LIVE Campaign: ODF

In mid 2012 a group of us received a project looking for a cause that we as young graphic designers can help support. The criteria was to find a NGO who are struggling to find support and help them out buy designing a campaign which will turn out to run as a live campaign if the NGO is willing to put their funds towards a campaign.

Our cause we chose was the Organ Donor Foundation (ODF) which helps donate organs to patients in need of organs. We saw this as a potential problem in South Africa because of the lack of donors and the need for organs. We approached the ODF and proposed what we want to do, they where excited to help and supported us all the way throughout the process of the project.

After 6 weeks of planning, designing, and refining some minor details, we presented the final proposal to the ODF and to our department. The concept of the campaign was a success, unfortunately the ODF couldn't run the campaign because of limited funds. In spite of actually running the campaign, we got to experience what it is to plan, design, and present a campaign proposal. Working with the ODF was amazing and we gained experience in working with live clients and understanding the principles of communication.

So here is how it rolled out;

#1: Poster for the 7 day campaign. What the campaign is all about and what activities will happen in 7 days time.

*Click on image to enlarge

#2: Created a hypothetical website that will be launched before the campaign for the campaign and future use. This would be the face for the campaign but still linked to the ODF's official website.

*Click on image to enlarge

*A mobile site will also be launched which will be accessible to a larger audience and draws more traffic to the website self.

#3: We also designed T-Shirts with some humorous quotes to lighten the seriousness of the topic.

#4: There is also a brochure that has a magnet at the back so you can post it on your fridge and be reminded of the cause. But to make it more interesting to have is it can be used as a bookmark, you can fold the brochure over the edge of you page, and be reminded of the cause when opening a book.

#5: Last but not the least, we made 2 videos which shows how you as an individual can save 7 lives one day by signing up as an organ donor. We made use of silhouettes so it applies to everyone out there. It is also effective because any person can relate to it, and of course some humour was incorporated to keep the audience attention and make them feel good.

- KINETIC TYPOGRAPHY -

- WE ARE ALL CONNECTED VIDEO -

This was an amazing project and one of my best team efforts I ever dealt with. I enjoyed it tremendously even though we didn't sleep much! I want to give recognition to my team members; Nadia, Gina, and Robert for working together on this project. We are a well oiled group which can take on any challenge.

So please sign up and become an organ donor! Even from 6 feet below, you can make a difference to 7 above.

Till Later!
*F

Changing Perspective

So I've been wondering how to be more creative every day. It is hard to maintain a creative mindset when you design. This is something I have been struggling with a lot lately. Since I started with my 4th year of studying it kind of created the sense of 'lets do research and ignore designing for a while.' Even though there is a lot of work that goes hand in hand and time management can become quite difficult to control, there is still this voice inside of me screaming to pic up a pencil to draw. Which is weird because drawing is not my strongest skill. And when you hold that pencil you realize how out of practice you are and you are stuck (designers block).

To get into this habit of designing new innovative things, you have to lay down some ground rules for yourself which will help you in being creative mentally and physically. Here is some things that can help you motivate yourself:

1. Reading graphic or any type of creative material. Even if it is a good novel or just reading comic books. Magazines and creative blogs is what keeps me going. I either get inspired by something and hop onto illustrator and experiment, or sometimes I just get an idea that I would make a note of and later follow up. N.B.It's good to take notes!

2. The second thing I would recommend is to subscribe to a YouTube channel and Facebook community pages. This is just another way of motivating yourself. You might see a photo on Facebook that has been done by another designer which interest you and you want to check out his/her work. That leads to more ideas for yourself!

3. Listen to music. Maybe you are one of those people who doesn't listen to a lot of music or may none. I would recommend to hop onto iTunes and just listen to the top10 at least. Music helps to stimulate you mind and also helps you relax. Even if it is alternative, pop, hip-hop, classic or rap it is GOOD to listen to something. Sometimes you might not even realize where you got your next great idea from. Music does play a great role in either expressing or motivating yourself.

4. Another important thing is to have a twitter account... This might not sound relevant but I assure you it helps! Following famous designers or reading the latest trends and news helps A LOT! REALLY! Just go and try it and you'll see what I mean. Staying up to date with the real world has a great impact on the way you think while designing.

5. Last but not the least it is important to have great designer circles. What I meant by this is plain simple Friends. Friends plays the biggest role in your designs because you have discussions about things that bothers you and always seeks to find something new to do. That new stuff helps making you see bigger pictures and well, create new ideas! As for my group of friends we would always reminisce how we can change the world through improving bad designs.

So remember next time when you are out with your friends discussing how bad that coffee shop menu looks or you get a tweet with a link to a new trending video on YouTube, take notes for next time you are bored and messing around on illustrator or photoshop. Who knows, it might just be the next big thing!

Till Later!

*F

Long Lost Blogs

So I've been thinking the other day how one can make time to write a blog entry daily. I mean, I barely get time to visit the bathroom! But how do people do this? Well, since I had time to update my blog I decided to start blogging again. Yes, after 6 months it hit me that I have to make some effort and work on my freelancing. So what I am proposing to do is to post something every week, does that sound good?

Anyway to get back in the game I have to get some new stuff going. I am planning to post some digital designs for your personal use, ideas and then some tutorials to help everyone that are struggling with Adobe software. So keep an eye out for posts and like me on Facebook to get the latest updates!

Till later!
*F