Foreword
Life is linear. Regardless of how much we at times yearn to go back and relive jewel-like events or fast forward past bleak ones or towards milestones, time stubbornly moves on in the same old direction, at the same old pace. Fortunately, our perception of time is far less rigid. How we feel about time does not, of course, always work to our advantage. A great experience usually melts into the past way too fast, while adversity feels endless. To make our existence more gentle, however, our imagination can whisk us forward or backwards. This unique human ability to warp the timeline allows us to reflect over the past, process the present, and picture the future. And when you capture and retell a small moment from along the way, you suddenly are delivering a story.
Stories are at the core of humanity. They are our most fundamental and richest means of exploring, shaping, and sharing our reality. Without our narratives, life would make no sense. But the greatest blessing is a good story’ ability to rupture monotony and infuse new emotions and new ideas into our lives. Stories not only result from the power of our imagination but fuel it too, conjuring up a wonderful, free world of relative space and time from which we derive our sense both of purpose and possibility.
Tools for creating time-based design are increasingly easy to access and use. We’ve therefore seen a giant surge in the number of designers beginning to explore animation and filmmaking. spent a lot of time creating tion of motion can be both If you’rea designer who has static expressions, the addiliberating and confusing.
On the one hand, it’ rewarding to see how images can unfold over time and working with this new axis can make a designer feel very powerful. On the other, it is easy to get carried away by all the cool possibilities at your fingertips. No matter what, however, the crux of all visual communication, either motion or static, is still actually having something to say. We tend to be instantly hooked by design in motion. Humans are hardwired from our days as hunters and gatherers to be captivated by anything that moves. If a TV is on in a bar, we have to strain to avoid looking at it, no matter how interesting the conversation or how pointless the animation on the screen.
While it’s our duty to respect this innate drive to watch, we also must honor the ancient art of storytelling. In these pages, you will find a rich understanding of the history, theory and practice of motion graphics. But after you are done reading, it’ all up to you. Make your motion narratives seductive, shocking, useful, beautiful. Whatever you do, be passionate. And if you really want to do something that matters, tell us your best stories.
Jakob Trollbäck
PresidenKreative Director
Trollbäck + Company, NY
http://www.trollback.com