S | 6 | Title Sequence / Effects Reel

Today you build one final piece that proves every Unit 6 skill together: effect presets and adjustment layers, keyframed motion, keying, and mattes/masks/picture-in-picture.

Project Briefing (~10 min)

Choose your format: a title sequence (an animated opening for a real or fictional project) or an effects reel (a short demo showcasing your compositing skills). Both need the same 4 techniques. Just applied differently.

Review the required-technique checklist together before groups/individuals begin:

  • An effect applied via an adjustment layer or copy/paste attributes (6.1)
  • Keyframed motion and/or opacity, with eased interpolation (6.2)
  • A keyed (green screen) composite (6.3)
  • A mask, track matte, or picture-in-picture layout (6.4)

Project Work Time (~23 min)

  1. Plan your sequence: sketch or list the order your 4 required techniques will appear.
  2. Build each technique, checking it off the list as you go.
  3. Plus/Delta peer review:

1. Prepare

  • The Draft: Ensure your work is exported or ready to view. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Placeholders for missing pieces are okay!
  • The Plus/Delta Chart: Create a simple T-chart on a piece of paper or a digital document:
  • Plus (+): What is working well? (Strengths, clear storytelling, strong technique).
  • Delta (Δ): What should be changed or improved? (The Greek symbol for “change”).

2. The Review Process

  • Silent First Pass: Experience the work all the way through once without speaking. This allows the reviewer to experience the “flow” of the piece.
  • Second Pass: Go through it again, but this time, the reviewer should jot down specific notes in the Plus and Delta columns.
  • The Golden Rule: Feedback should be Specific, Objective, and Kind.
  • Bad: “I didn’t like the ending.”
  • Good: “The ending felt abrupt because the music cut off before the reporter finished speaking.”

3. Giving Feedback (The Reviewer)

  • Identify the “Pluses”: Start with what is successful.
  • Suggest the “Deltas”: Instead of just pointing out a mistake, offer a solution.
  • Example: “The transition at 0:45 is a bit slow; maybe try a simple cut instead of a dissolve.”

4. Receiving Feedback (The Creator)

  • Listen Without Defending: It’s tempting to explain why you made a choice, but for now, just listen and take notes. If a peer is confused, a general audience likely will be too.
  • Ask Clarifying Questions: If a note is vague, ask for the exact timestamp or location: “Can you show me exactly where the audio got too loud?”

5. The Revision Plan

After the session, look at your Delta column and prioritize your edits:

  1. Level 1 (Critical): Technical errors (missing audio, black frames, typos).
  2. Level 2 (Message): Pacing issues or confusing sequences.

  3. Level 3 (Polishing): Color tweaks, fancy transitions, or extra effects.

  4. Apply your Revision Plan, prioritizing critical fixes first.
  5. Write a one-sentence technique breakdown identifying where each required technique appears.

Which of the 4 required techniques was hardest to get looking clean, and what finally fixed it?

GMetrix/BrainBuffet (~30 min)

Finish Module 4, including its module-completion checkpoint, due this unit.

Deliver, Export & Submit (~5 min)

Deliver

  1. Finalize your timeline.
    • Delete out any spaces in your timeline.
    • Mark Ins and Outs (Best Practice)

Export Finished Project

  1. Go to File>Export>Media>
  2. Specify your export settings
    • File Name: YYYY-MM Project Name-Lastname
    • Location: Google Drive/My Drive/Digital Design/YYYY-MM Project Name/Exports
    • Preset: Match Source (or use a High Quality Preset to reduce file size)
    • Format: H.264 (The most compatible format)
  3. Choose H.264 from the Format menu. This will create an mp4 file on export.
  4. Click Export. The export script will run until finished.

Strike

Film sets “strike” (tear down) the set when shooting wraps. Editors do the same with their drives. Once your final export is delivered and your portfolio page is published:

  1. Delete the raw footage from the project folder on your computer. Your final export and project file are all you keep.
  2. Empty the Trash. Deleted footage still takes up space until you do.
  3. Confirm your final export plays from Google Drive before you leave class.

Publish your work to your Google Sites Portfolio

  1. Create a new page on your Google Sites Portfolio to catalog your work.
    • Your work should be exported in a web-safe format in a manner that allows for the work to be embedded without requiring Google Drive permissions
  2. Your work should be accompanied by a detailed project description
  3. Submit the published portfolio page to your LMS (Schoology)

🗂 Organize: Save your final exported title sequence or effects reel in the Exports folder of your Digital Design project folder on Google Drive. Save your technique breakdown in the Exports folder of your Digital Design project folder on Google Drive.

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