Design Better Podcast Summary

Episode: Mikon van Gastel: Co-Founder of Sibling Rivalry on Why Presentation Skills Matter More Than Design Skills
Date: January 6, 2026
Hosts: Eli Woolery and Aarron Walter
Guest: Mikon van Gastel, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer, Sibling Rivalry

Episode Overview

This episode of Design Better explores the often-overlooked importance of presentation skills in the creative and design industries, with a deep dive into the power of storytelling, critique, and collaboration. Mikon van Gastel shares lessons from his education at Cranbrook Academy of Art through to his pioneering work in title sequences and immersive experience design, including projects for iconic venues like the Sphere in Las Vegas. The conversation ranges from the evolution of design education, how creative agencies navigate risk, and strategies for designing powerful shared experiences.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Undervalued Power of Presentation Skills

• Mikon opens by emphasizing that selling ideas is as critical as having them:

  “You could have amazing ideas. If you can't sell those ideas to a client, you are nowhere, right? So being able to present your ideas to your peers, defend your ideas to your peers, be open to critique and making the work better, those are all things that actually really benefited me later in life.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [00:00]

2. An Innovative Era for Title Design

• The episode traces the transformation of title sequences in film and TV, highlighting works like Se7en and Mad Men where titles became narrative prologues rather than afterthoughts.

  “Seven is really what made Imaginary Forces a household name. Kyle Cooper obviously designed that piece. It really reinvigorated the title sequence as a medium … it was really the start of the story, a metaphor for what was happening inside the serial killer’s mind.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [09:27]

• Mikon shares how his early career at Imaginary Forces shaped his approach:

  “My first title sequence was Sphere, which I really enjoyed doing. It’s very Cranbrookesque— all about expressive typography... It was very much based within theory.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [09:27]

3. The Cranbrook Experience: From Swiss Modernism to Bauhaus Self-Direction

• Mikon describes breaking away from rigid Swiss modernism in the Netherlands to embrace expressive, self-motivated creativity at Cranbrook, where critique was a central learning tool:

  “There are no classes, there are no teachers, there’s only artists in residence. Unless you’re highly self-motivated, it’s an impossible place to survive. Your toughest critics are your fellow students.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [06:05]

• The culture of critique and peer-driven feedback shaped his confidence and resilience:

  “Every time I put my work up, I was in front of a firing squad. That’s really helped, for sure.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [08:14]

4. Founding Sibling Rivalry: Competition & Compassion

• The studio, co-founded with best friend Joe Wright, is defined by a dual culture of healthy rivalry and familial support:

  “We are like brothers, but we’re also still very competitive…On the one side, you want a healthy rivalry…At the same time, it's also very much a family business. It's a people business first.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [12:31]

5. Collaboration: The Essential Creative Ingredient

• Mikon stresses that great projects require deep collaboration with domain experts:

  “You’re forced to collaborate with experts. If you’re a director, you work with cinematographers, writers, production designers…So to me, collaboration is such a big part of making a project successful.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [13:49]

• He relates this even to observing his daughter's school project:

  “Really what they’re teaching is collaboration...how do we have a healthy discussion that doesn't hurt each other's feelings? How do we divide and conquer? What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?”
  — Mikon van Gastel [14:38]

6. Stripping Away the Noise: The Primacy of the Core Idea

• Sibling Rivalry is guided by restraint and focus:

  “We are an ideas company. Whatever form a project takes is completely secondary to the idea. We strip away anything unnecessary or that distracts from that core idea.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [16:17]

• On immersive design for venues like Sphere, Mikon warns of being seduced by technology:

  “If it isn’t serving the idea, it just ends up being noise. So I think it’s very important to always be critical about what you put on the screen or what kind of behavior you attach to something or what the audio is doing.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [17:13]

7. The Sphere in Las Vegas: “Champions League” of Content Creation

• Mikon marvels at the capabilities of purpose-built immersive spaces:

  “I call it the Champions League of Content creation. It is unlike anything else...Now these spaces are purpose built. The audio is immersive, there are physical effects, 360-degree screens, vibrating chairs...It’s really made for performance and storytelling.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [18:00]

8. Guiding Clients into New Territory

• Trust and communication are key to moving brands beyond their comfort zones:

  “Whenever you pitch a client, talk about them, don’t talk about yourself...Once you're in there and now you're pitching the idea and they have a sense that they trust you, that they know you care...You guide them along probably with a couple of ideas: one that's more safe, one that's really far off, and something in the middle…You have to really read the room.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [19:43]

• On clients’ professional risk:

  “Average lifespan of a CMO, the last time I checked, was 18 months. So for this person, they basically get one or two bites at the apple. If they don’t work, they're out. So just imagine that pressure…”
  — Mikon van Gastel [21:12]

9. Designing for Shared Emotion: The Power of Collective Experience

• Mikon addresses the societal need for real-world connection:

  “I'm starting to sense that they're getting tired of the scroll. I think they're starting to look for things—physical experiences, shared experiences. And I don't think it's either or. I think it's both…”
  — Mikon van Gastel [22:20]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Critique:
  “The Cranbrook crits were kind of notorious. There was pretty much always someone who ended up in tears.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [07:59]

• On Running an Agency:
  “I just refuse to transition fully into a management role, preferring to write treatments and stay hands on with the work on nights and weekends.”
  — Summary by Host [01:04]

• On Sibling Rivalry's Name:
  “He came up with the name. I will forever credit him for it...We both have brothers. We are like brothers, but we're also still very competitive.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [12:00]

• On The Sphere:
  “It's really made for performance and storytelling and that is what makes it so exciting.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [18:49]

• On Client Relationships:
  “It's a people business first...You have to treat them well.”
  — Mikon van Gastel [13:18 & 13:26]

Important Segment Timestamps

• [00:00] – The underappreciated value of presentation skills
• [04:40] – Cranbrook and the shift from Swiss modernism to Bauhaus critique culture
• [09:27] – The impact of film title design and work at Imaginary Forces
• [11:21] – Founding story and culture of Sibling Rivalry
• [13:49] – Lessons for software and product designers on collaboration
• [16:00] – Principles of concise, focused storytelling in design
• [18:00] – Behind the scenes on Sphere in Las Vegas and modern immersive experiences
• [19:43] – Approaching client relationships and guiding big creative leaps
• [21:47] – The importance and method of designing for shared emotion

Tone & Takeaways

The episode is candid, insightful, and full of practical wisdom for anyone in creative fields—whether you are a designer, architect, filmmaker, or product manager. Mikon’s journey underlines that technical skill and great design are only as effective as your ability to communicate, collaborate, and distill to the core idea.

Ultimately, his story is an invitation to not just hone your craft but also your ability to defend, communicate, and elevate that craft in every room and with every client.

For more details or to listen to the full conversation, visit: Design Better