multimedia experience, the reflection.

Nervous yet excited, is where I would have placed myself when this project started. I was hopeful that the group would end up with this nice project; it was just the getting there that I was a bit nervous about. Our friendship has continued to build over the semesters since sophomore year first semester, when we slowly started to all three hangout in Studio. We each had different aspects that we can and did bring to the team, which I think is what really helped + hurt us.

The initial start of figuring the community really had us unsure of where to go because we have a bit of variety of interest; thus choosing something that all three of us agreed on was the difficult moment. Also, our visual styles as well as our wording style started to create walls throughout the project. Although we did not stick with our initial chosen community, I think that we ended in a much better place.

Due to using those outside of our direct contact groups and those not attending KCAI we struggled with making sure that we had the right type of content to not only portray the community, but to also rise to our standards (which yes, are a bit high). Not having much previous exposure to video cameras, movie software and three member collaborative teams, we really ran into issues from the final design stage to the final video.

We did however; end in a pretty nice place with the various technologies with a similar stylistic feel. There still is much work that can be made with the video in forms of an overall or clearer narrative, as well as through camera shots. I know that the three of us have talked about further refining this video to make it a piece that we are more proud of and hopefully this happens.

design systems, the reflection.

I can’t say that I was super excited for this class when it started, not in the dreading it, but in feeling like it was going to become one of my largest failures. I’ve continued to struggle with the concept of identity. We spend our whole lives discovering + defining to later rediscover and redefine ourselves, yet somehow I was to recreate an identity for an organization, not even an individual. I’ve struggled with my own identity for my life, so trying to create someone else’s was really intimidating for me.

I struggled throughout this project, trying to break away from this very gridded and safe aesthetics that often uses Helvetica that I personally have an attachment to. I started to fall into that safe aesthetic in the beginning of the project. So I delved more into research, which helped to create more of an overall concept, and later when I ran into more difficulty I was encouraged to write it out.

That was one of the best pieces of advice that I received. The content that I actually wrote during that moment ended up guiding the story throughout the rebrand book. I still struggled a bit while using that written content to guide my design pieces. I ended up looking at the overall themes between the content that I had written, the research that I had originally done and KC Fringe’s current social media promotion.

I think that even though I still have stuff to change or further refine on the various touchpoints and pieces of promotion that I created, I ended in a rather nice place. It is one of my most successful pieces that I would say that I’ve created to date. The system represents KC Fringe Festival, as well as promotes it in what I hope is a better light than their previous logo. My system focused more on the idea of what the festival was like and what people could expect to see.

senior review + degree project proposal.

A.De Sando_Senior Presentation

my notes.
We connect as humans through shared experiences, whether that be an actual event or similar circumstances. We connect also through emotions and their curved roads that trace memories. I believe emotional connections are some of the strongest bonds that you can ever wish for or achieve. They often come tightly attached or create easy connections to streams of memories to share. We as humans, yearn this kind of human interaction, though we may never fully know it. Storytellers are those that constantly have that need to connect, either through nurture or nature. I believe that many of us just develop more in tuned to that necessity. The idea of connecting with others has the ability to not only change both you + the other individual(s), but it truly has the ability to change the lives of those around you both.

professor feedback notes.
Koval

-good presentation
-handled very well
-nice story
-good argument for this case

-For your proposal
     -what type of story?
     -is it open ended?
     -is it dimensional?
     -Maybe have 3 topics that hang as an idea to tell stories, consider how the stories are told, maybe it's a collective idea

Kelly

-For your proposal
     -select a theme or orderly topic
     -maybe for you to curate
     -to build around
     -connection to the people
     -set a redemption (?)
     -Your presentation did a great job of tying in your personal and design experiences to your degree project. It took the listener on an unexpected ride, which is always nice.

     -Intrigued by the word "redemption" and it seems like an interesting idea to pursue
 

Tom

-For your proposal
     -what is the redemption?
     -what is the connection?

Paul

-What tool did you learn this last semester if you get stuck?

     -just write

     -you write well + it's a great tool

-For your proposal

     -how to enhance?

     -what is your approach on print and interactive and between the two?

Marty

-you should have mentioned that you are a double major in creative writing, it's a great aspect
-it was a really nice book (fringe)
     -your photo manipulation lacked meaning at the beginning of sophomore year and here you ended with Fringe that showed growth in a sophisticated way
-proud of you
-good job, Buddy

Craig

-it's evident that you are a creative writer and thinker
-not only can you write about it you also show empathy
-design thinking there will always be a place for you
-creative director material

Kidwell
-nice presentation
-thumbs up!
-don't necessarily limit yourself already to print + web; allow the process and audience to inform the direction that the design takes
-you don't want to push too hard for something that may just not fit the materials
-I can see both the web + analog space being utilized, just don't let that limit you