Arts & Culture : Innovation + Job News

Young merchants and clerks of Cincinnati came together in 1835 to found and organize the Mercantile Library, which to this day maintains historic collections of books and artwork in the city. It is recognized as “one of the oldest cultural institutions in the Midwest.” 

When the young minds and innovators came together at that time, in what was one of the largest cities in the United States, the goal was to move Cincinnati forward. 

To this day, that goal remains the same. And earlier this year, the library hosted a Hackathon—an event that brought together young coders who possess the ideas and skills needed to market the library and its offerings to a younger generation. 

“At a typical hackathon, some people will have an idea of a team they want to get together and a project, or a product they want to launch," says Zach Zimmerman, a member of the Hackathon’s first-place team, and who is now working to build the library a new website.

"But at the core of the hackathon, you push it out to people, and they come, and you break off into groups and start to ideate about what you could do, what you could build to provide a solution that hasn’t been thought about before or that could really push a company or product over the edge and make it something big.” 

Zimmerman says one of the ideas his team had to make the library’s website appealing was to rely simply on the building’s beauty and grandeur, as the space showcases history and sells itself through its offerings to the public. 

“The building is gorgeous," he says. "The art that’s there, and just flipping through some of the books—these are 200- to 300-year old books, and the art and just the labor that went into making them—it’s just fascinating to me. I just felt very inspired, and our team actually worked at the library when the hackathon kicked off. They said you could go out and about, and at the end of the hackathon, come back and present your ideas. But we actually stayed at the library the majority of the time because it was a very inspiring place—somewhere I felt pushed to do more.” 


By Brittany York

In partnership with tech entrepreneur Tarek Kamil, Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber’s
C-Change program is requesting proposals from designers from across the region to help craft an unforgettable brand experience for users of the newly launched website, Cerkl.

“This is an ideal opportunity to participate in a high-profile project for one of the largest non-profit organizations in the Greater Cincinnati region,” says Kamil, Cerkl’s creator. 

Launched in February, the website expedites serendipitous connections between talented individuals and local organizations that are working to improve Greater Cincinnati and the surrounding area. Its online platform serves as a catalyst for offline community engagement by empowering organizations and individuals to cut through the "noise" from existing networks to easily find organizations and opportunities to give back using time and talent.

Intuitive tools and search functions allow organizations to find the right people with specific skills - and help individuals leverage their unique talents and engage meaningfully with organizations they care about. Best of all, the site’s tools and platform are completely free. Cerkl is a gift to Cincinnati from Kamil, who while serving in his own community of Madeira saw the need for an online intervention to help non-profits make meaningful connections with their supporters.

But still in its infancy, the website is ready for its brand to be polished.

In step with Cerkl’s mission, Kamil and C-Change are looking to tap engaged design professionals who want to share their talents with their community in a meaningful way. 

“No other city has a higher caliber or concentration of branding and design talent than ours,” Kamil says. “We want to leverage those assets to bring Cerkl to its full potential. When we’re successful, Cincinnati will be home to the go-to tool created to empower non-profits, inspire individuals and improve communities.”

Designers participating in the request for proposals are asked to develop a refreshed visual look for the nonprofit, specifically a new brandmark and homepage redesign. Responses are due by June 21, and finalists will be notified in the beginning of July. 

The chosen designer or team will have the opportunity to establish a working relationship with one of the region’s most successful startup entrepreneurs. The involved parties will actively promote the contracting designer or firm through the website, social media, at events, marketing campaigns, etc. 

The winner of the competition will receive special recognition from C-Change and Cincinnati USA Chamber of Commerce, as well as a year’s subscription to the Adobe Creative Cloud service or a $600 DCI (Downtown Cincinnati Inc.) Gift Card.

The digital version of the RFP and brand guidelines can be found here. To receive a copy of request for proposal, email your submissions or for questions, email [email protected] by June 21.


Writer: Jenny Kessler

Acceptd has developed a new strategic partnership with the Miami, Florida-based National YoungArts Foundation to better streamline the nationally renowned arts organization’s application process.
 
“YoungArts Foundation is a great organization,” says Don Hunter, co-founder of the Dublin-based company that assists students around the world with applications to performing arts schools. Representatives from the two organizations met last year at a National Dance Education Organization conference in Los Angeles. Hunter says YoungArts was already familiar with their work and eager to find ways to collaborate.
 
Discussing YoungArts’ HBO2-televised MasterClass program where applicants have the opportunity to work with experts in their respective field for scholarship opportunities, Hunter says getting Acceptd involved was the proverbial no-brainer. “They get about 10,000 applicants,” he says. “So it seemed like a natural fit to work with them on the application process.”
 
Ultimately, it’s about creating new opportunities for students. “If we can create opportunities for young artists to pursue their passion and get opportunities they might not otherwise had, I think we’ve fulfilled our mission,” Hunter explains. “If we can create a better market and awareness for these guys, all the better.”
 
To date, YoungArts has awarded 17,000 artists with more than $6 million in monetary awards. Moving forward, Acceptd will play a key role in evaluating the digital applications and portfolios for YoungArts. And Hunter says he’ll be sure to look out for his home crowd.
 
“It’s a great opportunity for artistic students in Ohio,” says Hunter. “We have great relationships with faculty around the state, so we’ll be sure to market this opportunity to them.” Acceptd participated in OSU's 10Xelerator program in 2011 and has since recieved grants from TechColumbus and NCT Ventures.

The YoungArts application will open on Acceptd this week.
 
 
Source: Don Hunter
Writer: Joe Baur

A waterfall swing developed by Cleveland-area engineers has amassed over 2.7-million views on YouTube, gaining the unconventional quartet international recognition and business opportunities.
 
Ian Charnas, a 32-year-old computer and mechanical engineering graduate of Case Western Reserve University, is happy introduce his A-Team responsible for the creation of the aptly named waterfall swing: Andrew Ratcliff, artist; Michael O’Toole, mechanical engineer; Andrew Witte, computer engineer. All have an impressive background in innovation. Witte most notably was recently credited with the largest Kickstarter fundraiser in history, raising $10 million for a Bluetooth wristwatch he invented – Pebble. But when it comes to the waterfall swing, Charnas credits Ratcliff with the idea.
 
“We had seen some computerized waterfalls and thought to do that, but something different,” he recalls. “Ratcliff had the idea to add a swing to it.”
 
Though their initial application to receive funding for their idea from Burning Man failed, they continued their pursuit steadfast. “We liked the idea so much that we just started working on it,” Charnas recalls, setting a new goal to premiere at the 2010 Makers Faire in San Mateo, California – a gathering of “do-it-yourself people” launched by Make Magazine. “We set it up, and it was just barely working.”
 
Although the waterfall swing isn’t a typical product, Charnas treated the project like any other creation of an entrepreneur or innovator. There were trials, feedback, and adjustments over several festivals from Detroit to New York City, including Cleveland’s Ingenuity Festival, and a party at Case to celebrate the opening of the Uptown Development complex. “We figured out how to make the user experience better,” he says.
 
At the 2011 World Maker Faire, the group decided to take a video of their creation and upload it to YouTube. Within the next 12-months, they heard from Honda about using their video for a commercial using the theme, “Things Can Always Be Better.”
 
“I think someone at Honda’s ad agency must have been looking at YouTube for innovative things that happened to be trending,” says Charnas. “They asked if they could use our footage and give us a bunch of money.” Naturally, they accepted and used the money to completely redo the circuitry and plumbing of the waterfall swing. “We’re now at 2.0 after the changes.”
 
Now with a national ad under their belt, Charnas says they have more credibility. “People think you’re more real or legit. People trust you more.” This in turn has led to festival and job opportunities across the globe, including the Netherlands, Russia and Dubai. On April 4, they’ll be stopping by NBC’s Today Show then it’s on to the Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, July 12 through 14.
 
Always thinking of his next idea, Charnas has plans for a project similar to the waterfall, but opts against explaining his vision until it’s finished. “I've found that I can talk about a project until I'm blue in the face,” he says. “But most audiences can't imagine it until they can see the finished thing, which is still about six months away.”
 
Through it all, Charnas continues his work with a very simple philosophy. “We’re the adults. We have to make the fun stuff now.”
 
 
Source: Ian Charnas
Writer: Joe Baur

Robots battling natural disasters. Historic downtown Burton and its collection of 19th century buildings transformed into a turn-of-the-century Alaskan mining town. A virtual tradeshow display in 3D.

Creating these and other eye-popping visuals is all in a day’s work for Cleveland-based MadWerkz. 

Joddy Matthews, Founder and Director of Madwerkz, spent nearly eight years working for Sony, Pixar and Dreamworks in Los Angeles. In 2000, the native Clevelander returned to his roots and started MadWerkz.

The result is a team of award-winning artists and animators creating content, animation, design motion and visual effects for the advertising, film, TV, gaming and music industries. The growing company's stable of clients includes General Motors, Audi, Sherwin Williams and U.S. Vision, among others.

“We’re currently working on two new feature films,” says Matthews, who adds that he is not at liberty to name the titles. “They’re shooting the film in 2D, and we’re converting it to 3D.” MadWerkz is emerging as one of just a handful of companies specializing in 'Stereoscope,' another name for 3D.

“We’re getting opportunities to produce groundbreaking work in a broad range of applications,” he adds. “As a small creative shop with less bureaucracy than larger ones and in-house talent that includes producers, animators, videographers and designers, we have lower overhead, which translates into more project flexibility and lower rates.”

The company recently moved into spacious new quarters in the city’s Slavic Village neighborhood, giving MadWerkz room to grow. MadWerkz also has a presence in Chicago.

“For what we do, we love Cleveland because of the resources here,” Matthews states. “The location is accessible, and there are excellent schools, like the Cleveland Institute of Art, turning out very capable students in the visual arts. In addition, Cleveland State and the University of Akron have world-class professors teaching film and animation.”

Source:  Joddy Matthews
Writer:  Lynne Meyer