Personal Academic CV

Updated PPD Portfolio

*Fedrigoni YCN Brief Added.

Module Evaluation

OUCE255: Enterprise & Innovation:

Short Module Evaluation

By far this module has brought to light a realism of the design process, working within the real world beyond the studio. Setting up a business within the current climate is particularly difficult and off-putting, but with what has been taught within the seminars and lectures that anything in business is possible with the right planning and detailing.
Each lecture developed well, allowing myself an understadning how to build a business from the initial idea. Then using the subsequent lecture material and guides to targeting specific areas I was able to focus and complete different tasks to produce an effective strategy to enter the world of business.
Although I felt strongly at times the lecture material was irrelevant I gained an understanding through talking about what I wanted from the module to Bridget, this cleared the air on what the module was focussing on, and communication through emails and through the seminars helped aid my development and ambition. This would have helped earlier on and I feel I could have done a few things differently that would have made the module easier for myself. for instance I have never truly considered the benefits of a collaborative practice, more importantly what I would like from a creative partner especially in business. I would like to continue my efforts into finding out what a partnership business could do for myself and my proposed business.
I also feel that there was not enough emphasis directed on Enterprise & Innovation module and the relevance to our individual practice and what was wanted to get out of our degree course on an individual basis. Business it seems doesnt do well with many companys are offering the same thing, what I felt was taught that we were all heading for the same point, opening up a Graphic Design agency and nothing more. What I got out of the experience I feel was something else, not just going into enterprise with Graphic Design, but with a whole range of businesses associated with design.
Overall I feel that this module has definitly aided my development and I am looking forward to setting up my small business within the not too distant future.

Business Plan & Presentation

Good Ink: Presentation Slides

Having proposed and presented my business to my fellow peers and Bridget I feel confident in my business proposal was successful. The presentation was structured in such a way that it allowed me do discuss in great detail how my business would function, and although I am a particularly nervous speaker I feel I was able to deliver a concise and informed business idea, I did go slightly over on time but I tried to deliver as much information as possible. The slide breakdown is as follows:
01. Business Name/Product
02. Mission Statement/What does the business do?
03. Who are my customers/Segmentation Analysis
04. Competitor 1/SWOT Analysis
05. Competitor 2/SWOT Analysis
06. Competitor 3/SWOT Analysis
07. My product/Unique selling points
08. Promotional Method 1
09. Promotional Method 2
10. Promotional Method 3
11. Resources Needed/Outline of Initial costs
12. What happens next?/Impact slide

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Good Ink: Prepared Business Plan

Module Evaluation

OUGD204: Design Communication Through Type Elective

Short Module Evaluation

In short the module has influenced my practice in a good way. The plan of work has allowed me to grasp type right from the single character to a full-page document and was planned in such a way that it allowed it to grow. There have been many aspects of typography I found that I have never considered before. Type characteristics and the personification of type is something that seems basic but I have found to be an integral part of the type selection process and was pleased this was introduced early on. This has influenced my practice greatly and consequent briefs; taking more time out to consider the associations with typefaces is something I will take forward.
What has been questioning my practice is the way I work with layouts and again the personalities and the impression such a layout personifies. I feel I can confidently layout large quantities of information in an aesthetic manner but with what was introduced I feel I can do it with intent and where the design has purpose and hierarchy.
From here I would like to continue working with typography but go back to the individual characters and work on the personification of type in a more illustrative way. What interests myself most within typography and what I will continue to look at is the application of print processes, which was only briefly touched upon. Using type journal I was however able to document in particular the use of foil blocking as well as embossing and application of colour. Although the module has taught and influenced my practice, what it lacked was its application into situations and briefs; the personal CV leading to a business card etc, was a good way of understanding how it relates to our practice and something I could actually take away from the module as a physical piece.

You've got mail.

Making up the portfolio is only half of the current task in hand, I am also looking to send it to someone and this can have the biggest impact on how it is recieved. What kind of language to use, formal/informal or that meet between? How do I phrase 'look at my portfolio' without saying it, what language and what am I actually looking to get out of this contact?

Some listed agencies and designers:

+ B&W Studio

+ Studio on Fire

+ Aloof

+ Jordan Grey creative

+ Sea

+ Team Impression

+ Curious

+ Wink

+ Elmwood

+ John Banks

+ Design project

+ K2 (screen printers)

Module Evaluation

OUGD202: Design for Digital Media

Module Evaluation

1. Your ability to select, develop and evaluate a range of appropriate source material gathered through a breadth of appropriate research methods.

Sourcing good visual material for this project i found was the hardest part as there seemed to be few idents that almost directly linked to the subject in hand. I did however find inspiration through primary research by visiting the YSP to view the Rob Ryan Exhibit which provided a great inspiration point in terms of the look and appearance of the later to become idents, inspite the fact they were not animations. Saul Bass provided some ideas about using vector graphics to communicate and i also looked at stop-frame animations as a possible visual quality which i experimented with later on.

For the design of the dvd menu and the packaging the designs were inspired through the ident's appearance and so i developed my designs for them not based upon other examples of packaging, this helped to keep a consistency and not let other designs of packaging dictate what it is i wanted to produce. Looking back i should have looked at a few more that were relevant such as valentines day packaging, however i feel the design speaks for itself and furthers empasises the twist of the films being horror/gore for Valentines.

2. The level of investigation and experimentation into appropriate production media, processes and technologies.

Having previously worked using simple animation skills before i had a grasp on what could be achieved however i had never used after effects before to create animations. So starting from scratch i found the initial sessions really helpful in terms of getting to grips with the new software, i gained valuble knowledge about creating simple shape layer and movement of objects within a 3D environment. I produced various test pieces, some more seemingly random than others but i feel i showed how i got to developing my skills really well.

Staying away from the software i was able to show in detail through storyboards what it was i wanted to produce and working by hand allowed me to develop concepts that were visually engaging. Working with the computer as a tool i was able to develop an understanding on how to use after effects effectively.

3. The breadth and quality of practical skills, ideas and development.

Working away from the computer i planned the ideas before coming onto screen, i feel i let my designs take the fore-front of the project and not let the software dicate my designs. Of course there were exceptions mainly due to time availability. I feel i have produced some strong digital media pieces which have been massivly helped by putting in long hours of work and experimenting to get what i actually wanted from the software. A particularly useful part of the design was working with a limited colour pallet, this enabled me to work with a higher consideration to actual movement when animating objects, in terms of technical competance with using after effects i feel i have established a good basis of knowledge.

Obtaining realistic physical movement that flowed properly became something the i pressured heavily on the look at feel of the work i produced. Making slight adjustments to create a realistic drip set a standard for the rest of the work and so using the Graph Editor tool became one of the biggest tools used to obtain an accurate acceleration and flow of movement which translates into some really successful looking idents where inspite their hand-crafted appearance look and feel as if they are based on real-world physics.

I also experimented using hand-drawn animation based upon research that i had done and crit feedback, i managed to produce a short sample and quickly analysed that i would need a lot more time to complete a fully moving object in stop-frame animation.

4. The documentation, organisation and presentation of the work for this module.

For the Silent Movie brief all of the designs were produced on time and ready to deliver in presentation. For the Initial presentation of the Film Season i think i gave a consise and wealthy amount of information that supported my decision making through use of clear points and being really confident about my idea. I would personally liked to have involved some actual footage involved in my presentation to give a better idea about what it was i was looking at but unfortunately i still havn't been able how to fit moving image files into Powerpoint. For the next presentation of the 6-frame storyboards, again i was well prepared and illustrated what i intended to do really well, and then i was able to consider use of texture and handcrafted design from the feedback that i recieved.

In terms of time management i was able to complete my work on time with allowances for errors and unfinished work but after working so long i feel if i were to continue the work i would need and animator to work the animation for me.

5. The success of your final products in relation to the briefs.

I aimed to produce a series of 5 10 second Idents for a season of horror/gore films for channel five over Valentines weekend for a predominantly youth/male audience. I feel the work that i have produced suits that particular audience that i set out to design for and shows a good contextual understanding of not only the films but also about Channel Five's audience and identity as a whole. They have also been completed in terms of technicality at a high standard where through concerns about detail make the compositions work on a much more realistic pace.

For the design of the DVD although i did produce it to a high standard with good interactivity i should allow more time for proper proofing, this would help clarify any small mistakes such as spelling and grammar but also to ensure that the quailty is consistent throughout as some of the menus do become pixelated greatly.

In terms of the entire delivery i feel that i have completed this brief with a good considered design solution the has a distinct visual quality and effectively communicates its promotion of a good concept of films.

5 Things I will do differently next time and comments

Take more breaks when working on long-winded session on the computers.

Use more detailed storyboards to show more depth and pace of not just the moving image but the sound and when/where it might appear.

To shorten the amount of workload consider creating assets before working into DVD Studio.

Research possibly into greater depth After effects tutorials which may be beneficial in the development and help me gain a better understanding of the software.

Allow more time for testing and corrections if needed .