WHY RACE MATTERS

Role: Art Director, Designer, Animator

Client: PBS
Studio: PBS
Released: 2019
Genre: Explainer Series
“Why Race Matters” is a digital explainer series that tackles issues of racial equity and identity for Wisconsin’s Black communities through historical education and conversations with experts in the Madison community. As the Art Director, I was tasked with creating the overall brand identity, motion design, and explainer video aesthetic.

Watch the full episodes here.

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Color Palette

The color palette for Why Race Matters was designed to strike a balance between boldness and sophistication, conveying confidence without feeling overpowering. Golden yellow was chosen as a focal color to embody that boldness while subtly referencing the visual language of a yellow highlighter—an element associated with emphasis and clarity. Given the heavy use of archival footage, much of it in black and white, the yellow provides a deliberate contrast that draws focus and guides the viewer’s eye without becoming visually intrusive.
 
Typography

The chose of Ringside Compressed spoke to a need to use a typface that could flex between Bold and suddle. 

Logo

Simplicity was central to the design of the series logo. The goal was to create a mark that communicated clearly and immediately, drawing audiences into the series while allowing the content itself to take precedence.

Styleframes


Podcast

Along with the video series, our team felt that having a podcast version of this content would provide a sense of accessiblity to interested audiences that look to learn information while multitasking.