OX Annual 2019 by OX Creative

S N A C K- S I Z E D

You Need Less Than You Think J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford “Give me a lever and I’ll move the earth,” Archimedes is believed to have said. Was this arrogance? I don’t think so. The ancients had the confidence to dare greatly, even though we see them as being handicapped by their position on the timeline of history. Can you believe that in 230 B.C., someone figured out the circumference of the Earth using only a deep well and a stick? Yes: no Global Positioning System. No laser measuring tapes. Just a deep well and a stick. And he was super-accurate. There is a stupid-simple solution to everything. Even the biggest, most daunting challenges. A stupid. Simple. Solution. You just need a creative mind to give it some pure. Focused. Thought.

F E AT U R E D 3 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OX AS TASTEMAKERS 3 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2019 TREND REPORT: SOCIAL 36....

2019 TREND REPORT: MOTION & FILM

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CASE STUDY

2019 TREND REPORT: DESIGN

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RETAIL EXPERIENCE

BLAST CA M P

EDITORIAL 1 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . STOP

REVISING YOUR LOGO, START BUILDING YOUR BRAND

2 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . MASTERING THE ART OF

SELF-LEADERSHIP

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QUESTIONS FOR BUILDING YOUR BRAND RIGHT

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ON FEEDBACK

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INTERN STORY

FEATURED

74 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TELL

FEATURES:

THE RIGHT STORY TO SOLVE THE RIGHT PROBLEM

8 0 . . . . . . . . . . . HOW WE MEASURE OUR LIVES

ARTICLES 1 6 . . . . . . BIG

2019 TREND REPORT

DATA. LITTLE DATA. REAL DATA

1 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LIFE. SHARED 2 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WELCOME

TO THE JUNGLE

5 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . THE GOOD WE SEE

6 6 . . . . . . . . . MORE THAN A COMEDY SPECIAL 6 8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FORCES

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4 2 A R / V R R E TA I L EXPERIENCE

CAMP

CONFERENCE

ARTICLE

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MORE THAN A C O M E DY SPECIAL

AM SERIES

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ZERO

CHICAGO

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S N AC K- S I Z E D

0 3 . . . . . . . . YOU NEED LESS THAN YOU THINK 41 . . . . . . . . . . BRANDS

KNOW WHO THEY ARE

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Ta s t e m a ke r s Social Motion & Film Design

OF INFLUENCE

CA S E S T U D I E S

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PACK

THE NUMBERS

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STOP REVISING YO U R LO G O , S TA R T B U I L D I N G YO U R B R A N D

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EDITORIAL

LIFE. SHARED

OX O N F E E D B AC K

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EDITORIAL AN INTERN S T O RY

EDITORIAL

ART ANNUAL 2019

BLAST CAMP BRANDING >

ART ANNUAL 2019

BLAST CAMP

C R E AT I V E D I R E C T I O N + B R A N D I N G Hundreds of teens. Hyped up on sugar. Searching for purpose. BLAST is a youth retreat packed with inspiration, teaching, and dodgeballs to the face. OX had the opportunity to create this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s camp brand look and carry it out in a number of deliverables, which included videos, booklets, hoodies, hero art, and an app. Early in the project we had a photoshoot in the studio with actual students from the youth group. These photographs would be key art in this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s camp branding.

purpo identity god

OX c r e a t e d a c u s t o m a p p that allows students to make the most of their ex p e r i e n c e b y g u i d i n g t h e m t h r o u g h e ve n t s , h e l p i n g them to make meaning ful connections, and locating late-night snacks.

The app has dozens of embedded motion graphic elements that feature s t r e t c hy t y p o g r a p hy, transparent raincoats, and repeated repeated repeated wo r d s . A m u t e d c o l o r palette with hits of u n ex p e c t e d b r i g h t s help to keep the app f r e s h a n d t a s t y.

Rather than printing yo u r s t a n d a r d h o o d i e , w e u s e d g l o s sy dimensional plastisol, which causes ink to rise off the material, creating â&#x20AC;&#x153;puffy ink.â&#x20AC;?

CA S E S T U DY | K AT I E K I C K | @ k a t i e _ k i c k _

STORY

WHERE ALL THE BEST ONES ARE

0 1 / CA M PA I G N T H E M E

This year, OX was invited to collaborate with STORY, an immersive, two-day conferencestyle gathering designed to inspire, challenge and equip artists, creators, and storytellers who work in a variety of industries. We created custom visuals and an array of print and digital materials for their annual gathering. We excitedly dove down the rabbit hole and dreamed up the perfect visual approach to this year’s Alice in Wonderland theme.

Within the Alice in Wonderland theme, a key quote surfaced that spoke to the madness that lives within all creatives:

02/ BRAINSTORMING

“Have I gone mad? I’m afraid so! You’re entirely bonkers. But I’ll tell you a secret… all the best ones are.”

Our brainstorm brought together multiple creative voices. We presented four approaches, each centered around a unique analog object: a mirror; the Mad Hatter’s hat; a pocket watch; and tea.

0 3 / M O O D B OA R D I N G The mirror concept was ultimately chosen as the central visual. Mirrors help us to recognize the madness within ourselves, which tied into the theme quote.

04/ THEME ART

05/ PHOTOGRAPHY

The moodboard, the campaign theme, and the story of Alice in Wonderland influenced the creation of the theme art (see right page). There are more than 25 images composited in this hero art, and the typography was hand-lettered.

OX collaborated with photographer and art director Jeannie Albers to produce a set of Alice-themed images. These were created for use in the theme art, the social campaign, and in various digital and print materials.

Credit for moodboard images can be found on OXs Pinterest page: https://bit.ly/2ML1YSZ

PHOTOGRAPHER: JEANNIE ALBERS | @jeanniealbers 12

CA S E S T U DY C O N T I N U E D . . .

0 6 / D I G I TA L D E S I G N The theme influenced all other design pieces, including the website, the social campaign, and the looking glass headshot treatment. The classic tale of Alice in Wonderland has been depicted in a variety of visual styles. We chose to use a French Victorian style because it fit best with the STORY brand, and complemented the aged mirror imagery.

07/ PRINT DESIGN The STORY booklet allowed us to bring together all the visual elements. Mirrors appear throughout the piece, as well as hand-lettering, illustrated icons, and custom photography. OX also created additional print items, including lanyards and signage.

ART ANNUAL 2019

Stop Revising Your Logo, Start Building Your Brand T O N Y S O R R E N T I N O | @tonysorrentino

Imagine me as an 11-year-old, a shellacked swoop of spiky hair sticking out above my beady eyes, my whisker-less upper lip curled purposefully to hide a set of bulky metal braces.

t’s 1997, and for the first time I am standing, awestruck, in front of an Abercrombie & Fitch. As I step through the open doorway, I’m greeted by a pair of teenagers in ripped jeans and polo shirts who wordlessly nod in my direction. Anonymous techno music thumps out from speakers hidden somewhere behind an endless wall of graphic T-shirts and mooseemblazoned boxer shorts. Every detail is considered. Shirts and jackets alike are inscribed with labels promising “superior quality” and touting an illustrious heritage that dates all the

way back to 1892. There’s a canoe on that wall!

When most people hear the word “brand,” their first thought is “logo.” 14

Photos in clean white frames feature smiling, attractive people hanging out in some upstate New York lodge. They are confident and athletic and American. I feel like I’m hanging out there with them, like I could be one of them, braces and all. For most of my life, shopping for clothes had meant an afternoon errand to JCPenney or Kohl’s. Those were stores; this was a portal into another world. I’ll never forget the first time I walked into an Abercrombie & Fitch, because, for the first time, I was captivated by

EDITORIAL

a brand. I saw how powerful “brand” could be—I was hooked.

and unashamed to own them when they do.

When most people hear the word “brand,” their first thought is “logo.”

When brands show up as nameless, faceless organizations (what we call “corporate brands”), at best, their audience will choose to use their services and products. At best, their relationship is transactional. These brands are so focused on the perception of perfection that they miss the real gold available to them all the time: the opportunity for connection.

Imagine the logos of some of the most oft-referenced and revered brands of the modern era. A swoosh. A set of arches. A piece of fruit (with an iconic bite taken from its side). For many, these symbols have grown into the stuff of legend. But why? If the curves of that Nike swoosh or the bite in Apple’s apple had been slightly different in shape, would our ubiquitous awareness of them be lessened? I’d argue that the answer is a resounding “no.”

Ultimately, we believe in creating brands that are more than talk and stylish artwork. At OX, we recognize that, although a beautiful logo is a start, it’s only a start. Brands that win with their audiences win on three fronts: the words they say, the visuals they show, and the experiences people have with them over time. As my teen years wore on, my collection of “superior quality goods” from Abercrombie started to fall apart at their literal seams. Their promise of quality didn’t match my experience. My enchantment faded. Ultimately, we believe in creating brands that are more than talk and stylish artwork—brands that ask good questions and listen to you more than they talk about themselves. We call these “human brands,” brands that act and talk and function like real people do, unafraid to make mistakes

The people you’re trying to connect with are just that: people. As a result, whether they mean to or not, they build rapport most naturally with other people. We believe that human brands have five distinctive characteristics: 1. H uman brands believe in the power of great questions. They don’t assume they know the answer, and they aren’t afraid to look stupid. They’re interested in getting to know the real you, and ask questions to help them do it. 2. H uman brands understand the power of authenticity. They aren’t trying to be someone that they’re not, and they humbly accept that every person (and every organization) makes mistakes sometimes. They own it when they do. 3. H uman brands understand the power of heritage. They know that where they’ve come from is as important as where they’re going; they know that their story matters and points the way forward. 4. Human brands rely on the power of community. Because they know their strengths and weaknesses, they aren’t trying to go it alone, and more than that, their goals are bigger than themselves. They often ask, “How can what we’re doing benefit what everyone else is doing?” 5. Finally, human brands know the power of empathy. They show genuine interest in your experience, what it feels like for you to be you. They think about the challenges you face and the fears you might have. In many ways, the way you see it is more important than the way they see it.

Like what you’re seeing? Follow us on Instagram at @oxcreates 15

These five characteristics don’t just mark great brands, they mark great people. In a way, it starts to become difficult to distinguish between the two, and that’s exactly the point. When brands behave humanly, their logo and name simply become the handles for all of the intangible understanding that people have of them, the fixed anchors on which all of the meaningful value hangs. You have a name that people call you, but who you are is obviously so much more. Further, you can tarnish a great name, but a great name can’t make you—only your real human interactions can do that. Your brand is just the same. So now, imagine you, the you that you really are, expressed with words and visuals and experiences of true connection that you build over time. What are you like? What do you hope people would say about you? What legacy will you leave?

These five characteristics don’t just mark great brands, they mark great people. As your brand becomes more human, caring more for others than yourself, you yourself will naturally do the same, and so will the people whose lives you touch. Little by little, our brands will build true good for real people. The logos and the names will be nothing more than mementos of all the good done along the way.

ART ANNUAL 2019

FEATURING SOCIAL STRATEGY + MEASURING METRICS FOR ALPHA YOUTH

Big Data. Little Data. Real Data. G I A N N Q U I J A N O | @g_onthenative

With any nonprofit organization, resources are vital and need to be stewarded correctly.

What ads work and what ads donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t? Is there anything we can do to help our team find better insights?

Throwing money at social media without doing your due diligence is a mistake. Instead, our strategy intentionally designed a range of content designed to gain attention now, but more importantly, generate insights on what users responded to best, allowing us to iterate and improve for the future. In visuals, copy, and captions, we created a range of content targeting the specific felt needs of Alphaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s audience, ready to be tested and refined.

ow do you help an existing organization equip their teams with social media assets? It is no easy feat. What it takes is a committed and creative team. When faced with an everchanging market, Alpha Youth approached our team trying to solve one problem: How do we measure metrics on social media? Alpha Youth is a unique client that provides an in-depth and in-person course designed to help youth engage with the big questions of life and purpose.

ARTICLE CONTINUED>

C R E A T IAVRET IDCI LR EE C T I O N

The unique challenge brought to us was that Alpha needed to discover their marketplace, to engage both youth and youth leaders.

today’s market, you need to be where the people are—which is on social media. Social media gives us the unique ability to track metrics and leverage data.

opportunity for us to create a handbook form that would teach and inform pastors how to best use the content we provided.

OUR PRIMARY FOCUS POINTS:

What we decided to do was create content geared toward younger adults as well as local youth leaders. Based on findings about which ads perform best, we would create a more data-backed campaign we could guarantee would work. Rather than assuming we knew the market, we let the data speak for itself.

THE HANDBOOK INCLUDED:

• Equipping the local youth leader • S imultaneously running a brand awareness campaign that would yield results Because we have had the privilege of partnering with Alpha on multiple projects, we fully understand and respect the values they hold, so there was little to no learning curve. It was important for us to make sure that we held their brand integrity all the way through the testing phase. With their vision in mind, we hit the drawing board. Whether we like it or not, the truth is that in order to be a competing brand in

We were able to generate content that would work for us twofold: with copy that was intriguing enough, and design that was captivating enough, we were able to make content that was multidisciplinary. HOW TO EQUIP A YOUTH LEADER: As we started to dive in to this project, we realized that not every person was a social media guru. It created an

• • • •

A list of best practices The content itself A list of relevant online tools A step-by-step walkthrough of running a paid ad

We felt this approach would be the most helpful. As opposed to just providing content, we wanted to train and hopefully empower local youth leaders to discover new ways of growing their ministries. Through the testing, Alpha is now receiving true insights and measurable metrics which will overall help position their organization as a whole.

social campaign content handbook

community organizer recruitment ads

youth-facing ads 17

Life. Shared

C R E AT I V E D I R E C T I O N F O R A L P H A T O N Y S O R R E N T I N O | @tonysorrentino In 2018, Alpha International approached OX with a unique challenge: to elevate Alpha’s connection with key donors, as part of mobilizing a 5-year strategy. Alpha wanted OX’s help to create a campaign designed to look both backward, at the incredible history of their work across the globe in the past 25 years, and forward, to the opportunities that lie ahead.

Alpha is a global organization dedicated to creating safe environments for people to ask the big questions of life and purpose. To help Alpha accomplish their goal, OX built on their new “Life. Shared” messaging, developing creative around the very thing that sits at the center of Alpha’s model and where life is most shared: the table.

ARTICLE

In a metaphorical sense, what matters most about a table is what it can hold, and who can sit around it. Is it strong enough to hold all it needs to? Is it large enough for everyone to find a seat? These questions provide a natural mirror to the heart and values of Alpha, which are centered on a sense of true family. That familial heart sits perfectly around the metaphor of a table, the object that represents— whether idyllically or in actual fact— the experience of finding acceptance, safety, and being welcomed in.

Our cast was intentionally selected to represent the true diversity of ages and backgrounds that make up Alpha’s culture. The content we captured will support a campaign with multiple expressions, ranging from social trailers to build excitement, a robust donor prospectus, a range of print deliverables, and email and digital assets to support ongoing communication. In 2019, OX will bring the campaign to live action, with a landmark donor event held on-site at a cathedral in London’s Kensington neighborhood, creating a new suite of custom content highlighting the past and casting vision for the future. We can’t wait for what’s ahead.

Tables are more than practical necessities; they’re powerful symbols. Moreover, tables represent a clear sense of invitation, an opportunity to join in and participate. As Alpha worked to engage new donors, this sense of invitation was a valuable asset in our working visual metaphor. Based on this insight, we set to work, capturing a series of iconic still images and film content showcasing people gathering, connecting, and sharing life over tables. Shot in Chicago in a one-day, marathon shoot, the team devised three intentional scenes: gatherings of people in unique settings, each targeting key audience pools. We were intentional in sequencing these scenes as moments through the year: a brunch with friends in autumn, a casual lunch in spring, and culminating in a large dinner gathering in winter.

TA B L E S C E N E 0 1

Tables are more than practical necessities; they’re powerful symbols. So much life happens around a table, and in our common experience, they represent a sense of invitation, connection, and belonging.

ART ANNUAL 2019

TA B L E S C E N E 0 2

“If you really want to make a friend, go to someone’s house and eat with him… the people who give you their food give you their heart.” -Cesar Chavez

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TA B L E S C E N E 0 3

ART ANNUAL 2019

Mastering the Art of Self-Leadership J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford

Our life is a series of marathons. Each marathon is a series of little sprints. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important for us to keep an eye on the long run and not only be looking day-to-day as we grow as humans.

EDITORIAL

s I reflect on the last year, there were periods in which I managed my energy really well—and times when I didn’t. I’m sure, as you look back, you might feel the same way about yourself. Over the years, I have learned a few things about how the best leaders and creatives manage their own energy during seasons when their work requires intense output. Today I would like to share some of them—not because I do it perfectly, but because I continually need to be reminded of them. ENERGY BUCKETS Our lives are complex. There are different “buckets” we have. Physically. Relationally. Vocationally. Spiritually. When these buckets are full, we are at our best. We feel happy. Energetic. Carefree. Works seems like play. Our families are happy with us. Problems seem to bounce right off us. Nothing gets us down. But the reality is, these buckets don’t stay full. There is a hole in the bottom of each of them—they leak. So we need to constantly refill them. The thing is, you can only refill a couple buckets at a time. So when you’re putting energy back into one bucket, another one is draining. You have to be intentional about which bucket you’re filling when. And never fill the same bucket twice in a row. When you’re feeling sad, angry, alone, exhausted, indecisive, unconfident, less than your best, it’s likely because you have at least one bucket that is significantly low.

Knowing how full your energy buckets are becomes even more important when things are hard. When things are hard, don’t pray for things to become easier. Pray to become a stronger person. The dropout rate for the Navy SEALs is notoriously high. And, year after year, it stays high. They don’t make it easier to become a SEAL. Challenge is part of the job. And the pride you feel from completing Basic Underwater Demolition/ SEAL (BUD/S) training comes from knowing it’s hard—and you still didn’t quit. No one finishes BUD/S because they are physically stronger than the next person. They finish because they are mentally stronger. And because they work better as a team. They understand how to manage their own energy really, really well.

When things are hard, don’t pray for things to become easier. Pray to become a stronger person.

Like I said at the beginning, your life is a series of marathons—and over the course of your life, you should be getting stronger and better able to run longer and longer distances with better times. Today a 10K might be really hard for you. You might be dying at 8 km and feeling so tanked. That’s OK. But don’t conclude from this experience that since 8 km is hard, you should never run anything farther than a 5K.

Most of the time, we wait until a bucket is low to fill it up. But the negative impact of a bucket that drains from 50 percent to 25 percent full is greater than a drop from 100 percent to 75 percent. I know we’ve all felt that before. Just compare the difference in when you go on a work trip for a week, away from your spouse: Would you rather leave feeling really connected, or on the heels of a fight? What’s it going to be like when you return? There’s a big difference. We always need to be aware of the current state of our levels for each bucket—and to be proactive, rather than reactive, about filling them. Filling them before they are on empty. Not after. No one can fill your bucket but you. That is your responsibly; yours alone.

No one can fill your bucket but you. That is your responsibly; yours alone.

ART ANNUAL 2019

“Extremes, emotions that wax too intensely for too long, undermine our stability.” –Marti Eicholz

Because it’s just that you haven’t trained yourself yet. You do have capacity for more. You can run a 10K. And you can probably run a marathon—the difference is training. Your career is the same. You might need a vacation day every month right now. But as you grow and learn how to manage your energy, you might find in the future that you don’t really need them that often anymore. That doesn’t mean you should start trying to do the five-year goal today. You will probably bury yourself. What you do need to do is avoid the desire to underchallenge yourself. Because that will stunt your growth over time. Sometimes sprints feel like marathons. The way to tell the difference is 1. Asking, “How have I managed my energy?” and 2. Noticing that things that were challenges for you in the past are easy today. The things that are hard for us now should become easier in the future. When we look to other people to provide this for us, it’s called “development.” But when we look to ourselves to create the culture in which we need to grow, it’s called “self-leadership.” Just as we need to master our physical resources (rest, diet, fitness), we must learn to master our moods (anger, fear, worry).

Our moods—or the way we feel at any given time (anger, worry, fear, depression)—are almost always the result of how we are interpreting the events we are experiencing. Your feelings are created by your thoughts, not by the actual events. All of us need to gauge our pace and output so we are always appropriately challenged, never under-challenged, while also avoiding burnout. The trick in our careers is understanding our own energy. And planning appropriately. Take a look at each bucket of your life and ask yourself: What is my replenishment cycle for each bucket? What are the things unique to me that keep each bucket full? What are things I need to do each week, each month, and each year to stay full? Which one of these buckets seems to stay full most often? Which one tends to be neglected? When you do this, you’ll be able to lead your team, your vision, and yourself to make the greatest impact on the world with the limited amount of time you’re alive on this Earth.

“A sense of self-mastery, of being able to withstand the emotional storms that the buffeting of Fortune brings rather than being ‘passion’s slave’ has been praised as a virtue since the time of Plato.” –Daniel Goleman MASTERING EMOTIONS If we are ever going to fulfill our calling and achieve our life goals, we will be required to learn how to master our emotions, so they do not end up mastering us. The absolute truth is that whatever is taking place on the inside of our life will ultimately work its way out into public view in the form of moods, behaviors, attitudes, and actions.

If we are ever going to fulfill our calling and achieve our life goals, we will be required to learn how to master our emotions, so they do not end up mastering us.

EDITORIAL

Take a look at each bucket of your life and ask yourself: What is my replenishment cycle for each bucket? What are the things unique to me that keep each bucket full? What are things I need to do each week, each month, and each year to stay full?

Personal energy

EMOTIONAL Moods Feelings Sense of Wor th

PHYSICAL

VOCATIONAL

Diet +Nutrion Rest + Sleep Fitness Recreation

Challenge Team Development Goals

RELATIONAL Significant Other Family Friends

SPIRITUAL Value Fulfillment Meaning Purpose

PHOTOGRAPHER: DANIEL ADAMS | @danieladamsvisuals

Welcome to the Jungle C O R RY W I E N S & T O N Y S O R R E N T I N O @corrygw | @tonysorrentino

A N A R R AT I V E S T O RY C A N C O N N E C T W I T H T H E H E A R T S O F YO U R A U D I E N C E I N A U N I Q U E LY P OW E R F U L WAY— B U T T H E S TA K E S A R E H I G H , A N D E V E RY S T E P I N THE JOURNEY REQUIRES INTENTION, P L A N N I N G , A N D G R I T.

n 2018, IllumiNations (a cohort of the 10 leading agencies working to provide written languages to the few remaining cultures without one) had a big goal: engage their invite-only audience to raise more than $35 million in one weekend. To help accomplish it, IllumiNations enlisted OX to tell the story of a man named Jorge Rios. Historically, IllumiNations are pros at building a logical case for donating to their work; they’re experts at how to make the dollars make sense. But as strong as their campaigns were at logical clarity, they sensed that something was missing. That’s where Jorge came in.

THE KIDNAPPING SCENE IN THE N A R R AT I V E S H O R T F I L M , T H E PAT H , WA S S E T O N A O N E — L A N E S U S P E N SION BRIDGE IN THE JUNGLE OF C O S TA R I C A – P U S H I N G T H E B O U N D ARIES OF UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE FOR THIS COMPLEX SCENE.

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Jorge’s story is unique, to say the least. Early in his life, Jorge joined the Shining Path, a guerrilla terrorist organization operating in Peru. He participated in brutal combat and covert missions, and was indoctrinated to abandon his emotions and dissolve his sense of compassion. Jorge was, in no uncertain terms, a “bad guy.”

to the call-to-action they wanted to issue, the most relevant values rang through. Ultimately, it became clear that the story IllumiNations needed to tell about Jorge was one that would move the hearts of their audience. Numerous other points of communication laid out a logical case for donating to their work, but IllumiNations needed to add a compelling story that gave motive and emotional buy-in.

But through a seemingly chance encounter with a western couple (and a series of serendipitous events that followed), Jorge walked away from the violence to instead pursue a path of peace. In this story, the “bad guy” isn’t beaten, he’s transformed.

Stories are so powerful because, perhaps more than any other form of communication, they move our audiences to action. Ultimately, the stories we tell— and the way we tell them—can mean the difference between hitting our goal and falling short.

OX was tasked with telling that beautiful story of transformation in a short-format documentary. But capturing the drama of Jorge’s life on film was no small feat.

In the end, that’s exactly what the team at OX created with The Path . The film debuted at the IllumiNations Celebration in the fall of 2018, and contributed to more than $38 million raised in a single weekend. Mission accomplished.

From a narrative standpoint, Jorge’s life is filled with twists and turns, all of them compelling and consequential to the man he is today. But to tell that complex story in just eight short minutes, our script writer and director Corry Wiens had to decipher which events were essential, and which could be trimmed out. Logistically, the production endured numerous unexpected surprises. Location scouting alone became a sizable challenge when the team discovered that the Shining Path (the guerrilla group around whom the story centered) is still active in Peru, causing many potential Peruvian collaborators to pass on the project for fear of reprisals. Instead, the team had to find a substitute location that offered the lush jungle and small villages in a more stable political climate. But perhaps most challenging of all: although Jorge’s story offered a moving narrative of transformation, it also included various details that were unhelpful to the case IllumiNations was looking to build more broadly. Moreover, although Jorge’s connection to translators in the region was relationally significant, Jorge was a native Spanish speaker. Their work in translation was ancillary to their impact on his life. The OX team had to ensure that, even though some of the specific details of Jorge’s story were tangential

Like what you’re seeing? Follow us on Instagram at @oxcreates

ART ANNUAL 2019

PHOTOGRAPHER: DANIEL ADAMS | @danieladamsvisuals

ARTICLE

ART ANNUAL 2019

2019 trend report 01/ intro: OX as Tastemakers 02/ social media 03/ motion & film 04/ design, color & type

Styles and creative approaches are constantly changing and evolving. In 2019, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll continue to see shifts in social media, motion and film, and design, color, and type. We bring you a trend report full of our predictions for what things to watch for in the new year and ways you can tailor your brand and products to your target audience. There are a lot of exciting things ahead for 2019!

FEATURED

OX as Tastemakers J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford

eople are generally poor predictors of what they will like in the future. We know what we like now—and we know what we hate now. But this doesn’t mean we will always hate or dislike those same things.

Another reason why we don’t like things is because other people DO like it. That’s how traffic works during rush hour. We get attracted to things we see other people are attracted to, and we like things more the longer we like them. This is why older audiences are less adaptable than younger audiences. The younger you are, the less time you have liked something. This makes it easier for you to like something new.

Our job at OX is to be experts on what people will like NEXT. This requires us to be constantly current on what people are responding to now, and looking ahead to what we believe they will like in the future. This is a challenge because often, the blink reaction of a steering committee might be “I don’t get it,” when, in our minds, we’re thinking, “Yes, maybe not today— but you WILL get it in the future.”

When introducing something new or novel to an audience, the best creatives never ask someone if they “like it or not.” If they “like” it or not is not the point—and that word isn’t really that helpful. We need to to tell them HOW to like an idea; what the idea is best FOR. Like when a novice wine drinker asks a sommelier, “What’s your best wine?” A great somme will never answer that question, but instead tell you which wine pairs best with which food—not what to “like.” Similarly, describe what the idea is best FOR or WITH. “This color is most effective with younger audiences because...” “If you are trying to build brand awareness, select this option.” “The other design is better as a product demo rather than a lifestyle piece.”

The meaning of good taste has changed. Taste is not static. It is fluid. Cultural capital is now more about having a wider, more eclectic playlist of taste than having a snobby vertical hierarchy of preferences. Because of this, we need to learn to love things that are different—because it makes them more interesting. Allow your tastes to be as wildly adventurous as you are. The more you like one genre, the less time you have to like others. “I hate green. Never use green.”

You can’t like something you don’t know. At OX, it’s our responsibility to always be exploring NEW and NEXT. Because then, we can share it with audiences who can grow to like it.

Did you know that likes and dislikes are triggered by random associations? The reason you don’t like certain things is often because of a negative experience we associate with that color. If you think about it, there is nothing intrinsically good or bad about a color, vegetable, or type of music. Only our memories of those things can be good or bad.

TREND REPORT | GIANN QUIJANO | @g_onthenative

social media Business owners and marketers should be thinking about what they can do to make their companies more successful in the new year. Somewhere near the top of their priorities list should be finding ways to leverage their social media channels more effectively.

Gone are the days of thinking of social media as an added form of marketing. At OX, we suggest that it be viewed as the main form of company communication and promotion. Today, social media platforms are where a business has the opportunity to consistently demonstrate it’s value

Video, video, video “According to research by Wyzowl, 97% of marketers say that video has helped increase user understanding of their product or service, and 76% indicated that it has helped increase web traffic and sales. That doesn’t seem farfetched, given that 95% of people have watched explainer videos to learn more about a product or service, and 81% have bought a product or service as a result of watching a brand’s video.” –Social Media Today

One way to humanize a brand is to promote the personal brand of the business owner or a high-level leader (executive). This tactic has become the norm for many organizations. What this looks like: • Guest blogging • Podcasting • Webinar appearances • Speaking at conferences • Personalized branded content

Social media influences how people perceive your brand.

Here are five things you can do to take full advantage of your channels in 2019:

Have Social Channels for Your Executives

By enabling your audiences to get to know the character and expertise of company leadership, a business can strengthen its brand reputation. “It is safe to say that businesses that embrace this in 2019 will have a distinct advantage over companies that hide behind their logo.” –Social Media Today

and reinforce it’s voice. Social media influences how people perceive your company’s brand.

OX partnered with Paterson Center to create a brand video on the life of it’s founder Tom Paterson.

Customized Campaigns Today’s market needs to be tailored too. You will no longer be able to offer a one-size-fits-all product or service. In today’s market, with an influx of competition, a consumer feels entitled to something personalized. We believe that social platforms will continue to refine their target offerings as the demand for individualized content grows. Be prepared to have content and products that will highlight the individual’s need. You can do this with messaging that targets your client’s personas.

Video is always going to be a bit more expensive, but when you choose to run video ads, it guarantees a more unique understanding of your audience. We anticipate that “video courses”— also known as learning management systems (LMS)—will be highly valuable this coming year. People that are funneled into your video course will have a higher likelihood of becoming an actual paying client. Run monthly Facebook Live Q&A sessions around commonly asked questions. To keep customer trust, it’s important to communicate often, address problems proactively, and be as transparent as possible. Facebook Live Q&As are an excellent place to start. They make your brand feel more human by having someone talk to customers in real time. They’re also easy to manage and budgetfriendly to run. Don’t worry about scripting beforehand—the goal is to be authentic and engaging in an informal setting. In layman’s terms, you will win trust and

acceptance from a consumer through video, which is needed before you can expect any sort of transaction to happen. Within the saturated market of digital marketing, people want to feel that they have a personal connection with your brand. That is done by adding value—sometimes at the cost of giving some of your knowledge out for free.

97% of marketers say that video has helped increase user understanding of their product or service.

Allocate budget for ads “With the diminishing organic reach of business content, most companies will need to invest in sponsored posts, boosted posts, and social media ads if they want to stay top of mind. Fortunately, social media advertising doesn’t have to break the bank; a small amount of money can go a long way.” –Social Media Today We suggest running a campaign that builds brand equity. Good content does not always have to sell something. We recommend you accomplish this brand awareness campaign by spending just $5 a day on an ad that points to a unique fact about your company, so that you stay top of mind to your market. Today people make decisions based on what they can remember and what made them feel good. Odds are, there is a big competitor in your marketplace, and the best way to stand out is constant brand presence. Although SEO is highly important, what you don’t want to do is get into a keyword bidding war for the top spot. Use your money more efficiently and allow people to interact with your brand for what you believe in, not just what you sell. We guarantee it will go a long way.

Tell the Story Yes, we mean telling the story of your brand and organization. But on a more practical level, we suggest you use the Stories feature on Instagram. It is estimated that four out of five major brands are already on Stories. If you aren’t creating Stories, it’s time to start.

OX and LeapFrog/VTech partnered together to create a set of social videos to promote their products.

We know that Stories are a good way to execute testing. You can track the metric for free and see what people are interested in. Also, stories aren’t permanent. We recommend you try them out and give yourself the freedom to experiment. Stories can be as easy to create as you choose, so there’s a low barrier to entry for any team’s skill set. Share content weekly, and at different times of day, to see what works best with your audiences. (And

The beauty that social brings is that everything is trackable. shoot your videos vertically. That’s how people watch them.) Our world is constantly changing. The way we engage with each other is adapting, and we have to understand that it will be the same for our client relationships as well. Social media is not the answer to your company’s success. But it is a great tool that can help pave the path to more conversions and overall sales. The beauty that social brings is that everything is trackable. We now know what is working, and we have the ability to leverage it for our own advantage. If the five steps listed above seem to be too challenging we recommend you try one and see where it goes. Best of luck, and know we are here to help. Cheers!

TREND REPORT | GAVIN BUCKLAND | @gavin_buckland

motion & film “Who We Are” Videos, Got a Big Update Gone is the corporate brand. Brands that are all head and no heart; that assume perfection is of highest value. Gone are the days of the “Who We Are” video. A video that once self-glorified to no end, set to an upbeat soundtrack and “approachable” voiceover. But can we blame them? It’s what was wanted—was. Now, if you’ve been paying attention to the marketing space at all for the last five years, you’ve seen brands like Facebook, Uber, and Dropbox make a subtle shift that has had big impacts in the way we think about our favorite brands. A shift that started as a millennial-focused marketing trend has ushered in a new wave of mainstream messaging. This shift has a name: the brand anthem.

Through substantially different means than the “Who We Are Video” that tells of who “they are,” a brand anthem reminds you, the viewer, of who you want to be.

Inspire Whether new or old, a brand anthem should serve as the rally cry that unites and inspires your team and your audience around a singular purpose.

Put simply, a brand anthem is a declaration of who your brand is by showing why it is here.

a brand anthem reminds you of who you want to be.

Connect A brand anthem should be emotionally driven to connect positively with customers, encouraging them to take part in your brand’s larger purpose. Where previously a brand would focus on communicating its features and benefits, a brand anthem creates a lifestyle and sense of emotion for others to connect with.

Tell Stories Lastly, the brand anthem should provide a platform for telling stories— and not just testimonials. Diverse, creative, imaginative, and emotional stories. This creates the ability to scale the story across other videos, events, or campaigns. Accomplishing a successful brand anthem is no small feat—it takes authenticity. It will take company-wide soul-searching. The brand anthem’s lofty goals and messaging will fall flat if the brand doesn’t stand behind and live by the mission—which maybe this world could use a little more of.

TREND REPORT | CHRISTINE CHAPMAN | @christine_chap

design, color & type We are excited to announce the design trends of 2019! You can be looking forward to a year of exciting, illustrative, colorful, bold designs.

budgets toward high-end custom illustrations. Here are some recent brand + illustration partnerships who are killin’ it ...

Here is what we predict for 2019:

Nike recently partnered with Londonbased artist Hattie Stewart for a campaign that featured her unique style of cartoonish pop illustrations.

Warby Parker has taken advantage of custom illustration by commissioning local artists to brand a variety of storefronts. Invisible Creature, an agency that focuses almost exclusively on custom illustration, outfitted the Seattle location with illustrations of “city-strolling-book-reading creatures,”

Custom Illustrations In years past, stock imagery was the default choice for brands. But as brands begun to realize the value of authenticity, and the idea of “human brands” began to emerge, there was a need for something more custom and curated for their target audience. This sparked an “anti-stock” movement, with sites like Death to Stock and Unsplash arriving on the scene. It was a celebration of new creative voices, and offered high-end images for free to combat the stock industry. Brands embraced opportunities to support artists through these antistock sites, and get their hands on fresh and custom images. Once brands realized the power of more custom-feeling imagery, they were hungry for more. Photographers like Jimmy Marble curated beautiful, highly art-directed images. The style was

Once brands realized the power of more custom-feeling imagery, they were hungry for more. quickly embraced, and brands began to replicate styles like this. Today, brands are once again looking for something unique; a way to stand out. So, as it inevitably does, the pendulum is swinging in a new direction, away from photography and toward custom illustration. Brands are starting to reallocate their photography

Invisible Creature, an agency that focuses almost exclusively on custom illustration, outfitted Warby Parker’s Seattle location with illustrations of “city-strolling-bookreading creatures,”

while Andy J. Miller (also known as Andy J. Pizza), illustrator and founder of the Creative Pep Talk podcast, designed a mural and series of promotional pieces for the Columbus, Ohio location. Design agency Carpenter Collective created a series of packaging for Sonic that featured a flat graphic style and on-trend bright palette. The art was then used in a broader campaign, where it was transformed into a series of illustrated motion graphics pieces. Will your next campaign leverage the power of custom illustration?

Augmented Reality AR has been a growing trend for the past few years. It has helped enhance the consumer experience in retail spaces, and has created unique opportunities for people to interact with their environments through their devices. But recently, AR has started to present many applications in design. Designers can now create with the intention of their work being more than just a static image, which gives their audience the ability to interact with a campaign in a new, more personal way.

If you thought print was dead, think again, because AR is allowing users to bring static design to life. AR IN PRINT: If you thought print was dead, think again, because AR is allowing users to bring static design to life. Imagine standing in front of an ad on the subway; you hover your phone over it, and the ad begins to come to life … motion graphics take over, and what was once static is now an explosion of typography, color, and messaging. Package design has even caught onto this powerful trend. Coca-Cola released a limited edition can that allowed users to hover their phone over it and enter a branded AR experience.

Manon Louart

AR IN PHYSICAL SPACE: AR is also gaining more ground in physical spaces. IKEA’s Place app is using AR to allow customers to view how furniture looks in their home, while Gatwick Airport created an awardwinning passenger app that uses AR to guide travelers through the airport’s two terminal buildings. Check out page 42 to learn how you can better connect with your audience through a pop-up retail experience that features AR.

Malika Favre’s isometric design piece, Ampersand, commisioned by The New Republic

It’s time to think beyond the page and outside the realm of physical space.

IKEA’s new Place app

Isometric Design Isometric design is a method of creating a 3D drawing of an object, generally viewed at a 30-degree angle. Being able to design in 3D has been up-and-coming for some time, but designers are now beginning to master it. This particular branch of illustration has a technological side to it that designers are becoming more accustomed to using, and therefore, will be more prominent this year. Isometric illustrations are extremely satisfying to look at, as they are represented in perfect perspective. It is an excellent way to introduce an upcoming illustration trend into brands that aren’t quite ready for a full-on illustrated campaign.

Joanna Ławniczak’s isometric designs

Isometric illustrations are extremely satisfying to look at, as they are represented in perfect perspective.

TREND REPORT | CHRISTINE CHAPMAN | @christine_chap

design, color & type

04 05 Bright, Bold Colors

2019 is coming in hot with the use of some of the most vibrant, bold colors we’ve seen since in a decade. Trends follow culture. Today, people are being empowered to let their voices be heard. This vibrancy in voice has inspired a vibrancy of color in the design world.

These bold hues can be applied to illustration, brand palettes, and gradients, which have been going strong for the past couple of years, and there seems to be no stopping them. Gradients lend themselves to the idea of progress and change, which also ties into today’s cultural climate. Be bold. Be brave. And embrace the bright!

Typography BIG AND BOLD: Big and bold typography is a trend that has been in the making for a few years, and this year, it’s still going strong. Along with the other courageous trends such as bold colors and custom illustration, bold typography will bring a different dimension to this year’s skill driven aesthetic. Bold typography is captivating and clear, making it a popular choice for any important message. However, it is important to understand how “bold typography” should be applied in design. And by “bold,” we don’t necessarily mean changing the font from regular to bold … but instead, by using scale, stroke, and styling to help the font interact with its environment. Powerful type is being paired with more minimalistic design elements to ensure an intentional visual hierarchy, and to avoid a design appearing crowded and cluttered. And as with all typography application in design, using the right typeface is paramount to its success. Go big with your messaging this year, and capture the attention of your audience with type that packs a punch.

CUSTOM FONTS: We are moving into an era where skills are king. The ideas of mastery, craft, and technical skill are becoming more and more important to brands. Because of this, we are seeing a shift toward custom type. Nothing says quality like a perfectly crafted and 100 percentexclusive font. The advantage of having a custom font crafted for your campaign or brand is that you will hear a lot less of “this reminds me of that other brand,” or “that ad looks like the one I saw a few months ago.” Custom fonts makes your campaign and your brand more memorable and distinguished, and are a reflection of true mastery and skill.

SERIF FONTS: In the past few years, sans-serif fonts have been all the rage. This year we are seeing a shift. It’s time to make way for the OG of typefaces: the serif. Serif fonts have previously been considered traditional and conservative, but going back to serif styles isn’t necessarily a step backward. Typographers are creating unique, modern, and beautiful serif typefaces that are improving and elevating design.

OX created these vibrant social posts to promote Community Christian Church’s summer camp. Junki Hong’s custom bold type, Rabbit Lowercase

Alex Slobzheninov’s custom type, inspired by the classic typeface Baskerville

S N A C K- S I Z E D

Brands Know Who They Are J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford

Great brands focus not only on differentiating from competition—they create immunity from competition. What is it that truly makes me unique? If you focus on who you are and what qualities you already possess, you aren’t creating a brand based on fiction, appearances, or reaction to what others are doing—you simply focus on your own journey and what you can uniquely contribute to the world. This is true of life. And it is true of brands. When we build brands, we build brands that don’t lie about their products, about their values. Great brands know themselves. Their strengths. Their weaknesses. They are honest about both. And if they can’t fix it—they feature it.

AN OX ORIGINAL

A New Concept F

or the audiences of many global causes and socialactivism organizations, your brand is a purely digital experience. The stories. The images. The communication. It all exists in digital spaces. You are effectively an online organization to them.

What if you transformed your “online-only” brand to an off-line experience for your supporters? The following is a fresh concept developed by the team at OX for a pop-up retail experience that would transform the way socially-conscious brands and nonprofits connect with their audiences.

Think about it: the only way for your audience to really experience your brand’s impact “in real life” is to travel to your international programs. And very few people are able to do that. This creates a big problem. There is a gap in empathy that is overcome by face-to-face, in—person, tactical experiences, which are lost with purely a digital brands.

If you’ve ever asked the questions, “How can we allow our audience to show up in the story happening ‘over there’?” or “How can we create experiences that bring our audiences closer to places they care about?” then this concept is for you.

OUR VISION FOR:

A Pop-Up Retail Experience BRING YOUR AUDIENCE CLOSER TO YOUR CAUSE WITH AR / VR TECHNOLOGY

RETAIL & EXHIBIT SPACE

VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCES

RETAIL SPACE/EXHIBIT

VIRTUAL REALITY THEATRE

DISCOVER & INTERACT

ENTRANCE

STORYâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;INFORMED RETAIL PRODUCTS

SHOW FLOOR CONNECT & EMPATHIZE

ADVOCATE & DECIDE

Through a retail-like experience that includes interactive AR product displays and an immersive VR experience, the STORIES and faces behind YOUR MISSION will be taken off-line and into the lives of your supporters.

STORE/EXHIBIT IN FRONT: Seasonally updated displays/windows that allow audiences to DISCOVER and INTERACT with the brand and its products, focusing on bringing to life the stories of Social-Goods.

S H OW F LO O R 1

Discover & Interact

Social-Goods are not just products on displayâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;we take the guests on a self-led journey through a show floor/exhibit with beautiful photo displays and kiosks that might reflect the home of the person who crafted it.

AR IN RETAIL & EXHIBIT SPACE Augmented Reality is a technology that superimposes a computer generated image on a userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s view of the real world, thus providing a composite view.

Customers enter your shop and interact with images and products around the show floor. The experience is part exhibit, part store. As they explore the space, they discover stories of the people you support, and are able to interact with their stories through AR.

Ikea, Converse, and other companies have been using augmented reality to allow their buyers to have a closer interaction with their product, placing it in their own home or trying it on by superimposing it via their own phone. Organizations are even releasing AR Annual Reports in which the numbers come off the page as animated infographics or images that become videos.

In Print

Ikea 44

Converse

customer journey

We will accomplish this through an interactive show floor that is both product display and interactive exhibit, and immersive experiences that tell the stories of the products and information about the people who made them.

T h r o u g h A R , t h e v i ewe r s e e s a s h e l f s t o c ke d with products

The guests see real world shelves stocked with SocialGoods. They can use their smartphone to see more about each product through AR.

U s e yo u r s m a r t p h o n e t o interact with products

The guest uses their smartphone to see photos of the maker, unlock videos, and find other stories they can take with them and share with friends.

D i s c ove r & i n t e r a c t

03 45

By selecting each product, they can learn more about the human who made that product.

customer journey

THIS CONTENT WILL:

1. Introduce viewers to the big picture of why your organization exists. 2. Immerse them in current/timeline stories from the field. 3. Introduce the audience to a craftsperson. Tell the story of one of the products available on the show floor.

V R T H E AT R E 2

Connect & Empathize After having explored the show floor your guests are invited to a 5-10 minute VR experience in the theatre area.

When a guest arrives, they are able to put their name in queue for the VR experience. When their showtime is available, they are invited in to the VR experience individually or with a group. This VR experience features seasonally updated content. Guests visit the locations to experience the latest news from your field programs, and step into the story of the person who crafted a good. As they exit the experience, the product they had previously seen on the shelf now has inifinitely more value because they better understand the person who made it.

CONTENT OPTIONS: SEATED VS STANDING • Theatre viewing • Stand—up experiences SHARED EXPERIENCE VS SOLO • Linked viewing, like a movie theatre • Simultaneous viewing • Individual play CONTROLLER/GAMING VS FIXED EXPERIENCE • Interactive “pick—your—own—path” adventure/gaming experience • Like a movie, go along for the ride

Modular VR Content 0:00

3:00

INTRO

5:00

T I M E LY

10:00

SEASONAL

15:00

GAMING

OUTRO

*content duration can increase as tech capability increases

INTRO / OUTRO

Highly Produced Intro/ Outro Sequence • • • • • • •

Functions as an “evergreen” introduction to the brand “Who We Are” Includes text and animated graphics integrated into the scene Studio shoot or on-location Founder casts the vision and sets up the VR experience High impact, high engagement Scripted, dramatic, branded

T I M E LY

Timely Stories from the Re g i o n • • • • •

Timely reporting from the field Unscripted, visceral, real Emphasis isn’t on production quality Puts audiences on location Regularly updated

SEASONAL

Stories About Social Goods • • • • •

Seasonal docudramas Give meaning to the products Tell the stories of the men and women who made them Create empathy Release a new VR experience each season and roll over the store design in tandem with it. It’s the centerpiece of your seasonal campaign.

GAMING

I n t e r a c t i ve “ G a m i n g ” Experiences Using Controllers • Using the VR controller, audiences join the locals from that region in helping to “make the good” alongside them • Imagine standing in front of a table with all the ingredients for soap and meeting a friendly character who teaches you how to make it. Along the way, he or she describes the struggles they go through every day. • Legoland has a similar experience for kids to make their own Lego, then take it home afterwards

customer journey

PRODUCTS WITH A STORY WELL TOLD

The final interaction of this exhibition is a chance to browse products that are made by and for your cause. The hope is that the viewer will have a

greater understanding of these products now that they have taken part in the VR Experience. S H OW F LO O R 3

Advocate & Decide After having seen the individuals and faces impacted by your brand, guests will exit the theatre returning to the show floor but the products on display now have a greater emotional connection and impact. This final moment is where they choose to become an advocate and decide what their next steps will be.

EXIT THROUGH STORE/EXHIBIT

As the guest exit the VR Theater, they step back into the showroom, where the BRAND and the PRODUCT now have new meaning and value to them.

Guests have now seen products in person that they may have previously

only seen online, and they have taken part in an experience on the frontlines via VR.

BRING YOUR AUDIENCE CLOSER TO YOUR PROGRAMS

Through a retail-like experience that includes interactive AR product displays and an immersive VR experience, the STORIES and faces behind YOUR PRODUCTS will be taken off-line and into the lives of your supporters.

EXPERIENCES LIKE THIS ARE NOT A GIMMICK.

They are central to the mission of your organization: they take people from beyond the comfort of their own experience and into the world youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re

hoping to impact. We must look for ways to do this in simple, timely ways.

We must also look for ways to tell our greatest stories in the greatest way possible.

Doing this will both benefit organizational programs and fundraising efforts, and connect audiences with opportunities to make a difference right where they live.

Nothing will be just a product on a shelf. Everything is a story on a shelf.

ART ANNUAL 2019

3 Questions for Building Your Brand Right T O N Y S O R R E N T I N O | @ tonysorrentino

eveloping or revitalizing your brand can feel like a daunting task. The seemingly endless range of fonts and color palettes. The black hole of name options. Chip away at either of the above for awhile, and you’ll likely land on something you like, or at least, something you thought you liked yesterday. Today, you’re not so sure. Then the troubling questions come.

Is that blue too corporate? Or not corporate enough? Should we go with lime green instead? Are we a lime green kind of brand? What does that even mean? Maybe we should change our name to a single word with some letters missing? Like Tumblr. Or Flickr. Or maybe we should definitely not do that? Will this be out of style in a year? Would my daughter’s friends think this typeface is lit? Does anyone even say “lit” anymore?? And so on, and so on. (According to our hipper OXen, the answer to the last question above, is a definitive “no,” in case you were wondering). Before long, these nagging questions will have you turned around and inside out, less confident than ever before about which way is up in this branding debacle. Fear not. I’d like to pose three more helpful questions that I believe can help shape the direction of any brand. These questions are worth pondering, writing on, and better yet, discussing as a team, and they form the foundation of any worthwhile branding effort. Consider them slowly. You might be surprised by what you discover.

1 2 WHY ARE WE IN THIS BUSINESS? Simon Sinek wrote the literal book on this question in Start With Why. More than a clever title for a best-selling book, his imperative is a good one.

Everyone has a motive behind what they do. Why do you choose to invest the best of your time, talent, and energy in building your organization? In other words, what drives you? Your “why” can and should inform how you describe yourself to others, in your visual language, voice and tone, and key messaging.

This motive is an important check and balance to your audience and their values (which we’ll get to in a minute). If you create strictly based on what they like, you risk abandoning who you really are. Take time to think through this question, through both organizational and personal lenses. Don’t just answer “Why do we exist as a company?”—dig deeper to explore “Why do I personally choose to participate in this work? What makes it meaningful to me? Why is it worth all the effort?”

Would my daughter’s friends think this typeface is lit? Does anyone even say ‘lit’ anymore? 50

WHO ARE WE TRYING TO CONNECT WITH, AND WHAT DO THEY CARE ABOUT? It’s clear that any organization must reach and connect with multiple audience pools to succeed. But strategically, winning with certain groups of people will lead to overall success, while others might be insulated or give little return on our investment. So who do you prioritize when thinking about branding? Who matters most, strategically? Once you’ve identified who they are, consider what’s most important to them. Different people value different things. Your audience might not care about the same things you do, and if they don’t, making decisions based solely on what you like or naturally think about could lead you far off course. It’s important to think through their eyes, and create a brand that speaks to what’s most important to them.

WHAT DO OTHER, SIMILAR BRANDS DO WELL AND POORLY? Who else offers something similar to what we offer? Moreover, who else would our audience consider to meet the needs we hope to meet for them? Brainstorm a list of three to five top â&#x20AC;&#x153;competitorsâ&#x20AC;? who might be perceived as offering something functionally identical to you. Once you have your list, take time to survey what you notice about how they present themselves to their audience (which may very well be your audience too). What seems to drive them, and how is it represented? Who do they seem to be for? What feeling do you get when you read the copy on their website or watch their videos? The above should never drive your decision-making, but it might nuance your presentation. It will allow you to consider how you might be misunderstood based on other brands, and adjust accordingly The best brands resonate with people because they present like people. They look, talk, and act like people. Ultimately, your brand will succeed or fail based on its ability to express who you really are to the people who matter most. Discover that core identity, and everything else starts to fall into place.

The best brands resonate with people because they present like people. They look, talk, and act like people.

CA S E S T U D I E S | K AT I E K I C K | @ k a t i e _ k i c k _

ILLUMINATIONS With a “no logos, no egos” approach, 10 translation organizations chose to work together toward their common goal of translating the Bible into every language on Earth. Every tribe. Every nation. OX visualized this cause-based convergence with global photos and illustrated roads/paths to represent the idea of “all nations,”

V I S UA L E S S AY N O .1 : CA M PA I G N BRANDING

as well as the coming together of the 10 organizations walking side by side, with a unified vision. The IllumiNations event brought resources, energy, and ideas together to blaze a new path.

Credit for moodboard images can be found on OXs Pinterest page: https://bit.ly/2ML1YSZ

CAMPAIGN APP SCREENS

CAMPAIGN COLOR PALET TE

App Design 30+ Print Pieces Impact Film Digital Marketing Materials Campaign Style Guide Motion Graphics 47 Speaker Intro Films On Screen Graphics

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VANDEAVOR V I S UA L E S S AY N O . 2 : B R A N D I N G Vandeavor helps companies go through seamless transitions during new management system changes. It was important for Vandeavor that their brand feel professional and trustworthy. Through the brand process, we discovered ways we can target their audience and for them to best present themselves. OX aimed to incorporate a heritage style throughout their brand. We see that first in the logo type treatment: itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s modern, yet feels vintage and timeless. The color palette is muted and has neutral colors, allowing the brand to feel mature and professional. In all those ways, we sought to win the target audienceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trust.

BRAND TONE:

Professional, but not formal Heartfelt, but not sappy Innovative, but not trendy Succinct, but not abrupt

COLOR PALETTE:

FINAL LOGO:

CASE STUDY

SIERRA BIBLE CHURCH

V I S UA L E S S AY N O . 3 : B R A N D I N G OX and Sierra Bible Church partnered for a rebrand that represented Sierra’s vision for a new day, as well as speaking to the target audience’s values. During our OX branding process, we uncovered key truths about the target audience: they value an exciting adventure to live out, a place to call home, and an experience of the spiritual. The final branding reflects audience values as well as Sierra’s vision. The logo pairs a traditional typeface with a modern illustration of a mountain scape for a strong sense of both adventure and home.

LOGO EXPLORATIONS:

COLOR PALETTE:

FINAL LOGO:

Credit for moodboard images can be found on OXs Pinterest page: https://bit.ly/2ML1YSZ

ART ANNUAL 2019

I AM Series

MOOD BOARD:

V I S UA L E S S AY N O . 4 : B R A N D I N G Community Christian Church’s 2018 Christmas services, titled “I AM,” needed to evoke a sense of nostalgia, family, and the warm sense of home that comes with the holiday season. OX presented three visual approaches to solve this, and the chosen approach was a vintage storybook style to evoke a feeling of stories read together by a fire, as well as a sense of wonder.

BRAND TONE:

Nostalgic, Family, Heartfelt, Illustrated, Wonder

COLOR PALETTE:

Credit for moodboard images can be found on OXs Pinterest page: https://bit.ly/2ML1YSZ

CASE STUDY

IMAGINE ZERO V I S UA L E S S AY N O . 5 : MOTION GRAPHICS The translation organization Seed Company came to OX with a question: “How can we visually explain a complex global issue that relies on a large number of stats and data—while keeping the message clear, simple, and engaging?” The solution was a set of three motion graphics films. One used custom illustrations to tell the story and engage users. The others featured abstract graphics to clearly and artfully explain the data points.

I L LU S T R AT I O N S F O R V I D E O

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The Good We See BY THE HAND CLUB CAMPAIGN AND SPRING BENEFIT

G AV I N B U C K L A N D | @gavin_buckland

ach year, the Chicago-based nonprofit organization By The Hand hosts their Spring Benefit in a room full of the city’s most influential leaders and organizations to celebrate the impact of the last year, cast vision, and fundraise for greater future impact. We partnered with Donnita Travis, founder and executive director of By the Hand Club for Kids, to create a unified creative campaign for the Spring Benefit for the fourth year in a row. They needed a series of videos to highlight a few key stories, another to transition to the end-of-the-night “ask” moment, and other design elements to unify the print and digital materials for the benefit.

highest-risk, but most resilient, neighborhoods gain opportunities for a life of success that are often taken for granted. They accomplish this by operating a highly successful school program that emphasizes academic excellence while nurturing the whole child—mind, body, and soul. Growing from serving 16 kids to more than 1,500 in the last 10 years, their current vision is to serve more than 2,000 kids by the end of 2020. By The Hand realized that, in order to reach this goal, they can’t do it alone.

The best organizations, our dream clients, are the ones that see a need—a deep injustice or a cause worth fighting for—and can’t ignore it. They build their mission around solving that problem, serving those affected by it. We’re drawn to help these organizations get the word out, so that fewer and fewer can ignore it.

Growing from serving 16 kids to more than 1,500 in the last 10 years.

When you sleep, eat, and breathe in one of the biggest and wealthiest cities in the Nation—Chicago, where one out of three children also live in poverty, where children as young as 8 years old are recruited for gang activity, and where homicide rates in some neighborhoods are 10 times that of adjacent affluent neighborhoods—you can’t ignore that. Providentially, By The Hand isn’t. We’ve partnered with By The Hand for the last five years as they work to help children who live in some of Chicago’s

Since this wasn’t our first Spring Benefit for By The Hand, our team, along with Donnita, wanted to bring a

fresh approach. How can we create a new experience for those in the room through these stories? In the past, we’ve told separate student stories with no apparent connection to each other. This approach works, as it highlights a variety of By The Hand students. However, 2018 provided a unique challenge as we sought to create three intentionally crafted films: one focusing on a By The Hand graduate success story; the second on a person of high caliber that mirrors the life of the first

By The Hand student; and a video that combined our two characters meeting into one compelling story. This third video served as the end-of-the-night “ask” film. Close collaboration on this was key, as Donnita knows the students and their stories extremely well. This strengthened the results of the campaign, allowing her to leverage stories and relationships that would be most compelling and that fit the vision for the campaign and benefit overall. In February, we traveled to Washington, D.C., to shoot our three films. The first film focused on Malik, a By The Hand graduate who witnessed the murder of his cousin when he was 9 years old. After getting caught up in a violent lifestyle, he started attending By The Hand, which gave him the opportunity to receive a full-ride scholarship to Howard University from the Gates Foundation. The second film focused on Kay Coles James, who grew up with a similar lifestyle to Malik, but, partly through the support of others, was able to achieve great success. Today she is a top public official in Washington, D.C. As the “ask” film, the third video showed Malik and Mrs. James meeting and touring Washington, providing a compelling look at how, through By The Hand, Malik now has opportunities to succeed that weren’t available before. The partnership between OX and By The Hand helped the organization reach their goal of raising millions of dollars in one night, in order to further their mission of giving the youth of Chicago opportunities for greatness.

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F I L M E D I N D OW N T OW N WA S H I N G T O N , D . C . , M A L I K , A N O N - A C T O R , WA S WILLING TO REENACT THE D I F F I C U LT M O M E N T S O F H I S S T O RY W I T H G R I T A N D A U T H E N T I C I T Y. H I S S T O RY I S O N E O F PA I N , LO S S , R E S I L I E N C E , A N D FA I T H .

F E AT U R E D I N O U R S E C O N D SPRING BENEFIT FILM, K AY C O L E S J A M E S O F F E R S EMERGING LEADERS THE O P P O R T U N I T Y T O D E V E LO P R E A L S O LU T I O N S T O R E A L POLITICAL PROBLEMS. F I L M E D AT T H E S I T E W H E R E M A R T I N LU T H E R K I N G J R . W R O T E H I S “ I H AV E A DREAM” SPEECH, THESE STUDENTS GIVE A GLIMPSE OF OUR BRIGHTEST L E A D E R S E M E R G I N G T O D AY.

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digital web & app

thrive chicago I

The designed reports caught the eye of the Chicago Sun Times , which ran an article highlighting one of Thrive’s key findings, revealing racial inequalities in the Chicago education system.

f not designed with intention, critical data can go unseen, and problems can go unsolved.

OX partnered with Thrive Chicago to take a fresh look at the nonprofit organization’s messaging and data reports. Together, we found a way to simplify their messaging and clearly illustrate Thrive’s data points. Through strategic messaging and visuals, Thrive can continue to impact youth and affect change in the Chicago Public School system.

Thrive Chicago’s goal is for every child to enter kindergarten ready, succeed in high school, graduate, then earn a college degree, leading them to pursue a selfsustaining career. With a new custom website, strategic messaging, interactive data visualizations, and designed reports, OX is helping Thrive to meet their goals.

D ATA REPORTS

FILO K AT I E K I C K | @ k a t i e _ k i c k _

“That lighting just kamikaze— attacked my eyeballs in the best way.”

apps

ave you ever been to a live event and thought to yourself, That lighting just kamikaze-attacked my eyeballs in the best way, or, Who mic’d that guy, the sound is perfect? or, Those graphics are siiiiiiiick? Well, here’s the thing: It took about a trillion talented tech artist to make that happen. Nah, I’m just kidding. Not a trillion. But for real, those behindthe-scenes wizards put in serious hours to make the magic. They are the behindthe-scenes content creators. The after hours crew. They’re the first to arrive before an event, and they are the last ones out of the building after teardown. That’s where the name FILO originated: First In, Last Out (FILO). Each year these audio, lighting, and production artists get together for the FILO Conference. This year, OX made them a sweet app to help them stay “Inspired. Informed. Connected. Fed.” Take a look. Let it all in.

ART ANNUAL 2019

OX on Feedback THE POWER OF ‘AND’ J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford

A f e w m o n t h s b a c k , D a v i d M i t c h e l l ( p r e s i d e n t o f Pa t e r s o n ) , i n t e r v i e w e d J e s s e f o r a n e p i s o d e o f t h e Pa t e r s o n Po d c a s t . T h e Pa t e r s o n P r o c e s s i s a p r ove n sys t e m t h a t h e l p s t e a m s a n d i n d i v i d u a l s c l a r i f y w h e r e t h ey a r e , w h e r e t h ey ’r e h e a d e d , a n d h o w t o g e t t h e r e . T h e f o l l o w i n g i s a n exc e r p t f r o m E p i s o d e 0 3 0 : “ T h e P owe r o f A n d : Fe e d b a c k , C r e a t i n g a n d C r e a t i ve s . ”

David Mitchell: Jesse, one of the things that I think strikes me with the creative process is dealing with, I would call it “the critic” or “the feedback loop”—which is to say, no doubt, all of us. Steven Pressfield, in his book The War of Art , speaks about this inner critic, the inner voice that comes out as we’re creating something new and fresh. But also, there’s the very real reality of getting honest, candid feedback from clients, and that can feel hard and personal when it’s something you’ve created. So how have you personally nurtured a culture at OX that receives feedback, whether it’s from each other, whether from the internal voice in each of us, or from clients?

“If you want to get better at something, you’re going to need criticism.” Jesse Oxford: If you want to get better at something, you’re going to need criticism. So I think that, as early in your career or in your life as you’re able, to switch your mindset from feedback and criticism being a negative thing to feedback being an opportunity for growth—if you’re able to make that mindset switch, it’s going to serve you a lot better. But feedback isn’t easy. And yeah, it’s easy to take offense at it. I feel like, on our team, we do experience feedback on a regular basis. I don’t always feel that I would grade myself as generously as you have just described us, and doing a good job of that or not. But I know that one of the best resources that our team has found is

a book by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen called Thanks for the Feedback. And in their book, they split feedback into three different categories. If you ever find yourself frustrated, angry, or annoyed by feedback, there are three reasons why you’re feeling like that. So if you’re able to figure out why you’re feeling the way you’re feeling, it helps you to be able to get past the emotional reaction and just take the feedback for what it is: as an opportunity for growth. So, here are those three things, in short: First, the reason you’re angry about the feedback or you aren’t agreeing with it is because you believe that what the other person is saying is not true. In substance, you don’t agree with their feedback. “Your design is too blue.” And you’re like, “Well, the design is green, actually.” You’re not on the same page. So that’s where you believe what the other person is saying isn’t true. Two, you believe that what they’re saying is true, but you just can’t hear it from them. So it’s reacting to the person who’s telling you this information. Abraham Lincoln said that audiences don’t judge the speech, they judge the speaker. So if it’s a person who you feel has poor taste or is not thinking about things with the same perspective as you, you kind of filter out what they’re saying as being like, you don’t trust them. You might agree with what they’re saying, but you just don’t want to hear it from them. And the last reason that people don’t accept feedback is you feel like the person saying something about you personally. It’s not really a judgment on the work or what you’ve created

anymore. It’s like they’re making a statement about you as a person. And that’s the harder kind of thing. So, when we get feedback, if we aren’t agreeing with it, or we’re having a block, or it’s troubling to us, if we can instantly just figure out, why am I feeling like this? Do I believe it’s not true? Do I believe it’s true, but the person who’s telling me it is somebody that I would rather not be telling me this, or I feel like they’re making an attack on me, personally? That is really able to help categorize it. Then we can just deal with what the person is saying, instead of how we feel about what they’re saying. David Mitchell: And that’s a great book recommendation. I haven’t read it yet myself, but I’m definitely drawn to it after your description. And again, what I hear you say in that is, how do we have a posture of curiosity towards feedback, as opposed to immediate judgment towards it? How do we ask questions of feedback like, “OK, who is this coming from? Why am I reacting in the way I am?” as opposed to just allowing the feedback to take over. Jesse Oxford: Yeah. People are so rarely curious about feedback… especially when it’s poorly delivered. “This is literally the worst design I have ever seen!” You’re not naturally going to respond, “Yay, tell me more! What do you hate about it? I’m curious.” But honestly, if you can do that, it’s super helpful. But it’s very counterintuitive.

Search Apple Podcasts for Episode 030 of the Paterson Podcast to listen to the full 30—minute conversation.

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MORE THAN A COMEDY SPECIAL

C O R RY W I E N S | @corrygw

Last Spring, we were invited by comedian Michael Jr. to produce his comedy special, More Than Funny, for national theatrical release. If you aren’t familiar with his work, Michael has appeared on The Tonight Show, The Late, Late Show, Oprah, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Comedy Central, and BET. As you’re probably catching on, Michael wanted the film to be, well, more than funny. Here’s the setup... In comedy, there’s a setup and there’s a punchline. The setup is when the comedian uses their talents and resources to seize any opportunity to ensure that the audience is moving in the same direction. The comedian’s punchline

occurs when they change their direction in a way you weren’t expecting, resulting in laughter and joy. Everyone has a setup. Your setup is your talents, your resources, and your opportunities. Most of the time, we use our setup to ensure that the people around us are moving in a direction that serves us. But what if we created a punchline? Your punchline occurs when you change your direction and start using your setup to serve other people. Several years ago, Michael started an organization called Punchliners, a digital platform for people who want to use their setup (education, experience, skills, etc.)

to help others rather than themselves. Today Punchliners is a network of more than 122,000 nonprofit organizations and 14 million volunteers. Michael’s goal for the special was to weave the Punchliners concept into his stage performance, as well as incorporate three pre-produced microdocumentary films. Each film featured a different “Punchliner” from around the country: a young man who used his illustration skills to draw a portrait of a couple’s son who had recently passed away; a man who uses his golf cart to drive through forest preserves to find homeless people in need; and a couple with more than five adopted children,

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E V E RYO N E H A S A S E T U P. YO U R S E T U P I S YO U R TA L E N T S , YO U R R E S O U R C E S , A N D YO U R OPPORTUNITIES.

desperately in need of a new car. It wasn’t enough to just show these stories—we wanted to create a moment with each one that moved the theatrical audience to participate. After months of planning, our crew flew to Memphis for the big night. Seven cameras. A packed house. One 75-minute show. It was a huge success. We asked the live audience to stick around for an additional 30 minutes after the show so we could film some additional direct-to-camera moments with Michael. We filmed these vignettes on a steadicam rotating around him. (It was important to keep the audience in the background for these segments, so we could integrate them seamlessly into the edit.) Thirty minutes was not a lot of time to capture everything we needed, but we felt like it was the maximum amount of time that we could keep the audience engaged for. Thankfully, everyone in the room was great to work with! The audience rose to the challenge, and helped us create some unique moments for the special, unlike anything we’ve seen in stand-up comedy before.

More Than Funny was released on October 18. One reviewer said, “This film is something different, it’s a comedy show that provides the laughs but also encourages and inspires us to help those that need help and to make a difference, not by throwing money at something, but by actually doing something.” That’s what we’re all about at OX.

The forces of influence in our world are powerful. Sometimes they can be violent. Destructive. Instantaneous. Other times… forces work much more gradually. Patiently. And almost imperceptibly slow. The world of leadership is the same. Nearly every day, we witness massive forces shaping and influencing the landscape of our world. They are powerful. Sudden. Forceful. Simultaneously, there is a softer side of influence. Just because change happens slow, and sometimes you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not happening.

THE OX CREW ON LOCATION FILMING AERIALS IN ICELAND.

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FORCES OF INFLUENCE J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford

“I did not hesitate to let the parties face bad weather because the road that they were traveling was well known, and a rough experience would be very valuable to them later in the expeditions’ work.” - Ernest Shackleton.

arlier this year, a friend asked me the question, “Through the years of building and leading this team of creatives, what have you learned about helping them, about leading them well?” I wasn’t exactly sure, offhand, so I decided to ask a few members of my team, “Hey, how would you answer this for me?” One individual shared that when I first interviewed them, I told them, “Working together at OX is something that is never going to be easy,” that I’m always going to push them a little bit on each project, because that’s how a creative grows. She said that, over the years, this has proven true: It’s not easy working here! But I thought to myself, I still believe that, and I feel like that’s a really great thing. Last winter I read two volumes by Ernest Shackleton about his second trip to Antarctica and his attempt to reach the South Pole. He got really close on this trip, but turned around at the last minute because they were low on food, and he didn’t want everyone to die in the cold, buried by the tremendous forces of mother nature. When he returned to England in shame, he told his wife, “Better to be a live donkey than a dead lion.”

known, and a rough experience would be very valuable to them later in the expeditions’ work,” he said. Brilliant. Shackleton intentionally allowed his men to face bad experiences in a very safe environment because he knew they were about to go on something that was actually hard and dangerous, and he needed to prepare them for that. Knowing this, when they had landed and made their base camp for the winter, Shackleton intentionally sent his men on little missions in terrible conditions. He didn’t send them very far. But he would wait for a blizzard, then send them with 1,000 pounds of gear across a glacier, leave it as a supply dump, and then return. These short, repeated trips in terrible conditions gave his men something they didn’t have: experience. “I did not hesitate to let the parties face bad weather because the road that they were traveling was well

But that didn’t stop Shackleton from returning for a third attempt a few years later. This time, he had the benefit of multiple experiences on the continent, but the majority of his crew were greenhorns (sailors, professors, photographers) who had never set foot on the continent and were about to attempt something no one in history had done.

As I look to develop people for the long term, in some moments, it might feel like your development as a person is hard. But I think that, when you start intentionally exposing people to challenge in a low-risk way, when they actually face some larger— and potentially more dangerous— challenges later on in their lives and careers, they’ll be really prepared for it. That’s influence.

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In the freezing Icelandic winter winds, I stood on the Vestrahorn volcanic sand beach at dawn. Freshly fallen snow covered the grassy dunes at our feet. A mile up the coast rose rocky peaks. At their base lay an abandoned stone Viking village—a remnant of another film production. Our team of five from Chicago, Boston, and Sweden launched a drone in the pink and blue morning light to capture the first shot in a five-day shoot of aerial photography around the island. This footage would form the base visual for content we were creating about leadership as forces of influence. We were on an expedition of our own. But unlike Shackleton’s, our quest was for footage of volcanic cones. Mossy lava fields. Glacial waterfalls. Black sand beaches. Boiling mud. Crashing waves. All metaphors for the forces of influence at work in the world. The ups and downs of leadership. Powerful. Sudden. Slow. But all creating change in the landscape of our world. As beautiful and exciting as that moment was, the real excitement occured the previous day: Our local producer, John, was driving our large production vehicle across a bridge over a glacial river flowing to the sea. It was single lane. We were pulling the trailer. As we approached, we noticed that another car had entered the bridge. John tapped the brakes, but we were on black ice. And pulling the load we were, there was no way we could stop. So we slid onto the bridge over the river and struck the car in a head-on collision. Our momentum carried our truck forward, and we continued to push the other car completely across the bridge, almost over the railing and into the chilly water below. Since our truck was so large, our crew was fine, but we could see that whole front of the other car was smashed in, so we grabbed our medical kit and ran over to assist. The three locals inside were dazed, but otherwise OK. The police and ambulance were over 100 kilometers away and took over an hour to arrive. Things could have been much worse. We made it to Vestrahorn and spent five amazing days filming bitterly cold exteriors in a series of the most beautiful locations any of us had ever been. Over the next four months, the team at OX used that footage library to create

over 20 pieces of content for the Willow Creek Association’s Global Leadership Summit, including 60-second and 30-second social promos, as well as 14 speaker intro videos (including Apple VP/Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts and restaurateur Danny Meyer of Shake Shack and Gramercy Tavern in New York City). The event-opener video is like the opening title sequence of a film: imagery of dark and dramatic forces at work in the natural world. Crumbling stone. A powerful torrent of water pushing through a gap in the rock. A slow drip of water on moss. Colorful minerals form a delta flowing down a floodplain. Voiceover and onscreen text over unpacks the metaphor in a dramatic, bold, and hard-hitting opening sequence. In addition to the footage, we integrated topographical lines scenically as a visual depiction of the changing level of terrain: the ups and downs in the landscape created by the forces of influence over millennia. The topo-lines didn’t stop in the digital content. We pulled them off the screens and into the stage design itself. Jim DeLaere, Willow Creek Community Church’s scenic designer, created a projection-mapping surface onstage that mimicked the contours of a topographic map, with a custom surface behind it. Both the topo floor and the background were projection surfaces that OX used to stage live performances. We produced three monologues with global leaders staged in the center of an immersive projection-mapped environment, with music and sound design. Harold from Zimbabwe shared about how a neighborhood in Harare—the nation’s capital—was the focus of a community beautification project, and that shortly following the project, water was discovered there, and it became the site of a well. As he spoke in front of projected buildings depicting the Harare neighborhood, a wind blew, and hundreds of plastic bottles and pieces of trash that had covered the floor “blew away” as part of the projection. Then, a well was drilled and “water” flowed across the stage, rippling down the contours of the different levels of the scenic topo-map built into the stage and off the edge. The audience’s breath was taken away by the combination of projection-mapping, sound design, and live performance.

Across our world, the influence of leadership has rippling effects—both positive and negative. These forces of influence are powerful. As we continue to use our creativity, our daily goal is to use it as a force for good on everyone who experiences our work.

EDITORIAL

An Intern Story J AC O B C U S H M A N | @jacobcushman

nly a year ago, I was a 19-year-old college freshman looking in from the outside. I had no professional experience, and I wasn’t clear on where I’d be taken next. Seeing from afar the heart behind the content produced at OX, and the level of quality at which it was delivered, I wanted more. I couldn’t sit in my dorm knowing there was so much more to learn, and not at least try to pursue something greater. When I started as an intern at OX, the team here made me feel right at home. They entrusted me with carrying small projects from start to finish, making sure I had all the things needed to accomplish them. I got to sit in on brainstorms and even pitch my own ideas to the team. And the best part was, I never picked up or made a single cup of coffee throughout my entire internship! I’m almost certain you couldn’t name another internship where you could say the same. This definitely speaks to the culture that OX strives to create—that we’re all one team and we’re in this together. Since being offered a permanent seat on the bus, I’ve really gotten to see the hearts behind the people who call this place home. Each member brings their own talents to the table, and we all possess valuable assets we can share with the team. If each person on the team didn’t buy into the heart of OX, or give everything that they had, we couldn’t operate. It’s that simple.

ART ANNUAL 2019

Tell The Right Story to Solve The Right Problem T O N Y S O R R E N T I N O | @tonysorrentino

ehind every project OX worked on this year, there was a problem of perception, and a story to solve it.

Instead, we have to intentionally weed out assumptions by slowing down to ask key questions that give us perspective.

Many of our most complex problems, in fact, are problems of perception. I’m not just talking about “PR crises” (though those would certainly rate in this category). But on a smaller scale, a lack of donor engagement, a loyal fanbase outraged at who we’re becoming, or a cohort of parents leaving frustrated comments on a social media video are all, at the core, problems of how people understand (or misunderstand) us, either organizationally or even personally.

Start by identifying the root problem you’re trying to solve. Challenge yourself and your team to press into your initial answers by asking “Why is that happening?” and “What’s behind that?”

What’s more, often, the way a brand is perceived is nuanced, based on who’s doing the perceiving. What internal constituents see is distinctly different from the external stakeholders’ perspective. Millennials see night where boomers see day. The North American audience is passionate about something that Europe doesn’t care about at all. When we’re known for things that aren’t helpful or aren’t true, we need to tell a different story. But the complexity of real life demands that we tell the right story, and moreover, that we make sure we’re solving the right problem. So how do you do it? As a starting point, at OX, we owe a great debt of perspectival gratitude to our friends at Paterson, the heralded creators of the StratOp and LifePlan processes (for more on them, check out a great interview between Jesse Oxford and David Mitchell, president at Paterson, on page 64). The Paterson Process has us utterly convinced of the value of a perspectivedriven approach in place of one driven by sheer speed. A speed-driven approach assumes that the best route from problem to solution is whichever way seems fastest. But what if the problem we think we’re solving is different than the one that’s really at the root of the issue? Moreover, what if the solution we assume will work flatly doesn’t? The worst thing we can do is invest time, energy, and resources in doing a great job of solving the wrong problem. You don’t want to be 12 months into a project and realize you’re working on the wrong thing.

Consider the sequence of events that led to the problem you’re currently facing. Unpack the narrative that brought you to today; you might be surprised to discover what’s really going on. As one example, this year OX worked with the nonprofit organization Awana International, initially exploring challenges

Understanding the problem and what stories to tell is the foundation. But the final question to ask is “Who are we telling this story to?” Awana was facing in engaging new audiences while retaining their existing base. Through a brand discovery session, we identified a root cause for the friction: key constituents misunderstood Awana’s newer, international work, remembering the programs they had participated in themselves as kids, and believing that Awana should maintain the status quo. The story we told would need to help their audience broaden their view of Awana’s mission, seeing the continuum from their childhood memories to the organization as it exists today. Next, consider the stories at your disposal. It’s helpful to acknowledge here that these stories run the gamut from success narratives of people who’ve benefited

from your work, to data and metrics that help your audience understand you better. They may be factual or symbolic or some combination thereof. What stories (of the many within or surrounding your organization) have the greatest potential to speak to the problem you’ve identified? A few categories to consider are individual success stories, vision stories, and data stories. Stories of individual success use one person’s journey to illustrate the larger work. Their single experience becomes emblematic of the whole. Vision stories paint a compelling picture of a future reality that invites participation and engagement from everyone, calling them to play their part and activating their desire to participate. Data stories can right wrong perceptions and show what’s going on in actual facts, figures, and infographics. For Awana, we identified a series of emotive narratives as the best approach, allowing us to weave elements of historical fact together to blend adaptations of individual stories with compelling vision. We would show individuals across the stages of life, anchored by their transformative experience with a single verse of Scripture that became a lifeline for them. Understanding the problem and what stories to tell is the foundation. But the final question to ask is “Who are we telling this story to?” It’s essential to know your audience—and, more specifically, their unique values—before developing content. We identified three key audience pools for Awana, and intentionally crafted our storytelling to meet each of them uniquely. Through creative development, we wrote a story interweaving three distinct narratives. The first is the story of a single dad in the Bible Belt struggling to raise his son in the wake of his wife’s death. The second is the story of a bullied junior high kid in urban L.A., discovering what strength really means. The third shows a young Korean girl grappling with her parents’ marital strife, and working to overcome her own shyness as she dreams of greatness.

EDITORIAL

The strength of this approach highlights a final consideration: an intentional content strategy. To be effective, the stories you tell require multiple expressions on multiple platforms, from social to web to print. The long-form film you’ll showcase on your website should have short cut-downs for use on Facebook and

coordinated stills for Instagram. Rather than thinking an individual asset is the key to success, consider a campaign approach that reinforces the story you tell in multiple ways. For Awana, this translated to a brand film incorporating all three of our heroes, as well as short-form cutdowns, highlighting each of them

individually, and allowing flexibility with targeted ads.

Starting with the end in mind and slowing down to first gain invaluable insight is the essential key to solving the problems that stand in the way of your greatest goals.

BRAND FILM (06:55)

BRENT’S STORY

JAY’S STORY

CHLOE’S STORY

(03:06)

(02:32)

(02:28)

Single dad in the Midwest

Bullied jr. high kid in urban L.A.

Shy girl in Korea

greater

ART ANNUAL 2019

BEHIND THE SCENES: A L A R G E WA L L O F FA N S WA S B U I LT F O R O N E O F THE SHOTS WE USED IN E X P O N E N T I A L’ S “ M A D E F O R M O R E ” C A M PA I G N .

Like what you’re seeing? Follow us on Instagram at @oxcreates

S N A C K- S I Z E D

WE PROJECTED GRAPHICS ONTO A 3D MAP TO GET F O O TA G E O F L I N E S M OV I N G A C R O S S T H E G LO B E .

ART ANNUAL 2019

by the numbers

Every year we look back at the things we have created accomplished and learned. We thought we’d share some of our very important and serious findings here.

4 32

40,824 42

S L AC K M E S S AG E S

Flights taken

COMMUNITY LU N C H E S

B ox f a n s p u r c h a s e d Times listened to “This Is America”

Coffee runs

5 37

STARBUCKS “Witches Brew” drinks consumed (and disliked)

BABIES BORN

B E T SY J O H N S O N | @betsjohnson

Times the Film Team asked to go to Sundance

Longest render time

H a r r y Po t t e r audio books listened to

2 days

S N A C K- S I Z E D

3 441 3 1 250 12 25 6 6 1 6 1 50 MILLION

T i m e s To ny wa s c a l l e d by a client while s h owe r i n g

CA R AC C I D E N T S

B a b i e s i n S y r i a we p r ov i d e d d i a p e r s and formula for

N E W OX E N O N THE TEAM

Theatrical releases

Smoke bombs used

Hours trapped in the airport

F O N T S I N S TA L L E D

Monthly training experiences we offered for By The Hand youth to learn film production

Close call with explosive bird poop

Dollars raised this year for social causes

COMPUTERS PURCHASED

DRONE AC C I D E N T

ART ANNUAL 2019

How We Measure Our Lives J E S S E OX F O R D | @jesseoxford

creative

For every individual, and for every

campaigns to support brands that are

organization, we’re always striving to

spend

life

designing

be the very best we can be to make

working to do good in the world.

our

maximum

contribution

the

It’s easy to think about things principally

world. But we really do need others to

in terms of projects and deliverables. I

be able to achieve that and to be our

think people tend to chart the progress

best. And for me, it’s easy to put a lot

of their lives with their output. But I think

of the pressure on myself to reach my

the greatest thing that I’ll ever create is

maximum contribution on my own. Like

better creatives.

I’m supposed to be a one-stop, self-

So I like to approach the work I do on a daily basis not so much as creativedirecting projects, but creative-directing people, and seeing how our team grows

contained unit of greatness. Like I’m supposed to emerge from the woods fully,

inherently

and develops their skills over time—

But

trying to chart the course of creative

mentors

lives, as opposed to just projects.

partners

I didn’t know that I was a creative person until I was 22. Until that point, I just thought I was artistic and weird. The creative “world” was not something I was aware of until a very operational and

administratively

asked

about

minded skills

person and

strengths. When this operational mind heard me describe what I love doing, she instantly told me, “You’re creative!” And I was like, “Oh, thanks.” I think that’s just a little bit of the power of how it takes people with different skills and different abilities who work together to draw out what the best is in each other. It might not always be through the channels or the methods that you would assume. I would have assumed that another artist or creative would have known how to identify that, but it took somebody very different from me to point that out in me.

capable

doing

everything with mastery from day one. the

role or in

relationships

with

other

our

lives

with

people with

and skills

greater than our own is really critical to

discovering

who

each

are

individually. And I believe—and I think you probably believe the same thing—that when we partner together, everybody’s individual greatness is released and realized, and it’s not really something that you can do on your own. We can try to do it on our own—but I think that most of the time, that brings out a lot of pride and selfishness, and a lot of bad things inside of us, as opposed to releasing a lot of good things. At the end of the day, we need to remember

that

our

work

never

something to be done solo. It’s a team sport. And the more we each look for ways to include others and elevate other people’s contributions over our own, the more GOOD we will see as a result of it. Onward!

EDITORIAL

The greatest thing that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll ever create is better creatives.

JESSE

KATIE KICK

SORRENTINO

FOUNDER | CREATIVE DIRECTOR

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

CHIEF STRATEGY OFFICER

ALEXIS

LAURA

OXFORD

GRANT

TONY

MATT

AVEY

SCHEFFER

LINE PRODUCER

PROJECT MANAGER

PRODUCER

CHRISTINE

DUSTIN TURNER

CUSHMAN

DESIGNER

FILMMAKER

CREATIVE ASSISTANT

CHAPMAN

JACOB

BALLANCE

AMY

JACKSON

CAM

OLIVIA

LEAD DESIGNER

DESIGNER

ACCOUNT MANAGER

GAVIN

LUDWICK

BUCKLAND

BETSY

KATE

JOHNSON

RUSE

DIRECTOR

EDITOR

BUSINESS MANAGER

GET IN TOUCH oxcreates.com 312.945.6023 | @oxcreates contact@oxcreates.com

GIANN

CORRY

CREATIVE STRATEGIST

HEAD OF PRODUCTION

QUIJANO

WIENS