Meet Nicki (Nicole) Tostevin

Hi! I’m Nicole Tostevin but please call me Nicki. I’m a Northern Californian-based multidisciplinary Digital Designer, Art Director, Motion Designer, Indie Filmmaker, Digital Artist, 2D Animator, Graphic Designer, UI/UX Web Designer/Developer and Educator. I’m proud to say that after over 20 years in the film and software industry and small business consultation world, my career has taken many turns, and learning and growing are the things I look forward to every day.

I aim to harness my creativity to improve, clarify, and enhance. I combine clean, elegant design with advanced technology to craft engaging communications that address important problems and make a lasting impression.

I have produced diverse content, from animated explainer videos to indie films screened at the Sundance Film Festival and winning multiple national and international awards. My work has been integral to the development of a handful of AAA games, as well as numerous brand identities, websites, apps, and interactive experiences. I’ve had the privilege of decades of collaborating with amazing clients and companies, both in-person and remotely.

 

EDUCATION

My Tool Box

UI/UX Web Design

Branding Identity

Motion Graphics

Graphic Design

WordPress Development

Filmmaking & Editing

A Scroll down memory lane

1963 - 1981

Growing up
Young Nicki
I was born in San Francisco but grew up on the Monterey Peninsula in California, spending summers backpacking, after school in children's theater, and the rest of the year playing trumpet and ultimately playing in All-State and National Honor Band.
January 01, 2021
12 AM

1981 - 1985

Pomona College
Nicki trumpet
I assumed I would become a professional musician and play in a jazz band or orchestra, but something happened when I went off to study at Pomona College: I took a drawing class, and voila — I discovered Art and intuitively knew that had found my true path.
January 01, 2021
12 AM

1981 - 1985

The Targets
The Targets
I still loved music but played mostly for fun. I sported a punk hair-do, formed a Mod/Ska band called The Targets ( a year before The Target Megastore opened), and performed all over Los Angeles and California.
January 01, 2021
12 AM

1990 - 1992

M.F.A. in Experimental Animation from Cal Arts
Looking back, I now realize that it was in graduate school that I discovered, almost by accident, the other passion that would guide my career: the computer. I got the idea of using a film camera to capture images directly off the monitor of my first-generation Mac (in 1990) to create an animated short film — Suspended Abbey, which won awards around the world.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

1990 - 1992

Suspended Abbey
Suspended Abbey
It was my Master's Thesis Film in the Experimental Animation department in the Film School at the California Institute of the Arts. It was nominated for a Student Academy Award and premiered at The Sundance Film Festival. But more importantly, it propelled me into the blossoming computer/art field.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

1992 - 1993

Carmen Sandiego
After graduating, I spent the next decade working in the Game/Education software industry. I began working as a digital artist and animator for Broderbund Software — on various CD/ROM titles (Carmen Sandiego,
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

1993

Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and The Flame
Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame, was developed internally at Broderbund Software with Jordan Mechner’s supervision. The game, like its predecessor, received critical acclaim and high sales.
The 1993 game was an award-winning CDROM adventure game that broke new grounds in storytelling, gameplay and was a forerunner of the rich cinematic movie sequences. I designed and illustrated the look and feel of the movie characters and introduced the idea of using pixel cross dissolves to animate the NIS Non-Interactive Sequence character stills, a technique I used in my film, Suspended Abbey.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

1994-1997

The Last Express
I was then asked to be the Art Director on a groundbreaking and award-winning CD/ROM game designed by Jordan Mechner, titled, The Last Express. A wild and crazy ride if I do say so myself.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

1998

Broderbund Software's Language Learning
I returned to Broderbund as an Art Director and UI Designer for a Language Learning product. This Broderbund software was gorgeous and way ahead of its time and was one of the first software using voice recognition for language learning! I designed these UI interfaces while I was the Art Director in 1998. The company was bought shortly after and this software was never released.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

2000 - 2005

MPM-Online Agency
But in the late ’90s, with everyone in the world seemingly wanting and needing web application products, I transitioned to working with the MPM-Online Agency as a UI Designer on high tech websites.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

2005

Telseon Website
In collaboration with MPM, I transformed the old Cmetric website into a cutting-edge tech website rebranded to TELSEON. We helped the business grow from a small start-up to a large multi-million dollar tech company.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

2000 - 2022

To Be continued
For the next 15 years, I worked as an independent contractor predominantly with small business clients in the Bay Area as well as with remote international teams across the globe. My client work focuses on marketing website design, building impactful brands, creating marketing materials, and driving growth. Please see this work by visiting my portfolio.
January 01, 2021
12 AM

2022

While not working
I love hiking up in nature, hanging in the trees in my hammock, meditating, or playing my trumpet — for the squirrels.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

2022

My kids and Romeo the Turkey
My family and I live in West Marin with a few dogs, a cat, Romeo the turkey, 3 ducks, 3 geese, 12 chickens, and a rabbit.
Aug 04, 2020
12 AM

In 2017, I had the honor and privilege of playing the trumpet in the orchestra for a performance of Stravinsky’s ‘Rite of Spring’ at The Tree of Ténéré during Burning Man. I’m the redhead in front of the timpani player. Photo credit: Pascal Pincosy.

KIND WORDS FROM MY CLIENTS

Ready to talk?

https://vimeo.com/506252915