Showcase

About Me

Hi! My name is Talar Sarkissian and I am a Senior at MVHS and Freestyle Academy of Communication Arts and Technology. At my time at Freestyle I have taken Film I, Design I & II, Digital Media I, and English.

Outside of Freestyle, I have been apart of MVHS’s ASB since my freshman year and have taken on the role of ASB President this past year. I help run activities as well as student government on campus. Aside from school I am very passionate about graphic design and photography as I constantly am trying to improve my skills. Besides art, I have also found a love and a need to learn to tell stories.

For my Senior Showcase, I am excited to show my Movie Poster project as well as my Senior Zenith project; these pieces capture some of my best work and are an accurate reflection of what Freestyle Academy has taught me.

Movie Poster and Packaging

For the movie poster project, the idea was to come up with a movie idea and design a minimalist poster and premier ticket to advertise the movie. I really enjoyed the process of having so much creative freedom as well as getting to design my own font to finish off the poster.

The premise of my film revolves around a female spy who is sent on a special assignment. As she embarks on an adventure in Europe she is met with a challenge to retrieve the world’s largest diamond. She fights her way to the top and works hard to stay underground. Once she finds the diamond she is faced with her greatest enemy and has to fight her way to safety. Although she was doubted she was able to get the job done and improve her skills along the way. Her confidence and need to reach her goal kept her motivated to keep moving forward.

I designed my movie poster in Illustrator and took the minimalist approach of drawing the silhouette of my main character and emphasizing her ruby red lips. After multiple drafts I decided to design my font with my rebellious theme in mind. The rough edges and dark color help emphasis this as well. For my movie packaging and ticket I used the same minimalist approach and brought in the aspect of the diamond, bullet, and a kiss mark. I used a box fold to create my package and added a similar theme for my ticket. All together my ticket, package, and movie poster are meant to show clean lines and intrigue viewers to watch the film.  

Zenith

The Zenith Project is the final project Seniors at Freestyle are assigned. Unlike other projects, Zenith gives almost complete creative freedom for students to brainstorm, design, and follow through on a project they are truly passionate about. This always is an amazing opportunity for students to grow as creators while also having the support and resources from Freestyle’s community and teachers to help along the way.

When it came time to design and create our Zenith projects I knew I wanted to create something that was able to tell people’s stories. Growing up as Gen 1, I have always been told the story of my parents and how they ended up living in California. They taught me about where I came from and how California has helped both their families build a better life in a place where everyone is accepted and loved. I used this as the basis for my research paper that covered the story of small businesses run by immigrants and how they slowly have been bought out by larger companies. Although I enjoyed learning about the business owners and how their companies began, I enjoyed hearing the story of how they got to California even more. This made it clear to me that I should focus my Zenith on telling stories and documenting how unique California is.

Other aspect I knew I wanted to incorporate in my Zenith was photography as well as graphic design. As I began brainstorming I decided I would challenge myself by photographing not just California but as many heart shaped things I could find around California. The more I photographed the more I realized I could find this shape everywhere I went and that it was a good metaphor for the love people have for their state. Another aspect I wanted to incorporate was branding and marketing.  That is why I decided to create a book, brand, as well as a consumer products in my final project. I was able to collaborate and collect interviews sharing 5 stories that talk about moving to California. Although challenging to find people willing to share so much of their lives I was happy with my end result.

Book

Instagram

Linked to the left is the final instagram account I have created for Golden State Stories. Currently it is showcasing my favorite photos and elements from my book, I hope to continue expanding this brand to show more stories and interviews of people who have found a home in the golden state.

Redbubble Store

Linked to the left is also the Redbubble store I designed for the brand. You can find both old versions and new versions of stickers, phone cases, and other merchandise to purchase all based on the book and brand of the project.

Reflection & Feedback

Looking at both projects I would like feedback on overall how the final project look completed as well as how I can improve upon my graphic design skills. I also would like to know if there was anything I could do to improve upon my final product or anything I can do moving forward if I chose to continue any aspects of my projects.