Romance Rally Campaign
Project type
Print Media Design
Role
Designer, Researcher & Stratgeist
Programs Used
Adobe InDesign, Adobe Premiere, Adobe Illustrator & Adobe Photoshop
Date
March 2024
Overview & Objective
Romance Rally is a 4-day anime convention concept celebrating love in all its forms—romantic, platonic, chaotic, and queer. Designed to feel like a real-world Anime Expo experience, the project includes a fully developed program book, a suite of digital marketing assets, and a complete event campaign strategy.
From guest bios and interactive panels to branded postcards, late-night 18+ events, and environmental banners, every detail was created to capture the excitement of fan culture while delivering a polished, immersive experience. The visual identity blends soft romance with neon intensity, creating a space for anime fans who love romance.
Objective:To conceive and design a themed campaign within Anime Expo that unifies related events under one branded experience. Developed original collateral, including a program book, digital ads, and environmental graphics, to promote the campaign as a cohesive, fan-driven attraction.
Phase 1: Research
The first step in my process was analyzing Anime Expo’s full 2022 event schedule to find a clear direction for my conceptual campaign. Most events naturally fell into two main themes: action or romance. I originally explored wordplay in mind maps using Japanese genre terms like Shoujo (anime targeted toward young girls) and Shounen (anime targeted toward young boys), a playful nod to anime fans who often use these labels to differentiate between romantic and action-driven genres.
Action Vs Romance: Sketches and Moodboard
To help make a decision, I created moodboards, sketches, and drafts for both genres to better understand the visual tone I wanted to establish for the campaign.
Phase 2: Planning & Designing
After much exploration, I ultimately chose the name Romance Rally because I felt a stronger connection to the romance direction. It used to be my favorite anime genre, and that personal tie inspired me to create something for fans like me—people drawn to stories centered on love and emotion.
From there, I built the campaign around narratives of love and broadened the definition of romance to be more inclusive. Rather than focusing solely on romantic relationships, I incorporated friendship, queerness, and emotional connection to reflect the diverse ways love is expressed in anime and fan culture.
Further shaping the Romance Rally concept, I reviewed the full Anime Expo 2022 schedule and identified events with romance-adjacent themes such as Love Live!, Boys Love panels, and Maid and Butler Cafes. Also, I researched guest speakers and creators connected to these genres, including cosplayers and directors of romantic anime. This foundation helped define the tone, purpose, and visual identity of Romance Rally as a curated sub-event within the broader expo.
Below is a draft of the poster made for Romance Rally
Visual Identity & Branding Strategy:
The visual identity was designed to evoke the emotional highs and intimate atmosphere commonly found in romance-themed anime. I developed a palette rooted in midnight blue and soft purple to reflect the serenity of a nighttime sky, with neon pink and electric blue accents to introduce vibrancy and visual energy. This combination not only guided the aesthetic tone but also served as a thematic foundation for the campaign.
Fireworks became a central motif throughout most of the branding, chosen for their symbolic role in anime as visual shorthand for pivotal romantic moments. From promotional posters to event signage, the fireworks element was intentionally integrated across key touchpoints to unify the campaign and evoke a sense of wonder and emotional climax.
To complement the palette, I selected Viktor Script as the primary display typeface. Its handwritten, fluid quality conveyed warmth and emotional movement, enhancing the brand’s romantic tone while providing contrast against more structured typographic elements used in supporting content.
Below is the poster and image of the program book ready for print
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Phase 3: Deliverables
In addition to the program book and promotional poster, I developed a cohesive suite of campaign assets designed to engage audiences across both physical and digital spaces. These included a collectible postcard, a series of animated digital ads in multiple dimensions (featuring the fireworks motif for visual continuity), and mockups for branded giveaway items. The giveaway designs included an iPad cover & themed notebook, each aligning with the overall aesthetic and reinforcing the emotional tone of the Romance Rally experience. Every deliverable was crafted to not only promote the event but to create a memorable and immersive touchpoint for anime fans.
Reflection
Romance Rally challenged me to design for both emotional resonance and strategic cohesion. As someone who grew up loving romance anime, this project gave me the chance to broaden that love into a full campaign, one that made space for queerness, friendship, and all the ways people connect through fandom. It pushed me to think critically about visual consistency, theme execution, and user experience across print and digital. From building a campaign identity to imagining tangible deliverables, I gained a deeper understanding of how storytelling and design come together to create something people feel part of. This project reminded me how much I love designing for community and how design can create space for people to see themselves.
Designed by Breanna Williams © 2025.