Case Study
Documentary Website & Digital Storytelling
Design in service of a story that deserved to be told with care.
Filmmaker Tarabu Kirkland reached out needing a website that spoke to the weight of the film. As the documentary moved into an active pitching period, the website needed a visual language that could hold what it was carrying and offer access to view and engage in supporting the film.
Getting there required research, conversation, and a genuine effort to understand the full context of the project before touching anything. Lara came in first with open curiosity and excitement to listen and learn in order to deeply understand the best way to communicate the film's message through the digital space. Every decision — from color palette to the layering and positioning of imagery — was made in service of honoring the true story of a hundred years of lived experience and systemic racism in American history.
This project is a proud example of the requirement that designers should consistently examine their own inherent bias — and more specifically, Lara's inherent bias as a white woman working in spaces that weren't hers to lead. That practice of listening, checking, and designing with humility isn't separate from the work. It is the work.