The Process

Elly Diaz
Project 2: Icons
Project Brief

For this project, I was instructed to select a movie from a list, and
then create a series of icons that convey the plot of the film.

Visual cohesion, clarity, and consistency were emphasized as

important facets of the project. As such, I tried to focus on these
aspects of the designs throughout working.
2.1: Watch Film

I selected Everything Everywhere All At Once as my film because I’d seen it before and real-
ly enjoyed it. I also felt its use of surreal imagery would make for interesting icons.

I rewatched the film, skipping through it a bit, and took notes on my favorite parts and sec-
tions that I felt were vital to the film’s identity.
2.2: Moodboard
I created a moodboard, collecting a series of icons that I felt used a style I’d like to draw inspira-
tion from for my own icons.
2.3: Sketch
I started sketching out general ideas for each of the icons. I had a more illustrative style in mind
while sketching these, which I would ultimately decide against in favor of a more geometric
style.

I tried to keep the sketches pretty loose and more conceptual so I could change them as needed
later on.
2.4: Start in Illustrator
I began recreating some of the icon sketches in Illustrator.

I placed the sketches on a gird in the program, lowered the opacity, and began drawing over the
sketches using the pen and line tools. I made some alteratiosn throughout as I felt was necessary.
 2.5: Variation

I made a series of alternate takes on each of the icons I’d already designed. I experimented most-
ly with more geometric / simple styles in this phase as I felt my former icons felt less like icons
and more like illustrations, which would not have met the project brief.
2.6: Color Tests
For this section, I started
experimenting with different
possible color palettes for the
project.

I selected my two favorite sets

out of the 4 variations I made
and applied different colors to
each of them.

With the first palette, I

tried to go for something
bright and all-encompass-
ing as I felt that suited the
tone of the film.

It felt a bit too bright,

though, so after that I
focused on saturated but
more monochromatic
color schemes.
 2.7: Complete Icons
I finish creating the outlines
of all of the icons in Illustrator
and apply color to all of them.

I opt for one of the geometric,

simplified variants, and a blue-
and-white color palette.

I also incorporate accent lines

and hatching throughout all of
the icons to create consistency
and connect each of them to
one another.
 2.8: Text

I then experimented with a bunch of different typefaces to use for the movie’s title text.

I stuck with display fonts as this poster will have little to no text other than the film title, so mak-
ing it stand out alongside the icons is important.
2.9: Poster
I finalize the poster, laying out all of the icons, organizing them, and incorporating the text. For
the type, I decided on the typeface Snug Sharp VCF with some spacing alterations.

I create two variants: a poster that follows a clean grid, and a poster with more of a slanted layout.
I also create some real-life mockups of the poster to get an idea of how the design would look in
the real world.
2.10: Pattern
Using some of the finished icons, I designed a pattern.

I tried to stick to sort of a “cramped” style for this.

I then also made a mockup of the pattern to see how it might look on physical paper.
 2.11: Stickers

I take some of my favorites out of the designs and make a sticker sheet of them. I used the follow
path feature in Illustrator to set up a cut behind the stickers, allowing for them to be printed and
cut correctly by printers.

I also added in the film title to help viewers identify what the stickers are referencing.
 2.12: Sequential GIF

For the last phase of the project, I make a GIF including all of the icons in an animated sequence.

I combine the icons as frames in Photoshop, and put a 1-second gap between each the icons. This
is enough to allow some breathing room without lingering too long on any single icon.
Project Reflection
I’m pretty happy with how my icon project turned out overall. It was honestly difficult
for me as I’m not a huge fan of the general simplicity required for icon design; while I
like simple designs, creating so many in the same exact style in short succession got a bit
tiring.

I think this was also just because a simple style didn’t really feel right for this film as it’s
so over-the-top in its own visuals, but I don’t think I would have been able to keep my
icons consistent if I hadn’t used a simple style. It led to me ultimately not really feeling
like my icons matched the tone or aesthetic I wanted, even if I’m happy with them on
their own.

In the future, I think maybe I’d experiment more with ways to use an illustrative style
while also actually keeping them as icons. I think I maybe leaned a little too far in the
“simplified” direction when it wasn’t totally necessary. I’d also like to get better at creat-
ing more detailed designs in Illustrator, anyway, so it’s a good idea all around, I think.

I think my pattern designing skills could also use some work; I’m not totally happy with
the end result for the pattern section of the project. It’s passable, but a lot of the spacing
feels off.

I’m very happy with how the text for the final posters turned out. I think they’re my fa-
vorite part of the design, aside from the rock icon. I spent a long time tweaking the track-
ing and kerning between several individual letters, and I think it paid off. I do worry the
closeness of some of the characters decreases its readability, but I think visually it turned
out pretty strong, so I’m happy about that.

Overall, I’m pretty happy with what I made, though there are definitely parts I would
revisit and tweak if I could - specifically the overall style I went with, and the spacing on
the pattern section of the design.
Project 3
Project Brief

For this project, I was instructed to design a series of posters, a so-

cial media campaign, and an infographic following a specific social
awareness campaign. In my case, I selected raising awareness about
suicide rates, particularly the youth suicide crisis.

A cohesive theme between all three posters and their accompanying

graphics is important to maintain throughout this project.
3.1: Research
I began by looking up papers and statistics related to suicide rates and the youth suicide
crisis.
3.3: Sketch
I then begin sketching concepts for posters for the campaign.
3.4: Type Studies
I test out various typefaces trying to determine which one to use for the text in the posters.
I keep an eye out for texts that pair well together.

1.
LOCK UP YOUR GUN 11. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 21. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Snug Sharp VF - tense, tight Microsoft Yi Baiti - cold, modern Nueva Std - fun, loud

2. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 12. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 22. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Old English Text MT - serif, fancy, old Microsoft Himalaya - passive Palatino Linotype - magazineish

3. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 13. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 23. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Nave - clean, airy Niagara Solid - sharp Lucida Bright - ^

4. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 14. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 24. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Bahnschrift - simple, strong Orator Std - cold, strong Letter Gothic Std - simple, softer but
cold
5. lock up your gun 15. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 25. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
CoFo Peshka VF - tight, strong Onyx - flowy Impact - very loud, strong, bold

6.  16. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 26. LOCK UP YOUR GUN

Source Serif Variable - strong, tense R41 Etoile - fun, eyecatching Haettenshweiler - loud, strong

7. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 17. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 27. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Rocinante Tilting Variable - ominous TW Cen MT Condensed - simple, concise Goudy Old Style - clean, fancy

8. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 18. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 28. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Baskerville Old Face - strong, composed MS UI Gothic - simple Gill Sans MT - dark, sharp

9. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 19. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 29. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Birch Std - sharp and fancy Modern No. 20 - fancy, magazine-ish Berlin Sans FB - loud but soft

10. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 20. LOCK UP YOUR GUN 30. LOCK UP YOUR GUN
Book Antiqua - strong, composed Mongolian Baiti - clean, neutral Poor Richard - fancy, smooth
3.5: Exploration
I take my favorites of the former sketches and begin experimenting with more final de-
signs for them. I lean toward a more illustrative, traditional art style for these, trying to
capture a gritty and morose tone.

Eye Contact + Overlap ; Illustrative Style, made in Krita

Brush textures, clipping masks

3.5: Exploration Cont.
I continue experimenting with possible final designs, trying out different methods for each.
I continue leaning toward a textured, chalk-like style.
3.6: Final Posters
I select my favorites of the previous designs and clean them up, adding some finishing
touches and making sure all three posters feel connected to one another.
3.7: Social Media
I redesign and reformat each of the previous posters so they can be uploaded to social
media. I keep in mind preferred practices and designs that do better on certain sites while
designing.

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Twitter
3.8: Infographic
Next, I begin working on an infographic featuring data related to suicide rates. I start with
a sketch, opting for a timeline of suicide rates to show their gradual rise. I also sketch
icons to include alongside the graphic.
3.9: Infographic Dev.
I continue working on the infographic by finalizing the icons. I design all of them in Ado-
be Illustrator to be used alongside the final graphic.
3.10: Infographic Final
I finalize the entire infographic, taking the sketch and rebuilding it in Adobe Illustrator.
I mess around with several of the icons, and opt to include 5 specific ones as I felt they
paired well with and built off of the concepts in the graphic better than the others.

I used a black, white, and red color scheme to link it to the posters and social media de-
signs.
Final Products
Project Reflection
Overall, I’m happy with how my posters turned out, and okay with the infographic.

I wish I had spent more time developing the infographic and its icons - the icons in particular I
really struggled with. I was aiming for a simple, silhouetted appearance, but I feel I made it too
simple, similar to my last icon project. I’m realizing icon design may be a weakness I need to nail
down and work on.

I do like my final posters, though. I think the third one feels a bit out of place - its use of blue rath-
er than red as an accent color separates it a bit too much from the other two, I feel - but aside from
that, I feel they’re visually strong. I’m very happy with the first poster focusing on the gun. I’m
pleased with my use of texture throughout all the posters as I think it adds a lot to the tone.

I sort of wish I had pivoted my campaign to focus specifically on gun safety and the importance
of safe gun storage in relation to suicide - I think the posters jump around in theme a bit, from
gun suicide awareness, to general mental health awareness. I could have definitely worked more
on making sure my message and theming was more specific. While each poster works well on its
own, I think, and they visually match up, (for the most part) I’m not sure how strong of a link there
is between the message of each poster. I think I should’ve focused more on that for sure.

Overall, I’m happy with how this project turned out, especially my posters. It also helped me iden-
tify some areas of weakness I need to work on, which I’m grateful for.