Time Travel Fest

Client | MBS: Full-time employer, subsidiary of Barnes & Noble Education

Design Problem | Every year MBS hosts an employee appreciation party and celebrates employees hitting career milestones with a service awards ceremony. Design a branding scenario following a “time travel” theme from which you and the rest of the design team can create invitations, programs, posters, game signs, trivia cards, a PowerPoint presentation, decorations, etc.

My Role | Lead design of logo, colors, and typography for party theme. Also create animated logo, trivia cards, game signs, invitations, and RSVP cards. Work with in-house print shop for production.

colors, fonts, and logo for festival branding

Inspiration

I called on scientific, science fiction, and retro-futurism from pop culture to lend me a colorful aesthetic while also giving the feeling of nostalgia I believe management was trying to evoke with the theme decision. I enjoyed using the “Back to the Future” font by Cyril Bourreau.


first ever simulated image of a black hole

First simulated image of a black hole by astrophysicist Jean-Pierre Luminet

still from the movie The Avengers of a wormhole

Depiction of wormhole from The Avengers by Marvel Studios

image of delorean from back to the future going into a wormhole

Back to the Future design by ArteDelCine

Creative Process

Using the wormhole as a visual constant seemed like the right choice when I knew other designers involved would be called on different time periods when they made signs, posters, and decorations for the party. Color overlay variations of this stock image worked well to provide a constant for materials without feeling too repetitive.

gridlike 3d style image of a wormhole with blue overlay
gridlike 3d style image of a wormhole
gridlike 3d style image of a wormhole with red overlay
gridlike 3d style image of a wormhole with purple overlay

Front and back of physical invitations

Trivia Time Cards, numbered by round and table

  • Ball Toss Game Sign

  • Junk in da Trunk Game Sign

  • Yard Darts Game Sign

  • Duck Hunt Game Sign

  • Spilling the lamp oil is not a good time, bud.

image of designer thinking and reflecting

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, I liked the branding for this party, and the event itself was a great success. There was quite a lot on my plate already with this project, but if I had more time, I would have wanted to explore more with an augmented reality installation. Honestly, I think I just really wanted to see the Delorian from Back to the Future parked on the party tent roof.

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