CFW Projects joined Facer in the summer of 2018 and already counts over 6,000 fans wearing his watch face designs every day! We are thrilled to feature this designer from Argentina in our Interview Series today and learn more about his process and aspirations in the smartwatch world.

Hi CFW Projects!

Tell us a little about yourself

Hello community, my name is Carlos Filippa and I am CFW Projects in Facer. Im from Santiago del Estero, Argentina, but Ive been living in Crdoba for a long time, where I studied, formed my family and work. I have a degree in Film and TV, I work in one of the local television stations and I am a professor in the two universities where there is an audiovisual media career. Also, Im a writer and writer of short stories and novels (only published in Spanish, sorry)

How did you get started with watch face design?

Like many, I started having my first smartwatch (a Fossil Q Explorist Gen3) and looking for new watchfaces, finding Facer. I have always liked technology and I consider myself a digital explorer (leaving the dichotomy digital migrant vs. digital native) because from a young age I have been closely following the different technological advances in computing and communications. From professionally programming in Basic with sixteen years to being self-taught in editing and video composition programs, ending teach them in the university, I became interested in many creative facets of technology. When I saw create your own on Facers page I said I have to try this.

What is your watch face design process like? Do you sketch first, start in photoshop, illustrator?

I never considered myself very good at designing, so I have always worked professionally post-producing material designed by others. When I started using the creator of Facer I felt much more attracted to the coding part and the mathematics involved than to the design. Sooner rather than later, I realized that I could not neglect that part, so I began to investigate and with much trial and error, I began to develop a style with which I felt comfortable and increasingly secure. Currently I start many times directly in the creator, using the included tools and predesigned elements to see where the new clock is going. Once I have the solid idea, I usually go to Photoshop to assemble the backgrounds and to join the layers so that they are less layers in the creator. For animations I work in After Effects with which I feel very comfortable.

Which watch face are you the most proud of?

Well, undoubtedly it would be the CFW Full Weather because it marked a before and after in my watchfaces, in terms of design and popularity. Followed very closely by the CFW Weather Animated which meant a very big challenge in its construction since the sequences of images were just being implemented in Facer. Beside the many animations in After Effects, I found the problem that the transparency of the image sequences was not codifiable with tags, so, with the collaboration of other designers, we arrived at the solution that we all use now, to take out and put in frame the image sequences with conditionals.

Any other watch face designers you love on Facer?

Believe it or not, without knowing it, my two favorite designers from when I started in Facer turned out to be compatriots. The first time I saw the designs of Guillermo (GRR Design) I was amazed, especially the BH-X700 and his 3D seconds. And the other that immediately caught my attention was Bruno (BA Wathcfaces) with his Real Emoji line that I thought was incredibly original and fun.Of course there are other designers that I think are great, including the precision and detail of GAUSS, the programming and simplicity of Dario Marnoni and the freshness and originality of RZ Watchfaces.

Where do you see watch faces in the next few years?

I think that smart watches are going to gradually gain their place in our preferred technological objects, and not always because of their usefulness. I think the same of watchfaces, they will evolve in features and possibilities but, deep down, it will always be a matter of design and personal taste. Regardless of the technology, the watchfaces will continue to create a nexus at the level of the emotions with the user, which has to do with the visual preferences and interests of each one.

Any tips for aspiring watch face designers?

Tips, I do not think I can. Just tell them to take advantage of the opportunity to have fun with something that is a challenge both creative and mathematical, because, above all, it is a beautiful pastime. Also take advantage of the community to learn and interact with very interesting people from all over the world.

Anything else youd like to add?

I want to thank the Facer team for giving me the opportunity to do something that amuses me and keeps my brain functioning. To the support team that answers all our doubts and problems. To the editorial team for always keeping me in mind in the feature selections. And to all the designer colleagues for making this one of the best digital communities I was in. Thank you all!

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Interested in joining Facer and start creating your own watch faces? Go to www.facer.io