Years ago, I relocated from San Francisco back to Sacramento, a city known for its creative energy and competitive market. During my time in the Bay Area, I had the privilege of serving a diverse array of clients, advertising agencies, and businesses, all of whom benefited from my skills. I've developed a keen understanding of client expectations, project timelines, and budget constraints, honing a structured approach that consistently delivers results.
I prioritize grasping the full scope of each project, integrating current marketing trends and strategic concepts to effectively address client needs. My focus is on creating refined visual communications across marketing, broadcast, digital media, print, and brand development.
I am eager to join an advertising agency, production studio, or in-house marketing team that values a designer with a versatile skill set. From creative direction and art production to motion graphics, front-end design and development, and print design. With my broad skill set, I can effectively contribute to a variety of projects and challenges.
ZACK FERNANDES: FRAMEWORK DEVELOPMENT, FRONTEND AND BACKEND DEVELOPMENT, WEB DESIGN
MIKKEL HANSEN: FRAMEWORK DEVELOPMENT, FRONTEND AND BACKEND DEVELOPMENT, WEB DESIGN
ROLE: PROJECT MANAGEMENT, CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT, CREATIVE/ART DIRECTION, WEB DESIGN, GRAPHICS
PAINTBRAIN: SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITE
The phenomenon of social media is an undeniable market force. The ability to target specific profiles directly is a publisher's dream and a compelling force for advertisers seeking to maximize their online advertising returns. In the past few decades…
… numerous premier leagues have risen and fallen within the emerging sport landscape of the U.S. Despite the instability typical of such an emerging sport, two leagues, the NXL and the APL, have emerged as leaders. Additionally, associations like the National Collegiate Paintball Association and the High School National Championships in 2009 have also made significant contributions.
Despite the NXL attracting approximately 150 pro and divisional teams per tournament, Paintbrain finds the current coverage lacking, except for the commentary. Paintbrain believes improving the production of this coverage is the next critical step for the sport. We hope to seize an opportunity to contribute once the site launches.
PAINTBRAIN: SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITE
These custom weather icons were created using a mix of photographs, 3D particulate, and vector graphics. Design to scaled down in size and still be understood without caption from desktop to mobile devices. Sixty-four icons where created, covering all weather conditions included in the weather API.
PAINTBRAIN: MOTION
This web advertising series will be trafficked as the site launches. Paintbrain is planning to run these on select webcast coverage of the NXL and NCPA. These webcasts can draw an average of one million competitive and avid viewers. This media buy is a great promotion because trafficked YouTube matches are not stripped of their promotional content, providing an ongoing addition to the original media buy with seventy thousand impressions per posted match.
PAINTBRAIN: MOTION
This web advertising series will be trafficked when the site launches. Paintbrain is planning to run this media on "Behind the Bunker" a weekly webcast show. This web show appeals more to the woodsball player than the competitive speedballer. With a sporadic viewing audience, and though the impressions fall short of the NXL and NCPA speedball coverage, it is the only portal to reach woodsball players at this level.
PAINTBRAIN: PRINT
This preprint mockup was created to get an estimate on off-set printing and ensure the print is properly produced, if it's brokered. This card will be printed soon as either a CMYK or matt spot color. Then a dry die stamping will be applied to the dripping brain graphic, creating a debossing effect. Finished off with pearl colored foiling, used on the Paintbrain logo.
It's a part of you. Bandanna
This series of promotional items were created as giveaways. Paintballers love useful freebies.
PAINTBRAIN: PRINT
Because the t-shirt and headband are a promotional giveaway, we decided to leverage a build graphic from a motion graphics piece. Using artist economy also gives us some continuity in our marketing plans or and more potential for inexpensive marketing solutions.
STUDIO: JOHN MCNEIL STUDIO
EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: JOHN MCNEIL
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: KIM LELIBOUX
CREATIVE DIRECTOR/COPYWRITER: KURTIS GLADE
ART DIRECTOR: PER NILSSON
GRAPHIC DESIGN, ART PRODUCTION: JURE GAVRAN, ALAN QUIJANO
MODELING, TEXTURING, RENDERING: BRANDON KUCHTA, J WALTON
ACTIONSCRIPT & XML PROGRAMING, MOTION DESIGN, ANIMATION, OPTIMIZATION: DAN M.
ROLE: ACTIONSCRIPT & XML PROGRAMING, BUGS, MOTION DESIGN, ANIMATION, OPTIMIZATION
JUNPIER: INTERACTIVE
These heroes were developed with localization in mind, quickly leveraged into different languages from programming with ActionScript to read an XML content list. A cool money saving idea for global builds.
STUDIO: JOHN MCNEIL STUDIO
EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: JOHN MCNEIL
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: KIM LELIBOUX
CREATIVE DIRECTOR/COPYWRITER: KURTIS GLADE
ART DIRECTOR: PER NILSSON
GRAPHIC DESIGN, ART PRODUCTION: JURE GAVRAN, ALAN QUIJANO
MODELING, TEXTURING, RENDERING: BRANDON KUCHTA, J WALTON
ACTIONSCRIPT & XML PROGRAMING, MOTION DESIGN, ANIMATION, OPTIMIZATION: DAN M.
ROLE: ACTIONSCRIPT & XML PROGRAMING, BUGS, MOTION DESIGN, ANIMATION, OPTIMIZATION
JUNPIER: INTERACTIVE
Everyone seems to need a rich media ad or banner delivered; most of the time it's last minute. I've rarely had timing issues with any banners or any other type of project. Cramming large amounts of copy and content into a narrow bandwidth file and maintaining image quality is something I take pride in being able to do.
STUDIO: JOHN MCNEIL STUDIO
EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: JOHN MCNEIL
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: KIM LELIBOUX
CREATIVE DIRECTOR/COPYWRITER: KURTIS GLADE
ART DIRECTOR: RALEIGH SWICK
GRAPHIC DESIGN, ART PRODUCTION: JURE GAVRAN, RALEIGH SWICK
ROLE: CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT, MOTION DESIGN, ANIMATION
JUNPIER: MOTION
I was tasked with delivering multiple demos for Juniper, along with other motion projects. These demos typically lasted around five minutes each, primarily consisting of continuous animation. They showcased a variety of services, including software and hardware that enhance cloud storage as a secure, cost-effective, and scalable solution for critical business data. The client's response to the initial demo was overwhelmingly positive, filled with gratitude. They thoroughly appreciated the demos, and I loved creating them.
CHARLENE ANN: COPYWRITING, GUIDANCE
ROLE: PROJECT MANAGEMENT, COPYWRITING, CREATIVE DIRECTION, ART DIRECTION, DESIGN, PRODUCTION, CAD PRODUCT MODELING/RENDERING
SPECIALTY SPORTSWEAR: E-COMMERCE WEBSITE REDESIGN
Sportswear is different than other companies in this market. This system supplies professional performance costume designers with a wide range of flexibility that shortens the creative process. The Problem? Many users did not understand the system. The Fix? A complete...
... re-design of the site, that illustrates the benefits of the system to professional sew'ers. This re-design was very successful and is launching new careers for aspiring designers. This direction has taken back Sportswear's niche market from another encroaching business, has widened their pre-production services and is now working with more manufacturing clients.
SPECIALTY SPORTSWEAR: E-COMMERCE WEBSITE
The system created by Sportswear includes around three hundred catalog images that needed updating. Quickly learning and using the latest CAD cloth simulation program to produce these catalog items to strict specifications was necessary to create an optimized workflow; well worth it. The production of these catalog images moved forward at an accelerated pace after producing a broad set of graphics primitives.
SPECIALTY SPORTSWEAR: FACEBOOK MARKETING
Knowing Facebook would be a significant part of acquiring new clients for Sportswear; a series of dominating strategies emerged. The "Where's your photo?", "Creation of the month", "Mix and match" and "Featured pattern" posts, along with the newly designed site was responsible for a 44% increase in sales for the first year and had continued the following years successfully at 20% and...
... 18% respectively. Almost all of Sportswear's new clients are following the same examples as pre-existing clients. Creating something amazing with a new level of skill, sharing and promoting their latest works and acquiring new clients. Sportswear couldn't be more grateful for the imagery they have received from their clients. These images are slated for use over the next few years of Sportswear's new marketing plans.
ROBERT TOBYS: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH GOLDSTEIN: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH COOK: COPYWRITING, PROJECT MANAGEMENT
ROLE: MARKETING MANAGEMENT, CREATIVE DIRECTION, ART DIRECTION, DESIGN, PRODUCTION, PRODUCT RENDERING
DESS: E-COMMERCE WEBSITE REDESIGN
The success of our landing pages led to a critical redesign of the DESS website, streamlining navigation across 1,700 SKUs. We also created additional landing experiences highlighting top-selling products, bolstered by targeted print ads and email marketing, resulting in remarkable conversion rates...
... Our strategy combined precise keywords with a visually stunning, rich media experience on animated landing pages. These pages offered detailed information about our products, including design, material composition, and unique treatments, distinguishing our offerings in a competitive price point. This enhanced user experience not only facilitated easier product discovery but also fostered strong relationships with both existing and new clients, thereby greatly enhancing the visibility of our relatively unknown dental abutment company.
ROBERT TOBYS: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH GOLDSTEIN: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH COOK: COPYWRITING, PROJECT MANAGEMENT
ROLE: MARKETING MANAGEMENT, CREATIVE DIRECTION, ART DIRECTION, DESIGN, PRODUCTION, PRODUCT RENDERING
DESS: E-COMMERCE WEBSITE REDESIGN
Dual strategy: using precise keywords and delivering a visually stunning, rich media experience. Our animated landing pages provided detailed information about the products, including design, material composition, and unique treatments, making our offerings stand out at a competitive price point. This enhanced user experience not only facilitated easier product discovery but also helped establish a strong relationship with both existing and new clients, boosting the visibility of our relatively unknown dental abutment company.
ROBERT TOBYS: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH GOLDSTEIN: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH COOK: COPYWRITING, PROJECT MANAGEMENT
ROLE: MARKETING MANAGEMENT, CREATIVE DIRECTION, ART DIRECTION, DESIGN, PRODUCTION, PRODUCT RENDERING
DESS: MOTION
With a diverse range of skills, particularly in creative direction, Keith and I quickly developed several storyboards. These enabled us to create a crucial demo showcasing standout features of the DESS branded TiBase components, As well as rebranding existing and new assets, effectively meeting our communication objectives with speed and clarity.
ROBERT TOBYS: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH GOLDSTEIN: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH COOK: COPYWRITING, PROJECT MANAGEMENT
ROLE: MARKETING MANAGEMENT, CREATIVE DIRECTION, ART DIRECTION, DESIGN, PRODUCTION, PRODUCT RENDERING
DESS: PRINT
One of the most significant projects we tackled was creating a series of documents for our sales deck. This included developing catalogs that categorized DESS's 1700 SKUs, which was a challenging endeavor. Fortunately, we utilized an InDesign plugin inData to distribute the workload by segmenting the catalog requirements. Leveraging my expertise in design and inData programming, and with another team member handling Excel sheets, we planned to efficiently produced these catalogs quarterly or as needed.
ROBERT TOBYS: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH GOLDSTEIN: CREATIVE DIRECTION, GUIDANCE
KEITH COOK: COPYWRITING, PROJECT MANAGEMENT
ROLE: MARKETING MANAGEMENT, CREATIVE DIRECTION, ART DIRECTION, DESIGN, PRODUCTION, PRODUCT RENDERING
DESS: PRINT
Dental abutment conferences played a significant role in DESS's success. Unfortunately, after missing an opportunity with a manufacturer in Spain, we were tasked with creating a series of sales decks and designing our own custom booth. Through many late nights and rigorous effort, we succeeded in making an impact that the entire DESS team was proud of. I know I was!
- Interactive
- Motion
- Interactive
- Motion
- Interactive
- Social
- Interactive
- Motion
- Reel
- Resume
SEEKING
I aim to collaborate with talented strategists, designers, artists, developers, and writers, sharing my expertise while learning from other experts in their respective fields. Over the years, I've been privileged to earn the trust of exceptional clients. The confidence placed in me by these clients has been transformative. Solving challenges and helping clients achieve their short and long-term goals brings me immense satisfaction — I do it to deliver value and ensure a strong return on their advertising and marketing investments!
WHAT I DO
Marketing Management
Cinema 4D/Blender/Rhino
Photoshop/Photo
UI/UX/Web Design
Creative/Art Direction
After Effects
Illustrator/Designer
HTML/CSS
Brand Development
Davinci Resolve/Premiere
InDesign/InData/Publisher
JavaScript
Motion Design/Animation
Unreal Engine
Dreamweaver/VS Code
Learning Fusion*
Compositing
RealFlow/Marvelous Designer
FontLab/Fontographer
Other Cool stuff!
HISTORY
I've been fortunate to have a career as a professional creative for most of my adult life. It all started during my teenage years when I began creating flyers for local events, which eventually led me to establish a small visual arts business. Our work took us to various venues throughout California, where we built a solid reputation and even got to know some union riggers personally. Despite the demanding schedule—sometimes working up to four twenty-hour shifts a week—I developed an efficient workflow that allowed me to create custom content while on the go. This venture helped finance my education, but eventually, I stepped away to focus on advancing my academic pursuits.
I earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Computer Arts New Media from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. This degree complemented my existing skills, opened new career pathways, and solidified my commitment to the creative and advertising industry. My training refined my abilities and equipped me to create virtually anything from scratch.
Following graduation, I had the opportunity to work in San Francisco at prestigious agencies like McCann-MRM, as well as at MySpace and John McNeill Studio. I contributed to projects for esteemed clients such as Microsoft, HP, Xbox, Cisco, Panda Express, and Google, among others. These experiences have been instrumental in shaping my career and expanding my creative horizons.
WORK EXPERIENCE
If I wasn't making creative decisions at these agencies, I had the privilege of collaborating with exceptionally talented executive creative directors. In the midst of creative development and production, I often tackled design and production challenges, given the opportunity by most directors to solve these issues. This collaborative process was incredibly fulfilling, where my contributions felt valued and impactful. I often felt like my two cents was worth a nickel.
While working for places like McCann-MRM, John McNeill Studio, and MySpace, I expanded my strategic thinking capabilities significantly. These environments taught me to approach project problems from multiple perspectives and tailor creative, graphic, and messaging solutions to fit specific audiences and strategies. I gained experience across a diverse array of projects—from motion graphics for broadcast, billboards, internal communications, instructional materials, demos, and web applications to interactive projects, front-end development, global rich media builds, and prototyping. Pitching projects was also a significant part of my role, where our ability to produce high-quality content quickly and efficiently played a crucial role in acquiring new clients.
Currently, I am engaged with a small e-commerce business where I manage advertising and marketing efforts. My responsibilities encompass strategy, copywriting, graphic design and production, and reworking a social media marketing campaign.
As I explore opportunities as a contractor, vendor, or full-time creative professional, my goal for the next decade is to produce some of my best work within project budgets. I thrive in structured workflows where strategy, creative development, copy, and art are planned before production commences. Collaboration is essential to me, and I take pride in supporting my colleagues. I am committed to contributing in every way possible to help my employers secure new clients, contracts, projects, or revenue streams.