The WMC Blog
Volunteer Orientation on June 2
24.05.11 / Posted by Jeff Finley in Articles
WMC Fest is right around the corner and we are looking for volunteers to help us out. Volunteers who work at WMC Fest get free admission, complimentary food and beverages, and the opportunity to meet, network, and experience one of the best new events here in Cleveland. We’ll have a list of job roles that you can sign up for. Example roles will be registration, floaters, tech assistants, photographers, video, etc.
Volunteer Orientation
Time: 6:00 PM
@ Go Media
4507 Lorain Ave. Cleveland, OH 44102
Just a personal story here. I have volunteered my time at various fests and AIGA events. And it always makes me feel better to be PART of the action, rather than just simply attending. To be honest, sometimes I can feel out of place at big events and social gatherings – my shyness takes over and I end up not enjoying it as much. But when I volunteer, I can actually meet people without having to get into an awkward conversation or force myself to go network. As someone “working” the fest, I have a reason to talk to people, and a reason for people to talk to me. I feel like an insider and I often get perks and benefits that attendees don’t get. Oh yeah, free admission as a volunteer totally rocks. It makes events that much better.
So if you’re thinking of coming to WMC Fest, but would rather be part of the action and help out, we would love to have you! See you at the the Volunteer Orientation meeting on June 2 at Go Media!
Barton Damer supports WMC Fest
26.04.11 / Posted by Jeff Finley in Articles
My name is Barton Damer. A few years ago I started blogging about design and other things that inspire me. The blog started out as alreadybeenchewed.net. Over time, I launched my own design studio under the same name but started marketing it as .tv rather than .net (Just sounds cooler and I do motion design for broadcast so it makes sense). I have several tutorials floating around online that have been pretty popular. My work has also been featured in various magazines.
Already Been Chewed (ABC) has always been based around my design work – but I also enjoy sharing other things I’m passionate about in hopes that they will inspire others. My clients and blog readers get a taste of things I enjoy like music, art, and skateboarding. WMC Fest is a new opportunity that combines a lot of my passions into one inspiring event. That’s worth supporting and telling others about!
I’ve been a print designer for 12+ years. I branched out into motion design about 5 years ago or so. After 10 years in the field and freelancing at nights, I launched into business for myself.
My breakthrough moment… I think every new project is a breakthrough moment! There are so many different markets and networking opportunities when you aren’t stuck behind a computer from 8-5 everyday. I’ve been blessed to travel and have several break through moments in some of my favorite industries including music, skateboarding, sports and even our own design industry. I won Computer Arts Magazine’s Digital Artist Award in 2009. That still blows my mind to this day. I’m just grateful that people are taking notice of how hard I work and it’s providing for me and my family.
Do I have any advice for your readers? I don’t… but Conan does. I can’t help but quote him from his last episode hosting the Tonight Show. He said something to the effect of “If you work hard and are kind to people, good things will happen.” So, I guess “treat others the way you want to be treated” is also a great piece of advice to consider when dealing with clients or employees.
A Word From Up North
07.04.11 / Posted by Jeff Finley in Articles
My name is Daniel Nelson and I run a design blog called From up North where I blog about design inspiration and other design related articles. I think WMC Fest is a really awesome concept that encourages the thing I love the most(after my fiancé that is…): creativity! WMC Fest is great way to meet like-minded people and to get inspired.
I’ve always loved problem solving and analyzing how and why stuff works. Taking small pieces and putting them together to make something bigger and better. I started of my creative career as a programmer mostly doing web based systems. After a couple of years I noticed that what I really loved was to make things look good and communicating through visual means. I jumped on a plan half way around the world to study design in Brisbane, Australia. It was quite a big step for me leaving my friends and family for a whole year but it was the best thing I’ve ever done. The experience really helped me to grow as a person and I learned not to be afraid to go after the things I really want.
In September 2009 I started to blog about design inspiration on my personal webpage. After a couple of months I had a couple of hundred followers that appreciated what I was posting. That’s when I decided to give the blog its own page and separate it from my portfolio site. In April 2010 From up North was launched and the followers has been increasing since then, which I’m truly grateful for. In January 2011 From up North met a milestone and had over one million impressions.
My advice to your readers is… Fail! As long as you are failing you are trying to change something in your life. Learn from your failures and try again. Never settle if you aren’t 100% happy with your life.
WMC Fest 2011 Lineup is Posted!
01.04.11 / Posted by Jeff Finley in News
Great news today, the 2011 WMC Fest lineup is officially posted! Just click that pink button above that says “click to view lineup” and you’ll see. Now, you’ll notice that it’s not 100% complete yet, which is normal. Typically, when putting on events like this, there is a lot that happens at the last minute. The lineup is confirmed as of right now, but that’s subject to change. Anything can happen.
I’m super pumped with this lineup so far. The bands are going to be awesome and the speakers are going to be amazing. And the design gallery will be jaw-dropping. You also might notice some redundancy in the speakers and designers. That’s because most of the speakers ARE designers and will be showing their work in the gallery. This kind of redundancy bothers me a bit and I will probably find a better way to organize this information next year.
You will see that we’ve currently got a bunch of open spots for bands. That’s because we spent most of our time trying to book the harder-to-get bands like Memoryhouse, Nana Grizol (pumped!), etc. And we have a load of local and regional bands in consideration that we will start confirming in the upcoming weeks. But this should whet your appetite for what is to come for WMC Fest 2011. Are you excited yet!!!??
The 2011 Lineup
Speakers:
Aaron Draplin, Mig Reyes of Threadless, Mikey Burton, David Gensler of the KDU, Quite Strong, Fabio Sasso of Abduzeedo and Google, Jessi Arrington of Workshop NYC, Josh Vanover aka Spaceknuckle, myself, Jacob Edwards of Jakprints, Todd Saperstein of VMCAD, Joseph Hughes of Northcoast Zeitgeist, Len Peralta of Geek a Week, Jenn and Ken Visocky-O’Grady of Enspace Design, John Paul Walton of Retronyms, Alex Cornell of ISO 50 and Firespotter, Dan Christofferson of Big Cartel, Oliver Barrett and William Beachy of Go Media, Aaron “OkPants” Sechrist, and Steve Knerem. There will be a few more added to this in the next few weeks.
Bands
Memoryhouse, Lower Dens, Nana Grizol, Monokino, Arrah and the Ferns, Annabel, Mose Giganticus, She Bears, The Armchairs, Bethesda, Before the Eyewall, Lowly the Tree Ghost, Humble Home, and Shivering Timbers so far. More will be added soon.
Designers
Go Media, Mikey Burton, Aaron Draplin, Alex Cornell, Steve Knerem, Jeff Hulligan, Mig Reyes, Dan Christofferson, Quite Strong, Glen Infante, David Gensler, Joseph Hughes, Angryblue, OK Pants, Josh Vanover, Brandon Rike, Studio Ace of Spade, Hucklebuck Studio. One of these spots will be the winner of the Portfolio Contest.
What’s Next
I am currently working on creating pages for speakers, bands, and designers that will give you more information about each one. That’s taking me forever and it’s quite a bit of work for me! I could really use a webmaster next year to update the website for me. Haha.
If you’re excited, grab your tickets now. You should definitely tweet about this news. Post it on Facebook! Spread the word about who you are most excited to see!
