When Storytelling Inspired Me
A story can be defined as a character pursuing a goal through an obstacle (Biesenbach, 2018, p. 20). Because of the simplicity of this explanation, stories have the flexibility to exist in a variety of mediums. We read stories in books, see stories in theatres, listen to stories in songs, and even interact with stories in videogames. You might wonder while being saturated in stories at every turn, why we are still drawn to them. Researcher Paul Zak explains that stories cause our brain to produce oxytocin, which gives us a feeling of empathy and a desire to cooperate (Biesenbach, 2018, p. 12). The audience might by physically sitting down and listening to a story, but Rob Biesenbach (2018, p. 12) tells us our brain is activated in the same manner as if we actually experienced an event. If a story is told the right way, it can motivate us into action.
I virtually attended the Adobe MAX conference in October of 2020. This was an opportunity to see emerging trends in design from well-known creatives throughout various industries. One session, Prop Design for the Real World: Tips from a Leading Designer, I was extremely excited about. I love movies and graphic design. The session was led by Annie Atkins, a respected graphic designer who has created graphic props for Wes Anderson and Steven Spielberg. Mrs. Atkins would share her experiences from a variety of projects, and the reality of working and living during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ultimately, Mrs. Atkins would draw on her past project experiences, the inspiration from her mom, and desire to help others on an ambitious charitable project to help others during the limitations of working from home during lockdowns.
The video of Annie Atkins’ story I will be discussing can be found at this link: https://www.adobe.com/max/2020/sessions/prop-design-for-the-real-world-tips-from-a-leading-od6301.html
Structure
The story arc of Mrs. Atkins’ experiences gives us a look at graphic design in the cinema industry. We hear that graphic design for film making is creating things that everyone sees, but nobody ever cares about. This reminded me of a Saul Bass (another famous graphic designer in film making history) quote, “I want to make beautiful things, even if nobody cares.” I thought this was a great way to start a story, because it makes me want to hear what drives Mrs. Atkins to put the effort and authenticity into visual artifacts for a movie that may not be appreciated as much as other elements. We learn the impact her mom had on her life and on her work. Mrs. Atkins then takes us through the process of her projects and we see the challenges each project presented. Mrs. Atkins’ final project she shared took place during the COVID pandemic, and was inspired from the hardship of losing her mother to cancer. She would create prints with her Instagram followers showing how to live life during a pandemic lock-down that would raise over $10000 for St. David’s Hospice.
Annie Atkins has a studio in Dublin, but the setting also shows us design work in movie studios, print shops, and at home. I can picture in my mind what it looks like behind the camera in a movie set and imagining the contrasting view a camera doesn’t capture. Mrs. Atkins’ story setting follows where her life and work take her.
Annie Atkins is sharing her story with us, so Mrs. Atkins is the main character. Annie is real and relatable. As a digital design teacher, I see similar requests for projects that have unique requirements and constraints (although my social media graphics, school posters, and sport team summer camp brochures are at a much lower stress level). Mrs. Atkins taking us through life and the pandemic can relate to anyone, anywhere. Losing a loved one also hit hard as our family dealt with COVID restrictions of hospitals while suffering losses from our family.
Jon Franklin reminds us that the narrative tells your story and that your story, with the included characters and events is a living thing and always changing (Gitner, 2016, p. 35). Mrs. Atkins is giving us her personal narrative of her work. While Mrs. Atkins is narrating, we see her delivering her story to us in an office. We also see footage of her creating work, and images of her various projects. Different camera angles while Mrs. Atkins talks ads variety to the video as she is primarily in one room due to filming during the COVID lockdowns. The soft music in the background adds to the emotion of Mrs. Atkins’ life being told.
If Annie Atkins’ goal is creating her designs, the conflict is all the obstacles that surface for various projects. These obstacles include a balance between authenticity and effectiveness, finding the right paper, re-creating a prop after the script called for the prop to be destroyed, and working at home when lockdown prohibits you from going to work. Mrs. Atkins using her creativity and problem solving to work around these obstacles is as impressive as the work itself she creates.
The Inspiration
Prop Design for the Real World: Tips from a Leading Designer was a presentation I knew I would learn a lot from, but was not expecting to be emotionally moved by. I immediately went to Amazon and purchased Fake Love Letters, Forged Telegrams, and Prison Escape Maps: Designing Graphic Props for Filmmaking by Annie Atkins. Mrs. Atkins’ story also inspired me to think of a way to use design to help others during this time of uncertainty. My school has just successfully completed its entire school year in person through the awesome efforts of administration, staff, students, and families. At the start of the year Jen McNally, a director of mental health and wellness, talked to our staff about the importance of taking care of our own wellness (another inspirational presenter). I contacted Mrs. McNally for permission to use some of the statistics and information she presented, and she graciously allowed us to use. My graphic design class then collaborated ideas for posters to remind their classmates that they matter and are cared about. After some Photoshop work, we printed off the images on our large format printer, and our school library laminated them so we could display the work around the building. Although my actions weren’t at the scale as the story that inspired me, I like to think that it helped people. I also like to think Annie Atkins would be happy knowing her story inspired and helped others.
References
Atkins, A. (2020). Prop Design for the Real World: Tips from a Leading Designer = OD6301. Adobe MAC. https://www.adobe.com/max/2020/sessions/prop-design-for-the-real-world-tips-from-a-leading-od6301.html.
Biesenbach, R. (2018). Unleash the power of storytelling: win hearts, change minds, get results. Eastlawn Media.
Gitner, S. (2016). Multimedia storytelling for digital communicators in a multiplatform world. Routledge.
