[Pro forma] - motion graphics - case study

1. Motion Graphics and
Compositing:
Case Study
Imogen Hick
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2. 2
Critical Discussion

3. Motion Graphics
Motion graphics are video animations, made using moving designs, illustrations
and images that are put together to create a video sequence. One way they can
be created currently is in photoshop, where the individual designs can be
animated together using after effects.
Historical uses
Motion graphics first came about in film when lettering was commonly used for
title cards or to convey character dialogue in silent films. These were created
using printed white text on a black background as this was easiest to see when
the film was projected. To make these a variety of ways, such as being created
on card and shot on film and then added into the film. Other times the title
cards were typeset against glass or a black background and then overlaid during
the optical printing process. An example of the first animation seen in film is a
short silent film made in 1906 by James Stuart Blackton, called ‘Humorous
Phases of Funny Faces’, which well demonstrates the motion graphics
techniques they had at their disposal at the time. This shows that these
techniques take a large amount of time to create and mostly have to be done
by hand, which can be limiting to what the creators can do in the time they
have.

4. Motion Graphics
Contemporary uses
These days the technology that we have allows us to create titles that are much
more complex than simple text on title cards. In films it is common to use titling
sequences that are occasionally created with motion graphics to make the
opening credits entertaining and to create enthusiasm in the audience for the
start of the film. These openings make a lot of use of typography and basic
imagery that links to the film, which can be used to foreshadow the plot in a
way that doesn’t give away too much. An example of this use of motion
graphics can be seen in titling sequences like the one for the 2002 film ‘Catch
Me If You Can’, which copies a lot of the old styles of motion graphics from
when animated title sequences were a relatively new occurrence, such as the
works of Saul Bass.
Motion graphics are also commonly used to create things like infographics,
which tend to be short videos made entirely of motion graphics as a way to
easily inform audiences of its content in a more visually appealing way. They
may also be used for things like animated logos used by businesses or Youtube
channels that represent the channel, business or particular product.

5. Visual Effects
Historical uses
Visual effects, or VFX are basically visual additions or alterations added to film
to maybe change a scene, character, shot etc.. These manipulations have been
made to the images in a variety of different ways, one of which was known as
matte painting. This was a technique used to create scenes before CGI even
existed, so that difficult, specific or even impossible scenes could be created
for the film. To do this the film crew would usually build one small section of
the set that would be the main point of focus, and then the rest of the scene is
painted onto glass. The scene is then filmed using a still, fixed camera so that
the painted scene and the set can be filmed at the same time. This will then
give the appearance of the scene all being real. An example of this kind of VFX
can be seen in films such as the original Star Wars films, in scenes like the
hangers. These kind of scenes would be too big and over budget to create, so a
matte painting of the scene would be created, with gaps in where the actors
or moving props will be.
Whilst this technique saved money as far as space was concerned, it was
important that the painter was good enough to make the scene look realistic
otherwise it would ruin the illusion. Furthermore, scenes using matte
paintings as an effect could only be used when being filmed by a static camera,
meaning there couldn't be any panning shots and any action in the scene had
to remain strictly in the sections of the painting that were blank and allowed
room for movement. A way to counter this was created by filming the actors in
front of a black background, which then allowed the film maker to create high
contrast negatives. This technique would be used to make black and white
silhouettes

6. Visual Effects
Chroma Key
Chroma Key is a form of visual effect that is used to create or add in scenes or
characters and is commonly used as an important technique in modern film. It
works by using a single block colour as the background, or in some cases
covering a prop that needed effects adding to it to create an animal or fantasy
character. Then the colour range is removed from the foreground footage so
that the background footage can then be composited onto the rest of the
footage.
In the 1930s blue screens were discovered by RKO Radio Pictures, finding that a
blue screen was good to use to expose other images onto, as blue is the farthest
colour from colour in skin tones. In 1940 'The Thief of Baghdad' was one of the
first major films to make significant use of the bluescreening technique. This
example shows that the technique was still very rough and unpolished at the
time as the edges around the matte and the subject had some fringeing against
the blue screen. Film makers continued to experiment after this, using UV matte
and yellow matte, which is mostly well known to be used in 'Mary Poppins'.
The blue screen was primarily used until the late 90’s, where green screens
were discovered to be just as effective and easier to work with, due to digital
sensors being most sensitive to the cour green. Furthermore, the colour
requiring less lighting and working well outdoors, as well as being a less
common colour when it came to props and costuming so it was more
convenient to use. Both blue and green chroma keys are used in film today, as
both of them have different benefits and drawbacks. For example, blue screens
are frequently used when the majority of a scene is green, such as in a field or
forest.
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7. Visual Effects
Contemporary uses
Around the early 90's more digital effects became the norm, and digital matte
paintings were being used instead, giving artists access to a range of 2D and
3D software. CGI (computer generated graphics) came about in 1973, seen in
the film Westworld, where a point of view shot from the perspective of an
android character is shown with the effect of pixelated infra-red vision added
to it. To create this shot the footage had to be colour seperated frame by
frame, then scanned and converted into pixel like blocks that required to be
coloured indvidually.
As technology developed and became more accessible, CGI was improved and
became more common. Companies like Silicon Graphics Inc and Quantel were
developing and releasing computer software and hardware that could be used
to create more sophisticated 3D animation. An example of this can be seen in
the 1982 film Tron, which was seen as a breakthrough in CGI at the time. A lot
of the animation worked well with the limitations of the accessible technology
they had at the time by making the designs look like computer animation.
Eventually CGI has become more and more developed to the point where
artists can create entirely new places, creatures or objects that would
otherwise be impossible or at least at a much lower quality. A good example
of how far CGI has come over the years can be seen in the 2009 film 'Avatar',
70% of which is made up of CGI content.

8. 8
Analysis

9. Motion Graphics Sequence
Stranger Things is a Netflix series set in the 80's about a group of kids
investigating the supernatural goings on in their town after their friend goes
missing and they meet a girl with telekinetic powers. The entire series makes
an effort to page homage to films, books and other TV series from that era to
create a real sense of nostalgia as well as adding cinematic quality to the
series, and this is also done in the opening sequence. The sequence shows
the lettering of the title extremely close up, drifting across the screen in
various directions until it assembles together while the credits fade in and
out in a small, plain font and sci-fi synth music plays over it. The font used for
the main title very directly references the works of Stephen King as it bares a
lot of similarities to titles of his book covers. This also links well with the
series itself as the works of Stephen King became a large inspiration to the
show in terms of the horror aspects mixed with the supernatural. Another
big inflluence on this sequence was Richard Greenberg, who worked on title
sequences for a number of films from the 80's such as The Goonies, The
Dead Zone, Altered States and Alien, all of which influenced Stranger Things
in a variety of ways. For example, the opening for Altered States not only
makes use of the same technique of showing the title lettering close up
panning across the screen, but it also shows the credits in a smaller, simple
font almost identical to the credits font in the Stranger Things title sequence.
This means that the credits are easily visible to the audience but don't draw
attention away from the title sequence itself.
This title sequence works well not only because of the homage it pays to the
era it was inspired by. The drifting font across the screen mixed with the
ominous synth track that plays over it creates an eerie atmosphere,
especially with the music including what sounds like a heartbeat as the
rhythm for the track. This detail along with the fluid movement og the title
and the blood red colour contrasting against the black background gives it
this ominous and almost organic quality that sets the viewer on edge.

10. Motion Graphics Sequence
Scott Pilgrim vs The World is a film made in 2010, based off the graphic novel
Scott Pilgrim, though one of the issues shares the same name as the film. Due
to the comic book and video game influences in this film motion graphics and
VFX are used regurlarly, though more often than not in small and subtle ways.
However, the title sequence is a good example of creative motion graphics
used to introduce the film and create excitement for the audience. The
opening scene introduces most of the main characters in band practise, which
then leads us to the title sequence which begins with an extremely long
tracking shot of the band playing in the living room which creates a surreal
atmosphere that links with the comic book styling and inspirations. After this
shot the title appears and then the opening credits begins, which shows a
colourful, manic scratch film style sequence. Due to scratch film being
unpredictable the sequence was instead made by scratching designs onto
acetate sheets, which were kicked around on the floor to create scratches and
imperfections to give the designs a more grungey, punk aesthetic. Then the
designs were scanned, cut up into individual frames and edited together.
Each of the names that appear in the opening credits have designs that match
their character in some way which adds a little context and foreshadowing to
the sequence. For example, the colours that show up when Mary Elizabeth
Winstead's name appears correspond to the different hair colours of Ramona,
the character she plays in the film. Also, the use of stars that repeatedly come
up in a explosion like effect links to the fights that the film revolves around as
well as to comic books, where stars are often used as a way to illustrate a
punch or someone being knocked out.
Overall the style of the opening helps to create high enegry within the
audience due to the upbeat, loud music and colourful, rapid graphics, and
helps to bring audiences into a young, juvenile mindset thats similar to the
characters in the film, setting the mood for the rest of the plot.

11. Visual Effects
Most high budget films these days, especially sci-fi or fantasy genre films, make a
lot of use of VFX to create scenes that would be too difficult or even impossible
to film any other way. For example, the Harry Potter film franchise made use of a
lot of different VFX techniques to really immerse the audience into a world
where magic is the norm, from making inanimate objects move to creating
dragons and other mythical creatures and scenery. One particular scene that
required a lot of work for VFX is from the film Harry Potter and the Goblet of
Fire, where Harry is chased by a dragon around an arena and through the
rootops of Hogwarts school.
Once the dragon had been designed they first decided to sculpt models out of
fibre glass, one of them to two quarter-scale to use as a reference, and another
slightly larger to send to the VFX company Industrial Light and Magic, who were
given the task of creating an entirely computer rendered dragon to use in the
actual chase scene. Rather than using chroma key techniques in this scene the
animated dragon was added into the scene.
However, the visual effects for Harry flying on a broom are more often that not
created using chroma key, as usually the only aspect they have to add in is the
background.
Whilst the creators thought that digital effects would be best for this scene, in an
earlier scene showing the dragon they used mostly practical effects. The to-scale
model was used for the introductory long shots of the dragon nearer the
beginninng of the film, as it was in a cage and so didn't require as much
complicated movement and only the front of the model needed to be visible.
They also wanted to use practical effects for the fire, as this moment needed to
emphasise the intimidating danger of the dragon and they felt that digitally
rendered flames would look too fake and bring down the tense atmosphere.

12. Screen Ratios
Screen ratios tend to be different depending on where you're distributing the content. For example, the ration for films
is usually 1:85:1 and 2:40:1, whereas television would use the ratio 1:77:1 and online content would be 16:9.
Resolution
There are four resolutions that are most commonly used. The standard resolution uses the dimentions 720x576, which
produces a lower quality, whereas a HD resolution uses 1280x726 which is commonly used for online videos. Full HD
uses a 1920x1080 resolution which is usually used for television due to its large file size.
Frame Rate
Frame rate quite simply refers to the rate that frames are displayed per second. The frame rate is different for each
piece of content depending on where it will be viewed. For example, projected film has a rate of 24 fps (frames per
second), whilst television in the UK has 25 fps and online videos can go as far as 60 fps.
Video Format
Video format is the file extenstion of a piece of content, which determines how and what the content can be viewed on.
For example, most formats are able to be played in VLC which is the flash video format, almost all video sharing
platforms support flash so this is one of the more compatible formats. Other formats include MOV, which is the
QuickTime format developed by Apple and commonly used by Mac users, or AVI which is the Microsoft format.
Compression
Compression of content is either lossy or lossless. When footage is compressed lossless it means no information is lost,
but in lossy information will be lost and this will usually effect the quality.

13. Catalogue
• Perkins, W. (2016). Stranger Things. Available:
http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/stranger-things/. Last accessed 15th Oct 2017.
• Ulloa, A. (2011). Scott Pilgrim vs The World. Available:
http://www.artofthetitle.com/title/scott-pilgrim-vs-the-world/. Last accessed 15th
Oct 2017.
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