Contributors

ANDREW PETERSON

Andrew is a director and filmmaker based in Des Moines, Iowa, with over a decade of experience. He loves bringing stories to life, whether it's through narrative films, documentaries, or showcasing the work of local creatives and brands. A proud member of the Des Moines creative community, Andrew thrives on collaboration and crafting authentic, meaningful projects that connect with audiences.

AUGUSTINE 'AUGGIE' TOSCANO

Auggie is a passionate creator, problem-solver, and hands-on maker who thrives on bringing ideas to life. Whether crafting, fixing, or finding solutions, he’s the go-to guy for creative challenges—a true jack-of-all-trades. His background in photography, particularly as a former wedding photographer, continues to inspire his work. While he enjoys lending his skills to interesting photo and video projects, his greatest joy comes from being a husband and father. Family is his greatest inspiration, and his best work and investment are always with them.

BRUCE JAMES BALES

Bruce James Bales is an award-winning cinematographer working in film, television, and commercial video production. He has served as a director of photography on more than 30 short films and three feature-length narrative films. He has also contributed his cinematography skills to the Amazon Prime documentary Chiefsaholic and Freshwater, a critically acclaimed independent documentary. 

As a freelance cinematographer, Bruce has worked with national brands like Xfinity, Pella Windows and Doors, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Bank of America. His cinematography approach is story focused, and he prides himself on good communication, planning, and preparation. Frequently on his ice skates or rollerblades while filming, Bruce’s background with hockey and rollerblading has given Bruce a unique filmmaking perspective.

CHASE STINE

Chase has been putting pictures to screen since 2006 when he was gifted his first camera by his father. From then on he has gone on to work in every form of media you can imagine. From feature length films, television commercials, photography, audio mixing, social media management, and most recently graphics animation. His knowledge of the still and moving image is rivaled by few in the Midwest. After graduating from University of Iowa with a Degree in Cinema & Theatre (he also minored in communications but ironically we don’t talk about that) he moved back to Des Moines where he found a passion for sound mixing for television and film. Give him a camera or a microphone and something beautiful will follow.

DANNY CHAMBERS

Danny Chambers is an industrial designer from Ohio who works primarily in footwear and textiles. He is the founder of Almanac along with James Gall and Bryce Wong. Danny lives in Oregon with Shelby Wauligman where he spends time running, gardening, and homemaking.

JENNIFER WILSON

Jennifer Wilson teaches magazine, brand and multimedia at the Drake University School of Journalism and Mass Communication, a Hearst-award winning program, and directs the E.T. Meredith Center for Magazine and Multimedia Education. She’s been a rock writer, investigative reporter, high school English teacher, Big Band radio DJ, storyteller for The Moth, and a local newspaper and national magazine editor. Her work has appeared in Esquire, National Geographic, Gourmet, NPR’s All Things Considered, Wilderness, No Depression, Chicago Tribune and others. Her first book, Running Away to Home, received Best Nonfiction Book of 2012 from the American Society of Journalists and Authors. In 2016, Midwest iconoclast Raygun released a limited publication of Wilson's environmental novel, Water.

JORDAN GALE

Jordan Gale (b. 1993) is an award winning photographer based in Portland, Oregon, specializing in editorial and narrative photography. His work often examines human relationships, community and current events. He has worked both domestically and internationally for outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, The Atlantic, New York Magazine, and The New Republic Magazine, among others. His work has also been recognized by organizations such as The VII Foundation, The Alexia Foundation and the Society of Publication Designers.

JUSTIN BLOCK

From blogs to brand design: Born out of the hip-hop blog era of the 2010s, Justin is always eager to write the lede. Tired from a decade's work as a journalist in NYC newsrooms, he moved to Portland in 2019 seeking fresh storytelling angles (and air) through brand design. After working as a writer and manager at Nike and Jordan Brand, he moved back to NYC in 2024 to pursue further creative opportunities.

KEVIN LYNCH

Kevin Lynch is an engineer with a background in advanced mathematics whose work lies at the intersection of logic, creativity, and sustainability. Kevin uses numbers to tell stories—whether calculating sustainable outfit combinations or unlocking new perspectives on style and consumption. 

While he’s worked as an efficiency focused engineer on projects with the department of defense and city public transit systems, his passion is found in spaces where he can apply mathematics to build personalized systematic creative efficiency protocols that enable maximal dynamic use cases with minimal resources. 

Based in Seattle, WA, Kevin can be found backpacking, running, and frequently plunging into the frigid waters of the Puget Sound. 

RYAN LYNCH

Ryan is a researcher, writer, and strategist from Omaha, Nebraska—currently based in Los Angeles. He is the founder of Milieu Research Group (M-RG) a research and strategy group focused on cultivating generative cultural dialogue through creative storytelling. M-RG works with select fortune 100 companies, artists, and institutions globally with clients the likes of Nike, Netflix, Spotify, and Rhode Island School of Design. Previously, Ryan worked for NikeLab, bringing to life Nike collaborations with designers such as Virgil Abloh, Matthew Williams, Cactus Plant Flea Market, Martine Rose, and Jun Takahashi. He is also the editor-in-chief of Tomorrow Times, a speculative newspaper focused on design innovation. A lifelong athlete, in his free time you will find him outside surfing, playing soccer, or trail running. 

TARRELL CHRISTIE

TOBIAS 'BORG' TYLER

WILLIAM BORTZ

William Bortz is a husband, father, poet, and editor from Des Moines, IA. His poems appear in Button Poetry, Okay Donkey, Oxidant Engine, Empty Mirror, Turnpike Magazine, Back Patio Press, the Lyrical Iowa Anthology, and others. He is the author of The Grief We’re Given and Many Small Hungerings. Growing up, William spent time in foster care, in homelessness, and in shelters. His aim in writing is to explore how joy lives in uncertainty and mourning. William loves music and basketball. A lot.