The Killswitch Collective :: Design, Development & Creative Direction

Let's face it, everything seems to move at a breakneck pace in our industry. It seems like every other day there is a new start-up with some amazing product that's supposed to change the way all of us work. At least once a week we get software update notifications for some application or another. It is our job (and our passion) as a development firm to keep up with the tools that we use, and constantly be evaluating these upgrades, new features or sometimes even the alternatives. As a Ruby on Rails shop, there is nowhere better to check the pulse of the Rails community than RailsConf 2008.

RailsConf 2008 was held in Portland, Oregon again this year and this time around Killswitch had a presence. Leaders in the Rails community teamed up with O'Reilly to deliver four days of talks on various topics pertaining to Rails (and even a few unrelated topics). A few Killswitch team members attended to do some networking and to gather information, they even lead a Birds of a Feather discussion section (read more in our blog). Overall the conference was a successful examination of current trends in Ruby on Rails, as well as many other supporting technologies.

Two new reality shows have hit the airwaves, and, as always, Killswitch was here to create their casting community websites. Firstly, grab your glue gun and your lucite high-heels, and get ready for RuPaul's Drag Race, a new reality competition series which features the glamour queen RuPaul herself as host, mentor, and judge, and allows the done-up and fabulous to sign up as hopefuls and vote for the next superstar drag queen. Secondly, although all of us at Killswitch like to think we have game, there are days when our knowledge of typefaces and XML just doesn't impress the opposite sex. Cue the Pick Up Artist, a reality show on VH1 dedicated to helping the socially awkward and love in all the right places. Killswitch developed a casting site that allows "Lovable Losers" and "Deserving Dorks" to compete to be star pupils on the next show, in the hopes of learning how to meet and attract beautiful ladies. Both the RuPaul and PUA sites make use of Killswitch's casting platform, which is backed by a custom-built content management system powered by Ruby on Rails and contains features that maintain both traffic flow and the goals of the client. The art of the runway and the art of seduction have never operated so smoothly.

As designers, we are constantly seeking new, innovative ways to communicate the messages of our clients. This May, our design team traveled to OFFF 2008 in Lisbon, Portugal to soak up some inspiration, see what other designers across the world are creating, and to bring that knowledge back to Killswitch to spark new ideas for future creations.

OFFF is a 3-day design festival exploring the latest ideas in a new visual culture, covering everything from graphic design and visual communication to motion graphics and sonic landscapes to advanced forms of interaction, via physical space or digital space. More than 2500 people attended this year, and the attendees included designers, artists, musicians, and developers from all over the world. Held at the LX Factory, an immense industrial space tucked away amongst brightly-tiled row-houses and cobblestone streets in the Alcantara area of Lisbon, the event boasted floor to ceiling presentation screens, interactive art installations, and a wealth of DJ entertainment.

The diverse and groundbreaking ideas from speakers at this event prove that what we think of now as "new media" is just the tip of the iceberg. These explorations are opening up brand new avenues of communication and interaction, and have exciting implications for the future of our digital culture. Visit our OFFF Lisbon 2008 blog post for musings and photos of the event.

Dynamic Graphics, a print publication for creative professionals that offers "design ideas for the real world" has included Killswitch in their April/May issue on type. Killswitch was asked to describe a project in which type choices were decided upon in advance of the design, a challenge that forces the designer to work with and around these constraints. Killswitch touched on projects from World Creative Group, Paul Finch & Associates, and VH1, and stressed the need for typographic balance and hierarchy, target audience considerations, and how to work with stylized type. We also touched on the importance of paying attention to the aesthetic relationship between typefaces, and how font choice affects design. The issue is on news stands now. Download PDF +

For over a year, Killswitch has been working with the Viacom family, the distinguished media conglomerate with divisions such as MTV, VH1, and Jackass World, LLC. We are proud to announce that we've added a fourth division of Viacom to our project roster: BET Networks, which provides contemporary, authentic entertainment that speaks to young Black adults. We are extremely excited to partner with such an influential and important network, and look forward to releasing new work for BET this summer. Stay tuned.

How many creme puffs can you buy for $200 million? Mystery solved. Killswitch teamed up with Hoffman York to create a Powerball Calculator site for the Wisconsin Lottery. HYC provided the artwork, while Killswitch executed the functionality and designed the transitions and overall user experience. The website invites users to play with an interactive, database-driven program that mathematically determines the massive amount of goods and services the current lottery jackpot can buy. Killswitch also created a downloadable widget, a fully functional calculator that acts as both a useful object for users and a promotional tool for the Wisconsin Lottery. Now we just have to figure out our lucky numbers.
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