Motion Graphics & Compositing / Project 2 / Channel Bumper

30.5.2024 - 21.6.2024 (Week 6 - Week 9)
Elysa Wee Qi En / 0355060 / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Motion Graphics & Compositing
Project 2 / Channel Bumper

LECTURES

Week 6 / Keying Overview

• Good greenscreen requires good lighting 

Week 7 / File Linking

• Link files between Premiere Pro and After Effects, this will allow changes in either one to be updated in the other in real-time 
• But this takes a good graphic card as it takes a lot of RAM 
• Alternatively, render file and import it into the other
• Things like audio editing and sound effects can be done in Premiere Pro 

Week 9 / From Storyboard to Animation

- First create a storyboard 
- Then create an animatic, which is to get the timing, transitions and animation style
- Animatic is mostly an animated storyboard before the final animation

INSTRUCTIONS

Fig. 1. Module Information Booklet

Project 2 - Channel Bumper

For this project, we had to create a channel bumper to introduce/promote/advertise something. This could be an actual channel or product, but I was allowed to make it about one of my favourite singers, Alec Benjamin. 

My first step to choose the main subject was to brainstorm in Google Slides. I prepared a moodboard about Alec Benjamin's albums, but I also prepared some concepts about an app called Discord in case my first idea was rejected. However, after the approval, I got to work conceptualizing. 

I ended up choosing his newest album, 12 Notes, and decided to use the track 'The Arsonist' from the album.

Fig. 2.1. Progress and Ideation Slides (21/6/2024)

I was inspired by motion graphic animations that are posted to promote an upcoming song in a video game I play (called Hatsune Miku: Colourful Stage). With such a style in mind, I storyboarded the idea in my head.

Fig. 2.2. Project 2 Storyboard (21/6/2024)

I also wanted to relate my motion graphic animation to elements or styles that Alec Benjamin uses often in his lyric videos, such as handwriting-type font. 

For this assignment, the assets for the guitar, notebook, pencil and music notes were taken from https://www.pngplay.com/ and are free for personal use. 

After importing the audio, I first added some keyframes to the beginning and end of the audio to add some fade in a out so it isn't so jarring. 

Fig. 2.3. Animating the text (16/6/2024)

I then animated the text of the name 'Alec Benjamin'. This text I cropped out from the album cover and used an online background remover to make the background transparent. By creating a mask and editing its path almost every frame, I was able to make it look like the text was being handwritten out. 

There is a little bit of a dark colour on the last two or so letters due to the background image of the album cover, and at the end before submitting I ended up using the hue/correction effect and cranking the lightness up to 100 in order to make the dark colour disappear. 

Fig. 2.4. Animating the beginning (16/6/2024)

Next, I animated the elements to explode from the centre. This is the beginning of the video. I timed it to happen with the beatdrop as Alec sings the word 'arsonist'. At the end of the creation process I also added motion blur to the elements. 

Fig. 2.5. Animating blur and camera movement [1] (18/6/2024)

After that, I made the elements look like they were falling. I also made the elements 3D and made the notebook and guitar (and some music notes) be closer to the camera than the pencil and other music notes. I added some blur to make it look like the camera is focusing on the foreground then the background, and then the foreground again as it zooms in and out. 

Fig. 2.6. Animating blur and camera movement [2] (18/6/2024)

However, in order for the blur to work as intended, I needed to group the elements into separate compositions by what's in the foreground and what's in the background. Otherwise, the adjustment layer would just blur every element under it. So I separated them and then completed the shot in a new composition. 

Fig. 2.7. Creating the brush transition

After that, it was time for me to create the brush transition. Following a tutorial on YouTube, I used the Keylight effect to make the album cover appear with the green screen and brush over the album name. 

Fig. 2.8. Creating the burning effect on the text

I was already planning on adding some extra effects to the explosion in the beginning, but after some feedback from my teacher I decided to add the title of the song instead. This filled up space nicely and also made the final product quite poetic, in my opinion. I used a handwriting-type font to fit the aesthetic and style of the video. 

Following another tutorial on YouTube, I created a burn effect on the text of the song title. Since the song is called 'The Arsonist', creating a burn effect felt appropriate. This made it so it wasn't just sitting there and being boring. 

Fig. 2.9. Adjusting the camera to maintain the 3D effect

Instead of just placing the text under the composition containing the 3D elements, I moved the text layer into the composition. This makes it so the notebook and guitar (and some of the music notes) appear in front of the text, while the pencil and other music notes appear behind it. 

Fig. 2.10. Adding a red glow effect to the text

At the end of the project, I also added a more obvious red glow effect to make the burning effect of the text more realistic and so viewers can more easily tell it's supposed to be burning. 

FINAL Channel Bumper Submission

Fig. 3. Final Channel Bumper Submission (21/6/2024) 

FEEDBACK

Week 7
Specific Feedback:
- Can do Alec Benjamin
- This can be more than just an assignment, can reach further audiences
- Can consider using the elements already in the moodboard to create the channel bumper
- For Project 3 can consider doing some kinetic typography
- Can choose the same song for Projects 2 & 3
- Project 2 can be like a preview or teaser, and then Project 3 will be about lyrics

Week 9 
Specific Feedback:
- Can add maybe the title in the beginning 
- Because it feels like something should be in the middle
- Can play around with camera and composition more
- Looks good overall

REFLECTIONS

Experience
I have experience in creating motion graphic videos, just not in After Effects, therefore this was quite a good learning experience. I was able to learn new techniques in a new software, while also using my knowledge from my hobby to come up with a good idea on what to do. Adding the fact that I was able to make a video about a singer I like with a song I like, it was enjoyable. 

Observations
Adding the title into the explosion of elements in the beginning actually added quite a lot to the video in my opinion. Not only did it fill the space, but it also added an extra touch to it. Having the text be burning away as the elements representing Alec Benjamin fall down around it brought feeling to it. I didn't quite realise anything wrong with not having it in the beginning at first, I just wanted to add some effects, but after adding it I realise just how much it adds. 

Findings
There can be a lot of effects involved in creating an effect that may look relatively simple, like the burning effect I used on the song title. A lot of effects came together to create that, and it's interesting that people found a way to combine all these effects to make something like that. It also means that I should learn what each effect generally does to play around and use them to make certain effects in the future.