Sketchnote Guide to Speaking at SXSW

SXSW INTERACTIVE is one of my favorite events of the year, so when Shawn O'Keefe from the SXSW organizing team contacted me about creating a guide for speakers with sketchnote illustrations, I was all in.

Organizing the Details

Shawn provided a list of 9 messages he wanted speakers to remember as they prepared for their panels, which included:

• Be at Your Green Room an Hour Before Your Session
• Stay on Topic During Your Session
• Watch the Time During Your Session
• Show Your Passion for Your Topic - Have Fun!
• Get a Good Night's Sleep the Night Before Your Session
• Treat Fellow Speakers and Audience with Respect
• Speak into the Microphone and Look at the Audience When You Talk
• Remind Your Audience to Rate Your Panel or Presentation
• Start Thinking About SXSW PanelPicker 2013 (Entry Process Starts June 25)

I began mulling these ideas over in my head and then moved to sketching out the concepts that appeared, using pencil and paper.

Sketch Concepts

Each concept was sketched out for Shawn's review, with notes in the sketches and included in the Basecamp project we used to communicate. One of my favorite concepts was of an x-wing fighter from Star Wars (Death Star trench scene) related to the "Stay On Topic" recommendation.

All 9 concepts were sketched out, reviewed and approved by Shawn and the team, so I began inking up the ideas.

Inking and Final Design

As I started inking the images, I also began thinking of the best way I could organize the 9 elements into a cohesive, logical unit, easy for a SXSW speaker to scan and understand.

Each image was inked in my Moleskine sketchbook, scanned and edited in Photoshop. There, I remove dirt, fix contrast and generally optimize the images for their eventual vectorization.

Finalized images were processed with Vector Magic, so I can easily work with the final vector elements in Adobe Illustrator. This approach lets me easily size images up and down without quality loss and creates excellent art for print production.

Designing the Flow

I realized that re-ordering the images in a flow that would make more sense to a speaker was the right way to go — starting with a good night's sleep and ending with the Panel Picker to encourage speaking at next year's event.

I worked the separate illustrations by adjusting sizes and adding bits of typography, until a cohesive illustration emerged after a few iterations. Shawn and the team at SXSW loved the final piece:

After final updates, the art was sent off to the printer. Here's the final image, mocked up on Neenah Environment Desert Storm, the card stock it will print on:

The speaker card will be inserted into every speaker packet, with the goal of better preparing all SXSW speakers for their panels.

Thanks!

Thanks Shawn, Hugh, Caroline and the entire SXSW planning team for choosing me to communicate this message in a fun, unique way.

Play Hard Do Good T-Shirt Design

DESIGNING T-SHIRTS is a challenge I enjoy, so when I was commissioned to design and illustrate the 2012 Beacon Lounge t-shirt, I was ready for some fun.

The Beacon Lounge is a quiet, relaxing and recharging space, nestled amid the chaos and activity of SXSW. It's the place you can take a break, meet people, eat tasty food, hear good tunes and help create lasting social good in the world.

Concept Sketches

Eve Simon, my friend and Beaconfire creative director, hired me to design this year's t-shirt. She provided the Play Hard Do Good theme and shirt specs. With this info, I began sketching ideas for a type treatment in pencil, shown below:

The initial sketch concepts for the t-shirt illustration were more along the lines of a simple type treatment, reflected in the pencil sketches above.

In the second sketch below, you can see I've expanded the simple type treatment from the first sketches to a complete and more detailed illustration using the Play Hard Do Good type treatment with supporting elements:

I aimed to capture a lounge-like late 50s / early 60s feel with the typography on this piece, having fun with the modern couch and other retro touches.

Inking, Scanning and Vectorizing

Once I had an approved concept sketch, I inked various design elements in my large Moleskine sketchbook and scanned them in. Once the elements were open in Photoshop, I was able to edit flaws, tweak details and prepare each piece for vectorization using VectorMagic — a key piece of my illustration toolkit.

Below you can see and in-progress version of the black and white illustration being built in Adobe Illustrator. Notice the additional horizontal rules in the center of the piece — those were simplified in the final version:

Time for Color

Once the black and white illustration was approved, I explored color. I knew I had a brown t-shirt as a base color, so I selected bright aqua and vibrant orange to compliment each other and the base white ink.

This combination created a color palette suggesting both a lounge feel and the Texas hill country around Austin:

Here is the final illustration shown in context on a brown t-shirt:

T-Shirts Supporting Sweet Relief

The team at GoodThreads and Beaconfire sponsored the t-shirt design and printing — I can't wait to see these shirts on Beacon Lounge guests!

These custom illustrated t-shirts will be available to Beacon Lounge guests with a donation to the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund. It's great to be part of the Beacon in this way, giving back and making a difference in the lives of people.

Come to the Beacon during SXSW, say hello and pick up your shirt.