne-based designers Martin Schneider and Dominik Schmitz have created something that fits in the palm of a hand and can be printed at home by anyone with a 3D printer.

In 2018, the two artists launched the world's first 3D-printed etching press, and the Open Press Project was born.

Since then, they have printed, assembled, sold, and shipped over 6,000 presses to people all over the world. They have also launched four additional Kickstarter campaigns, including a modular stamp set called BlockFace with designer Will Mower and an even tinier etching press called the Open Press XS.

They've also spent the last three years running an international print exchange, which holds a collection of over 1000 prints and has been shown in 20 exhibitions worldwide.

The new press

More recently, they've been working on a larger printing press. Instead of being merely a "sized up" version of the original press, this is a complete redesign with improved metal parts to ensure great-quality prints and less effort during printing.

They've just launched this new device, the Postcard Printing Press, on Kickstarter. This press has a larger printing surface of 10.6 x 23cm, the perfect size for postcards, while still being small enough to fit into a backpack.

At the same time, it's fully capable of all sorts of intaglio printing techniques, such as etching, engraving, and drypoint, and it can also be adjusted for relief printing techniques, such as linocut and woodcut.

The Postcard Printing Press comes fully assembled with solid stainless steel rollers, two high-quality blankets, two table clamps, and a registration grid for perfectly aligned prints. The Kickstarter also offers an additional supply kit, including Awagami Paper, Speedball ink, a tiny roller, and a drypoint tool. You have until 31 August to preorder one here.