A bright refresh for one of the industry's brightest talent pipeline programs.

In early 2017, I worked as a Page in the office of Programming Talent Development and Inclusion at NBC Entertainment. There, I supported a variety of talent pipeline programs, including StandUp NBC — an initiative that gives stand-up comedians from across the country a chance to showcase their talents to key players at NBCUniversal and throughout the industry.

As a result, I was excited when I was contacted later that year for the opportunity to redesign the StandUp NBC logo.

The process:

My primary directive was to revitalize the logo in a way that made it fresh — it was very broad and afforded me a lot of creative freedom.

The previous logo's main focus was a mic stand, which is the hallmark symbol of stand-up comedy. I wanted to keep that but also try some new things. Hence...

Going back and forth with the Director of Talent Programs, I was able to narrow down the visual look of the final logo on something that looked like a neon sign — another visual staple of stand-up comedy — and I paired that with the microphone.

It took a few tries to get it just right, but we really looked at the details. How does a neon sign connect its letters? Where does the NBC peacock logo belong? How do we give the "NBC" part of "StandUp NBC" more prominence?

The deliverable:

I created two versions of the final logo: one that kept the neon sign aesthetic, and another that worked better in single color applications.

The logo will be incorporated into new StandUp NBC materials starting with the 2018 season (see the shoutout in this Deadline article announcing the 14th winner). I'm thrilled for the future of the program and excited to see where this brand new look will be featured next!