AANT Students Win a Graphite Pencil at the D&AD New Blood Awards 2026

AANT Students Win a Graphite Pencil at the D&AD New Blood Awards 2026

 

AANT celebrates a new major international achievement. Cecilia Conti and Iacopo Cecconi, second-year students of the undergraduate programme in Art Direction, Advertising and Graphic Design, have won a Graphite Pencil at the D&AD New Blood Awards 2026 with their project “Poetry in Emotion”.

Developed in response to the Monotype x Penguin Random House brief, the project stood out in the Typography and Graphic Design disciplines, confirming the ability of AANT students to engage with international briefs and contemporary design languages.

The D&AD New Blood Awards are among the most important international awards dedicated to young talents in communication, design and advertising. Every year, the competition invites students, recent graduates and emerging creatives from around the world to respond to real briefs set by international brands and institutions, turning the awards into a key platform for observing the new directions of creativity.

“Poetry in Emotion” begins with a reflection on the way we read, encounter and experience words today. The project takes poetry beyond pages and screens, transforming it into an urban, visible and shared experience. Through typographic interventions in public space, the walls of the city become open pages: not simply decorative surfaces, but editorial spaces capable of activating attention, reading and participation.

The proposal interprets typography as an emotional and relational tool, able to connect language, urban space and community. This approach responds fully to the challenge launched by Monotype and Penguin Random House: to imagine new forms of reading and new ways of bringing words to life in the present.

The recognition awarded to Cecilia Conti and Iacopo Cecconi, with the tutoring of Assunta Squitieri and Chiara Catalani, confirms the value of the design research developed within AANT’s undergraduate programme, where art direction, graphic design, advertising and visual culture come together in an educational path focused on experimentation, project-based practice and dialogue with the international creative scene.

A result that rewards talent, vision and method, and once again brings AANT onto the international stage of visual communication.

Congratulations to Cecilia and Iacopo!

SASPEM: AANT Guides Students in Health Communication Through Digital Languages

How can complex scientific research topics be transformed into content capable of engaging younger generations? And what role can audiovisual and digital languages play in fostering a more informed culture of health?

These are the questions at the heart of SASPEM – Health, a Mirror of the World, an experimental health education project that brings together schools, universities, researchers, physicians, and communication professionals. Its goal is to promote an integrated vision of individual and collective well-being through the One Health approach, which views human health, the environment, and society as deeply interconnected dimensions.

Within the project, AANT played a central role in the communication and creative production process, supporting students in transforming scientific content into audiovisual products designed for digital platforms.

One of the most significant moments of the project was the event “Health, a Mirror of the World,” held on March 16 at the Conference Center of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Rome. The event featured prominent figures from the international medical and scientific community, including Carlo Torti, Elena Raffetti, and Riccardo Serraino.

Building on the knowledge shared during these sessions, AANT designed a comprehensive workshop program for the participating classes, aimed at developing storytelling, digital, and audiovisual skills. The program included social media literacy activities focused on understanding platform dynamics and communication strategies, workshops on creating storytelling for reels and short-form content, lessons on the grammar of audiovisual language, and practical sessions dedicated to filming preparation and reviewing the students’ productions.

Leading the workshops were AANT professionals and faculty members Andrea Sergiacomo, Matteo Quarta, Guido Calanca, and Giorgio Casa, who guided students through every stage of the creative process: from analyzing digital trends and defining key messages to narrative development, video production, and reel editing.

The goal was not only to provide technical skills, but also to help students learn how to communicate complex scientific topics in an effective, accessible, and responsible way. This approach combines research, creativity, and innovation, highlighting the potential of contemporary communication languages as powerful tools for public engagement and science communication.

Meet the Expert: Fabio Antonelli on the Power of Music in Video Games

On May 19, AANT hosted the final Meet the Expert event of the academic year. The guest speaker was Fabio Antonelli, a composer, music producer, and multi-instrumentalist who has long been dedicated to promoting music culture through projects that combine analysis, storytelling, and in-depth exploration of film and media soundtracks. 

During the event, Antonelli shared his professional experience with students enrolled in AANT’s Bachelor’s Degree programmes, and particularly the Bachelor Degree Programme in Game Design, discussing the role of music as a narrative tool in films, television series, and video games. The meeting provided a valuable opportunity to reflect on how sound contributes to shaping the identity of an audiovisual work and creating an engaging emotional experience for audiences. 

A key focus of the event (coordinated by the teacher Coordinator of Game Design Simone Mari)  was “SuonA Tipo Bene”, the podcast created and hosted by Antonelli, which explores the language of soundtracks and their impact on contemporary storytelling. Through episodes dedicated to films, TV series, and video games, the project makes complex musical concepts accessible to a wider audience, shedding light on composers’ work, creative processes, and the hidden meanings behind musical choices. 

Students particularly appreciated the opportunity to engage directly with the guest speaker, who answered questions about career paths in the music industry, the skills currently required by the creative sector, and the opportunities offered by new digital platforms for production and cultural dissemination.

AANT’s students receive a Merit Award at the Young Ones Awards 2026

AANT creativity continues to stand out on the international stage. Students from the Bachelor’s Degree in Art Direction, Advertising and Graphic Design, Alessandro Arnold, Carlo Renato Popescu and Matteo Sinopoli, supervised by lecturer Giulia Magaldi, received the prestigious “Merit” recognition at the Young Ones Student Awards 2026, one of the world’s most important competitions dedicated to emerging talents in creative communication, design and advertising.

Organized by The One Club for Creativity in New York, the Young Ones Awards represent a global benchmark for contemporary creativity, bringing together students and schools from all over the world every year. The awarded project, “The Epic Build”, imagines a global campaign for the launch of the first Netflix series set in the Clash of Clans universe, transforming one of the game’s most iconic elements — the famous Builders — into the center of an immersive and transmedia narrative.

The creative concept begins with an unexpected disruption: after more than ten years of nonstop work, the Builders suddenly disappear from the game. Construction sites freeze, villages fall silent, and the global community begins questioning the mystery. From this premise, a campaign unfolds through in-game activations, guerrilla posters across major international cities, social media leaks and cinematic video content, culminating in the final reveal: the Builders never stopped working — they were simply building their most ambitious project ever, the new Netflix series dedicated to the franchise.

“The Epic Build” stood out for its ability to integrate storytelling, gaming culture, entertainment and advertising into a contemporary narrative ecosystem, demonstrating a strong understanding of digital communication languages and immersive experiences.

Good job!

Case Film

Case Board

The Epic Build - Clash of Clans Board

Speaking Out in the Creative Industry: AANT Hosts a Dialogue with We Hate Pink

On Thursday, May 7, AANT’s Aula Magna hosted the event “Speaking Out in the Creative Industry and Beyond”, a discussion focused on the transformations currently shaping the worlds of communication, creativity, and contemporary cultural professions. The event was organized with the contribution of Professor Hila Narducci and developed in collaboration with We Hate Pink, a cultural and social project committed to promoting inclusivity, representation, and critical awareness against gender stereotypes and practices of pinkwashing — a communication strategy through which companies, brands, or institutions use themes related to LGBTQIA+ rights, inclusivity, or feminism primarily as marketing and reputational tools, without implementing genuinely coherent or inclusive practices behind these narratives.

The panel was moderated by Rossella Forlé, Founder of We Hate Pink, who guided the conversation between the speakers and the audience, opening a broader reflection on the languages of contemporary communication and the role of culture in shaping collective imaginaries. Among the guests, Assunta Squitieri addressed the transformations affecting the communication sector and the challenges currently shaping creative work, including precarity, exploitation, and the urgent need to redefine new professional models.

Miriam Mastria, expert in feminist philanthropy and gender rights, as well as co-founder and director of the newly established feminist foundation SEMIA, contributed a reflection on the relationship between activism, inclusivity, and cultural sustainability, highlighting the importance of networks and collective practices within processes of social transformation. During the discussion, Barbara Centrone, PhD candidate in Didactics and Special Education at Roma Tre University, explored the representation of identities in media and educational processes, focusing on the cultural impact of stereotypes and the importance of building inclusive and conscious models of representation.

Following this, Francesco Pierri, also known by the drag name Cristina Prenestina, shared a reflection on the body as a political language and on the importance of defending one’s identity within creative and professional environments, emphasizing dissent as a daily practice of freedom and self-determination. The evening concluded with the presentation of the documentary “Real Ads”, a project dedicated to a critical reinterpretation of contemporary advertising imagery.

GeniaLAB AANT: Design for All with Alessio Gallina

What does it mean to design today, in a context where language, images and intelligent technologies continuously reshape the way we interpret the world?

It is from this question—both simple and radical—that the latest GeniaLAB session, held on April 28 and titled “Design for All: Inclusion, Senses and AI,” took shape. The event transformed AANT’s main lecture hall into a critical laboratory, where design and artificial intelligence were explored not merely as tools, but as cultural devices. Guided by the talk of Alessio Gallina, students from the three-year academic programs engaged in a path that connected language, gender discrimination and AI systems, highlighting how what appears neutral—a color, an interface, a word—is in fact part of a broader system of meaning-making.

During the session, introduced and moderated by Prof. Gianna Angelini, Scientific Director and Head of Internationalization at the Academy, it became clear that discrimination is not only a visible social phenomenon, but also a structure embedded within symbolic systems: in languages, visual representations and the logics that shape contemporary technologies. In this context, artificial intelligence takes on an ambivalent role. On one hand, it is a powerful tool; on the other, it acts as an amplifier of cultural bias, capable of reproducing and reinforcing stereotypes through outputs that become actual discursive acts. Digital platforms, moreover, increasingly tend to build personalized environments, turning into closed spaces that reinforce pre-existing beliefs.

The key turning point proposed by the event concerns the role of the designer. No longer a mere executor of functional solutions, but a conscious figure, called to continuously question their own work. From this perspective, designing means taking responsibility: defining possibilities, creating access, and imagining forms of inclusion. The reflections that emerged during the session fit into a broader framework, where design is recognized as an intrinsically cultural practice, capable of influencing how people inhabit both physical and digital spaces, and how they build relationships.

Alphabet City: AANT at Tabula Rasa Festival

Can a wall become a space for storytelling, a visual device capable of bringing together art, language, and design? This question gave rise to Alphabet City – Exercises in Urban Art, an exhibition curated by Professor Giulio Vesprini, featuring a selection of works by students from AANT Academy in Rome. The exhibition will open on Friday, July 3, 2026, at 5:30 PM at the Palazzina Sud of Lido Cluana in Civitanova Marche, as part of the Tabula Rasa Visual Arts Festival.

Giulio Vesprini, an AANT lecturer, is an artist and designer engaged in research at the intersection of public art, graphics, and urban intervention. For years, he has developed practices related to typography in space and to the relationship between sign and architecture.

The project originated within the workshop of the same name, held last year during AANT’s Refresh Week, and conceived as a research lab focused on the urban poster format. In recent years, this language has emerged as one of the most dynamic within contemporary public art: accessible, replicable, and capable of activating immediate connections with the urban environment. Within this context, Alphabet City explores the poster not only as a visual output, but as a narrative and relational device.

The Alphabet City project took shape within the workshop of the same name, held in March 2025 as part of AANT Refresh Week. It was conceived as a research lab for students enrolled in the three-year courses, focused on the format of the urban poster. The starting point of the workshop was a “pilot wall” at AANT’s headquarters in Piazza della Rovere, a place understood not merely as an exhibition surface, but as a structure of meaning.

In recent years, the language of the poster has established itself as one of the most dynamic forms within contemporary public art: accessible, replicable, and capable of creating immediate connections with the urban context. Alphabet City therefore fits into this landscape as a design exercise that explores the poster not only as a visual output, but also as a narrative and relational device.

On display in Civitanova will be works by students Enrico Pezzali, Stefano Fedele, Gabriele Formiconi, Gabriele Petcu, Giulia Caiola, Giulia Trombetti, Matteo Donati, Marianna Branconi, and Matteo Sinopoli. The exhibition design, created by Giulio Vesprini and produced by Materie Unite in collaboration with AANT, the event’s cultural partner, offers a coherent vision between educational research and curatorial practice, giving the public an experience that connects education, territory, and contemporary visual culture.

Meet the Expert: Luigi Maria Perotti between documentary cinema and artificial intelligence

On April 21, AANT Academy hosted a new appointment of Meet the Expert, the format dedicated to direct dialogue between students and professionals from the creative industries. The guest speaker was Luigi Maria Perotti, director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker, in conversation with Professor Valerio Di Paola, coordinator of the Bachelor’s Degree in Videomaking, Story, Cinema and Media Design.

The event, held within the framework of the partnership with the Libero Bizzarri Foundation, focused on an in-depth exploration of some of Perotti’s most significant works, including “L’infame e suo fratello”, “Florence Fight Club”and “La via di mio padre”. These works reflect a consistent interest in social and historical dynamics. At the same time, the evolving nature of his practice clearly emerged, now increasingly oriented towards the potential of generative artificial intelligence. Recent projects such as “Tales from Neurocene” and “The Final Chapter”, also developed in dialogue with the academic world, demonstrate a research approach that integrates audiovisual languages and technological innovation, opening new perspectives for content creation and consumption.

The event provided a stimulating opportunity for direct exchange, effectively connecting education, the creative industries and research, and offering students of the Academy’s Bachelor’s Degree programs concrete tools to interpret the ongoing transformations in the audiovisual landscape.

About the guest: Luigi Maria Perotti is an Italian director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker working in the field of documentary cinema and contemporary storytelling. After graduating in Communication Sciences, he developed a professional career between Italy and abroad, creating projects for cinema, television and auteur documentary. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with major production companies and with Rai Cultura, contributing to formats such as “Di là dal fiume e tra gli alberi”, where he refined a language that combines visual research, attention to place and narrative depth.

Meet the Expert special edition: Floria Sigismondi at AANT

On April 14, AANT – Academy of Art and New Technologies hosted a new event in the Meet the Expert series, dedicated to direct engagement with leading figures from the international creative scene. The special guest was Floria Sigismondi, an Italian-Canadian artist and one of the most influential figures in the contemporary visual landscape.

With a distinctive aesthetic language, suspended between dreamlike vision and unsettling tension, Sigismondi has developed over time a powerful and recognizable visual universe. Her practice spans photography, video art and film direction, playing a key role in shaping the iconic imagery of some of the most prominent figures in international music, including David Bowie, Marilyn Manson, Björk and Rihanna.

The event offered undergraduate students a valuable opportunity to explore creative processes and production dynamics that define contemporary visual arts, with a particular focus on the dialogue between visual culture, music and the cultural industry. The talk was moderated by Alessandro Alfieri, AANT faculty member, and Ivan D’Alberto, contemporary art theorist and historian, who guided the discussion with the artist, fostering reflections on aesthetics, languages and innovation.

About the guest: Floria Sigismondi was born in Pescara and raised in Canada. Her career spans photography, video art and directing, fields in which she stands out for a strongly authorial and recognizable visual style. She has directed music videos for some of the most important international artists, contributing to redefining the visual language of music videos from the 1990s to the present. Alongside her work in music, she has exhibited in major international museums and galleries and has directed film and television projects, consolidating a multidisciplinary practice that combines art, storytelling and visual experimentation.

AI and Knowledge: GeniaLAB presents “Generative Knowledge” by Paolo Granata

On Monday, April 13, AANT – Academy of Art and New Technologies hosted a new event in the geniaLAB series, a format dedicated to exploring contemporary languages and the cultural transformations driven by innovation. 

At the core of the meeting was the presentation of Generative Knowledge by Paolo Granata, a volume that offers a critical and in-depth analysis of the ongoing changes in the processes of knowledge production and transmission that seeks to answer an increasingly urgent question: what does it mean to know, to learn, and to create in the age of AI?

Artificial intelligence, in fact, is not merely a technological tool, but is profoundly reshaping the ways in which knowledge is generated, shared, and applied.

The discussion, moderated by Professor Gianna Angelini, Scientific Director and Head of Internationalization at the Rome Academy, featured contributions from Derrick de Kerckhove and Andrea Colamedici, fostering a dialogue that intertwined theoretical, cultural, and philosophical perspectives. The event provided undergraduate students with valuable interpretative tools to better understand the relationship between creativity, technology, and knowledge.

About the speakers:
Paolo Granata, professor at the University of Toronto, is one of the leading scholars in the field of media studies, aesthetics, and digital culture. His research focuses on the cognitive and perceptual transformations brought about by emerging technologies.

Derrick de Kerckhove, sociologist and media theorist, was one of Marshall McLuhan’s closest collaborators. His work has been instrumental in defining the concept of connective intelligence, analyzing the impact of digital networks on mental and social processes.

Andrea Colamedici, philosopher and publisher, is co-founder of Tlon, a cultural project dedicated to the dissemination of critical thinking and the reinterpretation of philosophy in a contemporary context, with particular attention to ongoing cultural transformations.