I was given the opportunity to recreate a project from a previous semester and turn it into a motion video. I chose the Initial Capital project from my first semester in my Typography class. The compotionsion, artwork and theme is one I am extremely proud of and believe would be perfect as a motion video. I take great inspiration from Japanese culture because of its beauty, serenity, traditions and clothing. This piece is an homage to my love and respect for their culture and lifestyle.
My first step in redoing this assignment was adding a grave in front of the cherry blossom tree to create a full story behind the visuals. In Japanese culture it’s customary to bow as a sign of respect, appreciation, remorse, or gratitude. Traditionally they don’t worship gods or deities, they honour their ancestors to ask for guidance and protection. Which is why it’s customary to bow when visiting an ancestors grave. I decided to treat the original assignment as the final frame and create a short animation revealing an initial capital art piece. With that plan in mind I got to work on a storyboard. With this storyboard I was able to plan out how the geisha would walk onto the screen, turn and bow to the grave creating the illusion of the letter “G”. Once this visual was created a gust of wind carrying cherry blossoms would spell out the remaining letters in the word “Geisha” completing the short animation. With this plan I got to work on the illustrations. Creating this geisha was both challenging and extremely fun. Kimonos are extremely detailed and diverse as they are always a combination of different colours, texture and patterns. To be able to create such a beautiful design and bring it to life is such a gratifying experience I am proud to showcase.
This is the perfect motion piece to showcase in my portfolio because of all the aspects I used in this piece. I am able to show my abilities in character design, walk cycles, realistic movement, type treatment, tracing paths, and surprise reveals. Elements that my potential employer will want to see as it proves my abilities in motion design.