Having Fun with Floating Letterform

Here are two really fun and playful examples of one of the features of After Effects, motion tracking. From what I gather, motion tracking allows you to manipulate a portion of moving video with the manipulation remaining in the same place regardless of the video's vantage point (e.g. if you apply the texture to a sign and pan around the landscape, the texture will appear to remain fixed to the sign). Although I do not fully understand how the effect is executed, it seems like a very powerful effect, one that could be used as a mask, such as in this video, or to follow an moving object, like in this video.

Pop Projection

Although this is not technically an animation, I think this video demonstrates a very interesting take on motion design. By blurring the line between a flat projected video and a three dimensional space, the artists here create a very dynamic and moving experience. Although conventional animations exist in purely two dimensions, the scene here interacts with space around it, playing off the depth of the pop-up stage. This makes the video seem more lively; we are no longer watching a movie, but rather, a play that inhabits the same space as us. This creates a more intimate relationship between the viewer and the material, one that only enhances the emotional impact of the movie.

Life Inside a Painting

Here is a great clip created in After Effects that really shows how a powerful video can be created with only a few simple manipulation techniques. Although I'm not 100% sure of every effect that is being used, I can see the use of linear wipes, blurs, and some rudimentary 3D camera work. This treatment really brings Jackson Pollack's painting to life and creates a sense of dynamic movement in three-dimensional space. This animation really demonstrates how far a few simple techniques can take you.

The Depth of Stop Motion

Despite being composed mostly on a single plane, this music video demonstrates a crafty technique for giving stop motion animations a sense of depth. Depending upon the light source, making an object darker or lighter and layering it with other elements can create a perceived depth of field that enhances the animation. Variations in size can also influence our perception of where objects line in space.

Depth of field gives a vitality and a realness to compositions that is otherwise unattainable. It creates and defines our sense of space, giving us indicators for how objects relate to one another in the world of the animation. Just because an object seems small does not mean it necessarily is small; it could be a large object that is very far away. Without a clearly defined and executed sense of depth, the worlds we create appear flat an unrealistic.

An Artists Take on Stop Motion

Using construction paper as her medium, artist Jen Stark builds some very interesting sculptures that play with ideas of depth, both physically and optically. She also has created several interesting stop-motion animations with her construction paper compositions. These animations have a sense that you are moving through space by exploring changes in size and/or color. Like many other stop-motion animations, the take away from Ms. Stark's pieces is that small changes captured over an extended period of time can an create a powerful sense of motion. Pairing changes in size with changes in color enhances this perception.

Stop Motion, Great and Small

Here are two great stop motion videos done by the same animation team. The first one was created and filmed at a small, near microscopic size. I really enjoyed how the materials used to build the world of the animation, (e.g. a shirt pocket, coins, push-pins, measuring tape, etc.) really accentuate the tiny scale of the movie. Each aspect of the film reminds you that it is taking place in the minutia of daily life. It is an incredibly effective technique, one that demonstrates the power of a solid overall design. For enquiring minds, here is a fantastic look at how they made the video. As you can see, filming required incredible patience and a great attention to details to ensure that each frame was captured correctly and that it would all flow together.

Similar in style, this next video is done at quite the opposite scale. Working outdoors in a medium like sand must have been challenging and frustrating, but the animators pulled off another very successful video. While I do think their first video is much more successful, the use of the beach as a canvass for the animation reinforces the nautical theme of the movie. Again, there's another making-of video if you are curious.

Kinetic Type in Advertising

While watching TV tonight, I saw an interesting commercial that used kinetic type in an effective manner. Although the commercial also implements other animation elements, such as shifty eyes and a steering wheel, the use of type to imply the image of an arm is useful in conveying the overall message of the commercial. The type is legible for as long as it needs to be, and then it gets lost in amongst all the other arms fighting for the steering wheel. It is a simple and effective way of communicating that many factors can influence your decision making.