Creative Characters Podcast.

Tune in to hear how designer David Jon Walker turned dusty iPads, pandemic lettering experiments, and a one-mile-a-day running streak into a transformative typographic journey from Nashville to Yale.

This week we revisit an interview from 2021 with James Edmondson, founder of rebel foundry Ohno Type Company. Tune in to laugh, learn, and side-eye tradition as James talks irreverence, inspiration, and why fonts should never behave.

 

In this week’s episode, Alex Swatridge of DutchScot shares how her team combines bold ideas, a human touch, and a knack for bucking trends to craft award-winning work. Tune in now.

Tune in to hear Bryan Edmondson, co-founder of SEA Design, chat about building the studio from the ground up, his design philosophy, and the beauty of minimalism in typography.

Dive into the summer as we revisit South African beach calligraphy, off-season Jersey Shore nostalgia, and the quirky charm of the British seaside. Tune in for an episode all about art, memory, and the magic of the coast. 

This week, Sara Soskolne joins Doug Wilson to talk about the craft, challenges, and quiet joys of type design. Tune in now.

This week, Livia Halltari sits down with Jess Goldsmith, the one-woman-show behind Women of Type. Tune in for her inspiring story. 

In this episode, Trevor Jackson shares his journey as a designer, music producer, and artist, providing an inside look at his creative philosophy and groundbreaking work. Trevor’s story is a masterclass in doing what you love, not what the industry thinks you *should* do. Tune in now.

On this week’s episode, Kris Andrew Small talks about converting frustration into energetic creativity, coping with ADHD, and finding inspiration in 80s New York and his vibrant Sydney surroundings. Tune in now.

Ready to dive into the world of political design? Tune in to hear Shar Biggers’ wild ride designing for high-stakes presidential campaigns, from working on Hillary’s 2016 run to the rollercoaster of the Biden-Harris rebrand.

Type is a mirror on culture — the themes of “now” create the visual cultures of tomorrow. Tune in to explore the themes in Re:Vision, a transformative approach to our annual trends report, and discover how type shapes the world around us.

Join us for a delightful chat with Taekyeom Lee, the graphic designer and educator who takes typography off the page and into the third dimension. Tune in now.

Join us for our final episode of 2024, where host Bill Connolly catches up with Creative Director Simon Waterfall. The two discuss Simon’s storied career, and where luck has brought him to today.

In this episode, host Tom Foley chats with Cat about building an ethical branding agency, tackling big projects, and having fun at work. Tune in now.

Doug Wilson catches up with Kelli Anderson about her forthcoming typography pop-up book, her passion for teaching design with tactile objects, and her love of all things paper. Tune in now.

Listen in for a behind-the-scenes look at Adobe MAX 2024. Tune in now to hear from twenty or so voices at MAX, all of whom were kind enough to share their time and their stories with us on the mic. 

Here’s the story of Field Notes, in all of its 3½ × 5½-inch glory, from co-founder Jim Coudal. Tune in now. No need to take notes (unless you want to, of course).

This week on Creative Characters, host Graham Sturt sits down with graphic design icon and the father of grunge typography, David Carson. Tune in now.

This week, Monotype’s Executive Creative Director, Tom Foley, sits down with renowned graphic designer Astrid Stavro to explore her captivating journey. Tune in now.

This week on Creative Characters, host Charles Nix sits down with Thomas Jockin, the founder of Type Thursday, a global type meetup. Tune in for an interesting look at the intersection of type design, education, and community-building.

Host Doug Wilson sits down with his long-time friend, Kyle Read, a distinguished type designer and graphic designer based in Denver, Colorado. Kyle shares his journey from studying at the Savannah College of Art and Design, working for various design studios and advertising agencies, to founding Badson Type Foundry. Tune in to hear Kyle’s story.

In part 3 of Behind the Font, our Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel, Phil Carey-Bergren, and host, Carl Unger, discuss the implications of breaching font licenses, the significance of copyright, and what to do if you accidentally breach a contract or misuse a font license. Tune in now.

In part 2 of Behind the Font, our Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel, Phil Carey-Bergren, and host, Carl Unger, dissect the main parts of a font license and walk us through some common font licensing use cases you might see at work. Tune in now.

In the first-ever edition of our new podcast miniseries series Behind the Font, we dive in to the often murky and mysterious waters of font licensing. In part one, we get a crash course in recent font history to understand how licenses have evolved and why this matters to today’s brands, designers, and agencies. Tune in now.

Host Livia Halltari sits down with designer Kat Romulo, whose work spans the gamut from playful branding to engaging content creation. The conversation emphasizes the importance of designing for oneself to combat burnout, as well as Kat’s philosophy of seeking client work that aligns with her values. Tune in now. 

Host Doug Wilson geeks out about watch design with Lee Yuen-Rapati of Fears Watch Company. They discuss the intricacies of designing numerals for watches and the parallels between watch design and typeface design. Tune in now. 

In this episode, host Graham Sturt journeys into the life and work of famed graphic designer Lance Wyman. Renowned for his iconic Mexico 1968 Olympics identity, Wyman is a design legend with a wealth of unique experiences. Tune in now. 

Hear Monotype Creative Director Graham Sturt in conversation with Vic Lee, an artist, illustrator, and self-described “ragamuffin.” If you need some creative inspiration or are looking to reinvent your creative practice, this episode’s for you!

This week on Creative Characters, first-time host Doug Wilson chats with Petra Dočekalová, a designer, educator, calligrapher, and sign painter from Prague. Tune in now.

Tune in for a masterclass in branding that explores the visual elements and innovative technology driving how brands, advertising, and experiences influence our responses.

Join Monotype Creative Director Graham Sturt as he and guest Justin Burns, Head of the School of Arts at the University of Derby, explore the signage and typography of the English seaside and examine the linkage between letters, memories, and emotion.

As part of the 2024 Type Trends report, we wanted to take a deeper look at how design is manifesting across the globe. Tune in for insights, stories, and anecdotes from creative thought leaders shaping their local design scenes in NYC, Santiago, Paris, and Kuala Lumpur. 

This week, host Charles Nix sits down with Steffi Marti, the Global Head of Brand Identity and Design for Mars Snacking. Tune in to hear more.

Join Type Designer Jordan Bell and Creative Type Director Damien Collot as they discuss their experiences curating this year’s Type Trends report. Enjoy!

We’re closing out 2023 by spotlighting three amazing type studios from different corners of the world - and three of our favorite hosts. Listen to the full episode for more.

Roger Black draws from origins and evolution of type, type trend drivers, and his own career, in this week’s episode with our own Charles Nix. Listen to the full episode for more.

Now that the Adobe MAX dust has settled, we bring you our second annual recap of the inspiring event that brought 10,000 from around the world to Los Angeles in late October. Listen to the episode for more.

The Globe and its archive are now part of the Maryland College Institute of Art (MICA). Tune in as Charles Nix is joined by Allison Tipton from MICA to discuss the living legacy of this landmark print shop.

This week, we dive into Monotype’s scientific research on the emotional power of typography. Marie Boulanger, Senior Brand Designer at Monotype, joins as a guest and shares some of the thinking, methodology, and insights behind the global studies. Tune in for more.

David Berlow has been at the forefront of type design, publishing, and technology for 45 years. In this week’s episode Tom Rickner, the Senior Director of the Studio at Monotype, sits down with Berlow. Tune in to hear the two reminisce, talk shop, and explore Berlow’s influences, predictions, and perspectives on mentorship and team building.  

Erwin Hines designs and produces intentionally crafted garments and hosts in-person events at Future is Color’s mixed-use studio in San Diego, California, focused on the mission of building accessible space for intentional conversation around collective liberation. Listen to his podcast episode for more.

Throughout his life, Kent has illustrated for children’s books, recorded music for film and television, made a couple of documentaries, designed immersive experiences, built a thriving business, painted numerous beautiful murals, and so much more. Listen to his podcat episode for more.

As Art Director at Warby Parker, Sarah Olin works on everything from retail design to TV commercials to fashion campaigns. Her story is one of adaptability, and with the design landscape rapidly changing, it feels fitting for the moment. Listen to her podcast episode for more.

Upwork Executive Creative Director Patrick Holly joins us this week to talk about the benefits and challenges remote work presents for creatives, how he keeps his global team connected and fulfilled, and why the days of “adult daycare” and ‘butts in seats” should be relegated to the history books for good.

In this week’s episode, Monotype’s Bill Connolly sits down with Scott Walker, Executive Creative Director at Picsart, to learn about his own design process, which began in a print shop and has led him to work with some of the world’s most popular brands.

This week’s episode is a triple threat. Monotype Executive Creative Directors Charles, Phil, and Tom spoke with Jesse Ragan and Ben Kiel of XYZ Type, Mark Bloom of CoType, and Naïma Ben Ayed Bureau, respectively, highlighting some of our favorite studios and designers making great type today.

In this week’s episode, Monotype’s Bill Connolly sits down with James DeJulio, co-founder and CEO of Tongal, a “studio on demand” that boasts an impressive roster of clients like LEGO, PayPal, NBC Universal, and more.

Mark Simonson has designed some of the most widely used typefaces in the world. Host Charles Nix sits down to talk influences, process, and why truly memorable work – such as Simonson’s versatile, legible, and wildly ubiquitous Proxima Nova – has to be “both novel and familiar.”

Monotype’s Executive Creative Director, Charles Nix, sat down with Canva’s Head of Design, Andrew Green, to talk about his own international career beginning at agencies in New York and Hong Kong and circling back to Canva, where he now oversees the design leadership team in Melbourne.

After 18 years designing for some of the biggest names in professional sports, Maureen Raisch embarks on a new journey as the first-ever Creative Director for the National Women’s Soccer League. In this week’s episode she reflects on the importance of visibility and inclusivity in sports branding, the power of design to elevate women’s sports, and what she calls her own “personal rebrand.”

This week, we take you behind the scenes of one of Monotype’s biggest, and most anticipated campaigns of the year: the annual Type Trends report. Tune in to hear from the report’s curators, Creative Type Directors Terrance Weinzierl and Emilios Theofanous on their experiences producing the report.

We are thrilled to have Aaron Draplin on the podcast this week and to dig into the “heavy stuff” with him – existential musings on life and building a career, the importance of hanging on to your inner kid, and the “weird little spot” he’s in as he approaches 50 turns around the sun.

Monotype’s Executive Creative Director, Charles Nix, speaks with guests Michu Benaim Steiner and Lope Gutierrez-Ruiz, about their Texas-based design studio, In-House International. They’ve done type work for over 100 clients, and their typeface Perfora was recently featured in Monotype’s Type Trends Report. Keep reading for a behind-the-scenes look into their creative process.

In our first episode of Season 3, we welcome the new Senior Director of the Monotype Studio, Tom Rickner, as a first-time host. Tom speaks with Jim Moran, master printer and collections officer for the internationally-known Hamilton Wood Type Museum. Keep reading for a glimpse into the museum’s history and to learn why the letterpress is still so important today.

Elliot Jay Stocks, designer and musician, joined us on the podcast this week to speak about passion projects. Known for his typography work, Elliot is a freelance designer and was previously Creative Director at Adobe Typekit. Today, he’s working with Google on Google Fonts Knowledge. 

We recently packed up our recording gear and traveled to Adobe MAX, one of the largest creative conferences in the world, to scan people’s brains (yes, really) and connect with creatives just like you. Listen to the episode to find out more. 

This week, host Charles Nix sits down with Craig to talk about his career, his myriad side projects and quirky pastimes, and how technology could revolutionize the way we use type and ensure the rights of ownership for designers.

Today we’re welcoming Annie Atkins, a creative in the film industry (just like our last guest, Holly Fraser). She’s known for her graphic props and set pieces for Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel and Isle of Dogs. Tune-in to learn about the magic of film.

Today we’re welcoming Holly Fraser, editor-in-chief at WePresent, WeTransfer’s digital arts platform that works with 1,000+ creatives from over 100 countries. Tune-in to learn what makes a hit film, how to stay inspired, and why the creative industries need more diversity.

Today we’re welcoming Mindy Seu, a New York-based designer, researcher, and an educator at Rutgers and Yale. Seu recently completed the Cyberfeminism Index, a book documenting more than 700 short entries of radical techno-critical activism. Tune in as Seu shares her story of getting involved in cyberfeminism and the process involved in publishing her book.

This week we’re welcoming Jason Debiak, friend of Creative Characters co-host, Carl, and co-founder of Paper Tiger, a family-owned design agency. Jason runs the agency alongside his brother, creating designs for user-friendly websites and mobile applications while having a Helvetica of a good time.

This week we’re speaking with Ximena Amaya, recent graduate of ArtCenter in Pasadena, California by way of Mexico City. Listen in as Kadley Gosselin, Senior Content Strategist at Monotype talks with Ximena about what led her to study design, her desire to use typography as a tool for protest and her exhibition work for emerging technologies as an intern at Pentagram.

Today, we’re welcoming Sarah Boris, a London-based artist who runs her own creative studio. Creativity seems to be in her DNA. Tune in as Sarah talks about her experiences working in-house versus running an independent creative studio, the power of titles, and her interest in pop art.

This week’s guest is passionate about designing for change. We’re welcoming Nathan Lance, creative director at Leap, a B Corp certified design agency in Truro, England. Nathan is here to spill the tea on eco-friendly design, sustainability, and brand transparency.

This week we’re welcoming Andrew Krivine, author and punk rock collector, alongside Michael Worthington, faculty at CalArts and co-founder of Counterspace. The creative duo is here to tell the tale of how they co-created the largest exhibition of punk and new wave graphics ever shown on the West Coast.   

This week we’re joined by award-winning creative Cristina Pandol, VP Creative at Westbrook Media, an entertainment company founded by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. Tune in as our own Bill Connolly talks to Cristina about her experiences as a creative from growing up multi-cultural to her short-lived allergy to entertainment. Listen until the end to hear their favorite advertisements.

This week’s episode features the first ever guest from Monotype, our very own Juan Villanueva, a senior type designer on the studio team. Outside of the work he does designing typefaces for clients like M&M’s, Tencent and Google, Juan leads a busy life as an educator and active member of the design community in NYC. Listen to the episode for more.

This week’s guests are Jennifer Sagalyn, Director of Strategic Partnerships, and Joanne Becker, Assistive Technology Support, Training and Testing Specialist at Perkins Access. Perkins Access is an organization whose mission is to build a more accessible digital world for all people, regardless of their abilities.

In this week’s episode, Phil Garnham talks with schoolmate David Sheldon-Hicks, the co-founder and Executive Creative Director of Territory Studio, a design firm that has worked on the veritable who’s-who of recent blockbuster films and video games.

This week, our host Bill Connolly chats with new media creative, Greg Lutze. Greg founded VSCO and Plaza, and is an advisor and artist based out of California.

In this week’s episode, Monotype Senior Content Strategist Kadley Gosselin is joined by  Dewey Bryan Saunders, the designer behind album covers for artists like Anderson .Paak, Future, and Turnstile.

In the first episode of Season 2, Carl Unger sits down with calligrapher, letter artist and “beachscriber,” Andrew van der Merwe from Cape Town, South Africa. 

In this week’s episode, Monotype Type Director, Terrance Weinzierl has an inspiring conversation with designer, educator, and design thinker, Adam Weiler, who currently leads the social innovation program at Steelcase, a furniture company founded in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

In this episode, our own Bill Connolly is joined by Chelsea Goldwell, partner and creative director at Zero Studios, a digitally-native branding studio. Goldwell reflects on her trajectory in design and shares her perspectives on finding balance in this era of intense work.  

In our eighteenth episode, Terrance Weinzierl, Creative Type Director at Monotype, talks with Dave Addey, author of Typeset in the Future. Dave work explores type and design choices in sci-fi movies, a fun crossover that has drawn a remarkably big audience.

In our this week’s episode, Monotype’s Brand Designer, Marie Boulanger talks with Ellen Lupton, writer, curator, educator, and designer. They discuss her recent book, Extra Bold: A Feminist, Inclusive, Anti-racist, Nonbinary Field Guide for Graphic Designers, and Lupton’s mission to democratize type through teaching, collaborating, and writing. 

In our sixteenth episode, we talk with Tyler Haughey, a photographer whose work highlights otherwise unseen details of Jersey shore beach towns in the off-season. He discusses the creative influence of having a father who was a sign painter, as well as the nature of memory and how signage and décor help anchor experiences in our minds.  

This week, Creative Type Director Charles Nix talks to James Horowitz during a London heatwave about the lessons he learned from founding a design agency, his approach to guiding clients through the creative process, and the impact of Instagram and social media on branding and design.

This week’s guests are Jessica Seamans and Dan Black, who together comprise Landland. We discuss their early days of going to (and playing in) DIY punk shows, how screenprinting keeps you humble, and the evolving relationship between music and the art of the poster.

In our twelfth episode, Creative Type Director Charles Nix speaks with James Edmondson, founder of OH no Type Company in California. James shares how he got his start in typography, as well as his perspective on designing a fulfilling creative career.

In episode 11, Monotype’s Jay Loo interviews Lauren Hom, celebrated designer and hand-lettering artist. The two discuss how to build a creative career, and Lauren shares a new passion she is preparing to pursue.

In episode 10, Creative Type Director Terrance Weinzierl interviews Hannelore Ocampo, Fonts Lead and Type Specialist at Ford Motor Company. The two discuss how to develop a cohesive in-car experience that reflects the needs of modern transportation.

Creative Type Director Charles Nix talks with Angelina Lippert, Chief Curator at the Posterhouse museum in New York City, about the history of poster design, the unseen hands behind some of the more iconic posters from history, and the finicky wonder of Rubylith.

Our guest in episode eight was John Norman, a celebrated visual storyteller and former Chief Creative Officer of world-renowned creative agencies like Translation, The Martin Agency, and most recently, Havas Chicago.

In episode seven we talked with Sarah Hyndman, founder of Type Tasting and the author of several books, including Why Fonts Matter and How to Draw Fonts and Influence People.

In episode six we talked with Chris Do, award-winning designer, CEO and Chief Strategist of Blind and the founder of The Futur—an online education platform that teaches creatives how to make a living doing what they love.

In episode five we talked with Terrence Williams, Senior Design Lead at Salesforce, who discusses the emergence of relationship design, and shares why it is important for people to bring their full identities into their work.

In episode four we talked with Tré Seals, founder of Vocal Type, about his efforts to break down stereotypes in design and how a middle-school side gig, born out of a brush with serious childhood medical issues, helped him become the artist he is today.

In episode three we talked with Chicago-based lettering artist Jenna Blazevich, about chain stitching, punk rock, intersectional feminism, and whatever the heck Malört is.

In our second episode, Monotype Creative Type Director Charles Nix talked with Scott Starret, co-founder of the design studio Tandem NYC, about serendipity and the experience of designing for a transformational political candidate.

In our first episode, we talked with James Sommerville, co-founder of KNOWN_UNKOWN, about his ideas for the future of creative work, community, and work/life balance in a post-pandemic world.