The Last of Us - Media Kit

This is an exquisite piece of media kit packaging produced for Sony Computer Entertainment for their recently launched The Last of Us, playstation3 game. The package consisted of a premium limited edition box, 7 different language versions, distributed to over 2500 members of the media across 4 continents and 33 countries!

Fluid Design, lead creative Paul Whitaker, said "Focusing on the game’s strong visual imagery and limited colour palette, we included subtle survival-esque connotations: download codes as matches and the kit is presented in a pvc o-ring, designed to look of the game world – dirty, stained and mouldy with diecut bullet hole effect. The two-piece rigid black covered box, features a foiled logo on the lid and introduces the 2 main characters, Joel and Ellie, printed on the inner"

The main booklet has a 4pp cover and a 12pp text printed on our Marazion Ultra 135gsm, printed in four colour, giving the pages a tactile feel on the unprinted parts and a sheen on the printed areas.The finished size of the booklet is 190mm square but as you may notice from the picture below, the text is set in by 5mm around the edge which gives it a much "bookier" feel.

Marazion Ultra was also used for a match book and the duplexed cards.

In the gaming world it's been getting a lot of coverage on the internet, including an "unboxing" where someone literally takes everything out of the box, bit by bit! (these gaming people are pretty serious!)You can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yhy0Pt8B258&feature=youtu.be

Quite apart from the paper, one of my favourite items is the cassette tape in a case which is included in the kit and guess what, it isn't a cassette, it's a cleverly disguised USB stick. All in all, this is a superb presentation.

Art direction, design and production is by Birmingham based Fluid Design. Lead creative on the project is Paul Whitaker.

www.thelastofus.com
www.fluidesign.co.uk

Posted by Justin Hobson 11.07.2013

ISTD Student Awards 2013

On Friday evening I was invited to the ISTD Student awards ceremony, hosted at the lovely Pentagram building in West London. Pentagram partner, Angus Hyland, presented the certificates to the successful students and tutors.

It was a beautiful summer evening, and as with all ISTD events it was a very warm and friendly event with the drinks provided (kindly sponsored by Mike Daines of eLexicons).

Angus Hyland presenting the awards

This presentation evening was for the main Student Assessment scheme held in the UK and Ireland. Students from Universities and Institutions around the UK and Ireland answered a number of briefs written by the ISTD's Education team. Judging took place in March and in total, there were 64 passes, 12 Merits and 5 Commendations. This year, the University of West England (Bristol) had most success, with 18 passes, merits and Commendations. Tutors are Gabriel Solomons and John Paul Dowling.

As a special presentation, Angus Hyland was awarded Fellowship of the ISTD in recognition of his contribution and typographic achievement over the years. The picture shows Angus receiving his certificate, presented by Alan Kitching.

After the presentation, Angus gave a short talk which included a description about his early beginnings as a designer and his start in typography using sheets of his parent's Letraset rub down lettering, sitting at the kitchen table!

 

The Student awards take place over all over the globe throughout the year, the next being the South African Assessments and then the Australasian Assessments covering Australia and New Zealand.

 

My thanks to the ISTD board for inviting me and as I have said many times on this blog before, it's very important to support organisations such as the ISTD and events such as this. A big thank you to all those members of the ISTD who freely give their time for the benefit of others, in particular, Freda Sack, who has been such an important figure in the society for so many years.

www.istd.org.uk
www.pentagram.co.uk

www.elexicons.com

Posted by Justin Hobson 09.07.2013

Catch up with Mucho

Rob Duncan, Pablo Juncadella,
Marc Català and John Dowling.

At the ISTD student awards at Pentagram on Friday, I was able to catch up with four of the partners from new global boutique design studio, Mucho.

All four previously worked for Pentagram, so it was a poignant location. Mucho has studios in New York, Barcelona, Berlin, Newark, San Francisco and London.

The new Mucho network was launched in April this year, so it's early days but it was good to catch up and hear that all is going well.

http://www.wearemucho.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 09.07.2013

Alan Fletcher Archive



© Martin Dunkerton 1992

If you aren't already aware of this, I think you'll find this pretty interesting. In the last month a new website archiving the work of Alan Fletcher has been put up. The site has been designed by Crescent Lodge and I asked Lynda Brockbank, the creative director to write a few words about the project:

 

The Alan Fletcher Archive website project began two years ago and was initiated by Alan’s daughter Raffaella with archivist Sarah Copplestone. The ‘soft’ launch on 31 May, was the moment when a rich mix of Alan’s work had been curated and digitised, important texts had been collected and commissioned, and the shop was ready to open. There’s still a vast collection, some of it unseen, that will continue to be added (some may yet be discovered), to build a living resource on Alan’s life, times and work. You can, of course, contact the Archive by email and also join the mailing list http://www.alanfletcherarchive.com/contact

The link to the new website is: http://www.alanfletcherarchive.com

Lynda remarked that it’s just wonderful to be able to look through all the amazing material in the archive and what a privilege it's been to work on the project.

...and I also have a small archive of my own! I have a set of ceramic desk accessories that Alan Fletcher designed for Time and Life in 1961 (bought in 2004 on the advice of a very sage Alan Dye from NB Studio ...thanks Alan)

 

...and I am the proud owner of a print that Alan gave me titled "a bouquet of flowers". I was at his studio one afternoon and had to rush off home as it was my anniversary that evening...

This new website is a brilliant resource and I look forward to seeing it grow and develop as more of the archive is uploaded.

http://www.alanfletcherarchive.com
http://www.crescentlodge.co.uk

Posted by Justin Hobson 04.07.2013

Jobs from the past - Number 45



Regular followers of this blog will know that my first post of every month is a "job from the past" so that I can show some of the really good work from years gone by and here's one from 2008.

Mission - Case studies

 

Mission is leading independent PR and marketing agency with an enviable client list. They commissioned design consultants, &Smith, to create a flexible solution for their self-promotional communications.

&Smith developed a series of individual case study booklets that are also broadsheets enabling Mission to build a bespoke portfolio. The design incorporates repeating Ms of their identity with a subtle number identifier (white reversed out) on each cover.

Each booklet unfolds to reveal a project description and press coverage results, before unfolding once again to reveal a full colour campaign image - and this is where the material comes in! Part of the requirement was that the project description/press coverage pages should have a "newsprinty" or "scrapbook" type feel. However this was a little at odds with the amazing images that they had to work and which appear when you open out the broadsheet! The paper chosen is our Redeem 100% Recycled in 100gsm which is a natural looking recycled products, but as you can see from these pictures, it prints amazingly! ...although that's in no small part due to the quality of original and the printer.  



As you can see from the large images on the open broadsheet, they are exquisite and they look absolutely brilliant on this paper. The size of each booklet is 220x170mm, folding out to 440x 510mm.

Design is by &Smith. Creative directors are Rachel Smith and Dan Bernstein.

The superb print (and the finishing is good too - no buckling on the folds) was handled by Gary Bird at Gavin Martin.

 

http://www.thisismission.com/
http://www.andsmithdesign.com/
www.gavinmartincolournet.co.uk

Posted by Justin Hobson 02.07.2013



The Glastonbury Free Press

This weekend and for one weekend only ...the Glastonbury Free Press has been set up and is printing a new local newspaper for the Festival. It is being printed on site, using letterpress on a 1954 Original Heidelberg cylinder press.

...and if you'd like to read about how they managed to get a 5 tonne press and linecaster onto a muddy field and make it work, have a read of their blog here:
http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/areas/glastonbury-free-press/free-press-blog

There's also a design and print your own poster with letterpress artists, a healthy selection of woodblock type and a proofing press.

It's just complete madness but an amazing idea and I wish I was there to see it. I hope it stays dry for the hot metal maniacs in the field.

http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/areas/glastonbury-free-press

Posted by Justin Hobson 28.06.2013

Inside|Outside 2013



Inside|Outside is an interesting project run by the printmaking team at the London College of Communication (LCC). The project involved 3 workshops, 3 locations and 3 processes. "A challenge to revisit the whole process of printmaking, considering parameters such as sustainability, environment, resources and waste. An experience outside the comfort of the studio to let the natural elements changing staff and students' way of thinking."

You can read more about the project lead by Pathway Leader Jack Blake and Printmaking Technician Barbara Salvadori and the LCC students at insideoutsideprintmaking.blogspot.co.uk

The end of project publication is printed by London based co-operative Calverts, chosen as they have excellent sustainable credentials and use all vegetable inks and their energy use is from renewable sources. They selected Favini SHIRO Alga Carta, Avorio 90gsm, chosen because it was in keeping with the sustainable nature of the project, because it is manufactured partly using algae harvested from the Venice lagoon, combined with FSC certified fibres. Algae blooms at the end of Summer in the Venice lagoon as the warm water combines with pollution and must be harvested to maintain the lagoon's eco-balance.

The format is an A5 broadsheet which folds out to A2. Printed in two colours, offset Litho.

Photography and design is by Jack Blake and Barbara Salvadori. Print was handled by Arthur Stitt at Calverts. A most interesting project and publication.

www.insideoutsideprintmaking.blogspot.co.uk
www.calverts.coop
http://www.favini.com/graphic_specialities/en/shiro-prd-21.php

Posted by Justin Hobson 26.06.2013