Assignment 4: Motion Poster

Due: February 17th. Uploaded to VIMEO and added to the class website at the beginning of class.

Motion Poster

"THE MOVING POSTER is positioned between the static poster and the moving film. Although it is a cross between both disciplines, it is primarily still a poster, and as such it must create interest and inform within a short time."

Spectrum (what a moving poster can be)

THE MOVING POSTER offers a wide range of static, dynamic and even filmic examples:

STATIC

The posters in the group have been only minimally animated. There are no position changes in the poster, therefore the effectis predominantly static and still very similar to the printed poster.

DYNAMIC

The posters in this segment can be broken down into innumerable formats and content categories, which sometimes overlap. Some posters are played continually without a plot and therefore without a start and finish. Others have a dramatised build up with a clear structure.

FILMIC

The posters in this group are very close to film. The movement focuses almost exclusively on certain filmed scenes. On the one hand, posters show film scenes which interrelate with typography. Others show only film scenes and typography without any significant point of contact.

Definitions and Examples

http://www.themovingposter.com

Poster Examples

CUFF Examples

Task

Create a kinetic/moving poster for an event. I recommend the Chicago Underground Film Festival but keep this option open if you're really interested in another event. The message should be communicated with the means of Typography in motion. Images can be used as supporting visuals but the behavior/motion of the typography should be the main focus.

An underground film festival which showcases experimental, non-commercial, off-beat work calls for an appropriate typographic treatment (experimental, expressive, unique etc). It allows to visually explore ways and means of legibility, rhythm, speed, size etc. Ask yourself questions such as:

What kinetic behavior (motion) relates to film, video, projection, camera, experimentation, off-beat, audience etc. and how can it be applied to typography
What can you do with a motion poster that wouldn't be possible with a static version?
Can something be legible ONLY because it moves?
...

Create a short animated sequence that loops. It should repeat itself without interruption. The main message/info of the poster (name of conference) should be legible within approx. 3 seconds. In order to achieve that, the animation loops should probably not be much longer that about 5 seconds.

Information about the Chicago Underground Film Festival (CUFF) can be found here, and here.

TEXT TO USE

CUFF 2022, 29. Chicago Underground Film Festival, June 11–15 2022
DOWNLOAD ILLUSTRATOR TEMPLATE (2 columns)
DOWNLOAD ILLUSTRATOR TEMPLATE (3 columns)
DOWNLOAD ILLUSTRATOR TEMPLATE (4 columns)

Fonts are Mono45-Headline (for the big type) and Akzidenz Grotesk Medium (for the small type). In the templates, the fonts are outlined so you don't need to install them.

Pick one of the templates, import it into After Effects and create the animation.

The grid layout allows interesting horizontal and vertical motion and a play with the letters and numbers. The idea here is to get you started with animation right away and not spend too much time working on the composition. If you have other layout ideas than the grid, feel free to work on your own layout arrangement for the poster.

Color

You can use color if appropriate. One appropriate color scheme is RGB and the way these colors mix when colored light is projected (additive mixing model). This behavior can be imitated by using R, G and B layers with the blending mode set to "Screen". Video is based on the RGB color model.

IMAGE MATERIAL

Textural images related to video screen/pixels, digital glitch, camera lens as well as projected light can be downloaded
Video Textures.
Light/projection textures

VIDEO FOOTAGE

This folder contains textures in motion (video, noise, light...). It's a gigabyte large so it'll take some time to download. Get it here.

Composition Settings:

Preset: HDV/HDTV 720 29.97
Width: 1280 px
Height: 1920 px
Pixel Aspect Ratio: Square Pixels
Frame Rate: 29.97 (or 30)
Resolution: Full
Start Timecode: 0;00;00;00
Approximate duration: 0;00;07;00 (which will result in a 7 sec timeline). Duration may vary depending on the animation.

Limitations/Elements:

Elements: Only type, no shapes except rectangles for using Tracking Mats or Masks
Proportions of letters should be intact at least at a key point of the sequence (no distortion, squeeze or stretch)