This year’s Mobo Awards feature a particularly stunning video ident. I was jealous when I saw it. So when I was asked to create the TV ad for the events – this year taking place place in Glasgow – I was a little apprehensive. I don’t need that kind of pressure.

But once I buckled down to it, I managed to emulate the reflective 3d text and quick cutting of their original. This was the result.

Categories: 3d Animation, Television Graphics | Tags: 3d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, stv | No Comments

Here’s a really simple advert that was given to me in storyboard form, with notes on what all the frames and images should look like. I put it together in 3d in order to give the mantelpiece and frames some depth.

This format means we can change the images in the frames quite easily, along with anything in the final frame, so the client doesn’t necessarily need a whole new ad if they just want to freshen it up.

Categories: 3d Animation, Television Graphics | Tags: 3d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, stv | No Comments

My dream of being paid to create a Norman McLaren-style ‘Begone Dull Care’ animation (1949) for the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival was thwarted here when alas the notion was not to the client’s liking. It was probably just as well as I believe Begone Dull Care must have taken a near lifetime to produce and I’m generally working to eye-wateringly tight broadcast deadlines.

That said, if anyone fancies painting and scratching directly onto celluloid, let me know.

Categories: 2d Motion Graphics, Television Graphics | Tags: 2d animation, Edinburgh, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, kinetic text, stv | No Comments

This is a far from spectacular piece of animation but it’s a good example of the sort of bumper ads that open and close TV programmes. You know, so-and-so sponsors the whatchamacallit-show. They’re short, snappy and help raise brand awareness for the sponsor without detracting too much from the actual show.

The Tipping Point is an ITV quiz hosted by Ben Shephard – see my very poor caricature at the beginning. The sponsor in this case was Penicuik Windows, who use two penguins in all their branding. Hence we had two penguins taking part in a quiz show. Ah, TV, how I love you.

Categories: 2d Motion Graphics, Television Graphics | Tags: 2d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, stv | No Comments

I was surprised to discover that not only was piping a big thing outside Scotland, but that there was also a European Pipe Band competition. Here’s the advert I created for this year’s event. Over a hundred pipe bands from all over the continent amassed in Forres to take part.

I imagine this was a lot of fun both for those attending and those taking part, although the idea of a hundred pipe bands playing at once reminded me of the Gary Larson cartoon where a Maestro is shown to his room in hell and it’s occupied by a large number of banjo players.

Categories: 2d Motion Graphics, Television Graphics | Tags: 2d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, stv | 1 Comment

Finally, a subject close to my heart. I love food. I don’t know where I’d be without food. Some of my best friends are food.

So apparently these foodies festivals run up and down the country over the summer. What a great idea. Summer and food. Where do I sign up?

Anyway, this ad will be spreading the word this summer. It was a classic case of being given a bunch of random shots of previous events and told to do something interesting with them. Well, I’m not one to settle for a slideshow so I created this pop-up effect so that you’d have something more interesting to whet your appetite.

I insist you admire the butterfly at the end.

Categories: 3d Animation, Television Graphics | Tags: 3d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, stv | No Comments

Clients hate it when you ask them to supply all kinds of material – images, video, high resolution logos, font details. I’ve taken to asking ‘what do you have?’ instead. If there isn’t much to go on or getting a hold of material will be problematic, I have a whole range of techniques that don’t require much of anything.

Kinetic text is one of them. It’s just a visualisation of whatever the voiceover says, but it can look pretty exciting and dramatic.

For the Wellgate Centre in Dundee, you could have been looking at a bunch of dreary stills of retail outlets. Here’s something fun instead.

Categories: 3d Animation, Television Graphics | Tags: 3d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics | No Comments

I get some unusual requests. ‘I want talking toast’ was a recent one. Last year I created a shivering house for the client, Direct Savings (see Direct Savings 3d Animation), and now it was decided the house should be inhabited by a family of toasties. You know, “you’ll be as warm as toast.” The last advert was a lot of fun to do, so this time I was happy to illustrate the concept of infranomic heating through the medium of warmed bread.

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At first glance, you might think there are no graphics at all in this bumper advert by LA Media for property specialists McEwan Fraser. But do you know how hard it is to train a bee to land on somebody’s nose on cue? They’re really temperamental performers.

That’s why I was asked to create a bee in post-production and match it to the footage, a technique called motion tracking. This example isn’t particularly clever but I liked it because it made me laugh. The original script also used the line “Time to move?” which was even better.

Categories: 2d Motion Graphics, Television Graphics | Tags: 2d animation, Scottish Television, Television Graphics | No Comments

A nice wintry advert that’s been showing on STV recently.

The original ad that Direct Savings were using showed how loft and cavity wall insulation actually worked, in a particularly dry style. So the idea was to inject a bit of personality and life into the 3d proceedings and not get too wrapped up in the technicalities. Who cares how it works? It’s going to keep your house warm!

File under ‘cheap and cheerful.’

Categories: 3d Animation, Television Graphics | Tags: 3d animation, Scotland, Scottish Television, Television Graphics, stv | No Comments