In a field where much of the most vital creative work goes unnoticed—by design—Kelly Warner’s recent accolade is a celebration of the enduring value of sound in visual media. The Motion Design faculty member has been awarded a Professional Gold Telly Award in the Craft – Sound & Sound Design category for his work on the 2025 FutureProof Opening Title Sequence, a contribution that transformed abstract visual momentum into something more concrete, as sound became evidence of dimensionality.
The Telly Awards, now in their 45th year, are a barometer of excellence across the video landscape—from network television and branded content to the digital short forms that increasingly shape our visual culture. This year, the competition received over 13,000 entries from across all 50 states and six continents.
Sound, for Warner, becomes something almost sculptural. It isn’t merely background or accompaniment; it carries the weight of narrative and emotional intent. When it’s done well, you don’t always notice it. But you feel it.
Before arriving in academia, Warner moved through the creative industries with percussive momentum. He was a DJ for Red Bull. He was a performer and producer in two reasonably successful indie bands. He created sonic branding for clients as varied as Nickelodeon, Ohio State University, Hewlett-Packard, and Bath and Body Works. His practice reflects that layered experience—a blend of technical mastery, musical intuition, and conceptual rigor.
The celebrations and achievements are shared by Warner’s students and collaborators. The FutureProof title sequence was a team effort, and two of Warner’s students, Rin Yokoi ’25, Motion Design, and Diane Lee ’25, Motion Design, were also recognized with Student Silver Telly Awards in both the Branded Content – Student and People’s Choice – Student categories for their contributions. The duo also brought home the Motion Design department’s first Gold Cube from the 2025 Young Ones Awards, alongside other Motion Design winners: Teja Hickenbottom ’26, Brianna Haggerty ’26, and Lucia Alonso Eiras ’26. It’s a generational echo: emerging voices being mentored by someone whose career has traversed the intersections of sound, design, and cultural production.
The Craft – Sound & Sound Design Telly Award recognizes work that often lives just beneath the surface of conscious attention, but shapes how we interpret the world through sound. It’s a well-earned acknowledgment of the value that sound design brings to storytelling and the expertise required to do it well.
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