Posted on November 2, 2009 by Tracy Boyer Clark

Lately, I have noticed an increase in multimedia projects that utilize motion graphics and animation to visually depict a story. While this medium has been used for years in the film industry, I would argue that it has been mostly underutilized in our field until now. Using Adobe After Effects, producers can either combine animation within a traditional video format, or use motion graphics as the entire video.

Probably the most well-known name in this arena is Jonathan Jarvis, the man behind “The Crisis of Credit Visualized.” He also runs “The New Mediators,” a group of producers whose goal is to provide “designed transparency.”

Jarvis notes that “by designing graphic language systems that function across print, video, interactive and performance formats, it proposes a new role for designers and a new approach to transparency in an increasingly complex world.”

New York Times‘ multimedia producer Zach Wise has also published some great motion graphic work. I featured his motion graphic demo reel last week, but you can also read more about how he utilizes this medium over at his blog, Digital Artwork, where he wrote an in-depth work flow on how he does it. For inspiration, check out his past projects “Choosing a President,” “Flipped,” and “War Without Borders,” among others.

Multimedia producer Ashley Zammitt has been working with After Effects for six months now, and is responsible for the “Purpose Prize” promo and energy crisis video, shown below. Read a brief interview with her that I posted back in August to learn more about how she tackled these projects.

Still interested in learning more about motion graphics? Subscribe to Motionographer, “a source of inspiration for filmmakers, animators and designers.”

After Effects is now on my “To-Do” list to learn over Christmas Break. I encourage everyone to take the time to at least get your head around this program to understand its potential for future multimedia projects …

Five Inspirational Motion Graphics videos:

Tags: After Effects, animation, Ashley Zammitt, Jonathan Jarvis, motion graphics, Motionographer, Zach Wise

---

• ← Cinco ejemplos de gráficos de animación
• Multimedia guru Gabriel Dance advises on how to present data on the Web →