MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Technology, particularly television, is often antagonized by adults who are raising kids fairly because too much screen time can have a bad impact on their health and values.
But if used in the right way, the brimming glow of the good ol’ telly can also open doors for that magic moment of children realizing their own dreams — just like what happened to the young Jeni Wamberg, who grew up in the suburban Chicagoland area of Illinois.
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“Like most American kids, I watched Sesame Street but the puppets weren’t my favorite part. What I love best was the live action and animated interstitials,” she said. “The Disney channel was one of my favorite satellite networks to watch. Not just for their shows but for their network’s on-air branding. I was fascinated by the identity bumpers,” added Jeni, who was completely enchanted by what she saw — a fine mix of animation, stop-motion and live action.
Terms like interstitials and identity bumpers used to be unfamiliar jargons for the then wide-eyed girl. Back in those days, Jeni did not know that they would be part of her vocabulary someday or that she would apply words like these in her own craft and even mention them in her virtual speech for Asia’s most influential creative conference Graphika Online 2021.
She embraced her interest for analog and digital arts through the Kid Pix program in her pre-Photoshop childhood and like most 90s kids, Jeni enjoyed playing video games such as Game Boy and Nintendo 64.
“Those hours of what my mom called being a ‘vidiette’ actually did pay off because I used the things I learned from playing video games when I was a kid all the time,” she smiled.
On the days when she was grounded by her parents for being rebellious, what kept Jeni busy was making short movies and stop-motion animations which eventually led her to enter a film school in Santa Fe and later on, she transferred to Savannah, Georgia to be a broadcast design student.
“Within my major specific courses, the motion graphics program, they prioritized storytelling and the basics of design above teaching us how to use software because software is always changing,” she said.
And her next stop? Hollywood. Jeni first knocked at the doors of Buck, a Los Angeles-based global company now known as a creative titan when it comes to motion graphics, animations and collaborations with the biggest brands in the industry.
“When I graduated, Buck was only 2 years old but it was still the place that every graduate wanted to work. I physically mailed them my demo reel on a DVD but I never heard from them back at that time,” she recalled.
Jeni got a job as a junior designer animator at a small studio in L.A. and on her first day of work, which happens to be her dad’s birthday, she received a bit of a pep talk.
“I called him from the parking lot before I went in to work and he said something to me I’ll never forget. He said, ‘I hope you’ve chosen the right career because you’ll be doing it for the next 40 years.’ That call gave me cold sweats.”
After a one-year stint, Jeni quit her regular job and went freelance, a part of her career where she had to wear different hats in terms of print design, art direction, network package design and more.
“I’d take bookings as long as they were dog-friendly and no matter what the task, I approached each booking as an opportunity to learn. It was never not in my job description.”
One of her works in animation and design is the title sequence of famous American sitcom Parks and Recreation. She was also a freelance art director, animator and designer at Barbie for a year. Jeni even scored projects with Five Star, Discovery Life, Discovery Sunday, Disney Junior and ESPN SEC Network. She did commercial campaigns, packaging design and network branding.
“It’s a hodgepodge of styles and techniques. I still don’t have a personal visual style. I always try to use creative problem-solving first and then when I feel that the idea’s working, I decide what styles are for the execution,” she said.
They say what’s meant for you will always find its way to you. As her already broad skill set continues to thrive, Jeni worked from one studio to another which eventually showed her the way back to her first love, Buck.
“I still really enjoy the novelty and variety that freelance brought to me… but I also started to feel like I can maybe go stop somewhere where I felt like I’d keep growing my career and have mentorship from other creatives,” said Jeni.
The industry has also changed since Buck was founded in 2004. What was then a traditional motion graphics studio with a simple office in Los Angeles evolved into a full-service design agency that consists of a talent-driven collective of artists, designers, directors, illustrators, producers and animators who make art, design and technology. Aside from its headquarters in L.A., it also operates in New York and Sydney with more than 300 employees from all over the world.
From 2D and 3D animations, to CG stop-motion short films, explainer films, live action, liquid effects, apps, social media campaigns, mixed reality and brand systems — name it, Buck probably has a hand on it.
After freelancing at Buck, she became an art director before being promoted as an associate creative director in the design-driven production company. And finally, she got the prestigious title of being a creative director.
“I used the skills I brought with me from growing up and being fascinated with all things on screens to the things I learned in college about the making of things and the creative problem-solving tools that you bring to making your things,” she said.
Learning never stops in her new role as she had to familiarize herself more with user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design which are key elements in interactive work. Jeni also had to get the knack of using new programs such as Sketch and Figma.
“I started doing more interactive storytelling, collaborating with the audience who is no longer a passive viewer but a user,” she said.
So if you love taking your selfie game strong using Instagram’s cool and quirky face filters and effects, you have the Buck team—that includes Jeni—to thank for.
Her first project as part of the staff was the augmented reality (AR) filters for Instagram. Jeni even designed a shimmering crown filter for Rihanna that could make anyone “shine bright like a diamond” in their selfies. The custom sparkly headpiece was made to promote the singer’s Diamond Ball fundraiser.
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“Now that storytelling is interactive, the deliverables are changing. So deliverables aren’t just something that the audience passively consumes. It’s something that the audience actually wears,” she said.
Jeni was also part of a digital AR immersive experience project that they did for Lincoln automotive at the Art Basel in Miami Design Week.
“Co-creation is really something that helps people feel calm and less stressed. They’re invited to come and add something on top of that. Sort of let their mind wander and be lost in it. The AR complements the art,” Jeni said in the event’s behind the scenes outtakes.
And now it seems that Jeni has finally found her answer to what her dad said many years ago on her first day of work.
“Something that hasn’t changed in my life or my career is my curiosity and my desire to keep making all sorts of things. So I’m very fortunate to be a member of Buck where hopefully I’ll be in the next 40 years creative problem solving for our clients, for ourselves,” she said.
“I can confidently say that I chose well.”
Know more about Jeni Wamberg and Buck Design through their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram profiles.
adobo magazine is an official media partner of Graphika Online 2021.
