Cartoon characters with dark skin tones standing side by side against an orange background. The first character on the left has short black hair, pink glasses, and is wearing a blue top. The middle character has long braided black hair, large hoop earrings, and is wearing a pink dress. The third character has short hair, wearing a pink hat and sunglasses, with a white top.

Useful School Grads

Graduation is big deal! Unlike most colleges, some graduations can actually pay you back and that's what Useful School and Working Not Working set out to do.  Working Not Working is a platform dedicated to helping recruiters find the creative talent they need and Useful School is a 10-week zoom class that teaches diverse designers the skills they don't typically receive in college.  

This year, they both wanted to celebrate their recent graduates with a campaign around their accomplishments. Hank Designs was tasked to create custom lettering, character design, and animation honoring the next generation of diverse talent. 

Client
Working Not Working
Useful School

Scope
Custom Lettering
Illustration
Animation

Bright yellow background with cartoon children around a large, stylized yellow word "class" in bubble letters. Center text reads "Useful School Inaugural" with smaller text "presented by Working Working." Cartoon children with diverse hairstyles and accessories are smiling and casual, one sitting and two standing.
3D golden yellow text spelling 'Cheers' with a shiny, glossy finish.
3D wireframe model of the word 'Chaos' in cursive style.
3D white text spelling 'calm' in thick, rounded letters on a light gray background.

CHARACTER SKETCH PHASE

We started the composition illustrating simplistic characters and poses that interact with the lettering and the space. Once solidified, color and texture were added to bring the characters to life.

A digital artwork with pink, black, purple, and brown spheres and a yellow background.
Close-up illustration of a person's face wearing pink glasses, with black hair, and yellow background.
Digital illustration of a character's face with large circular glasses, black hair with blue curls, a pink nose, and a yellow background. The image shows layers from design software on the right side.
A colorful digital illustration of a person with pink skin, purple glasses, black hair, and a funny expression, holding a large yellow pipe against a bright yellow background.
Illustration of a cartoon character with curly hair, large glasses, hoop earrings, and a pink top, smiling and sitting on a yellow surface.
A digital illustration of a cartoon character with dark skin, wearing a pink hat, white shirt, pink shoes, and pink pants, sitting on a yellow background with large yellow shapes around.
A bright yellow starburst shape on an orange background.
Bright orange poster for 'Useful School' event with playful 'Glads' characters, including three cartoon-like figures with exaggerated features and colorful outfits, surrounded by icons of a computer, book, and wheel, with a large starburst background.
Colorful magazine webpage for Working Working, titled "Useful School" inaugural event. Features cartoon characters and balloon-style text "Class" in yellow, with a vibrant yellow background.