A) As a student who has worked on many transformative art pieces in the past, I’ve learned to realize the importance of crediting a person or company’s IP when they are used or showcased in your own work. I am a large supporter of modifying video games and the site I post my own creations, for free, credits the original persons and companies involved. This can range from a modified version of their IP character to a fellow creator who helped on said project.

B) The readings have continued to help me grow as a designer and a person to understand just how strict laws are with various forms of theft. Copyrights are not to be taken lightly with knowing how to protect yourself, your business, and to say out of trouble with other brands. I believe just credit should have been given to Mannie Garcia, the original photographer of the edited photo used in Obama’s “HOPE” poster. Regardless of how much one has edited an image to align with “Fair Use”, giving proper credit would enhance both parties for a few reasons such as:

1. You are now seen as being respectable and dependable on not stealing another artist’s work.

2. The credited artist is given proper recognition.

3. Viewers may potentially be intrigued at your editing skills if the original piece is almost unrecognizable without a comparison.

(image source): freepik

(link to topic): NY_Times_Fairey_Case

The company I interned at in Spring 2024 was an educational institution where I was on sight on a weekly basis after my interview. I specifically worked in the communications department where their jobs involve updating their institution’s website and social media outlets with relevant topics. This included student led events, institution events, guest speakers, graduations, and interviews.

 

 

(image source): depositphotos.com

Through back and forth email conversations with my course professor, I was able to land an interview at an educational institution. My would be supervisor scheduled a meeting date at the worksite on a Friday afternoon. I was familiar with the area, so I was able to get there early without issue. As I am a Graphic Design major, I wanted to draw parallels with my personal focus within my major and this opportunity. I was asked about my strengths, more examples of my work, and what I sought to gain out of this internship. One of my own questions was about my attire. I was told that a casual clothing attire is acceptable as long is it was appropriate and not too flashy. There was an agreed upon schedule of Wednesdays and Thursdays, starting the very next week in late February, with a few added Mondays or Tuesdays when help was needed and my schedule aligned well for that week.

I worked from 10am – 4pm with a self scheduled lunch break around 1 or 2pm where I would eat something small while in the office for 15-20 mins, clean up, then start working once again. As I was an on-sight intern at the company, my duties largely involved me helping my supervisor film material for institution’s website and social media presence. My duties would range from helping carrying filming equipment to learning how to properly set them up. Being a designer, it was always important for me to both treat the equipment and my peers with respect. The tasks providing was not only relegated to a hands on approach as I have been involved with editing video recordings we have made earlier that day or earlier that specific week.

(image source): istockphoto.com

The communications department was not located within the institution itself, however, I did work in a general office space where each main stay employee had their dedicated office rooms. The office had printers, up to date computers, a water cooler, and a microwave. The atmosphere was professional and everyone, interns included, were treated with respect. Whenever there was a change in the itinerary for the day, my supervisor would let me know at the start of my shift and he would make sure to relay any information on the plans for the next shift I would be available.

My workspace was a cubicle not too different from ones in a standard office. It was equipped with drawers , a fairly large desk, and a Mac computer where I was able to work on animations and video edits for the company.

Communication was a must in the office and if there were any days I could not make it, I would tell my supervisor at the earliest convenience so they could plan accordingly. Text messages were sought to be ideal as they were a direct line of communication and being a busy person, emails not of high importance could get lost. These messages would also include any updates to a shared Dropbox folder where access to any new videos would be available at any point without myself or supervisor needing to be present.

 

(image source): Sheharyar Khan

The long term project I was tasked to do were two 3D animations and variations of said animations to be used for future videos regarding the institution. My process involved using the company owned assets of their 2D logo, finding the correct font, and then making a 3D text version of the font so it properly aligned with the flat image. This project underwent several revisions in order to get the details my supervisor was pleased with.

Animation is a relatively new skill I have been practicing on over the past few years in Adobe Animate for 2D and Cinema 4D for 3D. During my internship, I found that Blender, being a free open source 3D tool available on PC and Mac, was well suited for the long term project. I was able to seamlessly transfer the files from the office to my home with no issue when I needed to continue working.  3D modeling and lighting have always been my strong suit, so having a chance to work on a project that played to my strengths allowed me to produce work well within my skill set.

(image source): sentavio

There have been many collaborative projects between me and a fellow intern. One project involved interviewing students where we would ask a few questions to get their personal reasons to choosing this institution. One of us interns would record the students while the other would ask the questions. Another team project came in the form of recording multiple events which occurred on the same day at different times. Most of our work days were spent collaborative with out Supervisor and others in the office on similar projects.

(image source): pexels.com

For my self-evaluation, I believe that my strongest suits involved my willingness to learn about concepts, asking for clarification on projects, incorporating past lessons into my future work and keeping within professional standards at the workplace. This is included my dress code, lunch break times, and conversations with fellow office workers where lessons in ethics were important. While there was a more relaxed atmosphere with fellow workers, I made sure to keep a relaxed nature to a minimum and to always show progress on my current work, even if it were minimal.

On the opposite end, completing tasks on a timely manner varied dependence on what the project was. While video edits took the shortest amount of time, animations were where I completed before deadlines, but not at the earliest convenience due to my own poor time management.

 

(image source): Freepik

The best thing about the human brain is its ability to learn and grow. From childhood to adulthood, humans never stop learning and it is no different with my experience throughout this internship. Interviewing, filming and picture taking are not exactly my greatest assets, however, the lessons learned from those experiences did help me to build up my own people skills, lighting composition, and file management skills. A lesson that stuck with me was when my supervisor stated “When recording, I’m already editing in my mind to see where I would want to make any cuts.”

With that knowledge, working on simpler video edits led me to learn more about Adobe Premiere Pro in ways I didn’t consider. I was able to understand more efficient ways to edit videos, specific cropping tricks, the major importance of “b-roll” footage and how to take proper mental notes before sitting down at a computer. My 3D animations skills and understanding of Blender had also increased over time as well. Admittedly, working with type is a skill I haven’t honed as much and now having to create a 3D version from the institution’s flat logo took a lot of fine tuning to get the results I was proud of and have been able to use those skills to enhance my portfolio pieces.

As a designer, imbibing what I can to enhance my own craft was what led me here today. I am nearing the end of my degree with an upcoming Portfolio class and it is with with conviction that I will face it. This experience has allowed me to continue down my career path, and for that, I am grateful.

 

(image source): Roll_Safe

Software produced Audio and Translation

(Text translator used): Online_Translator
(Audio_Translator used): Ally

A) During my time at the company we were directed to the branding guideline pdf which everyone referred to whenever to came to designing something that represented the institution. This branding guide included assets on their logos, colors, the way emails are typed, and what their crest looked like. Under no circumstances were the assets to be manipulated beyond the guidelines for personal or financial gain as that could misrepresent the brand. This was reflected in my 3D animations of the brand logos as I had to adhere to the specific color schemes as much as possible.

B) While I did not have to sign an NDA, it was clear to me of what my responsibilities were for the duration of my internship. I was told by my supervisor that I am allowed to add my projects to my own portfolio, and that was not a decision I took lightly. For my journal posts, I’ve kept the company unmentioned, names unspoken, and addresses unknown as these posts have always been a reflection about my time at the place of establishment.

(image source):  freepik

(link to topic): AIGA_Ethics