AI Video Producer | Brand & Web Designer for Startups
AI Video Producer | Brand & Web Designer for Startups
2nd Place in the CapCut AI Video Studio Challenge! 🥈
I’m incredibly stoked to announce that I’ve taken 2nd Place ($2,000) in the CapCut Video Studio Challenge right here on Contra.
For this piece, I leaned into my obsession with the "Nolan" aesthetic—specifically focusing on 70mm IMAX textures and a cinematic narrative that bridges the gap between the grounded and the galactic. Hearing the judges break down my "Interstellar" tribute and call the shots "VFX-worthy" during the live announcement was a massive highlight.
The Workflow:
I utilized the new VideoStudio ecosystem, using the integrated Seedance engine to art-direct every frame. It was all about precision—syncing the atmosphere and scale to ensure the AI felt like a high-end camera, not just a generator.
The Mindset:
Most people look for a peak, but I’ve learned that when you’re built to keep climbing, there is no ceiling. This win is just the new baseline.
Huge thanks to Zoë and the Contra team for the recognition and for pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the freelance ecosystem.
On to the next one.
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I shouldn't have been able to make this from my desk. 👁️🗨️
Game is entirely rewritten. How are you leveraging next-gen tools in your freelance stack?
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AI can generate visuals. But can it create a feeling?
A little cinematic escape to Paris. 🇫🇷
From the lighting and atmosphere to the composition and storytelling, every frame was crafted to capture the feeling of a luxury campaign.
This is the kind of visual storytelling I love creating.
More than just generating. Directing, crafting and bringing a vision to life. 🎬
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I build AI agents & internal tools that act on data
SOOT — Mascot of LAST DRAFT
Every creative person has a SOOT inside them.
SOOT is the official mascot of LAST DRAFT — a fictional stationery brand built for people who start things beautifully and abandon them gloriously. SOOT is a small, round creature made entirely of graphite smudge and dust. He has no legs — he just floats, unbothered. He has oversized expressive eyes that carry the weight of seventeen unfinished projects. And he always, always carries one unfinished thing. It's never the same thing twice.
He's not sad about it. He's weirdly proud.
THE BRAND IDEA
LAST DRAFT exists for the beautifully unfinished. Not for people who quit — for people who start with full intention, get distracted by a better idea, and begin again. The brand lives on stationery, notebooks, and merch — products for people who buy notebooks but never finish them. Sound familiar?
Tagline: "For everything you'll finish someday."
CHARACTER BRIEF
Name: SOOT
Role: Brand mascot of LAST DRAFT
Form: Small round graphite smudge creature — no legs, tiny stubby arms, oversized expressive eyes
Personality: Unbothered, chaotic, soft, perpetually mid-thought, oddly proud of unfinished work
SOOT is the patron saint of good intentions and better beginnings. Warm and chaotic, he shows up on every LAST DRAFT product as a reminder that starting is the whole point. He has been working on something for three years. He doesn't mind. Neither should you.
THE SYSTEM
Every element of LAST DRAFT was designed to feel like it belongs together — and like nothing else out there.
Color palette: Three colors only. Deep charcoal #1C1C1E, warm paper off-white #F5F0E8, and a single burnt amber accent #D4622A — used sparingly, like a pencil tip.
Typography: Bold serif for LAST, italic serif for DRAFT — because one thing is certain, and the other is still being figured out.
SOOT across five applications:
Sticker Pack — Six emotional states: happy, tired, shrugging, focused, done, pretending to work. Because SOOT contains multitudes.
Dark Poster — Pure charcoal background, SOOT centered with breathing room, one orange pencil. Tagline at the bottom in the smallest possible font. Less is the whole point.
Notebook Cover — SOOT peeking from the bottom edge of a kraft paper cover, just his eyes and the top of his head visible. Because the best notebooks are the ones you almost finish.
Social Post Template — "another unfinished thought." SOOT holding a crumpled paper, looking directly at you. @lastdraft. This is the post format that would make anyone who has ever abandoned a project stop scrolling.
T-Shirt Merch — SOOT on a clean white tee, small and centered. "still working on it." in tiny lowercase. The most relatable shirt ever made.
WHY SOOT WORKS
Most mascots are aspirational. SOOT is the opposite — he's deeply, specifically relatable. Every creative person, every student, every person who has ever bought a notebook and not finished it will see SOOT and think: that's me.
That's the point. A mascot people laugh at themselves through is a mascot they remember.
SOOT is distinctive enough to own a silhouette. Simple enough to stay consistent. And human enough to make you feel seen.
He's been working on something for three years.
You already know what it feels like.
That's LAST DRAFT.
🔗 Full Recraft Project:
https://www.recraft.ai/project/adad844a-479d-4b83-86ff-665bf04fca89
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CUT Coffee — Brew Your Story I reimagined CapCut as a premium coffee brand for creators. The scissors become a cup mark. The timeline becomes a film-strip sleeve. Every great story begins with a cut. Direction A — CapCut as a Different Industry
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/abuaasif_capcutdesignstudio-branddesign-capcut-activity-7467333219772952576-53vt?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAACRm5rcB0nVG0_HUX6-IXfuWqNGquZ-jMQU
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AI-Powered Web Designer | Landing Pages & Chatbots
Designed this hero section.
Kept it simple on purpose. The whole vibe — colors, mood, even the beach backdrop — came straight from the bag itself. Wanted the product to lead the design, not fight it for attention.
A few details I added along the way: numbered callouts on the bag itself (waterproof shell, laptop compartment, capacity, storage) instead of generic floating badges — felt more like actually showing the product than just decorating around it.
Still figuring out if this is the right balance of "clean" vs "does enough." If you've got an idea to make this better — layout, hierarchy, anything — I'd genuinely like to hear it. Drop it below 👇
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Same sign. Same rule. Same fine. Just different words.
One version people ignore. The other, they stop and read.
That's the power of framing in design — it's not always about what you say, it's about how you say it.
Which one grabs your attention more? A or B? 👇
#UXDesign #Creativity #DesignThinking #PowerOfWords
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Ember & Oak — Fine Dining Website
Designed and developed a premium restaurant website concept for Ember & Oak, focused on creating an immersive digital experience around fine dining, culinary storytelling, and ambience.
The goal was to make the website feel like an introduction to the restaurant itself — from discovering its story and signature dishes to exploring the space and reserving a table.
What I focused on:-
-Premium fine-dining visual direction
-Strong editorial-style typography and layout
-Immersive hero section
-Restaurant story and brand positioning
-Curated menu presentation with pricing
-Categorized food and drink sections
-Ambience and interior showcase
The experience is designed to take visitors through the restaurant's identity, cuisine, atmosphere, and ultimately towards making a reservation.
Built as a sample website concept for a premium fine-dining restaurant.
Live Website:
https://mayanklulla12.github.io/Website_restaurant_sample/
#WebDesign #RestaurantWebsite #UIUX #FrontendDevelopment #WebDevelopment #HospitalityDesign #FineDining #WebsiteDesign #ProductShowcase
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A freelance software engineer for Website development.
A freelance software engineer for Website development.
