Art Direction & Animation: #HispanicHeritageMonth

One of my first projects with Capital One’s Brand Social team was creating social posts celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month alongside my copywriting partner.

We were ready to move forward with one of our initial concepts: an illustrated employee wearing a t-shirt from the company’s Hispanic business resource group, ¡HOLA!, while holding an animated confetti cannon.

Then news broke that DACA was being rescinded. Shortly after, Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico.

Suddenly, confetti no longer felt appropriate. Neither did an overly celebratory tone.

We needed to pivot to a concept that was sensitive to the moment, stayed true to the brand, retained a sense of optimism, and honored the richness and diversity of Hispanic heritage without relying on stereotypes.

The animation also needed to capture attention within six seconds, aligning with social media viewing behavior.

As I searched for inspiration, one familiar element kept appearing: papel picado.

With roots tracing back to the Aztec tradition of carving spirit figures into amate, a paper made from mulberry and fig tree bark, papel picado (“perforated paper”) is a traditional Mexican folk art created by cutting intricate patterns into colorful tissue paper.

Today it can be seen during Día de Muertos, at Christmas celebrations, and at weddings, birthdays, and other gatherings throughout Hispanic and Mexican American communities.

I began sketching concepts inspired by papel picado while my partner refined the supporting copy, striking a playful yet respectful tone that felt appropriate for the moment.

Together, we created a digital papel picado animation featuring words that reflected the spirit of Hispanic Heritage Month:

UNIDAD (UNITY)

AMOR (LOVE)

FAMILIA (FAMILY)

CULTURA (CULTURE)