Unit 11 | Motion Graphics (After Effects)
Introduction
Unit 11 is the first of ADD’s two Extra Units, post-certification enrichment that introduces Adobe After Effects, keyframe animation, and motion graphics: the animated intro, lower thirds, and titles that give a finished video its polish.
Nothing in this unit is ACP-tested (the Premiere Pro exam doesn’t cover After Effects). The unit still carries full compliance rigor. 78-minute timing, The 7, a real Differentiation Matrix, real Organize criteria. The students are still in the room, even though the exam is behind them.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Animate a layer’s position, opacity, and scale using keyframes with eased interpolation
- Build a cyclical animation (Suns and Moons) demonstrating looping motion and easing
- Design an animated lower third and title graphic
- Composite a small motion-graphics package and render it through the Render Queue
Calendar of Events for This Unit
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5/3 | 5/4 | 5/5 | 5/6 | 5/7 |
| S | 10 | F | 11.1 | F | 11.1 | F | 11.2 | F | 11.2 |
| 5/3: AP Exams - Week 1: 5/3-5/7; 5/4: Unit 11 - Professional Cert; 5/5: BPA Nationals (NLC): 5/5-5/9, Denver CO | ||||
| 5/10 | 5/11 | 5/12 | 5/13 | 5/14 |
| F | 11.3 | F | 11.3 | F | 11.4 | F | 11.4 | S | 11 |
| 5/10: AP Exams - Week 2: 5/10-5/14; 5/11: Grade Correction Deadline (MP3); 5/12: Interim grades open in Infinite Campus (MP4) | ||||
| 5/17 | 5/18 | 5/19 | 5/20 | 5/21 |
| S | 11 | F | 12.1 | F | 12.1 | F | 12.2 | F | 12.2 |
| 5/19: Interim grades close 4:00pm (MP4); 5/20: Senior Report Card grades open in Infinite Campus; 5/20: Senior grade verification window opens (through 6/3); 5/21: Interim Reports Available | ||||
Lessons
- 11.1 – Elements of Motion. Keyframes, easing, position/opacity/scale animation
- 11.2 – Suns and Moons. Cyclical/looping animation, precomposing
- 11.3 – Lower Thirds & Titles. Designing and animating on-screen text graphics
- 11.4 – Building a Graphics Package. Compositing multiple elements, the Render Queue
- S11 – Motion Graphics Package. Summative project
Unit Vocabulary
- Composition (Comp)
- The container or workspace where every layer, effect, and animation in an After Effects project comes together, the equivalent of a Premiere sequence.
- Layer
- A single element (text, image, shape, video) inside a composition that can be animated and manipulated independently of every other layer.
- Anchor Point
- The fixed point a layer rotates and scales around. Move it off-center and rotation swings around that new point instead of the layer’s middle.
- Precomposing
- Grouping several layers into a single new composition nested inside the original, so they can be animated, scaled, or effected together as one unit.
- Render Queue
- After Effects’ export system. Add a composition to the queue, choose render/output settings, then render, similar to Premiere’s Media Encoder but built into the same application.
- Keyframe
- A marker that sets a property’s value (position, opacity, scale) at a specific point in time. Premiere animates smoothly between two or more keyframes.
- Temporal Interpolation
- How a value changes over TIME between keyframes. Linear (constant speed) vs. eased (gradual speed changes).
- Spatial Interpolation
- How a value changes through SPACE between keyframes. A straight-line path vs. a smooth curved path.
- Ease In / Ease Out
- A keyframe interpolation style that gradually speeds up or slows down motion, instead of starting and stopping abruptly.
- Opacity
- How transparent or solid a layer is, animatable with keyframes to create fades or reveals.