#seniorcapstone

[liyu-99]

Week 2: Internship Reflection

Total Hours Worked: 15.5

During my internship at E Noa this week, I worked on the company's promotional video for Waikiki Trolley. This is my first time shooting with a drone, it made me nervous and excited. Fortunately, my supervisor gave me a lot of confidence, he patiently taught me every step, and I gradually became proficient during the practice process. We mainly shot on the road between Sandy Beach and Mapapu'u Lookout, the three of us worked together to shoot video and photos at the same time, the whole process took about two and a half hours. From this shooting, I learned a lot of new things, and I look forward to sharing with you after the completion of the promotional video.

Then, I was arranged to do several new designs for the mini bus. After the supervisor explained some requirements to me, I went into the design. I referenced and compared the previous design of mini bus, and searched for some travel routes and features of the mini bus from our official website, hoping to get some inspiration from it. Finally, I decided to kept their most iconic image color, orange. Also, since the bus doesn't have a lot of space, I tried to keep the design clean and simple. Currently, I have submitted a total of two different designs and are waiting for a response from the sales department.

For my final deliverables, I've started planning for the video series I'm going to shoot. After discussions with my supervisor, my targets were selected in the advertising department, the sales department and the driver. At present, I am still communicating with relevant departments and hoping to find the suitable people to shoot.

[trezcapstone]

As I look back on this semester, this experience feels like a moving checkpoint: a chance to pause, name the shifts in my thinking, and honor how the work evolved from an idea I carried into deliverables I can hold and share. It helped me connect the research to my creative decisions, see how accountability and intention shaped the process, and recognize that growth often came through constraints, iteration, and staying grounded in relationship to place and community. Most importantly, it clarifies what I am carrying forward: a deeper responsibility in how I design, stronger trust in building in layers, and a commitment to keep refining the ʻŌiwi Design Mindset as an offering that can live beyond this semester.

[trezcapstone]

Over the past two weeks, the biggest milestone is that the card deck finally arrived and I now have the physical cards in hand. Seeing the deck in its printed form has been a huge moment for the project, and it has helped confirm that the design system and content work together a way I envisioned.

The next two weeks will be focused on polishing the website and guidebook so they fully match the tone, visual system, and clarity of the card deck. I also want to start doing more test play sessions with the physical cards to confirm usability and refine anything that needs adjustment.

The main hurdle was simply not knowing if the cards would arrive in time. That uncertainty made it hard to plan the final stretch, but now that the deck is here, I can confidently move into refinement and testing.

Yes. The physical card deck is now complete and printed, and it is the main deliverable draft to share at this stage. I will also be sharing updated drafts of the website and guidebook as I polish them over the next two weeks

I am way ahead of my timeline. With the physical deck already in, I am now in a strong position to focus on polishing, polishing, and play testing so the final deliverables are cohesive and presentation-ready.

[trezcapstone]

Over the past two weeks, I’ve been fully focused on finishing the card design—this is the final major piece before everything can move into the printing and delivery phase. I finalized the layout decisions, cleaned up typography and spacing, and made sure the content reads clearly and consistently across the deck.

A big milestone is that the deck is now in production through MakePlayingCards.com. At this point, I’m waiting for the order to be processed and shipped so I can review the physical proofs and make any last adjustments if needed.

While I wait for the deck to arrive, my next priority is to polish the rest of the deliverables:

Touch up the website (tighten copy, refine layout, and make sure everything is clear and easy to navigate).

Revisit the guidebook for final edits and formatting clean-up so it matches the tone and visual system of the cards.Once the deck is delivered, I’ll do a full quality check and note any changes needed for a final print-ready version.

The main challenge right now is the waiting period. It’s exciting to finally send the deck off, but it also means I cannot fully confirm print quality, color, and handling until the shipment arrives. AHA moment: Finishing the deck design made it really clear how much the project has shifted from being a “design thinking” tool to being a culturally grounded framework with its own rhythm. Now that the cards are essentially locked, it feels like the rest of the project can be refined around them.

Right now, the main draft to share is the completed card deck files submitted to MakePlayingCards.com. I’ll be able to share more once the physical deck arrives and I can document the final print results.

I’m on track. The deck has been submitted for production, and while it ships, I’ll be using that time to refine the website and guidebook so everything is cohesive by the time I receive the cards. I'm also documenting the process over on my YouTube channel @JackOfAllTre (https://www.youtube.com/@jackofalltre), if you have time or would like to support feel free to check it out!

[trezcapstone]

I've shifted focus to the cards—the project's core. Layout, design, and content are coming together aligned with the ʻŌiwi Design Mindset framework. I've been iterating on structures, refining visual hierarchy, and ensuring each card communicates clearly while rooted in Hawaiian cultural values.

The next two weeks focus on finalizing the deck and preparing for print. Cards should be ready for printing next week. I'll coordinate with the printer and conduct final quality checks on content, design, and usability.

My biggest AHA moment: realizing how much the cards have evolved. What started simple has become a layered tool balancing education, cultural grounding, and engagement. The hurdle has been managing numerous design decisions—typography, colors, information organization. Working through these details strengthened the final product. No major hiccups, just balancing quality with timeline.

Yes! I have working drafts of the card layouts and designs. I'm not sharing the full deck yet (waiting until everything is polished), but I've been documenting the process on my YouTube channel @JackOfAllTre (https://www.youtube.com/@jackofalltre). Stay tuned for updates as we approach the print-ready version!

I'm on track. The guidebook and website are complete, and the cards are in final stages before printing. Once printed, I'll focus on remaining refinements and preparing for the final presentation and reflection video.

[trezcapstone]

Over the past two weeks, I've completed the guidebook layout and finalized the website at https://www.trezalohacreative.com/odt-deck. I'm on track to finish the guidebook by week's end. I'm also documenting everything on my YouTube channel @JackOfAllTre (https://www.youtube.com/@jackofalltre).

The next two weeks will focus on exploring card layout solutions for the ʻŌiwi Design Thinking Deck. This is the most critical phase, as the cards must balance educational content with engaging, culturally grounded design. I'll be considering visual hierarchy, readability, cultural symbolism, and user interaction.

No major hiccups or hurdles—just time moving fast and having to learn an entirely new design platform, a new dawn of design software (FREE ONES lol). I realized that while illustrations would be ideal, they're not part of my core deliverable. They'll come after I finalize the card content, structure, and layout. This clarity helped me focus on the foundational card design first.

Yes! As I mentioned earlier, the website is now complete and live at https://www.trezalohacreative.com/odt-deck. It provides a comprehensive overview of the project, including the research foundation, a section that will link to the digital version of the cards (still thinking through this actually...), and how to get involved.

[heathergalbreathcapstone]

Capstone Update #2: Transitioning to Production & Historical Outreach

Whatʻs been happening since the start of the semester? 

A lot! After talking with Professor Farinella, I was so motivated that I started working tirelessly to connect with historians and people willing to share their family stories and histories. I established contact with a few history professors at UH-West Oahu, emailed but have not heard back from the Center of Oral History at Manoa, Hawaii's Plantation Village (HPV) office as well as Dr. Pia Arboleda, a professor of Philippine Culture at Manoa. I have reached out to a recommended docent at HPV but have received no response. I have also reached out to renowned Hawaiian storyteller Lopaka Kapanui and the Alexander and Baldwin Sugar Museum on Maui. As of this posting, correspondence with Lopaka has begun and we are working on setting up an interview date. The Sugar Museum on Maui, while slow in responses, has suggested to check out their archives the next time I'm on island or can arrange to send me digital files to peruse.

Dr. Jayson Chun at UH-West Oahu reached out to Dr. Yoshiko Okuyama at UH Hilo for me. Her areas of expertise are Japanese mythology, folklore and religion, and would be an invaluable source of information for the project.

Through my community outreach on Facebook, I was able to connect with a Hawaiian man that grew up on the Del Monte Plantation on Moloka'i and has expressed interest in being interviewed. Interview will be over Zoom on February 16.

A friend of mine from high school recently moved back to O'ahu and will be checking with her Chinese-Hawaiian father to see if he is interested in being interviewed. He grew up on the Hamakua coastline of the Big Island and has stories about Night Marchers as the Plantation they lived on was on an ancient trail. That will be an incredible source.

I reached out to my Haunted Plantation boss, Noa for his artistic viewpoints and possible usage of mask/footage of his version of the Faceless Woman. He suggested to meet up in person to discuss more. After about a week of scheduling conflicts, we were finally able to meet and talk story about the project!

Master of Horror, Noa!

Whatʻs coming up for the next 2 weeks? 

The next two weeks are heavily centered on "boots on the ground" production:

Equipment & Logistics: Finalize dates for filming with UHWO.

Interview Scheduling: Locking in dates for subject matter experts (Dr. Cook and Dr. Chun) to provide the historical backbone of the narrative. As of this posting, interview with Dr. Cook occurred on February 10. Dr. Chun's interview is scheduled for February 17.

Community Narrative Collection: Continuing to vet family stories from plantation descendants found through community outreach.

Hiccups/Hurdles/AHA moments 

A major AHA moment came from a conversation with a local paranormal investigator who noted that their Chinese Aunty once commented that early 1900s plantation life was often so "boring" that ghosts became a form of social entertainment. This has given me a new narrative thread: folklore as a community-building tool rather than just a source of fear.

A hurdle that I am currently dealing with is Dr. Okuyama currently being in New Dehli as a Full Bright Scholar until the summer. Great for her, not so great for my project if I want more info on Japanese folklore. Though she did recommend scholars Michael Dylan Foster or Noriko Reider. I have yet to reach out to them.

A hurdle that I had to overcome was the recent storm that Hawaii experienced. I reserved a space in the Creative Media building at school for February 9, so that I could have time to dress up the set for my shoot on the 10th. However, because of the high winds, school was cancelled that day and so I had to rush to build everything right before my interview with Dr. Cook. Also, there was a man (professor? never seen him before) in the space I reserved working on some sound equipment and I didn't want to tell him to leave because he was there before me and that would've been rude, so I had to wait until he left and that took up a little bit of set up time too.

I have a feeling that I will have to be doing a lot of this throughout the semester:

A current hiccup is that I don't know where my external hard drive is. I had a very complicated living situation where I was staying at three different places and now I don't know which house I left my hard drive at. I don't like having all my projects take up space on my computer so I use that hard drive to store everything. Since my birthday is coming up on February 11, I'll just ask to get a new one as a present to help minimize the costs for this project. With my luck, as soon as the new hard drive comes in, my old one will reappear.

Any deliverable drafts to share? 

No drafts or anything yet, but I do have some pictures of Dr. Cook and I from our February 10 interview!

Dr. Cook and I!

Where you are on your timeline? 

I am currently transitioning from Pre-Production into Active Production. My outreach is 80% complete, with my first day of principle photography completed as of February 10. I am on track to have sufficient footage for a preliminary "Rough Assembly" phase in March.

[trezcapstone]

After completing the planning stage, I was able to jump right into production and get the majority of the copywriting done. The first major task I tackled was building out the website—I laid out all the sections and content for the page. A key decision I made was to use my business's branding (Trezaloha Creative) as the main branding for the website, which helped create a cohesive visual identity.

In the coming weeks, I plan to shift my focus to the guidebook and work on its layout. I'm strategically choosing to complete the guidebook next so I can spend the rest of the semester concentrating on the card content and design, which will require the most iterative work.

Yes! I've completed a near final draft of the website for my capstone project. You can view it here: https://www.trezalohacreative.com/kahua-deck. It's not 100% finalized yet, but it's in good enough shape that I can come back to refine it later once I make progress on other aspects of my project.

I'm actually ahead of my timeline! Since web design is something I do regularly in my professional work, I had no issues getting the website drafted quickly. This puts me in a strong position to focus on the guidebook and card design in the weeks ahead.

Hiccups & Hurdles: I'm still working through the Card Design and Visual Direction—determining the right approach that balances educational content with engaging design.

AHA moment: Realizing that I can use my business's branding as the branding for this project was a breakthrough. I've been working in the creative space for almost a decade now, so it made the most sense to connect the two together from both a branding and visual identity perspective. This decision streamlined my design process significantly.