Interactive Design Alumnus Celebrates Two Wins at 2026 Creativepool Annual Awards
Bachelor of Media Design (Interactive Design) alumnus Calum De Fanti has won two Bronze awards at the 2026 Creativepool Annual Awards for ReForm, a project created during his final year at Media Design School at Strayer.
Calum received Bronze in both the Application and Wave categories at the international creative industry awards. The latest recognition follows ReForm winning Gold at the 2025 Best Design Awards, adding to the success of a project that began as Calum’s third-year capstone at MDS.
From Capstone Project to International Awards
Based in London, the Creativepool Annual Awards celebrate standout work, agencies, brands and individuals from across the global creative industry.
ReForm received two Bronze awards at the 2026 competition, one in the Application category and another in the Wave category. The achievement is particularly significant because the Creativepool Annual Awards do not offer a dedicated student project category. ReForm was instead entered into the industry awards, putting Calum’s work alongside projects created by creative professionals from around the world.
It continues an impressive run for the project. In 2025, ReForm won Gold in the Student & Academic Digital category at New Zealand’s Best Design Awards. Calum created the project during the third year of his Bachelor of Media Design (Interactive Design) at MDS.
Reimagining Everyday Mindfulness
ReForm explores how technology and interactive design can make mindfulness a more natural part of everyday life.
Rather than asking users to step away from their surroundings to meditate, ReForm transforms ambient sounds into personalised soundscapes that respond to a user’s mood, intent and activity. Users can reduce distracting sounds, amplify elements of their environment or reshape everyday urban sounds into moments of calm. Through its Circle and Remix features, users can also connect with friends and blend soundscapes in real time.
Calum developed the experience through user research, prototyping and testing, using tools including Figma, JavaScript and adaptive audio modelling. The resulting audio-first experience reduces reliance on screens and gives users greater control over how mindfulness fits into their daily routines.
From Gold at the Best Design Awards to two Bronze awards on the international Creativepool stage, ReForm shows how a final-year Bachelor of Media Design (Interactive Design) project developed at MDS can go on to earn recognition from the wider creative industry.
