Typography Considerations...

I knew that there was gonna be a small element of text within my animation and I wanted to find a font thats curly, playful and handwritten yet still legible. I narrowed it down to three choices.

 The girls are weird font is too curled but I like the different sizes of letters that mix together to create a jaunty handwritten type that has a nice quirk that would integrate well with my projects tone.

Jenna Sue is my favourite typeface its got just the right amount of cramped styling to give it a more organic feel but its not illegible.

 I think the Cylis Handwriting font is perhaps too childlike but it does look hand written and  it is a tad clearer than the Jenna Sue.
So far I think I'm going with the Jenna Sue font since its my preference but my final decision will be based on which font works better with my components.

Music Choices

Since I've got a rough idea about whats going into my animation I wanted to really investigate my music options- since I have got a text element within my animation I knew that I wasn't going to include a voice over. From my research I knew that my music choice was crucial in conveying tone and pace so finding the perfect song was necessary to help drive my animation. Ideally the music I plan on using has to be upbeat, relatively fast paced and most importantly happy.




Bob Marley's Dont Worry Be happy was one of the first songs that sprung to mind, it has a medium paced even rhythm thats simple and constant something that I think is needed to generate a happy tone that conveys an "optimistic future" thats specified in the brief itself. Theres a 35 second long intro without words that would be perfect to use for my animation. Having said this the lyrics themselves are actually pretty harmless and would really cement this eco options= future happiness into my project.




I felt that looking into instrumental tracks may also be prudent so the words don't have to interfere with the animation. Mark Ronsons inversion was fast bouncy and had a lot of brass elements in it so it has a happy tone and a deeper cheerful timbre. I do however think that it would be hard to cut it and it could be too fast to work. The underlying beat isn't as rhythmic as I would have liked either but music will be determined by my animatic.




I also briefly considered Queens A Crazy Little Thing Called Love because it has great bounce and I thought that the lyrics could once again relate to loving the planet and saving it through eco options. Theres a constant rhythm and if i cut the first 25 seconds I could end on the first round of a crazy little thing called love. Again i'm not entirely convinced but its definitely a strong contender.

Music Animations

Music was a strong aspect in the brief so I opted to research various animations that were actually made for various music videos.

The Massive Attack video above is very dark and fantastical which matches the tone of the song perfectly, geometric shapes coincide with the fast paced cuts between scenes. Most of the storyline is told using flashes which keeps the video's beat both fast and regular. Using these sharp cuts also means that various concepts can be integrated without ruining the overall fluidity of the video. The Rabbit  as the main character mimics the pacing and I like how his leaps and bounds match the bass. There is a slow motion segment which is conveyed through the rabbit twisting through the air. As far as I can tell the graphics don't relate at all to the song but it works due to the careful timing.

Beat is incredibly integral to making sure this video flows and is something that should certainly be considered when matching my music to the animation. 

https://vimeo.com/19297299

This animation above was very melancholy and unlike the Massive Attack song above the animation depicts the lyrics, although this does make the story easier to understand. I really like the style of the animation, the colour pencil style adds texture and a quirky charm it reminds me of the Paper Planes video that I initially researched. Mostly the animation worked well because it visually represented the lyrics, though long lingering shots and slow paced cuts have been used which matches the sad tone of the animation. I really like the red sheer background that been used within one of the chorus sections which helps to separate this verse as well as incorporating an aspect that is visually striking. 

http://www.creativebloq.com/animation/best-animated-music-videos-912838/page-3

The Gorillaz Dare video is one of my favourite animations that emphasises the music, the beat is an important driving force behind the motion. I really like how smooth rotations helps to focus the shots on the character whilst simultaneously ensuring smooth transitions between different  aspects. The video manipulates both real time elements and animated ones which gives the video a fun and playful tone. Once again the lyrics and the animation don't relate at all but the timing of the animation really makes the video successful. I particularly like how certain aspects of the animation are triggered through elements in the music which really makes it feel like its been well timed.

http://sobadsogood.com/2011/11/13/15-of-the-best-animated-music-videos-of-all-time-featuring-radiohead-massive-attack-daft-punk-tool-nine-inch-nails-gorillaz-queens-of-the-stone-age-dj-shadow/

Green Eco Animations

I decided to research the more eco friendly animations to get some insight into how "green" adverts are portrayed and what techniques they use to convey their overall message.

The animation above is very text heavy which would have worked really well had it not been for the additional voice over element which states what the text it saying. Despite this there is a great emphasis on shape and motion, as similar repeating shapes are used to create new visuals. Despite this I thought that the animation was in fact too text heavy which made what are actually very important issues dull and uninteresting. I should definitely be careful when creating my own work to ensure the balance of  text to visuals so it remains interesting, and most importantly fun.
https://vimeo.com/42529370
http://visualization.geblogs.com/visualization/co2/#/wine_average

The EDP trailer created by Jessica Walsh was created to advertise EDP's clean energy , this cleanliness is mirrored through the use of clear shapes and two tones of colour, I love how the four shapes used morph turn, expand and rotate into different scenes. Its incredibly fluid a common aspect in the more effective animations and another animation principle. I love how zooming into the various shapes a very simple method allows for a scene change.  The  single colour background focuses the eye to red centre pieces and characters and also practically allows the visuals to remain clear with the various scene changes. Its a fun interpretation of such a big and serious issue something that I think helps to ensure the audiences attention which makes it more informative. The simplicity of the styling really helps to simplify the concept which makes it all the more engaging.
https://vimeo.com/26276388

The trailer above is another example of a visually displaying carbon emissions, something that obviously relates to the brief that we've been given. I really liked how the building turned in a can that sprayed carbon into the air, the elements were embedded fairly seamlessly into the setting which also worked well in ensuring overall fluidity. Not only does this mean that the scene doesnt have to change to introduce the elements it also means that the motion and the transitions between settings are faster and also means that the motion can be generated through panning. The use of skulls to convey toxicity simplifies the overall concept elucidating the good and the bad which I think is necessary in ensuring audience understanding. It also means that in a short animation the issues can be explored without sacrificing meaning.
https://vimeo.com/22241393

Food, Recycling, Options

Although I plan on focusing on renewable energy because I feel that renewable energy is the biggest change that we can make thats going to have the most impact.  I do want to include some smaller aspects in order to make it more accessible for everyone. One of these smaller elements could be to grow your own veg something that I feel will introduce additional colour and texture into my animation. Obviously adding these elements in is dependant on how much time I have but I think that they would be a nice element to incorporate in order to ensure a wide audience. 

As an extra it would also be nice to include something about recycling because it relates to the renewable energy aspect, recycling energy so to speak through these renewable resources. Ive realised that my concept it based very much around cycles, the cycle of energy, the cycle of wind turbines, the cycle of hydropower, and the plant to seed cycle. It would be great to reference this by using circular motions within my animation- perhaps in the transitions.

Trailers and Animations that persuade and advertise...

Although I have a range of ideas and concepts for my animation, I wanted to look at how other animations displayed a concept in a way designed to inform and convert the audience to a certain way of thinking since this is a prudent aspect to our own project. 

                                 

The change for life animation uses voice over to convey its story. What could be considered a working class voice combined with simple phrasing helps to make its point clear and understandable.Having said this I find the voice over irritating and I don't think it really matches the playful world that has been created in the animation.  Faceless morph like characters represent a wider audience and allow for more accessibility to the concept. In this way it has been made more personal by the audience.  Bright colours elucidates characters and generates a distinctive branding. The 3d characters in a 2d world does help to convey shape and allows for the incorporation of real world elements like shadow. It does have segments that flash into 2d which is just as effective. In regards to the animation principles exaggeration have shape as been used with fluid transitions and movement that helps to keep the advert short, sweet and informative.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eh7a0wNDKK8

In contrast to the Change4Life adverts the American express animation is darker, cleaner and in a way more corporate. I actually really like the style to the animation, its transitions are fast paced and relate to each of the aspects that are displayed visually. I really liked the transition from the eye to the whale which dropped into the screen and allowed droplets to form which in turn generated a new visual concept which led into the various other scenes.  Perspective has been altered throughout the animation which really emphasises the movement in the screen and allows for the focus to be directed to different elements.  The shapes used are actually very simple its the movement and the placement (another animation principle) of these shapes that really makes the animation successful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OTswG37cFA

Aardman created this animation/video trailer above for Radio 2. The trailer itself dramatises Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon so music is a key element within its pacing. Id always thought that Aardman revolved around comedy so I was very surprised when I saw that they had created this animation because it has an incredibly dark tone. Its a mixture of video, 3d models and 2d animation it also uses a non discript female voice over which is actually very dramatic further coinciding with the dark tone of the animation and the song lyrics. Music is a key component and theres a clear sense of timing to the scene changes, the voice over integrates really well with the transitions and the music changes. Sections of solid music contrast with the dark quotes which actually refer to global warming. There was a great sense of surrealism to the colour choices and concepts themselves which mimick the lyrics perfectly. Something that I should consider when matcing my visuals to music.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OTswG37cFA

Existing Animations- Initial Research

In order for me to understand the animation process' and what I could really create within animation, I began by researching existing animations, although my initial research displayed some very complex pieces I really like whats been incorporated visually and musically.

Paper Planes 

The Animation above is a stop motion generated to accompany the song Paper Planes. Stop motion is something that I plan on avoiding because its very time consuming and I want to focus on learning After Effects and creating something digitally. Despite this I absolutely love the style of the animation. The hand drawn paper cut out style is softened through the use of colour pencil lines which generates a very lovely cartoony style that has a lot more weight and finesse than some of the flat children's cartoons exampled in the animation principles. The textural lines of colour match the paper style perfectly introducing a very playful tone despite the melancholy musical accompaniment. The video does match the music very well, although theres a certain amount of sadness  within the music it has a very plodding melody and the animation has been timed incredibly well to the music. Surprisingly enough the movement of the characters is very smooth especially  considering that its a stop motion and the transitions between each setting are very fluid. There is a very organic way to the transitions, shapes have been moved upwards and outwards to form a new setting which really matches the rhythm and the overall style and is certainly something that I am considering for my animation.

http://vimeo.com/75196023

The Seed

The Animation above is a combination of stop motion and digital animation and was an animation commissioned by Adobe to display what could be done using After effects CS4. It follows the hypothetical life of a seed, its a fair bit smoother than the Paper Planes video and I really love the simple line drawings that have been used to create this effect. The growth in the seed itself is one that I find particularly effective since the line drawings grow upwards on the screen, the use of black and white in these sections is bold, striking and once again simple and is contrasted through the colourful paper stop motion elements. The jelly fish scene manipulates a blue background (a theme that I noticed within the global warming posters previously researched) and I think it works very well with the white line strokes  although I think that I would prefer more of a textural element which is why i plan on employing different brushes and using a combination of Illustrator and Photoshop to generate my characters. The music to this animation is whimsical soft and flowing which works well to compliment the actual animation- its entirely instrumental which allows the focus to remain on video but the lighter notes help to generate a playful tone.

http://vimeo.com/3715286

I didn't particularly like the content of the silhouette animation above because not a lot actually happened, the rain fell and the red flower grew. However I do think the use of shape is very striking and again the two tones used creates more of a contrast which helps to makes the shapes more intricate. The flower is further emphasised through colour as its petals grow red. Once again a hand drawn style has been manipulated to give this perception of growth something that could be included within my animation.

http://vimeo.com/59878173

Planets

The planets animation has been created entirely digitally using After Effects but it has been given a 3D paper cutout feel, an aspect that I think is going to play heavily within my own work. It tells the story of a character who moves his own planet and comes across a world and small characters that need saving from a black hole. The use of a bicycle to move the planet is playful and fun and I want to try and find an angle to my theme that conveys this similar ridiculous playfulness. He even fishes for stars at one point which really emphasises the tone. Exaggeration of expression has been used to convey emotion which helps to ensure understanding of the plot. And i like how each setting is contained within a world. it allows the focus to remain solely on the main character. The music was not memorable but it worked well in providing sound effects for the various actions that took place, but the concept is part that I liked the best.

http://vimeo.com/64870476

Overall I now have a general idea of what my style is going to look like and what i can now investigate more. I plan on focusing on this paper style which I think will help me to ensure that tonally I include the playful optimism that is mentioned in the brief. I also really need to carefully plan my music choice since it obviously has great impact on the tone and the animation itself.