Corporate Animation Showcase 4 – The Motion Graphic Transition
After last month’s corporate rarity of stop motion we are now heading off to a technique that is heavily populated and one that can present some outstanding results. We’re talking about the world of motion graphics and in particular, transitions. The fluid, mind bending use of transitions these days can whisk you from shot to shot in the most seamless of ways. With it’s vector characteristics and bold graphic design there seem to be no end to its possibilities.
A seamless and eye catching example of this is from Ricardo Carelli and his promo for ‘Film Brazil’. It’s length, purely for a promotion, is staggering yet every shot uses bold and striking design to keep you hooked for the full 3 minutes. As an example, keep pausing the film and you’ll find that everytime you do you’re left with a stand alone work of art. If that wasn’t enough each design is carefully and elegantly transitioned into the next. Looking more closely at these transitions, most seem to be led by a circle. With a high percentage of shots containing a prominent circular feature our eyes are drawn to it and help move us from scene to scene. For example as the olympic rings transition down, the same movement is presented by the following coins. This parallel allows the viewer to stay within the shot and not break out as the motion is consistently relating to what has gone before it. This continued growing, shrinking and shifting of shapes allows Carelli to quickly morph objects before we get a chance to tell what is happening, effortlessly taking us on a journey through what Brazil has got to offer.
From the colourful we drift into the minimal. This second pick is for ‘SponserOne’ from Stockholm’s Rebels Studios. Using a strict colour palette of red, black and white you’re instantly greeted with the idea of simplicity. The transitions that are worked into this design are simple yet elegant and sophisticated. A lot of this comes through the ease at which different elements are bought in and out of the shot. With quick entrances followed by really slow eases-in, we have time to focus our attention on each aspect before it’s quickly dispatched. Another effective theme is the way in which the text leads some of the transitions. It floats in, straightens, then floats out, seemingly dragging the next visual behind it. Using approx. 3 transition techniques and a limited palette really makes this video stand out by never getting over complicated.
With our third pick we are going swash-buckling with charity Animation for a Causes’ self-titled film. Quick transitions are key to promo and explainer films as there is usually a lot of voiceover to pack in and only a short amount of time. Animation for a Cause isn’t jam packed with jargon but it does have an important message to get across in a short space of time. The transitions within it vary a lot but they all come out on top. There isn’t, as in the other examples, a lot of ‘drawing on’, but more movement of shapes and flipping and popping in and out of elements. One of my favourites comes in at the beginning as the hook brings in the map, the map becomes a poster, then its the table that becomes the door frame. Its a clever series of transitions that doesn’t use the same object or shape to mould from one shot to another, keeping it fresh and intriguing. This film’s surprises and uses multiple devices to create smooth leaps from shot to shot. Even though a good few shots are transitioned through a camera move, combined with the popping and flipping it all marries up to an eye-catching and seamless watch.
Motion graphics has proved beyond doubt that it is a popular and effective means of communicating an idea. Much like the whiteboard animations of the late noughties this technique has flourished and been used more and more. The seamless transition has bundled itself with it and is a technique that is remarkably successful in corporate films, as it crams lots in, with a stylish and pleasing approach. There are ton of superb examples on this topic and I’m positive they’ll be many more a showcase on this very subject.
Don’t forget to head over to the Corporate Animation Showcase Vimeo page to add your films and you never know you could be featured in the next showcase. https://vimeo.com/groups/corporateanimation