Design Journal Entry #9 – Kinetic Type Research

Find 1 piece of kinetic typography on the internet. For this you will create a reverse storyboard. A storyboard is a process of using whatever tools are available to translate abstract thought into tangible realities. The process of sketching refines the design, improving the potential of the design to communicate the intended message and reach its audience. Time-based communication introduces new sets of conditions that fundamentally change the nature of sketching. The method used to sketch a temporal idea is a storyboard. The storyboard outlines the narrative and develops compositional models for type, images, image frames, transitions, and sounds.

A reverse storyboard entails working from a finished animation backwards to this process step, the storyboard. On the storyboard make notations outside the frames about transitions, motion, etc., using the principles of animation listed below. This exercise need not be neat, but should convey the animation in a static form. Post a link to your animation as a comment to this post so that we can collect them in one place and view them in class when we review your storyboard. You can find lots of examples of storyboards by searching via Google.

There are principles of animation that can be applied to this project. They are: (from Type in Motion by Harding and Stone)

1. Squash and Stretch: See Example
   defining the rigidity and mass of an object by distorting its shape during an action
2. Timing and Motion: See Example
   spacing actions to define the weight and size of objects and the personality of characters
3. Anticipation: See Example
   the preparation for an action
4. Follow Through and Overlapping Action: See Example
   the termination of an action and establishing its relationship to the next action
5. Slow In and Out: See Example
   the spacing of the in-between frames to achieve subtlety of timing and movement
6. Arcs: See Example
   the visual path of action for natural movement
   
7. Exaggeration: See Example
   Accentuating the essence of an idea via the design and the action
8. Secondary Action: See Example
   the action of an object resulting from another action
9. Appeal: See Example
   creating a design or an action that the audience enjoys watching

Project 5 – Kinetic Typography

Animated typography combines the principles of design and typography with the time/space concerns of animation. Letter forms can exist and communicate both in the static and the kinetic realms. When the elements to typography and the principles and elements of design become dynamic, typography can express another degree of intonation, voice, personification, and emotional character.

You will design and present a kinetic typographic message—a short quotation. The goal is to effectively communicate the message along time. The audience is your peer group—someone in her or his early twenties.

You will start by selecting a quotation that is between 10 and 25 (or so) words long. Do not select a quote about religion or faith.

Parameters:
Use only 1 typeface. Use a standard classic serif or sans serif face such as Helvetica, Myriad, Garamond, Minion, etc. Keep your color palette minimal. Use between 1 and 3 hues. You may change tint or transparency, however. Pictorial elements such as photos or drawings are not allowed.

Phase 1:
Introduction to animation through Design Journal Entry #9 (see post).

Phase 2:
Create a flip book communicating the quotation. The flip book should be 4 inches wide by 2 inches tall. It should be a minimum of 50 pages and a maximum of 100 pages. Sketch your flip book; do not use any digital means for producing it.

Phase 3:
Convert the flip book into storyboards for your animation. Again, do this by hand via sketching. You can use this template or create your own.

Phase 4:
Flash animation. Using your storyboards and flip book convert your idea to a Flash animation. 320 x 240 pixels, 30 frames/second. It should be about 30 seconds long when complete.

Schedule
Wednesday, April 8 – Design Journal Entry #9 due; flip book due; learning Flash via lynda.com has begun
Monday, April 13 – storyboard due
Wednesday, April 15 – in-class workday // Designing for People DUE – photo shoot in the lighting studio
Monday, April 20 – critique of preliminary Flash animations
Wednesday, April 22 – in-class workday
Monday, April 27 – last critique of animations before they are due
Monday May 4; 8–10:30 AM / Section 1 – Final animations DUE
Monday May 4; 11–1:30 / Section 2 – Final animations DUE

Project Grading: 30 points possible
Process Work (12 pts)
flip book: 4 pts possible
story boards: 4 pts possible
preliminary animations: 4 pts possible

Final Design (18 pts)
18–16 Excellent; the solution responds to the design brief with a creative, innovative solution; craft is impeccable
15.5–13 pts. Good; the solution mostly responds to and meets the design brief with a satisfactory solution to the problems; craft is good
12.5–11 pts. Average; the solution solves the design problem with predicable elements or ideas; craft has some problems
10.5–9 pts. Below average; the solution is weak and does not address the design brief; craft is poor
8.5 pts and below Work not deserving of credit that fails to respond to the design brief; poor craft

Quotations (choose one of the following)

Design Journal Entry #8 – Notes from the trip to CGP

For Design Journal Entry #8 you will need to have your notes from the trip, the handout from our gracious hosts, and any other tid bits about printing. I want this post to be thorough. Record new things you learned, what you were amazed about/by, and other notes.

Design Journal Entry #7 – Designing for People Research

For the “Designing for People” project you will have to develop a bio for a hypothetical person that belongs to your group or sub-culture. The bio must contain:

• a photo
• name
• address
• detailed description of their lifestyle
• what does their home look like
• what they spend time doing
• what products do they own
• where they are located
• what do they do to earn money
• what their passions are
• do they sleep in or wake up with the sunrise
• what they eat
• and any other factors that help describe their world

Your bio can be a list of facts, a well-written paragraph, or other format. But, it MUST be neat and legible, of the quality that you would be comfortable showing a client!

You will also create a mood board for your hypothetical person that visually depicts the information you’ve gathered about them. This should be a collage that displays the attitude, mood, and needs of your person. The mood board may be any size, but should be neat and tidy (client ready!), and has to go into your Design Journal (it may be a scaled-down version in your journal).

Both the BIO and the MOOD BOARD will be present in EACH critique of this project. So, they should be able to be pinned to the wall in our classroom for reference for each and every critique. Here is one example, another, and another.

Finally, generate 40 thumbnails of potential products, of packaging design ideas, etcetera.

Project 4 – Designing for People

Objects are often created to address the needs and desires of a specific group of people. This assignment requires you to consider the context in which others live, then use your observations to inform your design.

Choose a specific sub-culture or specific group of people as your target market. Your goal in this project is to design packaging for a product (or line of products) that appeals to your target market because of its attitude, style, and content.

For your target market, you may not choose a group that’s too large, too general, or to which you belong. For example, men over 20 or children under 12 are group that are too broad. Choose a small and very specific group. For example, you could choose extreme skateboarders and design a helmet package, or for trailer park housewives who claim to have had encounters with aliens you could design whiskey label packaging. You should choose a sub-culture that is associated with a strong visual attitude that you can build on through your design.

As part of your process, you will invent a hypothetical person to help you define and understand the people and culture you’re trying to reach through your design. Your hypothetical person should be a well-defined individual described through a bio. This bio will include a photo, name, address, and description of their lifestyle. Consider the context in which they live, what they spend time doing, what products they own, where they are located, what they do to earn money, what their passions are, whether they sleep in or wake up with the sunrise, what they eat, and any other factors that help describe their world. It may be helpful to visit a location where this person would spend time to gain further insights and inspiration.

You will also develop a mood board that helps describe the attitude and style that’s appropriate for the design based on your subject’s style and needs.

Success with this project will be based on how well you define your sub-culture or group and how well your design appeals to their sensibilities.

Project Schedule:
Monday, March 16th – bio, mood board, and thumbnails due (see Design Journal Entry #7)
Wednesday, March 18th – full-size hand comps of 5 potential products due; all comps need to be constructed in 3 dimensions
Monday, March 23 – workday
Wednesday, March 25 – critique of 3 digital (tight versions) of ideas
Monday, March 31 – final critique of final design
DUE: Monday, April 13th – the physical packaging is due; all work will be photographed during class for documentation and portfolios; bring your camera if you wish

Project Grading: 30 points possible
Process Work (12 pts)
thumbnails: 4 pts possible
hand comps: 4 pts possible
digital comps: 4 pts possible

Final Design (18 pts)
18–16 Excellent; the solution responds to the design brief with a creative, innovative solution; craft is impeccable
15.5–13 pts. Good; the solution mostly responds to and meets the design brief with a satisfactory solution to the problems; craft is good
12.5–11 pts. Average; the solution solves the design problem with predicable elements or ideas; craft has some problems
10.5–9 pts. Below average; the solution is weak and does not address the design brief; craft is poor
8.5 pts and below Work not deserving of credit that fails to respond to the design brief; poor craft