Making Midwest is a community project initiated by Made By Things to support motion artists in the Midwest region of the United States. We learn from our peers while making new friends and industry connections.
Making Midwest is taking place at Columbus College of Art & Design (CCAD) this year in the Joseph V. Canzani Center, marking the third year we have hosted it there. The Joseph V. Canzani Center is located at 60 Cleveland Ave, Columbus, Ohio 43215, and free parking will be available on the east side of the building. Click here to review a map of CCAD's campus. When you enter the Canzani building, we will greet all attendees at the registration table and provide an event badge. The event badge will be your key to all festivities at Making Midwest. All keynote presentations will occur in the Canzani Auditorium on the first floor. Creative Business School and all workshops will take place in the Canzani MPR room on the second floor.
Matt will walk through what it took to build his studio with actionable steps to help creative entrepreneurs get past the roadblocks to a dream business.This course includes a break from 12:00 PM to 2:30 PM to allow you to participate in other activities. This all-day course is sold separately from general admission tickets for the conference.
Before we kick things off for the Making Midwest conference, we would like everyone to join the community in the lobby to get to know each other.
We will kick things off with a BANG in the Canzani Auditorium as we welcome everyone to the conference and bring Amanda Russell to the stage. During the Moving Forward Presentation, Amanda Russell will discuss the challenges we are facing within the Motion Design Industry and share the efforts we should take to address these problems, what efforts she is currently working on, and how she is doing it.
We welcome everyone back to the lobby to interact with the community before the second presentation begins.
Mothers of Mograph will be hosting a live podcast showcasing extraordinary voices from their community.
Rafael Mayani will provide a detailed account of his career and discuss five essential ways of approaching design. This knowledge will help you approach design from a different angle.
As we come to the close of the first day of the Making Midwest conference, we welcome everyone to the CCAD Lawn and lobby to enjoy various activities such as cornhole.
Rafael Mayani will have participants select a group of references for the character’s costume design and a combination of simple shapes to create a character from scratch. Afterward, each participant will develop a series of variations on the same character using various combinations of shapes and proportions.All workshops are sold separately from general admission tickets for the conference.
We welcome everyone back to start their day in the lobby to interact with the community before the day's first presentation begins or participate in the Demo Reel Review.
In the Auditorium, we will be reviewing Demo Reels for the community and providing live feedback. If you are interested in having your Demo Reel on the big screen, make sure to reach out.
In this talk, Kevin will break down the true business value of creative work so that creatives can better articulate the importance of what they do and advocate for what they deserve.
We will take a break for lunch and allow attendees to gather in the lobby to mingle before the next presentation begins.
Studio founders Amanda Russell (Cream), Mack Garrison (Dash) and Matt Vojacek (Made By Things), sit down together for a deep dive into the current state of the motion industry. They'll share some of their observations on topics like AI, staffing, portfolios, budgets and so much more as they work out what the industry may look like in the future for both studios and artists.
Handel Eugene will teach us to apply a design thinking approach toward life’s most significant problems and challenges.
The lobby will remain open for the remainder of the day to allow everyone to continue to make connections and get to know our sponsors.
It's said that we make about 35,000 decisions every single day, that's 35,000 chances for a creative person to become extremely distracted from what they "should" be doing. In Matt's talk, he'll go through how to tame those wild distractions to find the clarity to make the right decisions on what which ideas you run with and which you pass on.
We will take a short break for lunch and allow attendees to gather in the lobby to mingle before the next presentation begins and get to know our sponsors.
Erica will reflect on her 20 years of experience in motion design by examining past projects and exploring how her perspective and approach have evolved as a director and designer.
We welcome everyone back into the lobby for a short break before we wrap up with the last presentation for the conference.
As professional artists, we tend to get drained of our creative juices during the day to day grind. Not to mention, "passion projects" have become more and more prestigious and intimidating to create (looking at you, Beeple!). But what if you didn't make something for a client? What if you didn't even make something for... yourself? In this talk, Sarah Beth discusses the significance of creating things for people you care about. From silly doodles to handmade ceramics for Christmas, crafting gifts for loved ones can help make your heart feel full.
Everyone is welcome back to the lobby for one last social gathering and to connect with sponsors before we close the doors at 6:00 PM.
Making Midwest 2024 Motion conference is located on the Columbus College of Art and Design campus, which is located in downtown Columbus and marked with the Art sculpture. There are plenty of nearby hotels to crash at, places to see, and restaurants to enjoy while attending the Making Midwest conference. Download & View Recommendations HereWe also have a bonus: Kevin Rapp, Co-Founder + Chief Creative Officer of Ultra Friend, created a guide that includes some of his favorite restaurants and activities within three different neighborhoods here in Columbus.You can download this list here: Kevin Rapp’s Columbus Guide.
When you register for the conference as a general admission participant, you will have full access to various activities. This includes keynote presentations and opportunities to connect and interact with other attendees who are both peers and experienced professionals in the industry. You will have the opportunity to gain valuable insights and knowledge from these experts and potentially establish long-lasting professional relationships that can help advance your career.
We have a limited quantity of Early Bird Tickets for general admission to the Making Midwest conference. Make sure you don't miss out on this offer.
This will give you access to all presentations at the Making Midwest Conference.
For current students or current professionals out of work. (Valid proof must be shown at entry)
See all the talks LIVE online! (Doesn't include workshops)
This workshop at Making Midwest is a hands-on classroom-style course. With limited seats, the two-hour workshop will dive deep into a specific topic to help you learn from the best in the motion industry. These are rare opportunities you do not want to miss out on!This workshop is sold separately from general admission tickets for the conference.
Designing Characters with Simple Shapes workshop with Rafael Mayani [Sold Out]
This workshop will take place on Saturday, May 18 from 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM EST in the Canzani MPR. Rafael Mayani will have participants select a group of references for the character’s costume design and a combination of simple shapes to create a character from scratch. Afterward, each participant will develop a series of variations on the same character using various combinations of shapes and proportions.
Creative Business School is an all-day course that walks people through becoming a successful creative freelancer or studio owner. No matter where you are in your entrepreneurial journey, you'll learn how to take your business goals to the next level. In a rare tell-all, Matt opens the book on what it took to build his motion design studio to help you get a head start and get around some pretty big roadblocks.
This course is broken up into these parts:
This course is sold separately from general admission tickets for the conference.
Creative Business School with Matt Vojacek [Sold Out]
Matt will walk through what it took to build his studio with actionable steps to help creative entrepreneurs get past the roadblocks to a dream business. This course will take place on Friday, May 17, and includes breaks throughout the day to allow you to participate in other activities.
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