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Completed 2021
Graphics Package | Trailer Titles and Interstitials
Client: Legacy Vision Media
Action movie star David Lockhart grapples between ambition and reality as he attempts to create an indie film unlike any other, using any means necessary.
I created a series of interstitial motion graphics that were to be used throughout the trailer, as well as the final title card. Each arrives with explosive energy to convey crucial information to audiences in a visually engaging way. The motion graphics took inspiration from the Indiana Jones franchise, drawing parallels between Jones’ archaeological and David Lockhart’s filmmaking adventures.
Trailer graphics are a bit of an obsession of mine; whenever I’m watching a trailer I love to see how the team behind it approached the graphics. Ultimately, they’re an opportunity to expand on the film’s efforts to world-build, where all elements of the trailer; footage and graphics combined come together to draw audiences in to new heightened levels of immersion.
Movement draws the eye – and in the case of these trailer interstitials and graphics I designed them to front-load the movement. This is a typical approach in trailer graphics design and something you’ll see often; a flash of light or rush of movement occurs at the start to grab our attention and provide the motivation for graphic elements to animate in.
There’s only so much that you can create from scratch in After Effects (it’s almost limitless but not quite). I was keen to include some tactile textures in these motion graphics and so I searched around for some suitable stock footage, eventually settling on those smoky horizon clouds that occur in the background.
It’s amazing what you can do with stock footage and something I try to always bear in mind; with effective use of stock assets a project’s visual dynamism can really be boosted. People go like “how did you make that?” and you can just sit back mysteriously knowing full well it’s simply clever manipulation of stock.
One of the many great things about living in the 21st century is the ability to be able to type in “multi-million dollar studio film trailer” on the internet and watch the result on repeat for sixteen hours, examining it’s motion graphic design in tremendous detail. It’s truly something that I recommend everyone try at least once in their life.
In this case I channeled those hours in the Indiana Jones franchise’s trailers, using them as a reference point for the visual design of these assets. It’s very handy – they’ve already carried out the hard work at great expense, so I’m now able to just stagger along, see what works and what doesn’t, and weave the elements I like into a brand new design.