This is the inside story of the Boysen Color Play, an interactive and experiential exhibition booth which will be launched on March 9 at the IDM at the SMX Convention Center. Photos were taken during the making of the booth in a secret place where elves also reside.
Showtime is around the corner
Behind every brilliant performance there were countless hours of practice and preparation.
– Eric Butterworth
A few more days till showtime, and the countdown jitters were palpable in a makeshift office at the second floor of a studio where preparations for another Boysen project was ongoing downstairs. A few more days before the opening date of the Interior & Design Manila at SMX Convention Center, and here we were gathered together in a huddle. This group was the Comms team and its partners.
Chairs were pulled around a table, too small to comfortably fit all of us. Laptops circled the edge, documents, sample materials, and sticker mock-ups, were strewn over the available space. One member had a surgical paper mask on coz she was sick and maybe didn’t want to share her germs, or maybe coz she didn’t want to get more. I didn’t ask. Anything goes in this group.
The meeting started. An artist opened her laptop. Images appeared on screen. Talk, talk, talk. Changes had to be made to the video. Issues on consistency across all materials had to be addressed. She left the group and sat at the periphery, and with her laptop balanced on her thighs, she started making the revisions.
Not many people noticed because another laptop had opened, and someone else was speaking. Stickers. Only two. But they had to be changed. This was Team Perfection, and change them she did. She too left the circle around the table, and did the same balancing act as her colleague.
Another laptop. Another video. Only a work in progess, but everyone was enthusiastic. Just a few finishing touches and it was good to go.
The booth concept guys were excited. Their brain work from last year was almost ready to be born into this world. They looked with approval or frowned when design standards or consistency were not met. But the tone was always reasonable. For people who gave form and substance to Boysen Color Play, their proprietorial air was understandable.
And there, seated very quietly among us, looking mostly exhausted rather than relieved, were the guys who gave the idea flesh and blood. They were not yet done with the booth construction, but to them, the deadline was going to be met. I made them this as an accolade for their eye bags with the matching dark circles.
This is the nth time I’ve shown this obra maestra that has been ignored by the Mighty Mirz, the graphic designer of this blog, and by everyone else. I think it’s cute kaya siningit ko ulit.
Hodgepodge Personalities Make for a Great Team
The meeting did not end here, of course. There are so many projects being implemented right now so we discussed the most pressing ones.
During a lull in the early evening, the team members who stayed behind relaxed a bit. One was re-reading her Harry Potter book in the dark. Another was watching a Koreanovela, while the person beside her listened to music on his earphones. Two others were sharing a set of earphones while watching the musical Hamilton. They broke out in song now and then, both terribly off key.
Some of us kept eating chips. Until one went to the toilet and came back looking triumphant. I asked her why the grin, and she replied, “I brushed my teeth so I will stop eating chips.” Shoveling more chips into my mouth, I thought that that would not be effective for me.
Two guys seated beside me were talking seriously about stuff. They looked like Statler and Waldorf, those two guys in Sesame Street. I don’t think they’ll be very happy with this description. In fairness, they’re actually sweet; they just look cantankerous.
Selfies, Boysen Style
In one of those many chaotic times in the office, when so many things were happening all at once, and everything carried with it an URGENT mark, some team members made selfies to let off steam.
Not everyone could have a Doodle face. The app is not advanced enough to handle the idiosyncratic personalities of the Boysen creative team. This is not to say that those people with Doodle faces are not weird…I mean special.
An Invitation to You
We worked on this booth for so long, poured our hearts and minds into this, laughed, sang, binged, sweated, cursed, gone mad, and went through sleepless nights.
So do come and visit us at the Boysen Color Play, a colorful wonderland of imagination, made by us especially for you.
Mark these dates, March 9 to 11 at the SMX Convention Center. If you miss this event, then go to Worldbex on March 15 to 19 at the World Trade Center.
See ya!