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Process

Finding the shape before we find the answer

·2 min read

Every brief starts the same way: too many questions, not enough moodboards. No visuals in the first session — just us trying to understand what the thing actually needs to do, and who it needs to feel like.

That part surprises people. Clients expect to see something fast. We'd rather spend that time finding out what "something" should even be.

Loud and wide, then narrow fast

Once we understand the brief, we explore in every direction that seems plausible — sketches, references, half-formed ideas that might not survive the week. This stage is deliberately messy, on purpose, every time.

A polished deck with three "safe" options isn't a real choice — it's three versions of the same idea wearing different colors. We'd rather bring one rough direction that's actually alive than three dead ones dressed up to look finished.

A notebook and pencils on a desk, mid-exploration during an early design session
A notebook and pencils on a desk, mid-exploration during an early design session

Design and motion, together

By the time a direction is picked, motion isn't an afterthought bolted on at the end — it's already part of how the idea was tested. A brand mark that only works as a static PNG hasn't actually been designed yet, in our view. It has to hold up moving.

Some things we check for at this stage:

  • Does it still read at a glance when it's animating, not just sitting still
  • Does the color system survive motion (does it start looking muddy mid-transition)
  • Does the idea still make sense cropped, small, or in someone's peripheral vision — not just centered on a 27" monitor

Directions, not decks. We'd rather show you something rough and real than something safe and dead.

Ship it, then keep tending it

The work doesn't stop at handoff. Living things need looking after — and a brand system, a product interface, a launch film, all keep needing small adjustments once they're out in the world and meeting real people instead of a moodboard.

Got a project that needs to go through this? Tell us where you're stuck — even if all you have right now is the brief and too many questions of your own.