I’m excited about the inMotion Studios partnership with Regina Rubino / IMAGE: Global Vision and Robert Louey Design/Pagenova. Regina Rubino and Robert Louey are clearly brand-identity designers at the top of their game, and they are always looking forward. By expanding to include multi-media design services, they are offering a whole new dimension to their clientele. That’s good news for the global corporate community. But it’s good for us too, because we have the technical expertise to deliver the signature Louey/Rubino concepts online.
My own background is more technical than my colleague Harold De Jesus. I began as a software developer. But I wanted to do more visual and creative work. More in the animation realm. So I enrolled in the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts where I earned an MFA in Digital Art and Animation. I feel confident that I can manage the technical aspects of building something on the internet in collaboration with high-caliber designers.
The big challenge is blending the depth of print design with the stringent demands of the internet. For Regina and Robert, brand identity design and message comes first. But there is an aspect of internet design that is very technical and rigid. Flash has been established as a standard and so on the web, tech is first. When doing a brochure, for instance, you can be precise about placement and use 10-tone color to create layers of design. The net has been less friendly. A lot of websites are laid out in grid fashion. That’s because of technical code demands. Some web designers can work around it. But many times you look at websites and see distinct columns and shapes. And corporate sites often are more concerned with information than design aesthetics.
The great innovation Regina and Robert will bring to 21st Century online design is an aesthetic that is far more complex and fulfilling that what we’re used to seeing. Corporate sites tend to run in herds — they are very similar to the other websites in their industry: three big pharma sites look very similar. Corporate leaders in that arena are a little fearful of breaking the mold.
Also, in the past, branding has worked with banner ads, some animation and sometimes a few interesting visual elements. But typically corporate sites are limited to a logo on the home page surrounded by whatever the corporate colors are.
But imagine a Louey/Rubino brand identity system hosted online. They’ll push the envelope, as they have with their offline ventures, so that corporate sites begin to develop a unique look. That’s why I’m so excited about our partnership: as we evolve, the possibilities are endless.
Our new collaboration has already begun with Robert’s new site. http://www.robertloueydesign.com. The design is tactile. There is a sense that some elements are embossed. There is a physical aspect to the digital pages.
There is also restraint. We’ve done a lot of movie title design at inMotion and a lot of designers love embellishments. We think they go too far. The brain needs time to prepare for the next image. It’s simple to make something complicated, but complicated to make something simple and absorbing. Regina and Robert aren’t interested in gimmicks. They are about maturity and stature. I can’t wait to see where all this leads us.
Marcel Valcarce, Creative director, inMotion Studios, Inc.
A full service motion graphics/animation design and production company
