COMD2300 FALL 2023 CLASS SCHEDULE
TUESDAY & FRIDAY 11:30-2:00 PM
OFFICE HOURS 2:00-2:30 PM

Please find below an overview of the class schedule and assignments. Subject to change.

Week 1

Class 1

  • Meeting Info: 08/25/2023
  • Topic: Class expectations & introduce Project #1
  • Activities: Begin research & development for Project #1 
  • Assignment: Bring artist choice for Project #1. Begin collecting visuals/sketches for concept.

Week 2

Class 2

  • Meeting Info: 08/29/2023
  • Topic: Approaches to Visual Problem Solving, Exploring an Idea. Introduce Creative brief purposes.
  • Activities: Present creative briefs in focus groups and create a mood board.
  • Homework: Creative brief and Mood boards DUE next class

Class 3

  • Meeting Info: 09/01/2023
  • Topic: Sketches/Thumbnail best practices & refine thumbnails.
  • Activities: Present creative briefs and mood boards.
  • Assignment: refine 9 thumbnails

Class 4

  • Meeting Info: 09/05/2023
  • Topic: Evaluate 9 thumbnails & feedback. Lecture on Grids/Editorial layout using Adobe InDesign
  • Activities: Present 3 thumbnails to Professor, refine to concepts to one design and take to computer
  • Assignment: Discuss solutions and refine
    thumbnails. 3 thumbnails DUE next class.

Week 3

Class 5

  • Meeting Info: 09/08/2023
  • Topic: Graphic design principles’ effects on advertising. Taking Your Idea from Sketch to Prototype.
  • Activities: In-class design time; continue refining concepts. By this class, one or two concepts are chosen to comp.
  • Assignment: Refine 1 or 2 concepts to comp
    stage.

Class 6

  • Meeting Info: 09/12/2023
  • Topic: Preliminary critique: Evaluate comp stage designs.
  • Activities: In-class design time & feedback for revisions
  • Assignment: Begin finalizing design layout for
    project #1

Week 4

Class 7: College Closed

  • Meeting Info: 09/15/23

Class 8

  • Meeting Info: 09/19/2023
  • Topic: Project #1 Due, Presentations & Feedback
  • Assignment: FUEL

Week 5

Class 9

  • Meeting Info: 09/22/2023
  • Topic: What is an advertising campaign? Ad Reviews. Introduce Project #2.
  • Activities: Begin research and development of creative brief.
  • Assignment: Creative brief for Project #2 DUE next class.

Class 10

  • Meeting Info: 09/26/2022
  • Topic: Elements of an ad: headline, tagline & call-to-action. Share creative briefs with the class.
  • Activities: Begin writing 12 headlines and four taglines
  • Assignment: Headlines and Taglines DUE next class.

Week 6

Class 11

  • Meeting Info: 09/29/2022
  • Topic: The ‘big idea’: concept, continuity & copy
  • Activities: Refine copy concepts, choose one tagline and three corresponding headlines, and choose a call-to-action. Begin sketching 9 thumbnail concepts
  • Assignment: 9 thumbnails DUE.

Class 12

  • Meeting Info: 10/03/2023
  • Topic: Design principles: Current design solutions
  • Activities: Review thumbnails, share with class. Begin taking concepts to the computer.
  • Assignment: Refine thumbnails, start bringing to comp stage.

Week 7

Class 13

  • Meeting Info: 10/06/2023
  • Topic: Advertising vs. Graphic Design. Group critiques and open feedback. 
  • Activities: Refine concepts to one ad campaign
  • Assignment: Continue work on comps.

Class 14

  • Meeting Info: 10/10/2023
  • Topic: Visual Approaches: Making the product hero.
  • Activities: In-class design time
  • Assignment: Evaluate product shot options for
    selected brand.

Week 8

Class 15

  • Meeting Info: 10/13/2023
  • Topic: Preliminary critique with class.
  • Activities: In-class design time. Critique work in-class and make revisions
  • Assignment: Project #2 DUE next class.

Class 16

  • Meeting Info: 10/17/2023
  • Topic: Project #2 Presentation & Critique
  • Assignment: FUEL

Week 9

Class 17

  • Meeting Info: 10/20/2023
  • Topic: Introduce Project #3. Teamwork in design
  • Activities: Group assignments. Begin research and development of creative brief.
  • Assignment: Creative brief for Project #3 DUE next class.

Class 18

  • Meeting Info: 10/24/2023
  • Topic: Consistency & creating style guides
  • Activities: Share creative brief. Begin work on style guide and pulling visual references for style guides.
  • Due Dates: Creative brief DUE

Week 10

Class 19

  • Meeting Info: 10/27/2023
  • Topic: Evaluate working style guides. Lecture on Guerilla Marketing.
  • Activities: Thumbnails for three ad campaign concepts
  • Assignment: 3-6 thumbnails Due for next class.

Class 20

  • Meeting Info: 10/31/2023
  • Topic: Illustrator Lecture
  • Activities: Teams decide on one tagline, call-to-action and theme. Sketch thumbnails for deliverables. Finalize style guides.
  • Assignment: Style guides DUE next class.

Week 11

Class 21

  • Meeting Info: 11/03/2023
  • Topic: Design Principles in Advertising: Illustrator/Vector. Size vs. legibility.
  • Activities: Begin working on digital designs of thumbnails
  • Assignment: Individual thumbnails DUE next class.

Class 22

  • Meeting Info: 11/07/2023
  • Topic: Preliminary critique with class.
  • Activities: In-class design time
  • Assignment: Finalize Project #3 presentations. 

Week 12

Class 23

  • Meeting Info: 11/10/2023
  • Topic: Project #3 Presentations and Critique
  • Assignment: FUEL

Class 24

  • Meeting Info: 11/14/2023
  • Topic: Introduce Project #4: Brand Creation & Launch:
    Disruptor brands & digital campaigns
  • Activities: Group assignments, research,
    creative brief.
  • Assignment: Creative Brief DUE next class. 

Week 13

Class 25

  • Meeting Info: 11/17/2023
  • Topic: Team creative brief due. Lecture on storyboarding and advertising with movement.
  • Activities: Individuals will begin drawing three storyboard concepts.
  • Assignment: Storyboards DUE next class.

Class 26

  • Meeting Info: 11/21/2023
  • Topic: Photoshop Lecture. Individual storyboard concepts due.
  • Activities: Begin digital animation as a group.
  • Assignment: Creative brief and Style Guide DUE next class.

Week 14

Class 27

  • Meeting Info: 11/24/2023
  • Topic: Preliminary critique
  • Activities: In-class design time.
  • Assignment: Project #4 final preparations 

Class 28: 11/28/23 College Closed

Week 15

Class 29

  • Meeting Info: 12/01/2023
  • Topic: Project #4 Presentations and Critique
  • Assignment: FUEL

Class 30

  • Meeting Info: 12/05/2023
  • Topic: Anatomy of a Portfolio. Introduce final Portfolio project and OpenLab template.
  • Activities: In-class design time. Portfolio discovery, visual references.
  • Assignment: Select two Projects from the semester to refine. 

Class 31*

  • Meeting Info: 12/08/2023
  • Topic: Portfolio presentations and critique.
  • Activities: In-class design time.
  • Assignment: Upload 2 projects to Openlab template.
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