I was fortunate enough to be able to sit down with Rei Inamoto, Global Creative Director for AKQA in San Fransisco, and dig a little deeper into what makes Rei tick. It was a very insightful conversation that went well past his work at AKQA.
What was your first creative moment?
I think was 13 or 14, when I was in junior high school. Pretty early on I discovered that I really liked anything art related, artistic, like drawing and painting. I think I was fortunate to have elementary school teachers who were really encouraging in terms of doing art in class, in school but also outside of school. I was taking an extra curricular watercolor painting class, and the teacher would encourage us to use different types of papers to paint on. One day she told us to paint on newspapers. It wasn’t anything complicated or profound, but I distinctly remember, wow, to be able to creatively and visually express something is awesome.
When did you know you wanted to be a designer?
I think in school. Even though I wasn’t studying design, I would just pick things up on my own by looking at different magazines and different designers. Not to sound arrogant, but I started to realize that I knew more about designers and design then other graphic design students. They knew the big names like Paul Rand but not many of the contemporary designers. I picked up a lot of design related lingo and knowledge on my own and then continued to learn more in my early jobs.
In your presentation you mentioned that Fine Art is about personal messages and Design is about communicating someone’s message for them. Did you understand that separation early on at school, or was it something that you learned about later on in your career?
I don’t think I did understand. I think I was too naïve to be mature about it. We, as professional designers and creatives, get paid by the client to say something for them. We have to be able to channel our ideas through what the clients want to say and respect that. A lot of times the client doesn’t even know what their message is. In that case, it’s our job to help them find and clarify that message.
Did you ever want to be something other then a designer?
Yes, a couple of things. I wanted to be a chef, a filmmaker, and had some interest in being an architect. I remember clearly, because when I was 14 or 15 I had to write an essay about it. My mom was a great cook. I think I was partially influenced by that, and I guessed that art was not an easy way to make a living. On one hand I wanted to do something in art, pure fine art, but I had to look at things in a more practical way. If had to make a living and earn some money, maybe cooking was one way to do that. My mom was like, Wow, I didn’t know you had this interest. Why didn’t you help me cook? (laughs)
Have you always been interested in the interactive side of things or was that something that evolved as the internet evolved?
It came later. I wasn’t even aware that interactive was a category or channel. I just kind of stumbled upon it as I was going up the ladder, so to speak. It became a bigger part of what we did, and it is a huge part of what I do now, and it is a big part of what the industry is all about. Not just the interactive industry but the advertising and creative industries as well. None of the industries can function without considering interactive as one of the channels. The reality is that everything is going to change--next year, in 2 years, 5 years from now--way more drastically then you have seen already. What I do like about interactive is that it has influenced the advertising industry more profoundly in the past five years than anything else in the industry has in the past 50 years. Even the way we do things today--without digital tools there is no way you can do anything.
On the Halo 3 campaign, why did you choose to build that whole world in an actual 3d model as opposed to a computer rendered model?
I think to add a tactile feel to it, and to add a more human feel to it. The game itself is a very virtual experience and a virtual world. We try to create an emotional response. While it’s not an easy thing to do, it is an important thing to do. It’s an important aspect to bring to the topic we are trying to talk about. Having that physical helped us to add a touch of humanity.
What excites you most about the interactive field?
The fact that it changes. There is something new coming up every day. It is a challenge to keep up with the change, but I’d rather deal with the change then become complacent. If you look at CA magazine from 15 years ago, it’s not that much different from a current issue. But if you look at a web site from 5 years ago, it will be drastically different from today’s. And 5 years from now, the web sites will be drastically different form what we have today. In a way it is kind of scary that things are changing so quickly, but I think it’s great.
What makes a great interactive experience?
Something that has an idea behind it, something that tells a story, and something that works both conceptually and functionally. If it doesn’t work both ways, it will fail.
What was your most memorable project and why?
The most recent one was Halo for 2 reasons. One, it had tremendous impact in the creative/advertising community. Two, and more importantly, it had tremendous response at the consumer level. Like I said at the presentation this morning, some kid took the time to go through the whole site and take a screen shot of every single frame, recreate a movie with them, and post it for other people to download. That kid did a lot of work, and it’s amazing to see that kind of response to something we did.
What areas, if any, in the design field (by design I mean the broad sense of the word) do you think need help or improvement?
I think there is more of an appreciation for design and the craft of design in countries outside of the U.S., like in Europe, the UK and Japan. We need to keep creating beautiful things so that people appreciate it more. It’s a cultural thing and mental thing. I just came back from Japan and there is this unspoken, inherent appreciation for detail that I kind of miss here in the States.
What is your initial process to get the ball rolling on a new project? Asking the question, What are we trying to say? Unless we clarify that, the solution will never be strong. Additionally, having a unique insight is a really, really critical part to what we do. So, knowing what we want to say and finding the unique insight--if you have those two things, I think the idea will come out somewhat naturally or at least more smoothly. When you don’t have those two things, it becomes a struggle. From there, I don’t encourage our creatives to open the computer. I’d rather see rough sketched ideas then finished comps, because if the idea isn’t strong on paper even if you make pretty pictures in photoshop, those become decorations that are hiding the weaknesses of the idea. Ultimately, the idea should be as strong and well written hand-drawn as it is on the computer screen.
How do you work with clients so they understand that your solution is the right one? It’s very difficult to do. It takes a lot of time ,and you have to earn their trust. The more they trust you, the more risks they’re willing to take with you and the more they’re willing to listen to you. You have to take baby steps to get to this kind of point. You have be to be patient with them.
What advice would you give to a graduate about choosing their first job? Don’t jump on the first job offer you get.
Portfolio Center students share a strong desire to communicate ideas, the willingness to let go of preconceived notions, and the compulsion to learn new ways of thinking. These qualities are fostered by the school’s constant stream of industry bigwigs, who bring their varied and colorful perspectives from all over the country. These creatives, who are always generous with their time and energy, tend to hang out with students, conducting informal workshops and continuing the day’s discussions over dinner. Often, what results are provocative interviews—written, shot, and designed by PC students.
