SAW Promotional Brochures

[graphicstyle7]

Goal is to have at least one, possibly both brochures completed by Sept. 5th.

• [ ] Shared dropbox folder for SAW assets @hutchowen
• [ ] @hutchowen conversation about content and design
• [ ] if it seems useful, share for review
• [ ] give to Roxanne for proofing
• [ ] research turnaround time for printing
• [ ] PS print https://www.psprint.com or OnlinePrint

[zee-em]

Here's the draft brochure that Lisa designed! @hutchowen @mmmaxine and others FYI

Link to PDF here: SAW brochure outside and inside.pdf

[hutchowen]

Hi guys, I tweaked Lisa's design with Miranda's images and am pasting screenshots. The actual PSD is in the Dropbox link, https://www.dropbox.com/sh/w1xiekixsfvtgm7/AADLSh6H042xE2VHjMrhAS2Ua?dl=0

Keep in mind this mock-up is very low-res and incomplete, but I'd like to go in this direction. It builds on Lisa's great story of "I want this, I want this!" then "have you tried SAW?" and "What is SAW" and "What do people saw about SAW?"

That structure is great. Miranda's comic is very similar and she has granted us permission to use her imagery (and we will get high0res from her soon...)

I've put some of Sally's in there, and Bjorn (who made it into Best American Comics!) to pepper it a little.

I think this, with another brochure that is photo-based, we will cover lots of bases!

Lisa, are you ok going this direction if I get you a couple fonts and the high res pics from Miranda?

[hutchowen]

Also, the front panel will need the most work lettering wise, and I may have Miranda draw us some new balloons and lettering...

Also, I didn't include the Why Gainesville part but it should be there, probably where the grass and flowers are...

Cheers

[zee-em]

@hutchowen I like it! Love the mint/pink/aqua illustration on the "what is SAW page" -- those tropical colors are great. love how Miranda's illustrations help tell the story that Lisa constructed so skillfully.

I'm pasting below my reply from the email chain about brand coordination and mood-boards... PLUS because I was thinking of it (and procrastinating on packing for our move), I made a Pinterest mood-board with lots of images and colors and type treatments other samples that make me think of how SAW feels -- so a "branding" experiment. Nothing here to copy, just ideas to consider

A couple words that captures the SAW vibe for me are: Sketchy, active, friendly, fun, clean, welcoming, warm, tropical, expansive, imaginative, working.

screenshot preview:

Here's the board

Maxine's added a few things here, as well. Re: her suggestions for a collage style, I might keep to the cartooning/hand drawn thing, like Tom has done so well above! I think too much collaged visuals will confuse people, as we do comics!

Hope these visual suggestions will be fun/useful for a larger discussion on visual branding for SAW.

My email: Lisa, thanks for sending this! I can see what you meant the other night, when you were talking about flow on the inside of the brochure, and using the different folded spaces differently. Great insights!

One thought I had is that whatever we do here, we might coordinate with the design work that Maxine is doing for the website, in terms of general style, colors, typography, etc. It would be great if SAW had cohesive "branding"-- or any visual style that is somewhat consistent from piece to piece, print to web, so that visitors know they're in the right place. Obviously things will be tweaked for print vs online, but common elements will be key.

One tool we used when I worked at design firms (and we did as exercises when I taught intro digital design classes) was a mood board. I wonder if this might help collect ideas for a SAW visual style that could guide both print and web projects. A mood board is more of a collage of color, type treatment, textures, etc, than a draft layout. And the next step might be to use decisions and thoughts there to create a super basic style guide, for reference for future design tasks. Just my 2 cents here! I'll pop this comment and Lisa's image into our Brochure GitHub issue, as well, for reference.

[zee-em]

Oops one last thing! @hutchowen I messed around with making the SAW logo into an ink spash! Obviously I REALLY don't want to pack. :)

[graphicstyle7]

Looks good to me! Let me know if I can be of further assistance.

[mmmaxine]

Man! I am loving this collaborative atmosphere! I think we're honing in on a great direction for the brochure. I think we should focus in on the idea of transformation for the brochure using Miranda's images—let's use testimonials that speak to transformation, let's find images from other students that imply transformation or ascension too.

We should also start thinking about the purpose of the photo brochure. In the meeting we had talked about it being about community. Any other thoughts? Should it be more straightforward? More geared towards people in Gainesville, like Lisa's original design was?

[hutchowen]

New comps of Miranda flier.This is definitely close to how I'd like to see it finalized. Main sticking points are format of images on the front pane. Have to look at Miranda's original art and see what fits and what has to be cut out, etc. Ideally it would be at least 2 or 3 separate panels with borders. I'll talk to her. Need to get her to draw us a couple new word balloons. Also, "What is SAW?" might be best in her lettering, but maybe it's fine as is.

[zee-em]

one thought-- might all the pastels make this look too much like it's for kids? not that we can't use pastels anywhere, but wondering if this easter-egg color combo, with miranda's playful drawings, are pushing it too far in that direction? esp if we want a range of students. maybe try showing it to a few disinterested parties and see who they think it might be for?

possible solution: try one neutral background and saturated pops of color on each page.

[hutchowen]

True, I'm pretty bad with colors. Zannah, want to propose a couple changes to the palette?

[hutchowen]

PSD for Lisa to take over, once we get high res images from Miranda:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/3y828cs7vhdf70d/SAW%20brochure%20outside-HARMON.psd?dl=0

I'll provide fonts too. We'll have to get high-res images from Sally and Bjorn too. I'd like to use Zannah's ink logo too

[graphicstyle7]

Ok. I will need the images and fonts. It's a very cute and instructive brochure. I do have to say, in a constructive way, there is not much contrast on the front flap. It's cute, but kind of blends in with itself. When I start to assemble the images and type, hope you don't mind a suggestion or two without changing the images or their order.

[hutchowen]

HI Lisa, yes the cover is what I'm least happy with at present, but Miranda sent the art and I'll send it along. I wonder if a 3 images for the 4 phrases or a larger first image or something might work. I'll send that dropbox link tomorrow, thanks!

[graphicstyle7]

Ok. I can do two versions of the front cover and let you decide.

[hutchowen]

Great, thanks Lisa! I'm uploading those files of Miranda's now. I'll let you know when they're up. Again, we can ask her for new word balloons, and maybe a new border or something now and then... Also uploading the font I used. I'm asking her to letter "What is SAW?", we'll see if she does it...

[hutchowen]

Ok there's fonts and Miranda's Tifs in there https://www.dropbox.com/sh/w1xiekixsfvtgm7/AADLSh6H042xE2VHjMrhAS2Ua?dl=0

[graphicstyle7]

Hey Tom, I have the layouts almost done, but I need two things. 1. The inside left panel has artwork by Sally Cantirinto and Bjorn Miner. I need high res versions of those pieces. 2. I need the copy for the different sections. I have a few "Students Talk About Saw" quotes from the first brochure, but that's about it.

[hutchowen]

Hi Lisa, thanks! And thanks again!

There are really even better quotes on the current web page. I will copy and paste here:

I don't know if we'll be able to get Bjorn's art fast, but we have something lying around at SAW. Can you email Sally at cantirsa@gmail.com about hers?

TESTIMONIALS! If you can fit all 4 great, if not choose from the top down. THANKS!

SAW was everything I needed, in the right place at the right time. I learned so much in such a short amount of time. I learned from some of the most dedicated, compassionate people I’ve ever met, with 9 wonderful classmates. If you’re thinking about going there, feel free to talk to me. -Miranda Harmon

I think back on my time at SAW almost every day, the amount I got out of my year there is amazing… I’d probably have quit comics without Tom and Justine’s guidance. I think a lot about how much I’d get out of taking the full-year program again. -Bjorn Miner

SAW has been the single best decision I’ve made for my creative career. It is run by some of the most generous, accepting and insightful people I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing. -Michelle Tabares

I travelled ten thousand miles from India to study at SAW. I’ve lived in five countries before, and I can tell you there is something special about the people at SAW that is rare anywhere in the world. My experience here has been invaluable. I have learnt so much about cartooning, art, nature and life. -Javed Imthiaz

[zee-em]

A suggestion on quotes: unless you're going to provide contact info in the brochure for Miranda, I might edit out the "If you're thinking about going there, feel free to talk to me." It's a nice sentiment, but it requires that people search out Miranda and make the intro themselves, which is a little odd.

We could put somewhere else on the brochure "contact us if you'd like to speak with previous students" and then have a way to connect people more officially.

If you'd like help proof-reading and copy editing the brochure, I can pitch in. 😸

[hutchowen]

Thanks zannah!

It's also easy to Google Miranda so it doesn't bother me either way. I actually kind of like the aggressiveness of it...

On Aug 17, 2017 1:29 PM, "zannah m." notifications@github.com wrote:

A suggestion on quotes: unless you're going to provide contact info in the brochure for Miranda, I might edit out the "If you're thinking about going there, feel free to talk to me." It's a nice sentiment, but it requires that people search out Miranda and make the intro themselves, which is a little odd.

We could put somewhere else on the brochure "contact us if you'd like to speak with previous students" and then have a way to connect people more officially.

If you'd like help proof-reading and copy editing the brochure, I can pitch in. 😸

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/saw-comics-gnv/planning/issues/10#issuecomment-323140593, or mute the thread https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AckrZ5X-HuVxnzmb9crb03HYoPxmJddbks5sZHhbgaJpZM4Oe3RM .

[hutchowen]

Hey @mmmaxine can you /would you provide @graphicstyle7 with some text for the spots in the brochure with no text? See above screenshots, but the sections are:

WEEK-LONG WORKSHOPS ONLINE COURSES PROFESSIONAL TEACHERS WHY GAINESVILLE? A PLACE OF TRANSFORMATION

obviously it will have to be edited to fit, but I imagine you guys have this already for the new site, and @mmmaxine you are SO GOOD AT THIS!!!

[hutchowen]

@zee-em do you have a high res version of the ink-splotch?

@graphicstyle7 do we need Miranda to draw a few new word balloons? If you send me a screenshot or something I can order that up from her!

xo everyone thanks!

[mmmaxine]

I can draft some text tonight! :)

On Thu, Aug 17, 2017 at 4:49 PM, hutchowen notifications@github.com wrote:

@zee-em https://github.com/zee-em do you have a high res version of the ink-splotch?

@graphicstyle7 https://github.com/graphicstyle7 do we need Miranda to draw a few new word balloons? If you send me a screenshot or something I can order that up from her!

xo everyone thanks!

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/saw-comics-gnv/planning/issues/10#issuecomment-323190417, or mute the thread https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/Acqpf-TBOmn3bg-nYDmhyACY__p6mWlEks5sZKd2gaJpZM4Oe3RM .

[mmmaxine]

@hutchowen @graphicstyle7 can I see the most recent layout so I know how much space I have? Thanks!

[graphicstyle7]

I have to be the one who does the new word balloons, since I'm working on the layout directly, it's better that I work on them and see exactly how they fit in with the type. Not a problem at all. : ) Otherwise, I just need the copy and I can have the first draft to show very soon.

[hutchowen]

Ok, let's just keep it in style with her other ones, line weight, etc...

Maxine is working on text!

Thanks Lisa!

On Fri, Aug 18, 2017 at 8:28 AM, graphicstyle7 notifications@github.com wrote:

I have to be the one who does the new word balloons, since I'm working on the layout directly, it's better that I work on them and see exactly how they fit in with the type. Not a problem at all. : ) Otherwise, I just need the copy and I can have the first draft to show very soon.

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Sequential Artists Workshop www.sequentialartistsworkshop.org twitter/instagram: comicsworkshop facebook: sequentialartistsworkshop

Tom Hart: tomhart.net

[mmmaxine]

Didn't get to this last night, but will work on it today!

[zee-em]

@hutchowen regarding the ink splotch, I found that graphic on this site: http://www.psdgraphics.com/psd/cool-ink-splatter-blue-splash/ they have a $4 license fee for unlimited use of the item (though it seems like it's on the honor system, you can download without paying). details here: http://www.psdgraphics.com/commercial-use/ do you want to buy a license for this graphic, or should we make our own splotch?

[hutchowen]

let's pay it but I don't have time for that yet!

I downloaded, thanks!

On Fri, Aug 18, 2017 at 11:03 AM, zannah m. notifications@github.com wrote:

@hutchowen https://github.com/hutchowen regarding the ink splotch, I found that graphic on this site: http://www.psdgraphics.com/psd/cool-ink-splatter-blue-splash/ they have a $4 license fee for unlimited use of the item (though it seems like it's on the honor system, you can download without paying). details here: http://www.psdgraphics.com/commercial-use/ do you want to buy a license for this graphic, or should we make our own splotch?

— You are receiving this because you were mentioned. Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub https://github.com/saw-comics-gnv/planning/issues/10#issuecomment-323378269, or mute the thread https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/AckrZ082bOAnznSA9uHEyqwVFt7rT9SHks5sZafLgaJpZM4Oe3RM .

--

Sequential Artists Workshop www.sequentialartistsworkshop.org twitter/instagram: comicsworkshop facebook: sequentialartistsworkshop

Tom Hart: tomhart.net

[mmmaxine]

Heya folks, Here's the copy for the brochure. Let me know which sections are too long. I made the "Place for Transformation" section about the Year-Long program, b/c it didn't have a section. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qMqXHFhn8aL-4l7MDUTqmTI5f-bXiHAMnrTn9Qxnmx4/edit?usp=sharing

[graphicstyle7]

Ok, thanks!

[graphicstyle7]

A few things about this version:

1. I could not fit "About Gainesville" in the brochure and keep the brochure looking uncluttered.

2. I have made a few minor changes in the design. Thoughts?

3. Still working on getting those two pieces of art from non-Miranda sources.

So, this needs to be proofread and I'm sure you have a change or two. Just let me know. : )

[hutchowen]

Hi Lisa!

Thanks for doing this! Are we working on the high-res file now?

I like the minor changes so far. I'd like to request a few more, and ask a couple questions!

Can we bring back the gradient on the side flap and back? Just some softness to the flat field. The front is ok, (but I'd like to address the balloons and text on the front. More on that soon.)

On the back, we don't need phone number or mailing address (we never check either of them), and probably not even email address. All we need in black is sawcomics.org and that de-emphasizes all that, while still remaining striking, and leaves us more room for a bit more text about week-long workshops, which I can happily add. Miranda's info is too bold too.

Online courses: the plant imagery probably is no longer necessary since we got rid of Why Gainesville (that's fine!) so maybe we should lose that pic for a bit more text about online courses, which I can again write.

A place of transformation. We don't need it twice, so let's lose the smaller, second one.

Regarding FONTS in general, it seems all the black handlettering is bolded and outlined or something? Maybe that's just the screenshot, but I think it's too much... Also in some places it seems stretched, italicized, and in other places not. The letterspacing seems inconsistent. We need to be consistent about all these things. I'd be happy to correct it myself when the large files are available.

Text font: is that Arial or Helvetica or something? If we're going to go san serif (which I like) I'd prefer something a little less wide, more the shape of the brochure. I'd like to recommend Gill Sans, but there are others. This will give us a more elegant text/frame ratio and also give us a teeny bit more room for text, which I'd like to use.

Regarding the cover, I love the bleed on the bottom characters!

A couple other issues though:

Lettering Balloons Drop shadows Design shapes

Lettering - we'll need to standardize this lettering. I think we need to get rid of the mechanical fonts (for "SAW" and "AFFORD IT"

Balloons - all the balloons need to be recreated, except the 3rd one. I can do it. Lettering needs to fit better inside... I can do this.

Drop shadows and design shapes behind it- I don't love these, but I see their purpose. I want to ponder on this and devise other ideas. I I think I'd like to lose the shadows and work with Miranda to generate a couple more organic shapes from her work like the one in the bottom panels.

THANK YOU LISA, YOU'VE DONE SO MUCH!

If you want to send me the high res files, I can take from here. I have a couple other printing jobs to go out this week anyway...

[graphicstyle7]

Ok, first off, yes, we're working with hi-res, printable files.

Second, I have removed the bolding from the headlines and changed the smaller type to Gill Sans, but have left the smaller type spaced the same for now.

The reason some of the type may seem to be slightly "off" is, when there are columns of text that go on for more than a few lines, the left and right are often justified so you have an even edge on both sides. It may seem to be spaced a little erratically, but if you look at a column in a newspaper, you will see the same effect. Generally, it's just a lot easier to read type that's a little unevenly spaced (avoid hyphens) but even on both sides. A ragged edge on the right makes it a bit harder to read down to the next line.

It's traditional to italicize the names of people who are quoted, so I went with that.

I'm assuming that's what you were referring to. Let me know. Also, let me know if I missed any corrections.

I leave the balloons and text inside for you, so I didn't change those.

And, You're Welcome! I am happy to help! : ) I will send you the InDesign files so you can edit the material. SAW brochure 8-23-17.pdf

[hutchowen]

Hi Lisa! Thanks for the files, it's great!

As for the italics, it wasn't the people quoted, those were fine, it was the headlines. I'll take a look, maybe I was CRAZYYYYYY

I LOVE AND THANK YOU FOR ALL THIS WORK!!!!!!

[hutchowen]

Hi everyone, the brochures are 95% done and here. THANK YOU LISA for getting the ball rolling, coming up with a great concept. Thanks Miranda for art, thanks again to Lisa for hard work isolating assets, thanks to Maxine for copywriting (you all realize she's really good at that right?!)

We're going to sleep on it over the weekend and send out for printing on Monday. Any last minute ideas, hurry!

[hutchowen]

Hey everyone! The brochures came in and look great.

BIG THANKS to @graphicstyle7 for conceiving the whole thing. I think the narrative was brilliant, Lisa and made for a great brochure. (I'm going to try to use the same concept and assets in a short video...)

Thanks to @mmmaxine for text and Roxanne for proofing and @graphicstyle7 again for trimming assets!

[graphicstyle7]

Y'all are welcome! Happy to help.