Roles: Branding / Identity, Web Design, Photography
EnglewoodBrews.com
This is one of those projects that easily excites me. I'm working closely with the team to help develop their aesthetic from the ground up, and will be part of an endeavor that will really help transform this South Side neighborhood.
Roles: Director, DP, Editor, Colorist
With a skeleton crew, we ventured out across the East Coast and Midwest to shoot a few “scouts” to highlight for D-Scout’s “People Nerds” conference. We basically had 24 hours for each subject and had to interview them and catch them in their respective elements.
Definitely a fun project, excellent people with fascinating stories.
Roles: All Visual & Communication Design, Branding / Identity, Web Design, Photography / Video, Ongoing Social Media & Marketing, Copy
Damnfinechicago.com
So in addition to my day-to-day design grind, I've got a few other ventures on the side. One of which is this cute little coffeeshop in Logan Square, Chicago. Myself a few other gents opened this much needed neighborhood cafe in Summer of 2016. My role - as one would expect - is the branding, marketing and design of everything Damn Fine. The gallery above just highlights a few examples of the space and merch. I've developed quite a bit of video content for social media as well as oversaw our successful little kickstarter campaign.
To view some of our more interesting social campaings - click here
Roles: Branding / Identity, Web Design, Photography, Video, Art Direction
Leboutier.com
What can I say about this project aside from the fact that it's been the most personal and exciting project I've worked on to date. Why? Well, first of all I'm a partner on the project and have (very little) equity in the bar - so I have a vested interest in its success. Second, it's been a full 360 project. I've pretty much had to touch every aspect of design and marketing - which is what I really enjoy. Lastly, living in Cambodia for 3.5 months to get this baby off the ground was a life-changing experience that I will cherish forever. I don't want to get too deep about it here - but when we meet about your job -we can talk about it. Long story short - the challenge and reward of living & working in such an amazing place around the most interesting people has been unparalleled.
To back up - I was asked to join two amazing folks on their quest to open a proper cocktail bar in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. I was tasked with brand development, menu, promo and web design, photography as well as video work (which should surface shortly). Not to mention I had to work with vendors and contractors and occasionally tend bar - among other things...A full schedule indeed.
Out of the gate I was a bit stumped on how to visually define the brand. We have a French name, but we're located in Cambodia, with somewhat of an Art Deco interior (at least on the first floor) and we're featuring amazing cocktails inspired by 60's era Cambodian Rock and Roll.
Sooooo...yeah. Kind of a lot of ground to cover.
So the challenge was - how do we create something that is high-end, yet approachable and fun but also pays homage to that Golden Era of Cambodian Rock & Roll?
So that's how we ended up with what you're looking at here. Fun and classic meets contemporary by way of color scheme and aesthetic.
In addition to the standard design "duties" I was constantly shooting to document the entire experience. Although I have a ridiculous amount of footage - I don't think I captured nearly enough. I plan on heading back in May for a bit but hopefully again soon to get the rest that I need!
It's going to be very hard to watch the baby grow from the other side of the world.
Roles: Direction, Consulting, Scriptwriting
A newly acquired arm of the Salesforce team was working on a product / promo video for one of their clients and they got stuck. They brought me in to help script, storyboard, direct and oversee the production of this video for Lucid Technologies. Their team executed on animation and editing.
Roles: Web Design, Video Production, Branding Assist
Uptake.com
I worked with an amazing team of creatives at this new multi-billion dollar startup which made the process that much more interesting. I was expecting to take on a different role, but ended up putting together a couple of Wordpress sites before their first major bit of press was released.
I also worked with my buddy over at Jupiter Cow to get some of the customization done. I'm wishing the best of luck to the folks over there. I don't think they'll need it though - going to be huge.
I also did a series of videos for them.
Roles: Producer, Director, Animation, Editing, Sound Design, Project Management, Consulting
IDEO contacted me to help with a video project for Zebra Technologies new IOT platform - Zatar. They had already developed the UI, web and branding components but the video was out of scope. They needed another vendor to provide a solid promo / overview video within a super aggressive timeline (2 weeks), and I was the lucky one (as I've been writing these I'm really noticing a theme here).
I basically took on the rolls of Producer, Project Manager, Director, Editor and Composer.
The folks at Mi Tocaya were looking for a refresh on their website and some new photos to properly represent their space. When they approached me to help out I was beyond excited. They're literally my favorite restaurant in the neighborhood and probably the best / most interesting Mexican cuisine I've ever had.
Without any hesitation I recommend visiting if you ever have the chance.
The good folks over at International Anthem contacted me to help them with a promo / mini documentary for one of their acts - Dos Santos. I had a super limited window to pull it off - but at the end of the day I think it works. Got to sneak in some drone footage too!
Thanks to Matthew Meschede for the additional footage.
The folks at Mi Tocaya were looking for a refresh on their website and some new photos to properly represent their space. When they approached me to help out I was beyond excited. They're literally my favorite restaurant in the neighborhood and probably the best / most interesting Mexican cuisine I've ever had.
Without any hesitation I recommend visiting if you ever have the chance.
Roles: Web Design, Photography, Video
tenurevodka.com
I was hired to help launch Tenure England, a new Vodka introduced by Sazerac. I built a simple site, produced a promotional video and shot environmental photos.
A fun branding / photo / web project for Chicago bar legend, Brad Bolt’s newest venture. The name was inspired by Nelson Algren’s collection of short stories - that all took place near or around this area of Wicker Park.
So this is my second branding project in Cambodia - and technically is still in the works. The project is for a new cafe / speakeasy in Siem Reap and has the potential to be one of the premier cocktail bars in the country.
Right now I'm only going to post the branding and photos as things are still under construction. Website and menu design's coming soon!
Roles: Direction, Web Design, Photography
theburnhamrestaurant.com
The Hilton Cleveland reached out to me to help them build a site for one of their new restaurants - The Burnham. They wanted something that could live on its own – outside of the property's own marketing channels. Working with their internal marketing department, we built a site that was relatively inexpensive but scalable and easy to maintain. I also did some interior and cocktail photography.
Roles: Concept Development, Branding / Identity, Shooting, Directing, Editing, Motion Graphics, Music Supervision, Copy
glassbackwards.net
Glass Backwards is an independent (unfunded) one-man (me) passion project that takes a “bottoms-up” approach to the cocktail video. In a nutshell - a reverse presentation accompanied by an thoughtfully-paired soundtrack and engaging typography. Although the project’s main focus is on cocktails (and the geniuses behind them) - the simple yet unique presentation has since expanded to other subject matter (food / furniture / promotional videos) and the concept has recently been “adopted” by a few national brands.
The site also offers a “recipe” section for easy-to-follow instructions and the videos have been used throughout the spirits / hospitality industry as unique, shareable promotional tools.
At the end of the day, this has been a fun project that I conceived out of ... restlessness. And surprisingly enough, a few people really liked it. So much so that it has been nominated twice for the Saveur Best Food Blog Awards (Best use of Video) has been written about in a few publications (Maxim, Chicagoist & PureWow) and was the recipient of a Webby Honoree in 2015.
Roles: Branding / Identity, Web Design, Art Direction, Graphic Design, Photography, Video
bondandroyal.com
This has been on of my biggest project to date . Sazerac Company decided it was time to really tout their craft spirits portfolio and they developed a new company to do just that. Fortunately for me I was brought in at the ground-level to help with everything from the naming and branding, all the way through to the development of training, point of sale and web materials.
Being pretty familiar with the spirits space - specifically with the catalogue in question - this partnership was a no-brainer.
Roles: Branding / Identity, Web Design, Video, Photography
sinkswimchicago.com
These are the types of projects I love - working with a group from the ground up to launch their business (although typically I prefer a longer timeline as this entire project had to be conceived and wrapped in 3 weeks). I have a long history with the group so had an idea of the type of work / look and feel that they were looking for.
Within the first week we needed to lock down the logo as well as the Glass Backwards video we used as a promotional tool. The PR team wanted to use the video to introduce their new chef - fellow Cleveland native, Matt Danko. So obviously a lot to tackle out of the gate.
Oh yeah, I also recently participated in their monthly Bloody Mary Battle and kicked ass.
Roles: UI / UX Design, Art Direction, Consulting, Video Production
For about 3 years I helped the Groovebug team develop the UI for their music curation and catalog apps. They had built the product as part of their NUvention Web program at Northwestern University and realized they were onto something great! They had actually contacted me to make their first pitch video which helped land them their Series A funding. Since then I've helped them improve / redesign the UI as well as the look and feel of each of their 4 apps.
In addition to their flagship iPad app, Groovebug, I have designed their iphone versions as well as the look and feel for the Bluenote, DG Discovery by Deutsche Grammophon, Wolfgang's Vault and several concept apps.
Roles: Creative / Art Direction, Concept Development, Shooting, Editing, Motion Graphics
It feels really good when a clients sees the value in your work - especially when it's the work that you're currently doing for fun. It really just validates all the time and energy you've been investing. For this conversation - I'm talking about Glass Backwards. My friends over at The Rail andHoofcase saw the potential for the concept and were the first folks to actually pull the trigger on a legit production - and collectively we couldn’t have been more thrilled. We even had some custom music made (which we all agree is extremely catchy).
A true collaboration, this “plate to pasture” concept had been in the works for over 9 months and has gone through its fair share of obstacles and complications – but it’s finally done – at least the broadcast versions. There are “extended” versions for the web that will most likely surface this fall that take a more detailed and literal exploration into the process – but for now – these condensed versions should work just fine!
Roles: Art Direction, Graphic Design, Packaging, Web Design, Photography
scofflawgin.com
If I were to list out my favorite projects to date - this one would be right up at the top. It was actually a FUN collaboration with the client - which can sometimes be a challenge - and I'm pretty thrilled with the end result (thanks of course to my boy Ian at Frost Design for the slick logo). On a side note, the gin is quite literally the best I've ever had. Hayman's got nothing on this hooch.
Buy it at fine shops throughout Chicago.
Roles: Concept Development, Shooting, Editing, Audio
I've actually known Anya for years - since college - and it's been pretty interesting to watch her skill and business acumen grow along the way. To that end, it's also been a lot of fun to offer whatever assistance I can on her journey and I really enjoy our collaborations. I will say that this particular video (A Presentation of Breakti Yoga Practice) was one of my favorite projects of all time.
Anya has developed her own style of yoga (Breakti) which loosely defined is a fusion of Yoga and Hip-Hop. It has been well received within the Yoga community but she found herself often having to explain what it meant, describe the positions etc. So I thought as it was a pretty diverse practice with homage to street culture, it would be great present as many positions as possible in as many locations as possible. Which is basically the end result here.
Anya spent DAYS scouting locations for my trip and planned it out perfectly. The entire shoot (sans one or two locations) was done over the course of one day about 14 hours. We started at 5am for sunrise in DUMBO, worked our way over to Coney Island and back to Manhattan. It was tedious but super fun. HUGE props to her for being able to pull it all off.
Below is the second video we made the following day - which is more of a classroom and overview piece.
I actually really like doing branding projects. Well, I like them if I can actually offer my input, you have a budget, and you're willing to take some time. If you're going to just crap something out, I'm going to have to pass – unless you have a boatload of cash.
Here are a few logos I've done in the past few years...
Within the past 5 years I've really started to enjoy photography. I can't call myself a "photographer" per se, but I can get a decent shot from time to time. Here are a "few" client photos for you to take a look at.
Here are just a handful of web projects that I didn't dedicate entire galleries to. Although I did also provide photos services for all of these as well.
http://www.feel-good-radio.com
http://www.twistedscissorschicago.com/
I love any excuse to do a motion project. Here are a few examples of projects I've done for start-ups, non-profits and corporate clients.
Rave flyers started me off...
ErgoImpact.com
Roles: Photography, Video editing & shooting
Ergo Impact is in the process of launching an amazing new product (seriously, it's pretty cool) and needed to revamp their website and get some marketing materials together. Working closely with DAO innovations, we developed a strategy, content and deployment.