In the creative economy, there’s a 1000 skills you could learn. But which ones will give you the maximum value in your career?

Filmmakers have always needed to be a jack-of-all-trades, and that has never been more the case now with streaming platforms and social media. 

This landscape that created the term “creatives” has made content creation profitable – and technology has made it more accessible.

But these platforms have also brought new standards a piece of content has to meet to succeed.

Mainly these two:

• Copy (ie. Titles) that make people want to click

• Graphics (ie. Thumbnails) that make people want to click

It’s the digital age version of the classic poster and trailer that convinced people to buy a movie ticket. It also encompasses two fundamental skills – graphic design & copywriting. 

(The goal of this newsletter is to empower you with the former. We’ll definitely cover the latter in the future)

On YouTube, these are the only two things a viewer have (along with the first few seconds of autoplay) to decide whether to watch or scroll away.

There’s a reason Mr. Beast spends around $5,000-$10,000 a thumbnail. 

That’s not all – I’ve just been speaking about boosting your video’s reach. All social media (even Twitter) values compelling visuals.

If you have a great graphic that visualizes your writing, then your post will be boosted.

But you don’t need to dish out that much - or any at all - to create images that convert into views and ultimately profit.

Design is a Universal Skill, Irreplaceable in all Fields

I’ve used graphic design as a content coordinator and director. 

As a content coordinator for StudioBinder, one of my tasks was creating the article images for our blog and the thumbnails for the company’s two YouTube channels. 

The month before I left the company I helped re-design the second channel’s thumbnails into a more modern look. This channel focused on tutorial guides for the app plus guest interviews with industry professionals.

As you develop designs for anything (thumbnails or even UI UX), you develop an eye for global trends. Hint – round corners are in :)

This also helped me improve my value as a director and videographer.

Throughout 2023, I worked with a company called Big Heart Toys. One of their projects was a web series based on the characters of their children’s books. 

I signed on to direct a few episodes of the series after making social media content for their products. 

The episodes were going on both their website and YouTube channel. Which means we need – you guessed it, a great thumbnail.

For this gig I offered to do it for free as a favor to the company’s producer (a friend who brought me on the project).

If you’re working for bigger organizations, they’ll probably have their own team that would handle these extra tasks. But even then, offering a professional thumbnail would only improve your value.

And the reality is – even big companies don’t always understand optimization techniques for social media.

Bigger and older companies just take longer to adjust because of their large infrastructure.

Finally, for all these benefits you don’t need to go to school for this or spend years training – I learned on the job.

Plus we’re not trying to make a career out of graphic designing either. 

But once you have the basics down it will help you in every aspect of your creative projects.

Design is a Filmmaking Skill

Production design, wardrobe design, sound design - guys, it’s in the name!

I’ve been talking about graphic design in particular but that’s because it’s a great specific skill that’s marketable and will sharpen your core instinct for design as a whole. 

Design is the visualization of your values & personality. It determines how people will feel about your product or brand. 

Let’s view this from a filmmaking perspective. Whether it's for a shot or a set, we’re arranging the visual elements to communicate the exact emotions and information you want your audience to perceive.

When you’re good at design you understand:

• How to work with colors

• Aesthetic patterns and shapes

• The emotions certain visuals produce

• Ideas people associate with different types of images

If you can make potential customers feel positively about what they’re seeing, that’s what makes them trust you and your product. 

Good design makes people feel they can trust you. 

Bad design lets them know you’re an amateur. 

Get Started by Designing Your Own Personal Brand

We learn best through project-based learning, so what better project to pick up a skill than your own personal brand? You can start with this:

• Create your own logo.

• Design a template you would want to use for your social media posts.

If it’s hard to think of one, you can start by building a template from an account you already follow.

Here’s a nice and simple one to recreate:

If you already have a presence online, this will build upon it. If you’re just starting, then this will give you a head start.

Have fun with it – like writing and art you’re expressing yourself. 

For software, I recommend this app called Lunacy. It’s free and has the same functions as the professional program Sketch (even some extra stuff like AI background removal).

But unlike Sketch (Mac-specific) it can be used on any computer. 

It’s a lesser known gem I discovered when I had to switch to a PC. 

Intuitive, powerful, and again free. Upon downloading the app will open a tutorial page where it will guide you through simple exercises to learn the different functions. 

Your eye for design will let you communicate your vision with precision, whether you’re on your own or directing a team. 

And your vision itself will become far more compelling and interesting. 

Because whether you’re making an e-book, a film, or a course, you’ll be telling a better story.

Cheers,

Joe Soon