rick heffner

Upon graduation from Shepherd College with his B.F.A. (he would later earn a M.A. in communications from The University of Baltimore’s prestigious program), Rick Heffner found his way to Supon Design Group. A small shop upon his arrival, the firm would grow to be the most recognizable in the D.C. area in the 90s. Having a knack for getting in on the start of something grand, he was an initial member of the Discovery Communications design team. As senior design manager, he managed and art directed collateral for the Discovery Channel, TLC and Animal Planet, from huge billboards to tiny giveaways and an astounding number of projects in between. Thirsting for an opportunity to apply his skills to a wider array of clients, in 1996 he founded FUSZION Collaborative. Building from his entertainment background, the studio quickly found its way into the retail, educational, hospitality and institutional arenas, as well. Heffner has served on the board of the Art Directors Club of Metropolitan Washington and holds membership in the Broadcast Designers Association, AIGA and the University & College Designers Association. He is also an adjunct faculty member at the Corcoran College of Art and Design. His design has earned praise from major art and design publications, clubs and associations. He is also a proud recipient of the E. John Schmitz Award for his graduate work. His diverse client base includes Americans for the Arts, AOL, CNN, CADCA, Discovery Networks, ESPN, FOX Cable Networks, GoodLife TV, Meyer Foundation, National Children’s Museum, National Geographic, Pepsi-Cola, Reading is Fundamental, The Smithsonian Institution and Time-Life.

Do you feel hopeful about 2005?
2004 was a solid year for us. We will continue our efforts on strengthening our diverse client base in our core target areas. A diverse client base keeps the books even and the designers excited and challenged. Purchasing our own building locally and a satellite office on the west coast are in the works.

How has graphic design changed since you started?
As art, no. As instilled in me from the beginning, we approach our projects with an idea, pencil and paper. Though our Macs are a necessity, they are a tool. As a business, sure, it has changed and is always evolving. I’ve learned the business side of design on the job; you can’t experience that in design school. The business aspect is as much about solving problems as the projects are.

What is your workday like?
We start off every morning with a project run down, throw a few zingers at each other, then for me it’s the balancing act of being a designer and a “hunter” of new business opportunities. As I figure out my dual role, our search for a new business person continues. I’ve been told over and over, “No one call sell your business like you can,” so I’m starting to accept that. Learning the business and marketing side keeps it fresh and exciting for me, but that said, I’m never too far away from the pencil and paper!

What do you do in your time away from work?
An equilibrium of work and play is paramount. Away from the office I’m into home remodeling projects, trips to the doggie park and flea marketing for Batman collectibles.

What are you currently listening to, watching or reading?
Listening to: A victim of the 80s: STYX, Pat Benatar, iTunes CLUB 977. Watching: Alias, The Apprentice, NFL, HGTV, CNN Headline News junkie, Discovery HD. Reading: D-Day by Stephen Ambrose, M.B.A. in a Box and Cam Foote’s Creative Business.

victor rodriguez & debra heiser

After creatively managing and handling day-to-day operations for another Las Vegas design studio for four years, it was time for Victor Rodriguez to move on. He found it “very difficult to stay motivated by working for a studio that no longer share the same creative mission and business philosophies.” Ironically, Debra Heiser was simultaneously having a similar experience with a business partner. Thus was born HRH A Creative Partnership, with the two as partners. Rodriguez has been deeply involved with AIGA Las Vegas for over six years and is a past president, and the AIGA is, in fact, where the two met. “Debra was winning top awards in our design show. I knew that I had to meet her," recalls Rodriguez. He says that their new firm always tries to look at the long term when it comes to client needs and relationships: “We ask a lot of questions, and flat out tell prospective clients that we are interviewing them as much as they are interviewing us. We’re looking for the right fit.” Over the past 17 years, the two partners have been recognized locally, regionally and nationally, and their work has been published in the leading design publications. They have created work for industry giants such as The Walt Disney Company, Shell, Kellogg's, Upjohn, Toshiba, Cirque du Soleil, Sony Computer Entertainment, The Bellagio, Lowes, Coca Cola, Budweiser and The Red Cross. Currently, HRH is busy working with Harrah's Entertainment, Caesars Entertainment including Caesars Palace, Paris Las Vegas, Bally's Las Vegas and The Flamingo. HRH also has relationships outside of the Vegas market, notably with Warner Strategic Marketing and Rhino Home Video in Los Angeles.

Do you feel hopeful about 2005?
(Victor Rodriguez:) The coming year will be very interesting in economic terms. Like many of us, I’m not sure what Bush has planned for our country. Outside of that, having control of running our own business, my partner and I plan to continue to grow financially as well to add new partners to our client base. We have to be more than great designers; we need to think strategically and be part of the business and marketing team with our client partners.

How has graphic design changed since you started?
Anyone who remembers rubylith, overlays, keylining and specifying type knows how much our field has changed. Production methods are not the only things that have changed. During the 80s and 90s we saw many design and style trends. But the ones that hold up today are based on great ideas and communicate clearly. It’s refreshing to see that more designers are not using the computer as a design crutch, but are using it as it was meant to be — just another design tool.

How and where do you find inspiration?
Music, theatre, books, travel, great conversationalists — inspiration comes from everywhere. I read the major design magazines like everyone else, but keeping active and being aware of my surroundings is all I need.

What are you currently listening to, watching or reading?
The BBC America station and almost any home improvement show is what I have been watching lately. I love to see design ideas planned and worked out. It helps me relax. On the literary side, I’m entrenched in One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I remember reading his work in college, but that was in Spanish. The English translations are actually a little easier for me to follow.

What do you like to do in your time away from work?
Watching a great movie with my partner, Matt, while Petie, our new doggie, sleeps on my lap — that’s what I love to do away from work. And working on any AIGA project. I know that it’s still like work sometimes, but it gives me the opportunity to plan a great event, work with all kinds of folks and stay connected with the creative community. Get a look at our get-ups at our recent AIGA Las Vegas Moulin Rouge Holiday Spectacular. I guess AIGA will always be in my blood.

david becker

David Becker is president of Philippe Becker Design (PBD), a San Francisco-based branding and packaging design firm which he leads with his brother, the creative director, Philippe Becker. Philippe — whose background included the California College of Art, a decade with Primo Angeli: FITCH as a protege of Primo Angeli himself, and branding projects for Nestlé, Budweiser and VISA — founded PBD out of his San Francisco home in 1998. David, who sees his brother as his “design hero,” joined the firm in 2001. Together they have grown from two to 16, won numerous design honors, and were nominated for the Chuck Williams Emerging Growth Award. Clients include Whole Foods, Safeway, T-Mobile, Disney, Foster Farms, Intuit and Forbes. Born in France, David has an eclectic background (having been called an ‘ecstatic’ by more than one Jungian), combining an education in analytical philosophy from Berkeley, a successful musical career and a love for all things aviation-related. On the design and business side, he is passionate about marketing and the power of design to create value. Before teaming with his brother, David was senior product manager at frog design, working with Hartmut Esslinger on design process innovation. He also spent a number of years in various marketing roles at Intuit, contributing to the success of Quicken, TurboTax and QuickBooks software. David completed a B.A. in Philosophy at Berkeley and obtained his M.B.A. from France’s leading business school. Coming from a musical family (his father was a violinist), following grad school in Europe, he performed and recorded for five years with notable European and Asian jazz and pop artists. He is also an active skydiver, with over 1,200 jumps to date, and a certified instructor who won silver medals at the U.S. National Skydiving Championships in ’98 and ’00.

How and where do you find inspiration?
I read a great deal, from design, business and marketing to philosophy, technology and esoterica. I am fascinated by the genesis of ideas, the people who formulate and believe in them and bring them to life. Ultimately, it’s about romance and the ability to evoke the unattainable. Ideally, I think that’s what we are called upon to do in our creative business, and what makes it so exciting.

What are you currently listening to, watching or reading?
Listening: Habib Koite’s MAYA; Miles Davis’s We Want Miles; 20minuteloop; Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf; The Pixies’ Doolittle; Bartok’s Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta. Reading: Brillat-Savarin’s Physiology of Taste, Chomsky’s 911, Roberts’ Lovemarks. Watching: TV5, Y tu mamá también, Maria Full of Grace, Fantasia.

What do you like to do in your time away from work?
Spend time with my wife, our three-year-old son, my mother, brothers and their dogs; cook, travel, skydive, ski, try to learn Swedish.

Do you feel hopeful about 2005?
Yes. I believe that we will see a resurgence of creativity, entrepreneurship and investment across many fields, and that this will impact the design community. At the same time, the industry itself is in flux; the economic repercussions of the last few years not having fully played themselves out yet. Ultimately I think this is positive, because the industry is not locked in stasis; the opportunities are as far reaching as the relative chaos.