FWA trends noticed
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- qruise
i was purusing the FWA top sites for like the last 6 years today just for the fuck of it. i noticed something.
a substantial chunk of them from 2000-2003 were all the websites for designers themselves, showcases, and portfolios.
nowadays, it seems like only huge conglomerate corporate sites get the FWA attention... feature films, cars, beverages, etc and shit.
this brings me to my question.. in the last few years, designers webpages have become increasingly simple (and often boring) and all seem to look EXACTLY the same and have the exact same layout (especially one-pager folios).
all the shit you saw from 2000-2003 had the wackiest, craziest, imaginative navigation/layouts going on, and now it seems like only big bland overmasturbated corporate products get any sort of time/effort/recognition.
- ********0
It's a strange theory that when you spend absorbinate* amounts of times on your portfolio, that you don't have time to do any paid work.
Couple with the fact the internet over the past few years has become such an integral part to marketing and such, the realization that the sites that market movies, products got an extreme boost in eye-catching, innovative interfaces was inevitable.
* Also, I do not believe 'absorbinate' is a word, haha. **
** It should be.
- ********0
maybe people got bored and annoyed by crazy navigation? I know I did.
- ********0
remember that jennifer sterling site where you had to drag a magnifying glass thing around to navigate? what a pain the ass!
- Baskerville0
* Also, I do not believe 'absorbinate' is a word, haha. **
** It should be.
flavorful
(Feb 12 07, 08:35)I believe the word you were looking for is 'exorbitant' but I agree 'absorbinate' should be a word too. The english language needs a few more.
- ********0
hahaha yes, thanks Baskerville!!
- blastofv0
that was back when everyone was slap happy over flash, animation, sound... all things that can (and usually do) detract from the work you're trying to show. I think we've smartened up a bit and de-cluttered our online portfolios so that prospective clients/employers can get right to the work.
- ********0
people started growing hair on their palms from all the flashturbation.
- Gucci0
this guy is one heck of a flasher:
- abba_cadaver0
I also think a lot of the portfolios being put out back then were by students or those who had just left school. They didn't have bills or a group of more established or experienced designers to draw knowledge or restraint from.
- emptyempty0
i loved presstube's old skool flash. genius...
- ********0
Plus a lot of the portfolio's back then didn't have any work (or not a lot of).
The 'portfolio' was mainly used a showcase to what people could do if given the chance awhile ago.
- ********0
now the web seems boring in terms of interactivity, with a push for more motion on sites...shouldnt a portfolio go right to the work AND be interesting and highly engaging/interactive? take http://www.hanazuki.com/hanazuki… for example...quite outre but still a great folio that gets people right to what they want.
- canuck0
Not a fan of flash sites in general. Most are a pain in the ass, and take away from the actual content.
- gabe0
it's a serious problem within the industry, not just a trend.
the design/flash guys who were putting out all of that ridiculously creative work a few years ago are now too busy getting paid (well) for what they do.
rather than using their websites as a creative outlet they use it as a place to showcase their work to, well, get more work. most don't have the interest and/or time to spend like we did back in the day.
that, or they've moved on into other industries, i.e. broadcast
that's the trend part of it. the *problem* is that it doesn't seem that there's any new talent enterting the field like there was before. there's less supply than there is demand these days, and it's incredibly hard to find talent for fulltime work...
- Ramanisky20
I totally agree with everything you said there
gabe your stuff is still amazing
I remember when you first started back in North Carolina ....I think yeah North Carolina
and now your a big Hollywood guy
niiiiiiiice
- ridiculous0
Yeah I can say from experience that I once had time to create fun crazy flash portfolios and now don't even have the time for a one-pager, hence my ridiculously out of date website.
I also think that there isn't a huge amount of new talent entering the industry and it's a big problem. Also, with the new AS3 action I forsee a lot of folks ditching Flash altogether, tools are just getting so dang complicated it's hard to translate your ideas into reality for an acceptable budget.
...was I talking about something?...
- Mimio0
I think it shows that the interactive/web industry is maturing. Customers require less selling on capabilites because they know how to apply the technology better than 4-5 years ago.
- onewhoslaps0
anyone looking for legitimate well paying design work / job will have a better chance with a one page folio site.
reasons. form and function.
would you rap your hard case portfolio with gradients, and bright colors. a pink bow?? maybe put a latch that's really hard to open so the client can't get to your work easily!
no. you keep it simple. let the work show.
now on the other hand coke needs an ugly douche bagged gradient cherry coke selling piece of shit. that's when you do that.
very few designer sites "that blow my mind" graphic wise, have much to offer content wise.
all the effort is in the site, and not day to day concepts or overall work.
there are exceptions though and we all know who they are.
plus there are a shit load of designers out there now and if you have 3 or 4 kickass sites that you've personally designed and programmed in your portfolio then a site that's hard to navigate and competes with the look of your projects makes no sense.
form and function.
- gabe0
hahaha ramanisky
thanks for the kind words man! really appreciate that...
i actually started in SC (charleston) *then* NC, but hey who's keeping tabs anyway :)
- ********0
you guys think interactive is in a lull?