OFFF Montréal returned to the Société des arts technologiques on
September 2–3, 2026, followed by FORUM on September 4. Across the public
program, graphic design appeared beside branding, digital experiences,
motion, technology, generative systems and creative direction.
That mix points to a larger change in the profession: designers are
increasingly expected to understand how several parts of an experience
connect. A brand no longer lives only in a logo. A website is not only a
collection of screens. An AI-generated visual is not finished simply
because it looks polished.
I did not attend this edition, so this is not a room-by-room event
recap. I reviewed the official program, published speaker descriptions,
local interviews and the organizers’ public updates to examine one
question: what does OFFF Montréal 2026 reveal about the rise of
the multidisciplinary designer?
The answer is not that every designer must become an expert in
everything. It is that staying inside one narrow production task is
becoming less useful when brands and digital experiences now move across
so many connected formats.
OFFF
Montréal treated creative work as one connected field
The official OFFF
Montréal media room describes a creative week where graphic design,
branding, publishing, digital culture, motion and visual experimentation
intersected. The public
schedule moved between studios, individual designers, production
teams, a panel about creative visibility and a Krea workshop about
directing AI-generated moodboards.
That range matters. Creative work is often sold as separate
services—identity, website, motion, campaign, content—but audiences
experience the result as one brand. A beautiful identity can feel
inconsistent when the website ignores it. A strong interface can become
confusing when motion is added without purpose. A campaign can gain
attention while sending people to a digital journey that does not
support the same message.
The designer’s value increasingly comes from understanding those
connections, even when different specialists produce the final
pieces.
Montréal’s
creative culture already crosses disciplines
The multidisciplinary direction was not created by the festival. The
public conversations surrounding OFFF and FORUM suggest it already
exists within Montréal’s creative community.
In The
Main’s interviews with three local creatives, Bryan-K. Lamonde’s
work connects identity with public signage and everyday city systems.
Joël Auchu describes a path from UX design into creative direction.
Hayley Lim works across branding, lettering and directing and connects
that range to Montréal’s collaborative culture.
These paths are different, but they share one characteristic: the
designers are not changing disciplines randomly. Each new capability
expands how they can shape an idea.
For a multidisciplinary designer, graphic design can establish the
visual language, UX can organize how people move through information,
and web knowledge can expose practical limitations before a concept
reaches development. Motion, writing or AI tools may then support the
experience when they solve a real problem.
The result is not a longer software list. It is a broader view of the
work.
More
skills matter only when they improve the decisions
“Multidisciplinary” can easily become an empty label. Knowing the
basics of many tools is not the same as knowing why a project needs
them.
A useful multidisciplinary approach should improve decisions such
as:
- how a visual identity adapts from packaging or print to a small
mobile screen; - how typography, colour and imagery support navigation instead of
competing with it; - when motion explains a change and when it only slows the
experience; - which elements should remain consistent across a campaign and which
should change by channel; - when a freelancer can manage the connected work and when a deeper
specialist is required.
The last point is important. Working across disciplines does not mean
doing every task alone. Strong designers recognize where their
responsibility ends, collaborate when the project needs deeper expertise
and still protect the consistency of the final experience.
AI
is increasing the need for direction rather than removing it
AI appeared in the program as part of the creative process rather
than as a replacement for it. One workshop focused on building
moodboards that guide AI generation with greater intention. A
presentation preview from Talia
Cotton described identity systems that balance precision with
adaptability while using technology and generative methods.
This distinction matters because generative tools can create
attractive material before they understand the complete system around
it.
In my own Figma AI
Design Agent test, the first result looked polished and included
responsive desktop and mobile layouts. It still lacked working language
behaviour, reusable components, reliable content and complete
accessibility review. The tool expanded the speed of exploration, but
the designer still had to evaluate what the output actually did.
AI therefore makes multidisciplinary judgment more valuable. Someone
must connect the visual direction to content, interaction,
accessibility, production and the business goal. Faster output does not
remove those responsibilities; it makes unfinished work easier to
mistake for a finished solution.
A
strong portfolio now needs to show how the pieces connect
OFFF Montréal’s public program included a Stash panel about getting
creative work seen and producing results. The organizers’ post-event
updates describe a discussion covering portfolio frameworks, positioning
and standing out in today’s creative landscape.
For designers, this is a useful reminder that a portfolio cannot rely
only on attractive final images. A multidisciplinary portfolio should
make the connections visible.
A case study can explain:
- what the client or user needed;
- which disciplines were actually relevant;
- how the visual and functional decisions supported one another;
- what changed between desktop, mobile, print or campaign
formats; - where testing, collaboration or production constraints affected the
result.
This gives a client more useful evidence than a list of tools. It
shows that the designer can carry an idea across touchpoints without
losing the purpose behind it.
Creative
relationships are part of the work too
Technical range is only one part of multidisciplinary practice. After
his OFFF appearance, Joël Auchu described his talk as being about
building lasting creative relationships with clients at a time when
creative work can feel devalued. OFFF Montréal’s public updates also
emphasized community, collaboration and exchanges between local and
international creatives.
That is relevant for independent designers. When one person helps
connect branding, UX/UI and web work, communication becomes part of the
deliverable. The designer must define the scope clearly, explain
trade-offs, know when to bring in another specialist and prevent
different outputs from drifting apart.
Clients are not only paying for files. They are paying for someone to
understand the whole problem and make the process easier to
navigate.
Businesses
should hire for the shape of the problem
The rise of multidisciplinary designers does not make specialists
unnecessary. It gives businesses another way to structure creative
work.
A focused specialist may be the right choice for deep user research,
complex motion, advanced development or a large identity program. A
multidisciplinary designer can be especially valuable when a smaller or
growing business needs several connected outcomes—such as a brand
identity, campaign materials and a website that should all feel like the
same company.
Before choosing a designer, a business can ask:
- Can this person explain how the deliverables support one
another? - Does the portfolio show reasoning, responsive behaviour and
production detail? - Can the designer identify accessibility or usability risks?
- Do they know which work they can lead and where collaboration is
necessary? - Will the final assets form a usable system or only a collection of
attractive pieces?
Those questions reveal more than the number of applications listed in
a profile.
Designers
do not need to do everything, but they do need to see the whole
experience
OFFF Montréal 2026 presented a creative field where identity,
interfaces, motion, technology, culture and client relationships
increasingly overlap. The local conversations around the event also
showed that crossing disciplines is already part of how many Montréal
creatives work.
The strongest lesson is not to collect every possible skill. It is to
understand how different design decisions affect one another and to
build enough range to guide the complete experience responsibly.
Specialization still creates depth. Multidisciplinary thinking
creates connection. Modern creative work needs both.
If your business needs a visual direction that can remain consistent
across branding, digital experiences and communication materials,
explore my graphic
design services or learn more about how I combine UX/UI, graphic
design and web development.
