2011 'Crash the Superbowl' Contest Submission by Gorrilas & Toast (Brian Thuok)

Please view and share this video with EVERYONE you know! It's a submission for the 2011 'Crash the Superbowl' contest. It was done by a friend / colleague of mine, Brian Thuok of Gorrilas & Toast. He's the most crazy talented video genius I've ever worked with. Spread the good word, you'd be helping out an amazingly talented guy. Thanks, from the the nerds at 789.


Baby Doritos - 2011 'Crash The Superbowl' Entry from Brian Thuok on Vimeo.

Vehicle Wrap for Gano Excel | North America

This was a fast-paced, expedited job that had to be completed within 24 hours. Although lightening fast, we were able to pull-off a very eye catching design for a Honda Pilot. The full-color wrap covered the entire car except for the roof. The car was originally white, so we incorporated the white roof into the design. So far, we've heard great reviews, and the wrap is already working for the driver/owner of a growing enriched coffee business. Good luck Ruben Cardenas, we wish you great success!

Scartissue Oddball Society (SOS) Begins!

Hello all! We have joined forces with other like minded creative professionals and have decided to make an effort to help people in need. How you ask? Well, let me introduce you to Scartissue Oddball Society (SOS). SOS is an organization of creative professionals who are dedicated to leveraging their talents to celebrate life. Every day, people overcome disease, illness, accidents, and attacks... most often left with their god given tattoos... their scar tissue. These 'everyday' stories bring hope to those of us enduring life threatening situations. We will be releasing unique shirts focused on a specific person. When that particular shirt is purchased... proceeds will go directly to them. We will be launching in the first part of the new year, featuring 5 people and their stories... 5 uniquely designed t-shirts, and 5 goals. We invite everyone to purchase SOS clothing to help unite together, to send a message that "happily ever afters" do exist, and to bring hope to those who fight for life. If you are a creative professional interested in being a part of this effort, know someone who can benefit from SOS, or a generous donator... please don't hesitate to contact us on Facebook or via email.

The Antique Toys - Band Album Art and Logo

The Antique Toys has been a long time client of ours... let's be honest - We love them. They have been working hard on the release of their first "official" album. So, they contacted us and asked if we could help them out. We've provided a brand, spanking new logo, miscellaneous band art, their album art, and working to launch a brand new site for them for 2012. Good good stuff. They released their first single, "Falling" from their upcoming album entitled "When It Started To Begin," available everywhere, such as iTunes, Amazon, and the like. Be on the look out. The whole album should be available in 2012. Hurray!

Room 2 Dance by 789, Inc.

This was particularly fun. Room 2 Dance is local business that approached us... a professional dance studio specializing in Ballroom, Latin, and Social Dance Lessons. They were opening up in October 2011, and we had to brand, develop a website, all marketing materials, interior design, and exterior signage... all within 3 weeks. Quite an exhilarating experience...which has given us free dance lessons for life! Hint hint. God knows we need it. The whole concept behind the branding was to develop a vintage feel combined with a contemporary experience for the potential customer. We utilized some old school styling and patterns, but combined with brighter contemporary colors. Along with some innovative marketing, the studio is off to a great start. If you're interested, we love these guys... they have a range of wonderful dance options for beginners, groups and special events. So, if you're getting hitched or want to find a girl, get your feet moving over to Room 2 Dance.

789 going to the Next Level

Wow, it's been a long time. A lot of projects have come and gone... but we thought we should get back into the swing of things. Sorry for not answering several of the emails we received, but we will get to every single one of them. So, here's a recent project for an automotive car care specialist who happened to be a referral from our good friends at n2a Motors. Hope you guys like what we did for Next Level! They had an existing type treatment they were using for their logo, but didn't have the original files. So, we recreated and added an icon. Also shown, is a set of business cards. A quick, but fun job!

OnMono Recording - Branding

Hello my fellow creative junkies. I'm excited to say we have somehow, squeezed our way and captured the attention of another record label... and this time, a label with a few bands that just so happen to be close, personal friends of ours. The Antique Toys . The record label is called OnMono Recordings. The label was conceptualized and developed by Mr. Will Foster and Joey Bellville of the Echoing Green. The logo was developed with a clean and modern approach to emulate the genre of music the label lends itself to: electronic / synthpop / alternative. A tagline was attached, "play + record" to 'play' off of the retro way of recording music on a tape player... where the user had to press both the PLAY button and RECORD button. Additional icons were created in support of the tagline, to give a visual support for the message, as well as balance for the descriptor of the label's name. They liked it...hope you do too!?!

A Wonderfully Fun Project: GottaBox

I must admit, this was an unexpected but very welcomed project. We, oddly, have had to turn down several projects lately. But, somehow, this one slipped threw the cracks of work, life, kids and sleep -- we just couldn't pass up the chance to brand an entire company. This e-commerce-based business will be selling all kinds of goodies online, and needed something to help them stand out amongst the sea of online shopping choices. So, first came the name. GottaBox was born out of the subtle nudging to change a potential customer's thought process. Instead of being focused on the purchase... we wanted the customer to focus on what they will be receiving. Everything is typically sent in a 'box' via mail these days, so why not use that as our edge. So, you'll see the opened-box icons, the shipping symbols, and the logo itself as an abstraction of a box, seal and symbol in itself. So, GottaBox was birthed from our brain bellies. After a few discussions with the owners, investors and the powers that be...GottaBox has agreed to always include a special bonus "something" with each purchase. This created the tagline... pulled from the ever-so-semi-popular movie "Seven." You may remember, in the movie's end scene, Brad Pitt' screaming, with much pain and certainty, "What's in the box?!" And, ta-dah! That was the cherry to this conceptual sundae of creative goop. We could go into why we chose colors, fonts, or why we focused on GB, but that might bore some of our audience. Let's just say, for now, it looked good this way. And, as always, please scream at the person next to you the answer to this question... "Why is six scared of seven?"

Packaging for International Enriched Coffee + More!

We have been working very closely with Gano Excel | The Americas for some time now. We've developed a range of marketing projects, including videos, presentations, and promotional materials. But, I must admit, this was probably one of the most challenging, yet most rewarding projects to date... not to mention amazingly fun. The project involved conceptualizing the new look & feel of Gano Excel's enriched line of products: GanoCafé: their signature line of cafe products such as coffees, mochas, hot chocolates, teas and even oatmeal. We developed the tagline based on the simple fact that their coffee was 'better' than all the other coffees out there. Why? Well, it's enriched with an herb that benefits overall wellness. Plus, we created Gano365, a brand to encompass their health and beauty line of products which include soap, toothpaste and a unique line of supplements. All of the packaging has been designed to showcase the companies 4 Pillar philosophy which is: Energize (their unique line of products), Revitalize (their powerful enrichment), Harmonize (their vision to spread health and wealth to everyone), and lastly, Socialize (their unique business model). We hope to have all final changes in 2011, and implement in 2012. Keep an eye out, 'cause this stuff is GOOD!

We've Been Busy.

Hello everyone. It's been a while since we last wrote. But boy, we've been busy. In a nut shell... we started working with some amazing people. From innovative strategies and so much branding that our creative bellies are about to burst, to guerrilla marketing at its finest... rad and unconventional. It's been so pleasing to work with so many new, talented people. It hasn't been easy, but the ride has been well worth it. We are actually turning work away now. What a freak'n 'high-class' problem. Well, thank you to my team, and everyone who has worked side-by-side with us for the past 7 months. We're just getting started, so get ready world... the Nerds are coming for you in a BIG way. Next stop... Latin America and a 5 country tour. Yup, I said it. Wish us luck!

Website In the Works... Pasadena Just Got Cooler!

Hey kids...so here's a sneak peak at a new site and logo for Cool Pasadena, a site promoting exclusive events in the City of Pasadena. We are working with a great team over at Pasadena Entertainment. The site is up, but not nearly complete yet. Ramping up for a full launch in the next couple of weeks. Keep an eye out and be sure to catch one of these shows. We'll be at most of them... but especially Oktoberfest. Can't beat beer, beer and more beer. Thanks... and as always...please scream at the top of your lungs... "why is 6 scared of 7?"

New Website Launches - Welcome It and All Its Glory

Hello everyone. Just finished 30 intense days working with the Gano Excel North American team to develop a brand new campaign "The Evolution of Coffee," associated marketing materials AND a brand new corporate website: www.ganoexcel.us Next on the docket... A LOT. We need to redesign and build several new components for their marketing push. It's all very exciting and amazingly accelerated. The corporate team there is so supportive and definite visionaries. Very exciting stuff.

Historic Pasadena Playhouse Event - Branding & Design

Hello everyone. We've been working hard... so we haven't had too much time to keep up with posts. However, just wanted to provide a few quick updates. First of all, we're doing great. Busy, but very happy. We will be posting new work in the next couple weeks including work for Imperial, a leading manufacturer in high-end, commercial kitchen appliances. In the realm of Vulcan, we are working on further developing their brand and respective marketing materials. We will also be showcasing several new brands including The Big Kielbasa, a new specialty hot dog eatery concept; Point 08, a music and cocktail lounge; Cool Pasadena, a new events portal for the hottest events in Pasadena, CA; The Pasadena Oktoberfest, German festival with lots of beer in beautiful Pasadena, CA; The Taste of the Valley, the first San Gabriel Valley Food Festival, and the redwhite+bluezz Jazz Fest, a jazz festival at the Arboretum in Arcadia, CA. We also are working on marketing materials for the Pasadena Wine Festival, The Jazz Walk, CalPhil's Festival on the Green, and much more. We have sparked a new relationship with the historic Pasadena Playhouse and provide event branding and marketing materials for a Memorial Day weekend event called Jazz at the Playhouse presented by the Pasadena Jazz Institute and Wells Fargo. The work can be seen below. And, lastly... we have recently been consulting with an international coffee company called Gano Excel. In working with them and their team, we successfully launched a new Evolution of Coffee campaign, including marketing materials and a new website for the North American corporate office. The site will be adapted shortly to include USA and Canada, and will have a Spanish portal for South America. All very exciting. Please check in and let us know what you think, and as always...scream the answer from atop the highest building, "why is 6 scared of 7?"

789 Updates

Wow. Things have been quite busy over here at 789. We launched the Pasadena Jazz Institute website...it's a start to a bigger vision. We will be working on five, count'em five...live music shows in the next three months...thank you Andre and Mr. Zeilstra for that. We are working closely with an international coffee company that is in 65 countries to capture a greater audience and dominate over their competition here in North America as well as South America. We are continuing to position n2a Motors as a premier resource for unique and high-end cars worldwide. We are working with, Imperial, one of the leading manufacturers of top of the line, commercial kitchen equipment. We are helping our friends at the Greater West Covina Business Association (GWC) to put on San Gabriel Valley's first regional food festival that will be held at the Big League Dreams in the City of West Covina. We will be putting one our clients together with the Pasadena Jazz Institute in order to give 50 kids the gift of music. This is all for now. As always...please shout from the rooftops the solution to...why is six scared of seven? Thanks to everyone for their support...our friends, our clients, our partners, and most of all...our families.

789 Releases Their Official Website...Finally.

Okay kids. Here it is, in all its glory. The 789 website has launched. More fancy stuff to come, including animations, more gallery samples and photos/bios of the 789 team. Let us know what you think.

Campaign for Electronic Tolling - No More Toll Booths

We teamed up with a great marketing & communications firm called Frank Wilson & Associates. They specialize in outreach and educational campaigns for transportation projects. They gave us the opportunity to work with them on some creative exploration for a n electronic toll booth project. We worked closely with their team to come up with 4 campaign themes for THEA in Florida. This was one of our favorites. The radio and tv copy was a lot of fun to work on too. But just wanted to share...but right now, I really got to run. "MARTY!"

The Utter Disappointment of Creative Spec

So which would you have chosen? These are a few creative explorations we did to try to get a big job with Orange County's Waste & Recycling. Yeah, doesn't sound too glamorous, but the budget could have been decent. Not to say that we would make a lot of money, but as many of you already know, decent budgets allow for nicer, more unique materials. Yes, less money for us, but, a great piece to showcase...even if it is about trash. I'm simplifying that, but you get the picture. Anyway, we didn't get the gig. Why you ask? Well, not because they didn't "love" our work, because they did. The loved it. However, this is what happens when you rush and don't give yourself enough time to edit. That's right folks...spelling / grammatical errors did us in. So sad.

Anyway, this is just a small sample of what we turned in. Hopefully we'll have more time--next time.

A Sincere Thank You...To Designers Everywhere

So, I was just chatting with the 789 team, and our Design Samurai (art director), Richard Silva, brought up a good point to mention. We designers are all here to create, develop, and grow unique ideas. We all have a passion for art...and the way we get to express it is through design, illustration, photography, development, and beyond. This passion, that is so obvious from so many of you, is one of the wonderful things we are inspired by on a day-to-day basis. As you all know, some clients may not understand our love for art, which is to say, they don't know why we choose a particular shade of red to evoke an emotion, or why we use an organic curve to direct an eye, or why negative space is a good thing even though money was paid for the rest of that real estate.

Your work inspires us, just as we hope our work inspires you. Yes, we need to make money, and it's often a challenge to balance passion with making a living, but it just seems worth it when you see something you've poured blood, sweat and tears into, showcased on television, a billboard, a movie title, online, in a magazine, or even on a business card. It's an amazing feeling.

As cliche as it sounds, we are one big inspirational family. And, for that...we say "thank you."

p.s. to all of you vector geeks and font savants out there...we appreciate all of your donations and hard work, and please know that we will follow suit and give back as much as possible.

Sincerely, Charley Bell, Creative Junkie (president)

California Philharmonic - CalPhil Promotional Materials 2010

I hinted at this on our facebook, but thought we'd share some of the work 789 is doing with the California Philharmonic Orchestra (CalPhil). Thanks to Andre over at Pasadena Entertainment, we have had the utmost pleasure to work on a few marketing pieces for CalPhil's upcoming Summer concerts at the amazing Disney Hall and the beautiful Arboretum in Arcadia. For now, we're just sharing a 48' billboard we put together. Much kudos to photographer Scott Council (follow his blog here) for the shots of the Maestro Victor Vener. Really amazing, and the photos were quite a pleasure to work with. Also, I would like to mention that Scott is truly a gifted photographer. His work speaks for itself, so when you get a moment, check him out...trust us. Well, let us know what you think... and don't forget to tell your friends about why 6 is scared of 7.

Please Note: the photo shown above is only a mock-up, and placement is to be determined. But, we'll let you know so you can look up at all of its glory.

Taste of the Valley

We here at 789, reconnected with one of our first clients, The Greater West Covina Business Association (GWC) to assist them in branding and developing marketing materials for San Gabriel Valley's first regional food festival, "Taste of the Valley." The event is planned for Fall this year and will take place at the beautiful and state of the art sports complex, Big League Dreams in the City of West Covina. Let us know what you think about the approved branding. We also included a couple mock materials to give you an idea of the direction we're headed. And as always, thanks for checking in on us.

Branding the Pasadena Jazz Institute

As many of you know, 789 is made of a handful of nerds. Some of us, like myself, are music geeks as well. So, you can imagine how excited we were to pick-up a gig re-branding the Pasadena Jazz Institute. We are working with the renowned and well respected Pasadena Entertainment...to develop a strong brand for PJI, to help them reinvent themselves as well as focus on their primary mission. So, here it is in all its glory. As always, let us know what you think. Next up is the new PJI website. We're working on the design right now, and looking forward to a kick-ass site map from Pasadena Entertainment. We'll post the approved design, and update you all when we launch. So, thanks again to all of you for your continued support, and thanks to Andre, Paul and Roger. It's the beginning of a lot of great work!

More On n2a Motors

As you may have read in previous posts, n2a Motors is one of 789's premier clients. I say 'premier' since they allowed us the opportunity to be involved with them from the beginning of their brand experience to watching the success of n2a and their vehicles grow. It's been a great experience, and we are very thankful that our paths crossed. Some say it was fate, some say it was inevitable...I'm just say, "thank you." We put together a small Flash introduction for their site and launched it recently. It includes some audio recordings, a photo montage and even a custom loader just for fun. We are constantly updating the site...so check in and see what's new. Also, if you happen to know any automotive enthusiasts (especially Corvette fanatics), please invite them to take a look.

Nonnie's Website Is Up!

Hello everyone. Thanks for all of your feedback. It's been much appreciated. This blog is truly paying off since it's getting 789 work recognized, including our clients too! With that said, one of our clients, Nonnie's Hot Sauce asked us to help them out with revamping their website. The budget was fairly modest (most budgets are in these economic times), so we put together small brochure site with an extra or two. Updates should come as we get more content and photos...but for now enjoy. However, if you're a salsa lover like we are, it's worth buying a case or two. It is delicious!

Lights Over Paris

Hello again. Just realized that I haven't provided any updates on one of 789's clients that we are very lucky to have. They are an up and coming band that has an increasingly large following. Lights Over Paris, or commonly known as LOP, has been working with us for some time. They have allowed us to develop their branding and marketing materials from initial research to full launch of several projects. So far, we've developed an award-winning brand, designed and wrapped their custom, one-of-a-kind tour bus, designed and wrapped their private jet (yeah, I said jet), their marketing collateral, their stage signage, and we are currently working on their website (some of its up now to look at) and the art for their first album. Their album will hit this March 2010. It's all very exciting. Now, we have experience working on several music projects through record labels, but the only bad thing about that is we don't necessarily get any credit for that...but that's why LOP is such a great opportunity for us. They broke the traditional mode of a band using a record company, and did everything themselves...with a little help from guys like us. Anyway, take a look and keep and ear open for their first single produced my Mr. Kevin "freak'n" Rudolf. Amazing.

n2a Motors - Website Launch

N2A is a custom car company that is revitalizing classic American coach building. We previously unveiled their new brand and vehicle badging two months ago. We are working with N2A to get them ready for SEMA 2009. For this amazing event, we have launched their new website. The site doesn't have all its bells and whistles just yet, but it does introduce people to the new N2A and what they have to offer. The site is already proving to be successful, generating real interest for their line of cars. Stay tuned for more updates, but for now, check them out.