In this course on typography and editorial design, the narrative concept of the MacGuffin is critically examined and recontextualised through design practice. Rather than being understood as a merely interchangeable plot device, the MacGuffin is approached as a functional principle that initiates, structures, or reflects narrative processes. Its traditional invisibility as a subordinate driver of action is suspended, allowing it to become the explicit focus of typographic, editorial, and narrative investigation.

Students develop an individual short narrative whose structure is initiated or organised by a self-devised MacGuffin. The MacGuffin may take the form of an object, character, piece of information, or abstract conceptual construct. It is visually articulated through a range of media, including photography, collage, AI-assisted image production, three-dimensional modelling, and sculptural approaches.

All projects are developed within a shared typographic grid that functions as a unifying structural framework. In parallel, each student develops an individual typographic voice that responds to the rhythm, tone, and structural logic of their narrative. Typography is understood not merely as a vehicle for legibility, but as a meaning-bearing medium that actively shapes the perception, characterisation, and function of the MacGuffin.

The written components may employ a variety of writing modes, including narrative, essayistic, dialogical, documentary, as well as experimental and speculative forms. The MacGuffin does not operate as a genre-specific feature, but as a variable narrative, discursive, or typographic principle. Depending on the chosen text form, it may function as a narrative driver, a conceptual figure, a structural point of reference, or a deliberately constructed absence.

The aim of the course is to systematically explore the interrelations between narrative structure, medial representation, and typographic design, and to develop a reflective and coherent integration of content and form within an editorial context.

• Attendance and continuous independent work structured around defined milestones

• Submission of 12 double-page spreads, starting on a right-hand page and ending on a left-hand page

• Active participation in discussions, critiques, and feedback sessions

• Type development and modification carried out in collaboration with the Tuesday course led by Johannes Lang https://base.uni-ak.ac.at/courses/2026S/S03416/

• Delivery of print-ready files and production of the 12 pages using digital printing

This course is exclusively intended for students of the Narrative Media class. Participation requires advanced proficiency in Adobe InDesign, as well as confident handling of typographic details, glyphs, and precise path work.

The course is aimed at students who wish to engage with typography not only in terms of application, but also at a structural and conceptual level. The objective is to develop independent, conceptually and visually coherent double-page spreads and to further strengthen the individual portfolio through demanding editorial work. Continuous and committed participation is expected.