Signals 2025

Client : Citi
Agency : Elm Media

I partnered with Elm Media to create the opening sequence for Citi Signals, Paris 2025, an ambitious visual prologue designed to capture the overwhelming intensity of modern information culture before transitioning into a space of focus and clarity. The brief was to reflect the daily barrage of data, opinion and communication that defines our current landscape, while positioning Signals as a platform that cuts through the noise.

The sequence begins with imposing physical structures: architectural forms, scaffolding, broadcast towers and abstracted civic spaces that suggest institutions, infrastructure and the frameworks through which information flows. These tangible elements are gradually infiltrated by digital artefacts, glitches, compression errors, fragmented typography and signal distortion, layering over one another in increasingly dense compositions. Graphics stack, screens multiply, headlines blur and interface elements collide, creating a sense of mounting pressure. The visual language mirrors the psychological weight of constant connectivity: urgent, restless and saturated.

Sound design and pacing work in tandem with the imagery, building rhythm and tension as the layers accumulate. The result is a charged crescendo that feels both exhilarating and oppressive, an environment where clarity is obscured by sheer volume.

At its peak, the sequence pivots. The chaos fragments and falls away. Structures simplify. Movement slows. Negative space returns. Clean typography and refined compositions emerge, representing the purpose of Citi Signals: to distil complexity into insight. This visual exhale creates a palpable shift in tone, allowing the audience to reset and refocus.

By moving from density to precision, the opener not only built anticipation but also embodied the conference’s core promise. It set a confident, contemporary tone for the event in Paris, framing Signals as a calm, authoritative lens through which to navigate an increasingly complex world.

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