Motion Graphics Industry Series — TV & Cinema
The world of Motion Graphics is huge. There are numerous ways you can apply your expertise and plenty of places who need a professional animator. In this little series, I’d like to talk more on each of the industries that are constantly hiring Motion Graphics artists. The content you’ll see here is based on personal experiences, discussions with other professionals and some inquiries I’ve done throughout my years as a Motion Designer.
The beginning of everything
For those familiar with the Motion Graphic’s history, you may know that everything started in the golden age of cinema. Saul Bass was a great designer by that time and was one of the first to develop animated graphics for moving pictures.
It was first introduced as an “artistic thing” instead of a creation made to fill a purpose — like every design piece is. Most of the artists from those first years were anonymous or not even credited, but they were tremendously important to what we consider today as Motion Graphics.
If you’d like to know more about some of those greatest animators, there’s a book called Uncredited that speaks about those “anonymous” Motion Designers
TV Identities
Later, television incorporated Motion Graphics in their Identity and shows. Usually, TV channels have two distinct groups. The one that works on the brand of the channel itself — who is more selective and restrict since they will make the “rules” that will guide any other visual material created — and the one that will work on each show specifically — this is more dynamic and opened.
When working on TV identities, you develop all the visual packages you see on the screen that relates to the channel. Those packages can be, for example, how the TV Logo appears on screen as bumpers (small animated piece), show’s schedules and lower-thirds, line breaks and end titles for some shows.
This is what guide how the channel looks like, what they are about and how the viewers will perceive them.
Working directly with TV shows is a great experience. Most TV channels are constantly working on new shows for their schedule. Developing a Motion Graphics structure for those shows is similar to what you do for the channel itself, however, it usually has less impact overall and has a constant demand. As the demand is quite high, it makes the work more dynamic.
TV series has also a great status in our field because of its intros. Some of them are simple edits of the show’s scenes but others are beautifully designed and animated pieces — like Game of Thrones, Daredevil, etc. Even tough we know the impact internet made on traditional TV, there’s plenty of work and space there.
Movie Titles
The beginning of Motion Graphics was in Opening Titles for movies, the intro we see in most of the movies containing the name of part of the staff behind its production. Early in those years, the names appeared almost static but when Motion Graphics emerged we saw the titles doing more than just presenting the cast of the movie. Nowadays, it serves as a way to introduce the story, build the atmosphere of the film and create a deeper connection with the viewer.
As I mentioned above, Saul Bass was one of the big names by that time, and his work is remarkable for any title animator.
Nowadays, we see a variety of titles in a lot of movies. Especially the superheroes movies — it’s hard not to have an animated title on them. This is becoming even more and more popular and there are plenty of designers dedicating their career’s only to this.
A great resource of those amazing titles is the website Art of The Title where they curate titles from different times and different styles
Besides the titles, you can see some Motion Graphics work inside the movie itself. It can be a visual interaction with an actor to represent someone texting with them, a video appearing on a television on the background or even animations that interact with the characters.
The relation between a good/bad motion graphics and the quality of the channel/movie
Like design in general, Motion Graphics establishes a relationship between what is perceived as good or not. A well-design TV identity helps to reach the right audience and to define a quality standard among other channels. In a movie or series, the quality of their Intro and Titles can be the main factor to build that first contact with the viewer.
That’s why Motion Design is so important for those mediums. It works directly with the perception the audience has with their brand or movie piece. Of course, in a long-term, it all depends on the quality of the show/movie, but building this connection beforehand helps to create better experiences and avid fans. — Which fan, doesn’t get excited when seeing those texts rising until the infinite of space in the beginning of Star Wars?
How to work in this industry?
You can take different paths to work in those industries. If you’re willing to work with TV Channels Identity, keep an eye on the TV Channels next to you, and look up for jobs in their Motion Design team. They are always looking for new talents to compose their talent’s team. Aim for the channels you admire and trail your path until them. If you live in a small town, look up for any local TV and start “training” with them and leveling up their channel quality applying what you know.
Some TV series and Movies usually work with specialized studios focused on titles. You can look up for them and find ways to get work there. But also, look up for independent filmmakers and collaborate with them on their next movies. It’s a great way to experiment new techniques and develop your way to tell a good story with titles. It also helps to build a good connection with this director. You never know who will be the next big name in the industry. The key is to stick with them when no one knows about them yet.
There are plenty of room to work in those areas and different places you can look up for work or even start your career in. The best tip is to build step by step your work around it.
Connect with other professionals, small companies, and collaborate with them to train your skills and help you improve. You both can benefit from each other and you can create great relationships doing that.
Originally published at mowestudio.com on July 13, 2017.
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