Motion Designer: What You Need to Know About This Profession

Contents:

• What is motion design?
• What a motion designer does.
• What tools does he use in his work?
• Soft and hard skills
• Motion design. What it goes with and why it is needed in business
• How much does a motion designer earn?
• Useful literature about the profession
• Videos for inspiration

What is motion design

Motion design is a field of design that combines the basics of animation, video editing, and other techniques to create aesthetically pleasing and attractive visual solutions.

Motion design allows you to achieve effects that cannot be conveyed by static images or text. He brings dynamism, emotion, and visual appeal to projects, which is why he is loved by clients all over the world.

What does a motion designer do?

Motion design is used in media, commercials, TV shows, films, websites, mobile apps, presentations, etc. Its main task is to convey information, ideas, and mood through moving images.

Motion design is usually created in several stages. Designer:

• Creates a mood board.Sets the dynamics and timeline, develops the main plot for the animation.
• Makes a storyboard. Writes scripts, determines the sequence of events, and creates a script for animation.
• Creates visual design.Works on visual elements layer by layer.
• Processes animations. Creates motion simulations, processes transitions, and converts them into Shapes (edit: from graphic elements to spatial objects).
• Conducts editing and post-production. Final touches - developing animation with sound effects, music, voice comments and other elements.
• Carries out rendering (edit: converts graphics to the required format). Converts finished material into the required format.

What tools does a motion designer use in their work?

With the help of professional tools and specific software, a motion designer achieves high-quality results and can optimize much of the work. For example, simplifying the creation of an animation or video. Let's talk about them in more detail.

• Adobe After Effects (Ae).One ​​of the popular programs for creating attractive motion design. It offers several professional tools for creating moving graphics, including keyframes, layers, masks, effects, and transformations. Using the program, you can create various types of animation, visual effects, transitions, and compositions, as well as integrate video, graphics, and audio in one project.
• Cinema 4D. A professional program used to create animation and visual effects. It offers powerful tools for modeling, animation, lighting, texturing, and rendering objects. With its help, you can create complex visual effects, abstract scenes, etc.
• Blender. A free program for 3D modeling and animation. Offers professional tools for creating 2D and 3D animation, including modeling, rigging (creating a skeleton for character animation), keyframe animation, etc.
• Houdini.Software used in the computer graphics and visual effects industry. Professionals use it to create and manage complex 3D animations, special effects, simulations, and visualizations.
• Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.These programs are used to create and edit graphics that can be used in motion design.
• Autodesk Maya.Professional 3D modeling program. It is also used to create complex animations and visual effects.

Soft and hard skills

To attract as many clients as possible, a motion designer needs to possess certain qualities and skills. And the better these are developed, the higher the likelihood that they will be worked with on a long-term basis.

Soft skills:

• Sense of style and aesthetics, understanding of the basics of geometry and color balance;
• Ability to come up with new and original ideas, find unconventional solutions and show your own style in your work;
• Ability to work in a team and manage projects of various sizes;
• Understanding current trends and needs of the target audience (TA).

Hard skills:

• Knowledge of design basics (styles, presentation forms, etc.);
• Understanding the principles of composition, balance, proportions, and use of space;
• Knowledge of color theory and the ability to create harmonious color schemes;
• ability to convey the physics of movement between keyframes and control the speed with acceleration of animation;
• correct distribution of movement and events in time;
• Knowledge of the program interface, as well as the ability to use tools and effects, work with keyframes, timelines, layers and masks;
• Knowledge of animation principles: anticipation, stretching, squash, arch and the principles of object movement in space.

Motion design. What it's used for and why it's needed in business.

Motion design is a valuable tool for both small and large businesses. It can be used to launch attractive advertising campaigns, create intuitive and aesthetically pleasing interfaces for online platforms, and prepare presentations. We'll tell you more about the industries in which it's used.

• Advertising.Motion design is used to create promotional videos. These can be product and service advertisements, promo videos, advertising banners, etc. Animation and motion effects help attract viewers' attention.
• Videos.This includes not only videos, but also music videos, short films, animated series, and television shows.
• Mobile application design. Motion design plays an important role in creating mobile application interfaces. Interface element animation (IEA), transitions between screens, animated icons and buttons help improve user experience and make the application more attractive and convenient to use.
• Websites. Motion design is used to create dynamic and interactive websites. Loading animations, parallax effects, interactive banners, and animated scrolling are used.
• Presentations.Animated slides, transitions between sections, and data and graph visualization make presentations more dynamic and engaging for the audience.
• Art installations and exhibitions. Animation and motion effects are used to create unique and impressive visuals that interact with visitors.

How much does a motion designer earn?

The salary of a motion designer in Belarus depends on the specialist's experience and the type of employment. Freelancers can expect to earn money by managing several projects at once. However, the final check will depend on the complexity and requirements of the client. On average, a person with 1-3 years of experience can earn from $1,000 per month.

Office employees, according to rabota.by, depending on work experience and portfolio, can expect an income of $500 to $2,000. The level of earnings always depends on the designer, their knowledge, skills, and experience. Sometimes specialists combine office employment with part-time work for private clients.

How to get to know the profession better

To get started in the field of motion design, it is enough to complete an intensive course, which usually takes from one month to a year. From it, a novice specialist can gain a lot of useful information. For example, they can learn basic life hacks and the features of creating "live" graphics. Additionally, you can consider blogs and professional literature. The latter will be useful if your goal is to get to know the profession better and become an expert in your niche. Among the literature, the Skillbox.by editorial team recommends:

• S. Rublev "Motion Design: Visualization and Animation".
• M. Sergienko "Motion Design. Creative Animation Techniques".
• S. Ledger "Three-dimensional design: creating animation using CINEMA 4D".
• S. Landar "Motion design in digital media: kinetic design, animation, interactive applications".
• I. Lysovsky "Character animation".
• M. Linetsky "Motion Design. Interface Animation".
• A. Saburov "Kinetic Design".
• A. Maslennikov "Interface Animation: Motion Design from Scratch".
• M. Khaustov "Motion Design Techniques".
• Y. Voronov "Motion Design: Animation and Visualization".
• Y. Sivakova "Motion Design. Video Installations".
• D. Andreev "Motion Design. Composition and Animation".

Videos for Inspiration

Motion design is a promising profession that anyone can learn. It guarantees a high salary and the opportunity to work from anywhere in the world. You can earn good money on private projects and benefit businesses by creating attractive videos with interfaces. For inspiration, we suggest checking out three of the best works by motion designers, according to Skillbox.by experts.

An original video in a space-themed style. Distinguished by its contrast, volume, and attractive forms:

An unusual advertising video in a mixed style. It has several smooth and sharp transitions that are impressive and captivate you every second of the time:

A stylish and modern video. Its feature is smooth transitions that allow you to immerse yourself in the atmosphere: