Graphic Design students win a Yellow Pencil for D&AD New Blood Google brief

BA (Hons) Graphic Design students Nikita Iziev and Imran Khan haved won a prestigious Yellow Pencil at the D&AD New Blood Awards for a brief set by Google and HMCT. 

The D&AD New Blood Awards celebrate students, graduates and aspiring creatives in advertising, design and marketing. Real briefs are set by real clients, with students judged by a panel of notable industry experts.

The student's collaboration entitled 'Ban Drill, Ban Dreaming' was based on a brief which asked students to find a genre, song or musical movement that best represents a cause and use typography to bring it to life.

The typography-first campaign had to feature both physical and digital elements. It aimed to inspire the audience to discover more about the issues raised and spark a call to action.

The Ravensbourne students based their brief around raising awareness of the music genre UK drill and what it represents. UK drill is a subagent of drill music and road rap that originated in South London. A recent ban caused controversy, with many claiming it violated the right to free speech.

In June 2019, the London Metropolitan Police removed 130 Drill songs from YouTube, served artists with Criminal Behaviour Orders and inhibited them from creating more music without police permission. 

The campaign includes multiple visual components including an informative campaign website and engagement with social media through the use of augmented reality (AR) filters.

It uses a flexible typographic system that has been designed to make the campaign easier to deploy. Profits made from bespoke scarves and albums will go towards the charity United Borders.

The D&AD judges said: "Confronting, minimalist and high contrast. It grabs your attention immediately! Its visual rhetoric evokes a sense of urgency that is complemented by a considered narrative. It finds power in its consistency and memorability across touch points".