Getting to know us better

Here, you'll dive into our DNA and how we merge playful design with a purpose-driven ethos. Explore our team-oriented culture, get to know your co-workers and read more about our history.

01

What is the Stupid Studio DNA?

The elevator pitch

Who are we?

The short version
We’re a creative communications and design studio.

The elevator pitch
We’re a team of thinkers and doers blending strategy, craft and creativity. To us, work is more than just a job; it’s our way of making a positive dent in the world, tackling challenges big and small.

As your partner, we’re in it for the long haul, and we insist on having fun along the way. Specialising in branding, storytelling and playful facilitation, we breathe life into projects that benefit culture, children and communities.

02

How is the team structured?

Who does what?

Roles & responsibilities

Stupid Studio operates as a flat organization, encouraging open communication. This means that anyone can talk to anyone about anything, and all of us are here to help. However, to guide you to the person most likely to help you, we have created this simple overview. If you need assistance or have any questions, feel free to send them a message on Slack.

• IT support – Henrik
• License & software access – Christine
• Projects & time management – Christine
• Vacation & illness – Christine
• People & culture – Lars
• Anything design – Nadine
  

But also keep in mind that we already have many Slack channels in place for different purposes. If any questions arise, you can also ask them there.

• #it-support – Printer issues, software access, or troubleshooting
  
• #events – Everything about internal events
• #bugs – Issues with/questions about our digital platforms
• #brandpad – Links & passwords to all brand guides
• #desing_police – Write in here if you’re seeking unapologetic critique from our in-house design police
• #random – For any other question
  

What is my responsibility?

Naturally, we count on you to take ownership of your assignments and projects, but other than that, you get the responsibility you take. That means you can decide for yourself how many duties you would like to juggle and, to some extent, the areas in which you’d like to have more responsibility. For instance, you could lead our Spark events, plan the next Summer party, or even become a Toilet Design Master—and yes, that's an official title. Knowing your role here is key. If you feel it needs clarification or want to explore different areas, just give us a heads-up.

Additionally, we all contribute to keeping our Stupid spaces nice and tidy. So please pitch in to remove empty coffee cups, maintain shared areas and greet clients when they walk through the door.

Who is who?

Get to know your co-workers

What awesome things are your co-workers into? Any hobbies they absolutely adore? And most importantly, how can you catch up with these cool cats? If you haven't given us the lowdown yet, go ahead and fill out the Miro Board down below. It'll help future team members crack your code of awesomeness too! 🌟

03

What is our creative history?

How did it all start?

A short story by Daniel Gjøde

If I should think of one word that defines our creative journey its re-invention. But let me start somewhere else:

We were founded on an urge to achieve two things: To A: Use our creativity in positive ways and B: to have fun and enjoy the “work-part” of our lives. This has been a red thread throughout our history and feels non-negotiable: Do good and have fun. (If you’re not having fun, you’re not really capable of doing good, are you?)

Originally we approached design from a pure craft perspective. It was the early days of motion graphics and we were in love with how this could bring brands to life. I think we were among the first to speak about dynamic brands, and the idea that a logo, for instance, could move and be animated. Today, it’s unthinkable to have a brand that is not dynamic, moving, adaptable to many platforms and formats.

We hadn’t existed for long, before we began questioning the client briefs we received, and as designers we started looking for great ways to do that in collaboration with our clients. We started hosting workshops (I remember how “workshop” felt like this fancy new concept!), and we developed methods to facilitate conversations. We were not alone in this, and during this first big transformation our newly developed skills got a name: Design Thinking.

Design thinking really helped us professionalise our offerings and elevate our ability to use our creativity in more strategic ways, rooted in users’ needs rather than our own, personal (and often very subjective) aspirations. It also took away a bit of our freedom as creators, to be honest, because suddenly this also marked a shift away from a more art-driven approach to design, into a more pragmatic, need-based approach. I’ve always tried to keep things a bit rebellious though, and today people often say we have a “playful” approach to the things we do. Visually, I think that playfulness comes from the belief that we should still, always, infuse a bit of weirdness, artsy-ness and color into the work we do, and when we facilitate and lead big projects we do that with a playful, kind and human approach. We are not afraid to listen, adjust, change and adapt… Who are we to say we have everything figured out.

Anyways! At some point Design Thinking began to feel insufficient. Our World got complex and messy, and that influenced the problems our clients were facing too. It was time to re-invent again, and by chance (as things so often are), we threw ourselves into a huge project where we had to envision alternative and better futures, and make them tangible through experiences. That kickstarted a new era for us as well: One where we could now use our design skills (strategic, experiential, aesthetic, facilitative) to help our clients navigate and adapt faster and better. We developed our own methodology for this, Sensible Futures, and instilled a playful approach to problem solving in that too. More than ever, we felt the strengths and benefits of being a small but immensely diverse team, both in terms of skills, background, gender and beliefs.

And here we are. Today. Are we doing great as a global community? Not really! While the World seems fucked on so many levels, there are also huge opportunities to create something better, and we can see how the discipline of design and the mindset of designers can help facilitate transitions into something better. We don’t have the megalomania to say we are changing the World, but we are chiming in, offering our skills and capabilities.

Because, as designers, our minds are biased to ponder: “Well, maybe the Worlds biggest challenges are also our biggest opportunities”.

Stay Stupid!