Communication Artifact and Collaborative Design

For our collaborative project, I put my efforts into creating a rebranded logo for Swig, the local soda bar of St. George. To start, our group took a look at the current Swig logo and mutually agreed that we should "mix it up" so to say.

Looking at this logo above, we decided that while looking colorful and playful, it didn't necessarily stand out. Aside from the color and the diagonal vector created by the slanted text, the logo doesn't really do much for representing Swig as a whole. Swig, being all about cool, flavorful drinks and tasty treats, is more than just gradient text with a suggestive I. Anybody who goes to Swig knows it's all about mixing up unique flavor combinations, so we felt the logo could reflect that in some way.

Initially, the themes of tropical and mixing were the main focus. The idea of palm trees used rhetorically to make the customer think of tropical islands and somewhere with water, a breeze and cool, refreshing drinks. Also, the near yin-yang swirl of the trees would have been reflective of "mixing it up". Considering the "I" from the last logo, I incorporated the outline of a styrofoam cup into the first brainstorming draft. The above logo is that draft. From that draft, I recognized the clunkiness of the tree trunks and the near awkwardness of the cup in lieu of the letter I, so onto the second draft.

By the time the above logo was drafted, our group was still considering a color palette to adhere to. In my head, I thought tropical, then Miami, then late 80's early 90's. I would say I got a bit carried away with those ideas, and on the other hand, I actually liked this logo quite a bit. In retrospect, I realize that there is a bit too much gradient going on, but the ideas and purposes for them were there.

Picture milk being poured into your freshly brewed black coffee. Now picture a cola getting shots of flavoring poured into it. I wanted to visually convey the idea of something fruity blending with something plain or without variety. The gradient was to represent that and whether it did so effectively is debatable. The ideas of the palm trees remain the same as the original draft, and the cup has been moved for no actual reason other than aesthetics and the fact that it's representative of soda.

Higher Saturation

After the second draft of the logo, our group had agreed on a style guide. This meant reworking the previous logo into something that conforms to our guidelines. With the tropical colors and brand wide text, I was able to create the above logo building off all previous iterations.

Following design principles, I adhered to a base form of a circle. With the palm branches as a topper, I incorporated both border and shadow to make the branches pop. Inside of the circle are lines which create a swirl, and the swirl to represent the motto of Swig, to "mix it up", and "it" being the drinks. Now, within the swirl, I used two colors that were of relatively similar value. The darker tones of the circle contrast the dominating branches above. This use of contrast creates a balance in the logo, where under the strong, powerful branches is a shade-like place to relax and refresh. 

Considering that colors like blue and purple are more relaxing, placing the name in the center was a no brainer. "Swig" is in the more welcoming, relaxing part of the logo, but that softer area couldn't stand on it's own.

Another benefit of tropical colors is that they can be used to instill an appetite in those who view it. Consider McDonald's and their use of red and yellow. The two colors are very well known to attract an appetite and the thought of food. Denny's and Burger King are no strangers to this principle. So when I placed the yellow as the dominant color of the branches, I definitely had this in mind. The border of the branches is green (coincidentally, another color used for appetite attraction), and the shadow being the pinkish-red. Similar to how other companies use these colors, but less aggressive and a little more juicy.

On texture, my idea was to keep the texture smooth as to represent the smoothness of a tasty soft drink sliding down your throat. Swig isn't supposed to be rough and tough, it's supposed to be smooth, so my design reflected that.

Not much I could consider with space, seeing as that is more closely tied with collateral and not much with the individual logo itself. I would say, however, that the use of shadow on both the branches and circle give the logo a tad bit more depth than if I were to leave it flat. It may not do much for space, but it at least makes it more visually interesting.

The Law of Similarity could be used to describe this logo. The branches and circle come together to make a new shape, one that has colors with similar values. While creating this, each element was once an independent object with no color to group or distinguish it. Now, each element has come together and made a unified new design. The objects being in the same proximity of each other are grouped together as such.

At a glance, one may not notice the difference between the circle and the branches; a phenomenon that can be explained by the Law of Pragnanz. The Swig logo is reduced to the simplest form possible and is not overburdened with noisy extras, or underwhelming with too simple of design.

Overall, the goal of the logo was to represent Swig and encapsulate what the company is about, as well as make something that is visually stimulating. According to the vocabulary of design, I would say this logo adheres to principles that are attractive and effective, maintaining purpose and intention with its design.

Below is our group style guide, as well as a link to the group promotional spot for Swig.

Swig Promotional Spot

Mis-en-Scene - Now You See Me, Bank Robbery

Now You See Me is a fairly original film from the last decade, focusing on magic tricks and heists and how to the main characters use the two together for their personal gain. One of the film's main points as it progresses, is challenging the viewer to question the difference between magic and reality. Regardless of how the film was received, it definitely has a talented team in the art department that was able to create some very visually stimulating set pieces.

For this film, Thomas Valentine was the supervising art director, the man in charge of executing the production designer's desire for the film and giving it the unique visual style that it has. Valentine was involved with some acclaimed films such as Captain America: The Winter Soldier and for comparative purposes, Sam Raimi's Spider Man 2. 

Now, the films Spider Man 2 and Now You See Me are completely different in terms of style, but Valentine's work on Spider Man, which had a $200 million budget, could have given him the necessary experience to help his future projects be visually interesting. When working on Spider Man 2, there was also a bank scene and except in a mildly different context. Instead of robbing a bank as part of a magic trick, the bank was just being robbed by Doctor Octopus. Anyway, in both cases the banks have distinct looks. As a stereotype, banks have vaults and large vault doors. Now, walking into a Chase or Wells Fargo bank, you're not going to see a giant vault door just sitting in the back of the bank. Movies, of course, are different, and a vault is commonly associated with a bank; so when we see a vault in a movie, we know it's a bank. It's visual symbols like the vault that help us orientate ourselves inside the world of the movie we're watching. These symbols and cues help us watch a film without being explicitly said where and what is going on.

That being said, sometimes a film can get lost between cuts if the environments are too similar. In a film, there needs to be a visual way that the viewer can distinguish between cuts and scenes, as well as contrasting situations happening simultaneously. In Now You See Me, during this particular sequence, we have one character go from the stage to the bank vault. Now, as an art director, how can you distinguish the two locations so that the viewer can subconsciously keep up with the cuts? In the case of this sequence, it's almost night and day; the stage is dark, yet lit enough that we can see the protagonists, and the vault is bright and shiny. On a visceral level, we might associate shininess with wealth, an idea that is very superficial but one that can help your mind make that connection. Of course the bank is going to be shiny, and of course the stage is going to be black because stages are usually black. The art director isn't doing anything risky with these set pieces, but he doesn't have to. Because of this contrast, we don't have to think about where the film is going, we just know we're there. It's this basic principle that, if followed correctly, allows the film to succeed in other areas. If it's not followed correctly, the film is clunky and confusing to watch.

Referring to the vocabulary of design, it's hard to say whether or not Mr. Valentine really did anything special with this bank scene. The line design of the vault is what you'd expect- columns and rows of color of the interior, the small, intimate space and the sleek, smooth texture all around. Though nothing terribly innovative happened with this scene, nothing innovative really needed to. Considering the vault was only in the film for a fraction of its runtime, it didn't need to be anything too special. It was, however, pleasant to look at and met expectations.
In Gestalt Principles, we can apply the Law of Similarity to the copious amount of money before this character. As well as Pragnanz, we see the money as just "a lot of money" even though it could be in different quantities in both the blue and red stacks, as well as different dollar amounts. We know that all the magicians are on stage based on their proximity, and how the banker isn't there since he's not within their proximity.

From a design standpoint, it is very simplistic because that's what it needs to be. Thomas Valentine did a fine job overseeing the artistic direction with this film, specifically this scene. As I mentioned earlier, with the art design being executed effectively, that leaves the other departments able to do their job exceedingly well. If it wasn't for decent art design, the editors might have a difficult time cutting together the sequences to make sense. If the set pieces weren't decent looking, the director of photography might have a difficult time shooting a good looking film. Art Direction is such a key part of film making and makes a huge difference when done properly. Now You See Me isn't a film with stunning visuals necessarily, but it is a great example of how seamlessly sets and designs can blend into a film.

Now You See Me

Cinematography by Mitchell Amundsen and Larry Fong

Production Design by Peter Wenham

Art Direction by Thomas Valentine (supervising art director) and Scott Plauche