Assignment No. 2

Linear Narrative Animation

  • Storyboards
  • Using Images
  • Text and
  • Motion

 

Above all else, a digital designer’s job is to create interface designs that offer a unique experience to the user. Communication is the essence of what we do and the experience is its effect. It’s our responsibility to enhance the user’s ability to assimilate information and to encourage interaction between a concept and storyline and the audience. With the skillful manipulation of the design elements and principles, you, as creator, can guide the user by controlling the way he or she interacts with the media and absorbs the information. Your task, as designer, is to make the user’s job easier while compelling him or her to become an active participant with your animation.

This is the first of a series of exercises that explore ways of making information more intuitively accessible, interesting and engaging by the user through the clever and strategic design of interactive interfaces that follow storylines.

Project: Hallmark Multi-Cultural Holiday / Inspirational E-Card Series

Hallmark™, the national leader in greeting cards publishing, is granting our interactive design company the opportunity to design its new series of Multi-Cultural Holiday / Inspirational E-Cards. Your objective is to establish the interactive style and format for one of these E-Cards and then executive the design of the linear narrative. These E-Cards will be distributed online so it is imperative that you design a dynamically striking interactive composition that tells a compelling story and attracts the viewer causing him or her to feel the spirit of the holiday or inspiration you’re narrating.

Objective:

Starting with the storyboard of key frames, produce an interactive narrative animation using images, text and motion. This animation should communicate a holiday or motivation an inspiration that can be accurately communicated by a specific target ethnic group. The ethnicity of the targeted audience is for you to declare and the embedded symbols should accurate speak to that group.  The format size of this E-Card is 900 x 700 pixels (you have the liberty to modify this as necessary). It is up to you to develop the style and format.
Begin your project by sketching out your ideas on paper, not by diving into Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator or Flash.  The storyboard should be hand sketched and presented on bond paper.  Photocopy paper is acceptable. Let your imagination run wild and draw from all facets of your previous design courses.

Be original!!! Break new ground!

Storyboards are due at the beginning of the class period on Thursday, March 8, 2012.