Chatting on the Illustration Department Podcast
Oh boy. Giuseppe Castellano is about as easy a fella to talk to as you could find, a helluva designer and illustrator himself, and the @illusdept podcast is a favorite …
I am a Boston-based Creative Director, specializing in Creative Direction and Strategy, Product Design, Software, Engagement, UX/UI, Visual Design, and Building Strong Creative Teams.
PortfolioI’m a Boston-based Creative Director and Art Director specializing in product, software, engagement, UX/UI and creative vision. With over twenty years experience, my clients have included Children’s Television Workshop, LeapFrog, Hasbro, The Gap, Children’s Hospital Trust, the WWF (the wrestling people, not the the wildlife people), American Public Media, Scholastic, MacMillan/McGraw-Hill, Pokémon USA, The Girl Scouts of America, Noggin, and Nickelodeon Games. As Creative Director at Curriculum Associates, I’ve overseen the creation of learning materials and digital experiences used by over 7 million American Students.
I have twenty-plus years of experience leading and building creative teams and departments. I have proven expertise bringing great ideas from inception to completion. I’m able to lead at all stages of production. I have extensive professional experience in UX/UI, illustration, digital animation, excellent typography skills, expertise in sound design, music, and digital video. I’m a deep strategic thinker with an lengthy record of successful product development. I’m able to work across functional disciplines. I’m looking for opportunities to take all my experiences and use them together to build future-facing, impactful products.
Everything starts as an idea, but that’s just a start. Will the user be engaged? Delighted? Will your product do its job? I bring decades of crafting great ideas from spark to market.
Great ideas are a priority, but empty if you can’t execute them. Clear, actionable direction and a passion to get the best from each teammate is critical to success.
Expertise in all major Adobe CC products, prototyping (Sketch, InVision, Hype, Animate), wire framing, Sound Design, Music creation, UX/UI, Design documentation and style guide preparation.
I’ve built and lead teams of many disciplines: Designers, Illustrators, Animators, and more. I believe when a team is treated like people rather than positions, they are more creative.
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I worked with Dave for almost a decade, and can't say enough wonderful things about his talents and contributions. He was the creative and visual driver of my business. Dave has a very keen eye for quality, story, brand oversight, and fantastic visuals. His hard work, management, and team oversight lead my company to great heights. Let me share a few examples...
READ MOREOver the years I saw Dave work on numerous high profile projects, with world renowned brands for Disney/Pixar, Pokemon, Hasbro, Nickelodeon, and Sesame Workshop just to name a few. A few accolades include the Disney/Pixar Ratatouille video game he helped lead for LeapFrog sold over 400K units in the first quarter of its release, and won multiple awards, including a Parents' Choice Award. Dave oversaw the creative direction of over 640 linear minutes of online animation for Pokémon, resulting in 13 awards and untold numbers of fans, which I continue to hear from to this day for the love of the product he helped define. His creative leadership with Hasbro and The Hub with the reboot of My Little Pony, directing websites and creating sticky games and activities. As our client later told us about this work, it "blew the doors off" of any other promotion the company had put out previously. Or helping to defining the creative and visual direction of two language learning apps for Rosetta Stone's fledgling kids division, resulting in over 900,000 app downloads in it's first year out, with glowing reviews from Forbes Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, and others..
I could go on with many more examples of how Dave has significantly moved the needle with his creative oversight. Dave has successfully lead the creative and visual direction of more products and brands than most people I know.
What was also wonderful to witness is how Dave mentored so many young artists and illustrators over the years, many of which whose careers have blossomed in spectacular ways, much in the same manner as Dave's path.
I've learned many things about quality art, story telling and design from Dave, and it was an amazing ride working together. I wouldn't trade it for the world, and would work with him again in a heartbeat given the chance.
I’ve had the privilege of working with Dave for four years at Curriculum Associates. I reported directly to Dave as a Sr. Interactive Designer reporting to the Creative Director. I can honestly say, Dave was the best boss I’ve ever had.
His expertise in creating engaging digital experiences for kids is unparalleled. He easily infuses any products he’s worked on with charm, humor, and usability. All while successfully managing efficient workflows so projects can be delivered on-time and within-budget.
READ MOREDave shows a passion for the work he does, and also compassion towards his direct reports (and anyone whom he works with). Dave offers sage advice and guidance to empower his reports, and is always willing to problem-solve to ensure their success.
I highly recommend working with Dave, because your products and your people will be all the better for it.
Dave is an incredible curator of ideas and design. Very easy to work with, supportive, encouraging, and detail-oriented. He has great foresight and knows how to bring out the best in people.
Oh boy. Giuseppe Castellano is about as easy a fella to talk to as you could find, a helluva designer and illustrator himself, and the @illusdept podcast is a favorite …
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I’d love to hear about any opportunities, your upcoming projects, or any questions you have about my work or process.