DesignEdge Regional Design Awards

design edge regional design awards.

For the initial launch of Canada’s first ever regional design awards competition Design Edge (a major Canadian graphic design trade publication) sought a unique brand and communication program that would entice designers from across Canada to engage themselves in the competition. Based around an identity referencing the “four corners of canada,” the campaign borrows heavily from icons of Canadiana: maps and passports.

animal wellness centers.

Animal Wellness Centers

Companions, not pets. That’s the creed of this fledgling California-based chain of animal wellness retail stores and veterinary clinics. Animal Wellness Centers needed a brand that conveyed their simple message of love and animal-centric well-being. I designed them a unique brand mark and collateral materials that reinforced that in a clean, modern approach.

nus consulting.

NUS Consulting

A world leader in utility management needed to reinvigorate their presence on the web, modernizing what had become a dated site. With over 13 offices globally, localization was an important factor. To answer these problems I designed and built a fresh, dynamic website on a multi-language platform, and fed it all through an easily editable content management system.

a. baldassarra architect inc.

Baldassarra

Exploratory Flash website for a Concord-based architecture firm. ABAI was looking for a simple way to showcase their work and introduce themselves. I built them an experimental artful interface to make the experience an engaging one, while making sure the work maintained center stage.

compass360.

Compass360

In my ongoing career with the wonderful people at Compass360, I’ve overseen the overhaul of our website twice, and been involved in countless other shameless self-promotional ventures. Here’s a sampling.

bfgoodrich:
the ride of your life.

BFGoodrich: The Ride of Your Life

BFGoodrich, via the Mustang Challenge race series, was running a contest throughout the season. The Compass360 team had already gathered some incredible footage from documenting the series, and I put some of that footage to use in a stylized motion graphic piece to draw people to enter the contest. We had over 4,000 entries in the first few weeks.

howard shrier.

Howard Shrier

A Toronto-based writer needed a website to inform the press and his readership about the latest happenings in his up-and-coming career. Having just released the first of a series of popular “nouveaux noir” crime novels, it needed to have impact. I designed and built Howard a website with moody, compelling full-screen images and clean layouts.

avenue.

Avenue

An early concept for both a naming and identity system for a fledgling technologies firm (what would become Continuum, elsewhere in the portfolio). The company deals with the transfer of patents to and from public and private institutions, from which the name “Avenue” was born. The two-way ambigram logo pattern reinforces this idea in a clean, playful way.

filmport studios.

Filmport Studios

Filmport needed a simple way to make the specifications and floorplans of their new studios available to film production departments and filmmakers. Not content to just make a boring site of technical tables, I built them a super-intuitive graphical interface for their data. And won a couple of awards for it.

aids committee
of toronto.

Aids Committee of Toronto

Celebrating its 25th year, the Aids Committee of Toronto was undergoing a rebrand, overseen by Compass360. Part of that overhaul included animated digital billboards to be displayed across the city, and a new website that could be maintained by internal staff after the initial design and build. I was happy to apply my skills in both mediums for a great cause.

lcbo.

LCBO

The LCBO, Ontario’s governing body of alcohol sales, took an unusual approach to their 2009 annual report in order to reinforce their environmental stance. They opted to release a small mini-report in print form (saving some trees in the process) and putting a full, media-rich report online. I built them a robust online presentation with streaming video and dynamic charts.

continuum.

Continuum

This technology patent transfer start-up needed a simple name and identity that would demonstrate what they did in some capacity, and position them in the fast-paced modern technologies market. Starting with a brand naming, Continuum was born and an eye-catching simple identity came with it.

walmart nation.

Walmart Nation

A documentary film, broadcast on CBC and created by filmmaker Andrew Munger, needed a simple promotional website to introduce the story and characters, while the film was nearing the end of its development. I created a motion graphic as a narrative website front-end, and the piece was so strong that it would be re-harnessed for the film’s main titles shortly before broadcast.

filmport.

Filmport

Filmport, a massive film production facility in Toronto’s portlands, needed a great deal of promotional materials to be produced in order to inform the public and filmmakers of its capabilities. This is a sampling of award-winning work I put together to promote it throughout its construction and development.

air india 182.

Air India 182

This documentary film, conceived and directed by filmmaker Sturla Gunnarsson documents the tragic 1985 Air India bombing that would be the deadliest pre-9/11 act of air terrorism, told from the perspective of 20+ individuals involved in some way. I designed and built this impactful teaser website which includes a trailer and streaming interview footage to raise interest.

52 media inc.

52 Media Inc.

A Toronto-based production company needed a clean, professional identity system that could be extended in the future to include other production branding such that they would feel related. Starting with a stark identity of simple typography, I built them an identity system built of simple layouts on complex backgrounds that add a powerful amount of depth.

mariani metal.

Mariani Metal

An established North American metal fabricator, whose notable projects include the American Air Force Memorial and Frank Gehry’s Weatherhead and Art Gallery of Ontario projects, needed an engaging experiential website that would position them beyond the fabrication industry and into the realms of artistry and impassioned design. This robust, media-rich website seeks to do just that.

mike butlin.

Mike Butlin

An up-and-coming multi-instrumentalist and busy singer/songwriter, Mike needed a website that would introduce him to the world at large in a playful, interactive manner. I built Mike a simple quirky identity and extended it into a website that would showcase his musical talents and allow his fans to follow his rising career. He can also update all of the content himself.

netx.

NetX

Attempting to differentiate yourself in the market of technological infrastructure and cabling is no easy task. But building a website in an exploratory and fresh way, telling your story with compelling simple illustrations and demonstrative visuals, is a great start.

visual inclination.

Visual Inclination

This interdisciplinary studio, largely involved in website design and identity work, was undergoing a refocusing of its service offering as it became more involved with production and post-production for television and film. It became obvious that their existing brand was no longer relevant, and a new visual system playing off of its brand name was introduced.

reactor films.

Reactor Films

Santa Monica-based Reactor Films, a representative agency for filmmakers and directors, was undergoing a brand overhaul with a grungy, tattoo-esque new image. Part of that reimaging was a new opening title slate and composite artwork that would be part of their DVD promotional kits.

ontario nurses
association.

Ontario Nurses Association

In 2009, Ontario was experiencing a nursing shortage and issues with the government over healthcare cost cutting had come to a head. The regulatory nursing body of the province decided to make their issue known through a campaign across radio, television and web. Cuttingnursescuttingcare.ca became a place to inform the public, raise support and give the public a voice.

stokefire.

Stokefire

A Virginia-based brand consultancy was undergoing a rebranding. Part of the brand conceptualization process garnered a great of deal of ideas, many of which would not see the light of day. Here’s one of those ideas that I was sad to relegate to the “no” pile.

paul reddick.

Paul Reddick

Internationally-renowned blues artist Paul Reddick needed a way to encapsulate his incredible body of work as he released his first “Best Of” album, compiling some of his favourite tracks. I built him an engaging media- and animation-rich website to showcase his career, past and present: a place where users can get to know Reddick and find out about his next gig.

possible worlds.

Possible Worlds

A small foundation, founded on the powerful message of bringing hope to orphans in Thailand and Nepal living with AIDS, was in need of a hopeful, uplifting image for such a cause. The solution: a simple, powerful distillation of iconography. The organization would also produce an award-winning documentary film which I was thrilled to lend a hand in both creating and promoting.