Self promotion & What I need

My partner is Mr Craig Laing everyone!
So, now that i have advertised myself, and also got my new partner, who has qualities and skills which I will need to tackle this brief, let's begin!

Business Card - I'm a Solicitor

Pt & Leading

2 Column

Times New Roman & Arial (Regular, bold).

7.5, 8, 8.5, 9



2 Column

Times New Roman & Arial (Regular, bold).

7.5, 8, 8.5, 9

Action Plan & Binding doc.

Initial Concept dev.

Cynical re-write of briefs

The Brief

OUGD202dvd Evaluation

This module gave me the opportunity to focus on something I really enjoyed and also the chance to get to know some new software.

I chose the spaghetti westerns of Sergio Leone for my DVD project. The westerns have so many elements of iconic imagery and design solutions that the range of material for me to consider and evaluate was fairly vast. The print based designs for the western films specifically, were varied, and gave me the opportunity to consider a range of possible aesthetics for my idents. The title sequences for the films also impacted heavily on my design decisions; the colours, the timing, the sound and the typography.

I feel that almost for the first time I have been able to fully focus on and understand the direction I was going in throughout the project. With the help of crits and tutorials I made confident and justified design decisions and also more importantly was confident enough to begin creating the idents early in the brief, to give me as much chance to develop the visuals as possible. Because of my confidence and greater connection with my project than I might have had previously, I had time to relax and sit back from my work and self evaluate it. I did not get behind on work or even feel rushed at any point to get back on track, it gave me the time to consider all the elements of the brief fairly equally.

Since the beginning of level 5 I have made a real effort to stay on top of my work, I feel I have done better this module than with the last, and as a result I have had more time to design, but also to do things other than design. My hobby is rock climbing and it is a part of my life that I am determined will not be pushed into the background and out of my weekly routine. I strongly believe that if anything is done too much, no matter how much you enjoy it, it eventually becomes a chore. This module I have found a balance that work well for me and as a result have enjoyed both the graphic designing and the climbing. This is something I hope to continue throughout the next couple of years and indeed into the further future.

The PPD sessions have made the reality of becoming a professional much more present day to day. It has made me think more about who I am as a designer, what makes me tick, and what possible futures do they hold for me. At present it is fairly obvious to me that my speciality areas of interest are in editorial, typography and photography as a part of my designs. However this is something that up until now I have not used in my designs, I will be keen to try it soon.

Also, looking through examples of portfolios and CVs I have now got an idea of where I would like my career to head. I am looking for a placement in or around London as that is where I would ideally like to be based once I have graduated. I would like to appeal to a high end, possibly corporate market to fit in with the London scene. I think there will be plenty of chance to for interesting projects with interesting companies this way.

The software I have learned this module was eye opening. I have only touched on motion graphics in the past, but I have found that I really enjoyed it, and in fact am possibly quite proficient with it. However I do not think it will shape the path I choose to take concerning my future career. I would like to progress my skills with it though, so that if I was every offered a job using it I would be capable of creating something great.

DVD Studio Pro was very exciting to use because it has now opened up a whole new possibility for a design solution. It has also taught me to keep track of all my files and be neatly organised. This is just as important if not more so when applied to a print based brief.

Overall I am happy with my work and myself this module. However in hindsight there are specific things that I would like to have changed or even just tested. The continuity of my idents bothered me in the last couple of days of the brief. I was not sure whether they would be recognized as a series when viewed in context on TV. The feedback on the other hand did put my mind as ease as it was good in that area.

I think one or two of my idents were stronger visually than the others, but I was constantly aware of my audience and the connection they have with the films. This informed the vast majority of my decisions. The films were varied, no two had the same character. Therefore I wanted each ident to reflect those characteristics.

Another thing I would have liked to change certainly is the DVD menus. I like the design I came up with and the general style of the DVD, but I feel the menus are a bit repetitive, especially with the loud gun-shot every time another menu is opened. Some variety such as a gun shot when moving forward to a new menu, and then a reload sound when stepping back to a previous menu, or even some background music could have worked. I should have tested these things, but eventually I had to finalise them and submit.

Overall I think this was a successful brief, as I have been able to apply everything I was hoping to get better at from last module. I also feel I reached a competent level of skill with the new software and was able to create some good work.

Things to consider doing differently:

• If the brief requires more than one element to be designed (such as the idents, the DVD and the packaging) considering them all as one will help clarify continuity and a clearer design direction.

• Organising files clearly and logically throughout a brief is integral to the success of the project as well as essential practice for the future.

• I think I need to ask more questions to myself about my brief at hand. Rather than waiting for a crit or a tutorial to guide me. I have said that I did this well, but there is always room for improvement.

• Although it didn’t turn out to be an issue, I did have some apprehension when coming into college to compile my DVD in DVD Studio Pro. This is because I had not spent enough time familiarising myself with it. So getting to know the software to a confident level before needing to use it would be good practice.

• We were told to bring questions to our crits so that we had something we could ask of that was directly relevant to that stage of thee brief. This was very useful, therefore from now on I will bring at least 4 questions to each crit, focusing on specific design decisions I am making at that time.

Rationale

By the late 60s, the western genre was falling into the shadows of word cinema. However in 1967 Sergio Leone, a fairly un-reputed director was given $200,000 and was told to make a western.

A Fistful of Dollars was a groundbreaking film, instantly becoming a classic. It had a simple but thoroughly entertaining narrative as well as having a spectacular score written by Ennio Morricone and memorable characters, played by actors such as Clint Eastwood, Henry Fonda and Charles Bronson.

The title sequences for the films were also fantastically stylish. Sergio Leone was a bold character, and his decision making over saw all of the films. For this reason there are bold colours, bold type and bold imagery. I have aimed to capture the essence of his films with use of these elements.

The audience I have aimed these idents at are males aged between 40 & 60, who have seen the films before and would consider themselves fans. They will understand the design decisions I have made and will relate them to the films.

The tone is ranged, depending on the film. ‘The Good the Bad and the Ugly’ is a loud and swift film; whereas ‘Once Upon a Time in the West’ is a slower more leisurely film. By using timing, motion and sound I have aimed to reflect each films own character.

I have chosen to design the idents for Film Four, as they have a knowledgeable audience regarding films. They also air their main feature at an appropriate time so that they do not end too late. Convenient for my target audience who most likely have work the following morning.

Finals of Packaged Product

Sticker Choice & Placement

I designed two stickers, which, in hindsight should have been reversed out, at least not white on black. However they do serve their purpose, just not in the way i would like them to on this occasion. I have learned my lesson. Print out duplicates as well as variations










I was literally just sliding the band on from all angles to see which held the case shut the best as well as being the most aesthetic.


Composition
Colour
Sticker
Ergonomics

Maquette Packaging

The maquette was used to give me an idea of how the red and black would work together and also refresh my binding abilities and the general 'know how' of making some packaging.

I made the space for the CD too small, glad I noticed that.
However I don't understand how i can trace a CD, then cut out the space and it still be too small...it makes no sense.

Packaging
Colour
Format
Scale

DVD Intro Colour Tests

The red on white is more in keeping with the continuity of the DVD and the Idents.
It is also more light hearted, less formal, it has more character.

Continuity
Colour
Timing

DVD Design

This is the an example of a 15 second looped video.
The problem with having a beginning and and end to the menus is that there will be a just back to the start when the loop is finished. However in DVD Studio Pro you can chanage the start of loop point. This way I can merge the loop back into itself.



This is an demo vid of what the menus look like and how they work with each other,

The final DVD menus are virtually static. There is some movement in the background and some slight extra features such as the blood drips and the jittering text.

I wanted to keep it simple and clear with an element of movement. The sound is loud and brash deliberately to draw reference to the idents and the films. I like to think that Sergio Leone would not have had a silent and peaceful experience planned for his DVD audience. Keep up the volume and the action.

Sound
Volume
Reference
Pace

DVD Studio Pro Flow

Final Schematic

After spending some more time in DVD studio Pro it has become apparent that some changes needed to be made.
click the 'schematics' label on the right to see comparison.

Final Idents

DVD Menu Storyboarding

Initial storyboaring of how the menu will move.

Pace, time sound and size have been considered initially.

Film Four Logo Treatments

Originally I had considered not including the film four logo.

But after disgussing during a crit, I decided that it would be best to incorporate it.

My initial design for the logo was the current film four logo with some texture on it to tie it in with the idents.

However these did not work very well so I decided to re-design the logo with much more direction toward my idents.

For a Few Dollars More Possibly Finalised

Once Upon A Time In The West Ident Possible Finalised

A Fist For Of Dollars Ident Possibly Finalised

Questions Brought to Crit

1. From the client’s point of view, (them being Film Four) do you think they would not appreciate me leaving the Film Four logo out?

2. Do these idents work as a sequence; bearing in mind I have created them with a different colours and a few typefaces to pay homage to the Westerns?

3. How well, if at all, does the music working in each of the idents?

4. The ‘Once Upon a Time in the West’ ident has been the most troublesome. Is this simplified version more impacting?

(black lines, overlay texture, frame sequence).

5. For the final Two idents, would another hand made aesthetic be a good idea; such as the ‘For a Few Dollars More’ ident. With the other being similar to ‘A Fistful of Dollars?

For a Few Dollars More Progression

with full audio and complete visuals I think this is successful. It captures the flare of this specific film, while paying homage to Sergio Leone, as a reference to it's knowledgeable fan base in the form of the graphics.

A Fist For Of Dollars Progress

After thinking about adding some texture to the background subtly, I thought it might look better if it were heavily textured.

The background is either going to be brown, light brown or white. In my opinion the white is working the best, it is most clear and remains true to the style of Sergio Leone's title sequences.

Also I have decided it works best without the initial speech at the beginning. The quality was not good enough and it rushed the pace of the sequence.

Once Upon A TIme in The West Ident Progress

Once I had added the sound to this clip everything fell apart. The Storyboard I had made just didn't fit with the audio.

The music was slow and timeless, whereas the animation was rushed and all in a hurry. So I made a bold move, (hopefully a characteristic decision, reminiscent of Leone himself...) and deleted every layer except those of Charles Bronson's face and name.

In my opinion this is working much better, even if it is very simple.