Motion Graphics

I think my web banner is clear that it is a fashion charity, but there are a number of improvements I would like to of made. I was unable to apply sound to my project after getting a virus on my laptop, it has stopped me from being able to edit my work. I would have kept it simple, had a page turning sound to correlate with the imagery. I would have also liked to have got more feedback on it, asked various people who they think it is aimed at, as I am not sure how clear my target audience is. I am happy with my logo design and slogan, but would have like to of maybe had more imagery, even though it is not essential, it may of made it more visually appealing.

My typography at the beginning of the web banner is reminiscent of a typewriter font, connoting it is for a cause, or to be taken seriousy. However I would have liked to have extended my overall sequence, added more to it (for example images) which may have made more of a lasting impression. Although keeping it short and simple, can also make it just as effective. I am happy with my overall design, but I think I could have developed it further.  My intentions were to create something that is easily memorable, and that incorporates all the aspects of my logo (unique and creative, stands out as a charity but also as a fashion brand)which I think overall are successful in doing so. 

I kept the same animation for my logo as my web banner, turning a page because it has connotations of creating a new beginning or putting an end to something, in other words saying ake a difference; create a new start for aids, put an end to it.

When choosing my target audience for the film titles, I aimed to appeal to children from the age of 11- 15, but would have also liked to attract a wider audience of families (being a Christmas film, a time for the family to get together). I hoped to create an animation that was fun, exciting and entertaining, characteristics that would grab a young audience’s attention.

I created the graphics by using different tutorials which can be found on other posts throughout my blog. The snow set was the first to grab my attention, a typical snowy winter scene that I used to represent the night before Christmas. I then used a fade and a zoom after the moon went down to create a sense of mystery. I also used a fancy typography that I could imagine appearing on a Christmas card. I chose the song Jingle Bell rock as I wanted an upbeat theme to the titles, and I believe it went well the imagery. When creating the animation of the reindeer, I wanted to give the impression of the sleigh zooming back and forth crazily, to give a comical atmosphere. I also used Christmas names like ‘Sue Stocking’ to add to this sense.

Overall I am really happy with my film titles, I think my target audience is clear, and I think the characteristics that I hoped for being entertaining, upbeat and comical I have achieved successfully. A possible improvement could have been to add in maybe a zoom sound or Santa sound as the sleigh is speeding past (for emphasis). Although it is not essential, it may have worked better included. I would have liked to have had an extra scene in there, if I had more time, I would have extended the sequence. Other difficulties I found were in creating the graphics. The tutorials did not always explain everything so I had to find alternative ways of creating parts of the image. The initial sleigh I chose after converting it to vectors was not as clear as I wanted, and lost a lot of the shape. I managed to overcome this by practicing with different images. I also had some difficulties when making the sun disappear from behind the hills, and thankfully my teacher helped in this by showing me how to create a 3D layer. Definitely what I found the most challenging of the project was coming up with ideas for the titles, but now I have completed this I would be happy to create more. I have found this project very enjoyable and have loved learning and developing on the programs I have used.

I have tried to upload my video but it doesn’t seem to work so I have taken print screens of the final outcome, which I am very happy with. I have also added the sound which is the christmas song, Helms B. (1957) Jingle Bell rock (unknown) but was experimenting with other sounds and tracks like Rocking around the christmas tree which also worked well. I downloaded the program audacity and decided to fade in the music slightly and fade it out. 

Improvement on the sleigh, found here…

Google (2010) Google images. Available at : http://www.google.co.uk/images?um=1&hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&biw=1024&bih=725&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=sleigh+silhouette&aq=0&aqi=g3g-m6&aql=&oq=sleigh+s&gs_rfai= (Accessed: 16th December 2010)

I also converted the image to vectors using Illustrator, and separated the layers on Photoshop so that I could move and rotate different parts of the image, making the movement look more natural.

I used photoshop to cut out the reindeer and sleigh which I found on this website below.

Shutterstock images (2010) Available at: http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-41774362/stock-vector-silhouette-illustration-of-flying-santa-and-christmas-reindeer.html (Accessed: 13th December 2010)

I then used illustrator to convert it into a vector graphic for my title sequence.The image is not as clear as I wanted it to be, but is good enough.

Creating a moon on photoshop for next part of sequence. I used the tutorial

Slo dive: design and resources (2010) Available at: http://slodive.com/photoshop/create-a-realistic-moon-with-photoshop/ below are a couple of print screens. (Accessed: 13th December 2010) 

Having tried out this moon in my sequence I decided to recreate it using a dark blue background instead of black to make it less dark and more like a childs animation.

I started to put the beginning of my titles together using After Effects, here are print screens showing my snow scene transition from day to night, and the moon go down.

As you can see I am having difficulty making the sun go down behind the hill, if I drag the layer underneath the other it disappears, so I am not sure how this will work, this is something I will need to sort out.

My target audience will be for children from the ages of 11 to 15 and will be an animation Christmas film. I would like to make it a film that is suitable for all the family, so a family Christmas film but this will be my predominant audience (11-15). I am targeting this audience as I think that that is who a Christmas animation will appeal to most, if it features Santa Claus for example, it is more than likely to catch the eyes of a younger audience. To design for this audience I am going to use typical winter settings, such as a snow scene, christmas trees, elves or reindeer etc. which I am in the process of creating using tutorials. I will design for this audience by making the titles fun, upbeat, comical and exciting to reflect how the film would be.

I am using existing graphics, but creating them myself using online tutorials. I have included on my posts print screens and the links to websites of the graphics I have used. I will use Photoshop to create the images, and any images I use from the internet I will convert to vectors using Adobe Illustrator. Once I have done that I will create and animate the actual titles in After Effects, and use Audacity to edit and experiment with the sound.

These are the print screens for a possible location for my film titles that I am creating using the website from my previous post 

Adobe Tutorials (2010) Available at: http://www.adobetutorialz.com/articles/2909/1/We-wish-you-a-Merry-Christmas-illustration/2 (Accessed: 4th December 2010)

So far I have just adjusted the background gradient, and used the pen tool to create these snow hills, this can be seen on the above website.

Final image!

After lots of thinking I have decided to create Christmas animation film titles. I thought of a rough storyline that I would base the film title around, and realised that maybe I was complicating my ideas more than I needed. 

My idea for a plot was to have Santa kidnapped by evil reindeer who want to destroy Christmas, and the children would save the day. The film would be for a young children’s audience, so I would like to make it quite simple, and comical also given the time limit. 

Some basic ideas were to have an animated tree, and the titles would be the tree decorations, such as the tinsel, presents etc. Or presents at a cosy house having the titles appear through the present names. Another idea was to have the tree dropping from the sky and the titles spelt out in snow. 

I am now looking for Christmas clip art that I will be using in After Effects. I have found some really useful websites giving tutorials:

D. Mcdaniel (2008) Winter themed photoshop & Illustrator tutorials. Available at: http://anidandesign.com/graphic-design/winter-themed-photoshop-illustrator-tutorials/ (Accessed: 3rd December 2010)

N. La (2010) N-design studio. Available at: http://www.ndesign-studio.com/tutorials/christmas-tree. (Accessed: 3rd December 2010)

Naldz graphics (2010) 45 Useful Illustrator and Photoshop Tutorials for Christmas Season. Available at: http://naldzgraphics.net/tutorials/45-useful-illustrator-and-photoshop-tutorials-for-christmas-season/ (Accessed 3rd December 2010)