CAFME Recap for February 15: Terence Oliver

Wednesday night, J-School professor, Terence Oliver came to speak to us about the Magazine Design class, working on publications and the iPad.

Miss the meeting? Need a refresher? Keep reading to see what he had to share with us!

About the Magazine Classes

• The writing and design classes come together each semester to collaborate on two magazines.
• The process is entirely student driven, bringing in student photographers, editors and ad classes.
• The writing class pitches ideas to the team and the professors (Linda Brinson, Magazine Writing professor) pick to two to move forward with. Students break into teams and look at the target market. Designers then create a style guide and writers create stories. Leadership structures resemble the real world, with editors, art directors and assistant art directors. The entire time, the magazine evolves as teams reevaluate the work being done.
• In the past, the classes have produced Earth + Sky (which won first place in the nation for a start-up magazine), Carolina Fresh, Men's Retirement, Bean & Leaf and Wabi Sabi.
• "Really the whole goal is to have our magazines be a real experience on the job, but also to help people...it become more than an experience in the classroom and becomes research into our design and storytelling." Terence Oliver

Moving Toward the iPad

• "No matter what, we have to move forward with digital connections. It's was all about risk tasking. For me, it was all about opportunity." TO
• In fall 2011, Terence wanted to raise the bar and incorporate mobile devices into the curriculum. With no guarantees of its success, Terence added the component to the syllabus. Using InDesign CS5.5 with iPad design capabilites, the class went to work to create two apps for each magazine, re-purposing the designs of each story.
• "Every page, we look at it and think, 'How can we make it interactive?'" TO
• The app is free now, but monetizing it later on could pull money into the J-School and the class in later semesters. This would create more funds for printing and give the magazines a higher circulation so the community can get their hands on it. 
• Each semester, the opportunity becomes greater. Terence is considering future classes to work on one start up magazine, and one continued magazine from a previous semester which can feed money back into the classes.

Terence Oliver on Success

"Just have fun, explore, go crazy, then reel yourself in -- that's the most fun. When you do that, it shows in your work and people feel it and enjoy it."

"Even if you're not in this class, you got to have progessive thinking. You have a legacy to uphold in journalism. Step up to the plate and hit a home run."

"Success is planned. Surround yourself with people of the same mindset."


Thanks to everyone who came out and to Terence Oliver for speaking to us!