Mayda
A course set beyond the horizon: Mayda, a creative collective drawn from advertising, technology, film and gaming, takes its name from a mythical island that came and went from old maps. Studio Kiln built its identity on that search, placing the horizon at the heart of the brand and turning the Y into a portal.
Client
Mayda
Credits
Brand Identity, Digital Design, Motion Design: Studio Kiln. Creative Direction: Nathan Smith, Charlie Hocking. Brand Design: Edoardo Albertini, Blanca San Román Rollán. Motion Design: Edoardo Albertini, Sebastian Muñoz. Digital Design: Edoardo Albertini. Development: Cliff Studio.
Typography
The brief
Mayda was founded in 2021 by some of the industry’s most revered creatives, and it is defined by no single discipline: its work runs from energetic adverts to pioneering products, across film, design, experience and technology. The team needed an identity that could unify its many talents and set a course for the future. The answer lay in the name. Mayda was a crescent-shaped island drawn on maps from the 14th to the 16th century, west of Brittany and later off the Americas, an island many searched for and none ever found.
The system
The metaphor of stepping into the unknown in search of a distant horizon sits at the heart of Mayda’s creative process, so the identity puts the perspective point of the horizon at its centre. The horizon line carries the eye forward across every touchpoint, using perspective to break the frame and coming to life in motion. Online, horizontal divisions, gradient glows from beyond the horizon and an interactive sense of depth pull visitors further into Mayda’s world, balanced so the site stays clear, accessible and intuitive.
The identity
The central Y of the logo expands into a dynamic portal, a twisting, undulating route to a point just beyond the horizon. A simple underlying system lets it reconfigure endlessly while keeping its distinct tri-beam form, adapting to each creative destination the team arrives at. Everett and Everett Mono from Weltkern give it a solid, simple counterpoint, the cuts and angles of their capitals echoing the symbol, while a technological grey meets vivid neon tones, like soft light rising from beyond the horizon line.
Outcome
Mayda now has an identity that unifies its team and aligns its creative vision from the largest screen to the smallest interaction: a vessel for a collective that keeps journeying further into uncharted territory.
