The Creative Force Behind Sibizi Media’s Graphic Design

He who hails from a small township called Mandawe, in Durban Kwazulu Natal but entitles a voracious appetite for creativity is Anele Tom, the art director in the Sibizi Media group. He specialises in everything that is digital and creatively out of this world. He doesn’t only focus on a single concept and approach but his proficiency allows him to go overboard with the smallest idea he might have.

With the privilege he had of acknowledging and finding his innovative side at a very young age, it assisted him to always stick to everything that has a lot of creativity in it. This is the reason why he navigated towards a graphic design course at Thekwini Tvet College.

Since he is the mastermind of design, he collaborates with the team to develop creative concepts for a variety of projects, complying with the brands vision and giving direction to other creatives just to ensure that they adhere to what has been directed.

As an art director, making sure that in every work produced there is consistency, it is key for all projects. Also staying updated on latest design trends and incorporation of innovative approaches keeps the work fresh and relevant.

Ensuring that visual elements align with the overall message and objectives of the content is important and the art director gets this accomplished through analysing and understanding the content, its message and the target audience as well as consistency and quality control. “Ensure consistency in visual style, colour schemes, typography and imagery throughout the production, again maintain a high standard of quality in visuals, aesthetics or technical aspects,” says Anele.

Collaboration is very vital in our team of creatives, we work together to produce masterpieces. This is one of the fundamental aspect of an art director’s work, as team work plays a vital role in achieving a cohesive visual style and ensuring alignment between the creative work and the overall objectives.

“I work closely with designers to create mood boards and concept art that visually represent the chosen direction, this serves as visual reference for the entire team. I provide feedback on design drafts and content to ensure that they align with the established visual direction and objectives, collaboration during this phase is essential for necessary adjustments,” says Anele.

Working with different clients means having to continuously change the artistic approach to meet the client’s varied needs, Anele follows certain steps to cater for all clients, by firstly doing a research on the type of industry the client is in, target audience and specific content secondly is adjusting the mood and tone of the visual to be relevant to the content for instance using vibrant and energetic visuals for a tech start-up but more subdued and professional visuals for a financial institution and so on.

Art directors play an essential role for the creative side of the company and the clients we attract. They help communication to get much easier and effective with the audience because of the visual aids and elements used to convey messages and ideas.

Something that is visually attractive or elementary can easily catch your eye and give you a clear understanding of what the message is being conveyed, unlike to plain written text. Graphic design has made a really positive impact in many if not all industries, it has enhanced communication with their target audience towards their brands. Therefore we acknowledge excellence of the positive impact digital creative work has on industries through Anele Tom’s ingenious.