Building a Digital Presence and Visual Identity
- Website Design
- Campaign Graphics
- Theatre Poster Design
Overview
Blackdog partnered with Words Set Free, a South African storytelling and rehabilitation initiative, to design their website and create visual materials for their theatre project “Gwala Ka Jan.”
The project supports incarcerated individuals in Pollsmoor Correctional Facility, using storytelling, writing, and theatre to foster empathy, dialogue, and rehabilitation.
Our role was to help the organisation build a digital presence and visual identity that could support one of the first theatre productions staged inside Pollsmoor Prison.
The Challenge
Words Set Free needed a website to communicate their mission and initiatives while supporting awareness around their theatre production Gwala Ka Jan.
Key challenges included:
- Creating a professional online presence for a social impact organisation
- Designing promotional graphics and a poster for the theatre project
- Ensuring the website was ready before the first performances inside Pollsmoor Prison
- Translating a deeply emotional and complex story into clear visual communication
The theatre production itself is a powerful project written and performed by inmates, exploring themes of identity, prison life, and personal transformation. This made it essential for the design to respect the gravity of the stories while remaining accessible to the public.
The Solution
Blackdog collaborated closely with the Words Set Free team to develop both the digital platform and promotional visuals needed for the project.
Website Design
We designed and built the Words Set Free website to communicate the organisation’s mission and initiatives clearly.
The site highlights:
- The organisation’s storytelling and rehabilitation programmes
- The theatre initiative “Gwala Ka Jan”
- Opportunities for supporters to donate, volunteer, and engage
The website provides a central platform for sharing stories, raising awareness, and growing support for the initiative.
Theatre Project Graphics
Alongside the website, we designed visual assets and posters for the theatre production.
This process required multiple design iterations, ensuring the visuals captured the emotional weight and significance of the project.
The poster and graphics were designed to:
• Promote the theatre production
• Reflect the human stories behind incarceration
• Create a visual identity for the Gwala Ka Jan project
I couldn’t be happier with the website Blackdog Design Studio created for me. It’s visually rich, cinematic, and far exceeded my expectations in both creativity and execution.
Suzette Leal
The Result
Despite a challenging timeline and multiple refinement rounds, Blackdog successfully delivered the website and theatre visuals in time for the production launch.
The outcome included:
- A fully designed website for Words Set Free
- Promotional graphics for the Gwala Ka Jan theatre project
- Visual materials supporting one of the first theatre productions staged inside Pollsmoor Prison
The project later gained wider exposure when the story was featured on Carte Blanche, highlighting the power of storytelling and theatre in rehabilitation.
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