illustration
mascot development: ollie the otter
Project
Design Amtrak's first ever mascot, for the Missouri River Runner line! The client knew they wanted a male river otter as the animal, and it was up to me to bring the fuzzy, friendly otter to life. He hopped aboard as Amtrak Missouri's newest conductor, bringing a wave of energy and enthusiasm to every journey.
Process
Missouri has a rich culture and connection to rail travel through the Missouri River Runner line. The incredible scenery of the Show-Me State allures travelers to visit major cities along the route. Creating this adorable conductor gave me the opportunity to share visual hints such as a real golden pocket watch, raised eyebrows, bright wide eyes, and a shiny red tie to evoke an emotional connection with the audience. Using the mascot to build a brand personality increases its recognizable value and can lead generation and increased conversations. Bringing awareness to the route through a friendly image attracts an audience of all ages, races, and places. I worked closely with the mascot company to produce the costume to ensure the colors, fabrics, and sizing was correct to fit the clients needs.
Production
From the development of the illustrated mascot, we designed and hosted a very successful "Name the Mascot Sweepstakes" for the residents of Missouri to help name the otter. The mascot will be revealed at the Missouri State Fair in August this year along with stickers, temporary tattoos, and acrylic pins of him!
mascot development: Sprout
Project
Design a friendly, plant-related mascot for branding and marketing goals of SFCU aiming to bring financial awareness to a younger audience. For each new member or business who joins SFCU, they plant a tree to help the environment.
Process
SFCU strived to take advantage of a mascot as part of its brand identity of coming together as a community, donating to support local organizations, giving back to students, and holding events and seminars with schools. With this in mind, I aimed to make the character approachable, playful, and cheerful. Mascots embrace the personification of the brand and create a dynamic user experience. I then created a set of illustrations for various communication goals and social media pages. This sets the proper mood and connection for the brand to becoming engaging with their audience. From the illustration, animated videos and coloring pages including Sprout helps to aid the mission of SFCU.
Production
Based on the illustrations I created, a mascot was born! Sprout now attends grand openings, rides on parade floats, and other various company events. He also acts as a guide and announcer on social media. Producing a cute and fun mascot from scratch gave a new a face and unique personality to SFCU.
