Process

From brief to knife.

Art directors hire a pipeline, not a vibe.

Scissors, craft knives, glue and paper scraps on a green cutting board
Library photo, not the studio.

We start with use. A cover and a billboard are different drawings even when they share a sketch.

Thumbnails are many, small, and slightly ugly. The color script is three scraps and the paper. The final is cut physically and scanned. We retouch dust. We do not redraw the tear.

Start with a brief
The cutting table: paper scraps, scissors, a pencil, tape and a stack of cream sheets on a cutting table
The cutting table. Original theme artwork.

  1. 01. Brief & rights

    Usage is written down before thumbnails.

    What it is for, where it will live, and who may use it.

    A pencil lying on a sheet of red paper

  2. 02. Thumbnails

    You are choosing a direction, not a finish.

    Many small truths. Not a single polished guess.

    A green cutting mat with two rotary cutters and a clear ruler

  3. 03. Color script

    Three inks plus the paper. The paper counts.

    Three scraps and the paper. A fourth hue has to earn a meeting.

    Open jars of red, blue, yellow and black printing ink

  4. 04. Final cut

    Layered scans, a flat master, and a don’t-fix note.

    The piece, the files, and a note on what not to clean up.

    A hand creasing paper with a white bone folder

Step photos: Library photo, not the studio.