D&AD Student 2011 (and some other things)

I don't think it needs any explanation. Duarte and my work is up on D&AD website: D&AD Student Awards 2011 Digital Design
We aren't completely satisfied with the way they have uploaded our photos but here we go.

My friends' (JT, Harry, Mengqin, John) work has also been recognized under Animation category. Congratulations guys! Their work is definitely my favorite out of all the animation category winners.

I've been looking at nominations for professional awards and it's quite nice seeing designs that I recognize, like Apple's iPad under Product Design or Die Antwoord's music video (this group always has bizarrely original music videos...). It is also nice seeing ones done by Japanese agencies like Salute Trainer by Hakuhodo, which is quite funny too.

Something that I've always felt by thought even strongly looking at those work by Japanese agencies; is it just me or does anyone else feel that when a Japanese person writes English, you instantly recognize that it is done by a Japanese? I'm not even talking about handwriting, I'm talking about solid typography done on computers. I've always thought it's probably just the choice of typeface; Japanese tend to choose round and curly typefaces that resemble and work well with hiragana characters of Japanese. But that may just not be it, I don't know. Possibly Japanese aren't too good at handling alphabets and leaves it a bit awkward. Maybe we regard alphabets more as an image than something that is to be read. Then again, many designers from latin characters do that too (don't they?).
Slightly going off the topic here but the way Korean people handwrite alphabets is instantly recognizable too. I think it's to do with their circular characters but it's really cute how even men have that roundness in their handwritings.

デザインのアワードD&ADの生徒コンペ、デジタルデザイン部門で入賞しました。
入賞した１４組の中の上位６組に残っていて最終選考に進んでいるので、もしかしたら１位か２位になれるかも。結果は６月にあるセレモニー（という名の酔っぱらいパーティー）でわかります。割と自信はあったのだけれど、実際残ってみると不思議な感覚。
一応世界的にも有名なアワードなのだけど、デザイン外の人は聞いたことがないはず。社会人部門は、その１年の最も優れていたデザインを各カテゴリーごとに選出するのを目標としているのでレベルが高い。今年は日本からは広告代理店の電通や博報堂、CASE-REALなんかの作品もノミネートされていて、プロダクトデザイン部門では、アップル社のiPadもノミネートされています。
生徒部門は、その年の期待出来る卒業生を発掘するのを目的に、社会人部門の横で行われているコンペ。実はコンペってあまり好きじゃないのだけれど、大学の課題やインターンの仕事とはまた違う仕事の進め方になるから、やればその分返って来る実感はある。現実的と独創的な発想のどっちも問われる点は、勉強になるし、やりがいがある。
勝ち負けに関わらず、その受賞セレモニー兼パーティーが楽しみ。アップル社やグーグル社から、日本の広告代理店から、憧れのデザインスタジオ、未来のスーパーデザイナー（私たち学生）まで、世界中のデザイナーが集う稀な機会だし、そんな中、自分も主役の一人という更に稀な機会だし、お酒飲み放題だから気さくで話しかけやすい雰囲気になると思うし。