Next/Now is an award-winning digital experience studio. We work with agencies and brands to create unforgettable moments of connection. Our 40+ team members consist of Brand Architects, Computer Scientists, Video Game Developers, Exhibit Specialists, 3D Specialists, Animators, Designers, Producers, and just overall passionate, organized and nice humans.

What We Do

Leadership Team

Founder, CCO

Alan Hughes

Alan Hughes is the founder and Chief Creative Officer of NEXT/NOW. His focus...

Alan Hughes is the founder and Chief Creative Officer of NEXT/NOW. His focus is creating digital content and interaction that thematically, creatively, and architecturally feel ‘as one’ with a physical experience and environment. Group interaction, intuitive interfaces, social media hooks, and unexpected digital reactive surfaces have become the hallmark of Alan’s work in the field.

An industry innovator, Alan successfully headed creative development at his previous agencies for 11+ years for clients including Toyota, the Chicago 2016 Olympic Bid, The Dubai Mall, American Eagle Outfitters, AXE, LG Electronics, Experian, ADP, TurtleWax, McDonald’s, Leica, and Hitachi. Projects of note include software architecture and interactive design of the Crown Fountain in Millennium Park, multiple experiential films for the world’s largest video screen–The Fremont Street Experience in Las Vegas, numerous interactive video Times Square collaborations with LG, large-scale trade show touchscreen content and design for Hitachi, content pre-viz for the American Eagle Outfitters interactive building in Times Square, and in-store augmented reality kiosks for Target and Axe.

Director of Business Dev

Randy Gress

Randy has been with NEXT/NOW since its inception, after a successful career...

Randy has been with NEXT/NOW since its inception, after a successful career with the Atlanta Braves Organization and Pepsico where he skillfully managed multiple high-profile sales accounts. Randy works with clients, partners and NEXT/NOW staff to ensure that each project realizes the client’s vision and aligns with the brand’s goals and desired outcomes. His hands-on approach supports a clear and collaborative process from concept to completion.

Projects of note for NEXT/NOW include the Discover Card Black Friday/Orange Friday takeover of Pioneer Court on the Magnificent Mile, Accenture Digital Lounge, John Deere North America and Europe dealer Projection-Mapping experience, Crown Royal Traveling Tour, Chicago Sports Museum, Bloomingdale’s Retail Installation (Luxottica, Persol), Audi Product Launch Interactive and Cars.com national sales meeting interactive experience

Associate General Manager

Myles Arwine

Myles Arwine brings seven years of experience delivering digital solutions...

Myles Arwine brings seven years of experience delivering digital solutions within the retail property management industry. His growth in a corporate culture combined with his creative background has resulted in a unique combination of holistic thinking, problem solving, and creative solutions. When he’s not managing the office, you can sometimes find him on stage performing in front of fans or hiking with his family in the woods.
Notable clients include: Brookfield Properties Retail, Pepsi, Tennis Channel, Apple, State Farm, Guitar Center
Director of Production

Janna Retzler

Janna brings over 10 years of integrated and experiential marketing to NEXT/NOW.

Janna brings over 10 years of integrated and experiential marketing to NEXT/NOW. Her extensive background in direct, digital, retail, social, branding, strategy, experiential and communications has represented brands such as HP, Ford, Ingredion, KraftHeinz, Jaguar, John Deere, Accenture, Volkswagen, Federal Reserve Bank and more.

Her role at NEXT/NOW is focused on creating a client-centered approach to project management and process workflow.

Art Director

David Najarian

A veteran of live event video design and production, Dave has designed for...

A veteran of live event video design and production, Dave has designed for and toured the world with EDM and Hip-Hop artists like Bass Nectar, Pretty Lights, DJ Shadow, and Joey Badass. The hallmark of David’s work was an interplay of real-time generative art, sophisticated motion-reactive visuals, and integrated light and laser effects.

Additionally, Mr. Najarian was a co-founder of RadioEditAV, a design first, creative and tech house focused on bringing new and experimental media to touring artists and brands. Using advanced real-time video rendering tools, Dave is an expert in engineering multiple large-scale video systems, LED pixel mapping, and live high resolution/ high frame rate media playback. Giant, high-concept stage spectaculars, and hypnotic visuals are centerpiece to his live work.

Additionally, Dave served as Creative Director of Imaginex, where he produced concerts and assisted in the creation of the Crescent Sun Media server originally designed for Grammy Nominated recording artist “Pretty Lights”.

Accomplished at running large teams of content creators and providing full brand creative direction, Dave is also equipped with the skills and knowledge to execute technically challenging experiential projects and live events. Additional clients include Spotify, Samsung, Under Armour, HP, The National, Eaux Claires Festival, HP, and Griz.

Director of Technology

Stuart Day

Stuart Day graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a degree in Game Design.

Stuart Day graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a degree in Game Design. He has worked professionally as an engineer for 12 years and has a distinct focus on emerging VR/Holographic technologies.

Stuart is a breakthrough thinker in the realm of generative art and AI visual systems.
Leading the development team at Next/Now, Stuart is instrumental in their Next-Gen thinking and expertise. His work is focused in, but not limited to Unity 3D, Unreal, VVVV, Cinder, Processing and C#.

Notable clients include: Anheuser-Busch, Hanes, Kraft, Wendy's, McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, Intel, Trek, Samsung, Under Armour, Walgreens, Nestle, Audi and Accenture.

Lead 3d Artist

Charlie B Williams III

Charlie B Williams III cut his teeth as a 3D Artist at gaming giant, Electronic Arts...

Charlie B Williams III cut his teeth as a 3D Artist at gaming giant, Electronic Arts, developing animations for the Triple-A titles Fight Night Round 3 and Marvel Throwdown before moving on to High Voltage Systems to work on flagship titles including Dora the Explorer and Iron Man 2.

A champion of mentorship, Charlie has taught at the collegiate level and coordinated teaching workshops at local libraries, high schools, colleges, and creative studios, encouraging and guiding the next generation of digital artists to successful careers in the industry.

At NEXT/NOW, Charlie serves as Lead 3d Artist, as well as Design Team Manager for the Art Department. With a passion for Cinema animation and real-time motion capture, Charlie brings expertise that evolves alongside the industry standards to create the latest in immersive design and animation.

Lead Software Developer

Andrew Bihner

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Our Clients

Who We Are