Hello Reader, today in our blog we will deal with terms like Motion Graphics and VFX which are highly used in Multimedia Projects.
Basically Motion Graphics is an animation with text as a major component.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho’s opening credits is an early example of Motion Graphics where the sound, motion and graphic design are combined together exceptionally well.
Saul Bass is the name behind the development of feature film title sequences.
Saul Bass created title sequences for popular films such as The Man with the Golden Arm, Vertigo, North by Northwest and few others.
Bass’s simple design effectively communicated the mood of the film.
Simple Yet Effective Motion Graphics
Motion Graphics goes beyond the commonly used method of frame-by-frame animation.
Unlike animation Motion Graphics are not strictly character driven or story based.
Motion Graphics represents animated texts, abstract shapes, forms and logos.
Motion Graphics are used to communicate with the viewer and put depth to the story.
They are used to create advertisements and title sequences for the movie.
Before the coming of computers, Motion Graphics were costly and time-consuming; it was limited to the high-budget filmmaking and television production.
The development of computer-generated graphics expanded the use of Motion Graphics.
Animator John Whitney in the year 1960 first used the term Motion Graphics while forming the company Motion Graphics Inc.
By the late 1960s super computers were efficient of rendering crude graphics.
Television stations during late 1980s to mid 1990s were equipped with Graphics Systems from British based Quantel.
Real-time graphics systems Ampex ADO, Abekas and K-Scope were used for live Digital Video Effects.
The advent of computer software Photoshop in the mid 90s lowered the cost for producing digital graphics.
The availability of desktop programs like Apple Motion, Adobe After Effects, Discreet Combustion has made Motion Graphics more accessible.
Motion Graphics can be used for branding.
With a strong emphasis on typography, the brand can get a new look.
Motion Graphics are used in Television Title sequence.
HBO Channel’s True Detective series is a good example where visual mix with typography.
The deserted landscape reflects the inner lives of the characters.
Motion Graphics are also used in simple story telling, music video and creating template.
Motion Graphics helps to create awareness.
The above picture is about gender equality created in a simple way.
Combining background track, voiceovers, texts and symbols motion graphics can give powerful message.
A simple design can illustrate a story in a more direct way rather than a colourful and fancy one.
Motion Graphics animators learn several 3D Graphics packages for designing the graphics.
Autodesk Maya, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe Photoshop are best software for Motion Graphics.
Early Motion Graphics Studios are Charlex, Broadway Video, Japan Computer Graphics Lab and many others.
Complex Yet Stunning Visual Effects or VFX
Visual Effects is a process of creating Imagery through digital computers.
Compared to Motion Graphics, VFX requires more complex steps.
Visual Effects are heavily used in filmmaking.
Visual Effects integrates both the live-action footage and computer generated imagery to create environment which look realistic.
Creating Visual Effects can be expensive and time consuming.
Visual Effects are completed during post-production stage but planning occurs at pre-production stage.
Renowned Studios like Double Negative, Weta Digital, Industrial Light and Magic are involved in Visual Effect areas.
Matte Paintings, Compositing, Motion Capture, Modeling and Animation comes under Visual Effects.
Matte Painting is a representation of landscape or background set through painting, it allows the filmmaker to create environment that is not present at the filming location.
Early Matte painters and film technicians used various methods to combine a matte-painted image with live-action footage.
A skilled artist or technician can create a seamless Matte effect.
The shot of Government warehouse in the film Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) was painted on glass by art director Michael Pangrazio at Industrial Light and Magic and it took 3 month to complete.
The painted shot was then combined with live-action footage of a government worker pushing the cargo.
The technique of combining visual images from different sources to create the illusion that all those images are parts of the same scene is called Compositing.
Chroma-Key, Blue-Screen or Green Screen are used in Live-action shooting for Compositing.
The above picture from the film Alice in the Wonderland shows the before-after Chroma-Key Effect.
In compositing replacement of selected parts of an image takes place with other image.
Lot of Hollywood Movies uses Chroma-Key Effect.
Compositing also takes place during weather forecast broadcasts,.
Where the news presenter actually stands in front of huge blue or green screen which is later removed with Chroma-Key effect.
We see the presenter standing in front of Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) Map.
The film Dawn of the Planet of the Apes used Motion Capture technique to capture the movement of the actors.
In filmmaking and video game development Motion Capture or Mocap helps to record actions of human actors and then used that information to animate digital character models made in 2D or 3D.
Weta Digital did the visual effects or VFX for the movie Dawn of the planet of the Apes.
Modeling and Animation are other two criteria of the Visual Effects, widely used in the filmmaking and entertainment mediums.
VFX studio Weta Digital also created digital animals such as herd of elk, grizzly bear using 3D software for the film Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
Film like Finding Nemo has 3D modeled under water sea creatures and lot of animation.
Therefore from the above texts it is clear that where Motion Graphics deals with simple movement of Texts, Shapes and Images, VFX deals with 3D modeling, complex animations, Chroma-Key and Matte Painting.
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