Unit 64: Motion Graphics & Compositing Video
Task 1
In this blog i will be writing about the current use of motion graphics and compositing video in film and television production and analyse them.
TV idents
TV idents are when you are watching a TV channel and a little motion graphic sequence comes on with a voiceover introducing the next programme, The BBC in paticular use a lot of TV idents due to the fact that they do not use adverts.TV idents have changed a lot over the years, this is mostly due to the changes in technology and the new ways to make motion graphic sequences, back in the 70's or 80's it wasn't possible to make the CGI effects you see in films such as Avatar or Gravity.
Here are some examples of the BBC's first TV idents.
TV idents
TV idents are when you are watching a TV channel and a little motion graphic sequence comes on with a voiceover introducing the next programme, The BBC in paticular use a lot of TV idents due to the fact that they do not use adverts.TV idents have changed a lot over the years, this is mostly due to the changes in technology and the new ways to make motion graphic sequences, back in the 70's or 80's it wasn't possible to make the CGI effects you see in films such as Avatar or Gravity.
Here are some examples of the BBC's first TV idents.
Here are some more recent TV idents, you can see a huge difference between the two.
In the first ones they feel very stiff and if they were to be played on TV today people would look at them and wonder what is going on but when they see the idents that are getting played today they wouldn't look at it any differently even though it is much more advanced and technological than ever, no one really looks at the actual effects and how much work goes into each one. Another thing about TV idents these days are that the graphics usually have some sort of relevance to the programme that is being played next.
For example the Big Brother TV idents of this year include the iconic Big Brother eye with a camera then the icon for channel 5.
ITV seems to use less motion graphics than BBC or Channel 5, they tend to actually film there idents, for exaample the 'Surfing Lesson' that was being shown in 2013 featured only one special effect which was the 'ITV' title being shown and it changing colour to match the background.
Titles & In-Programme graphics (music related programmes)
For some music programmes such as Channel AKA, Starz TV or Chart Show TV the motion sequences used for them are quite simple because they aren't inroducing any programmes they are just playing music. When you are watching a music channel and a title comes up on the screen telling you what the song is called, this is in-programme graphics.
In-programme graphics have changed a lot over the years due to the changes in technology and the fact that music has also changed a lot and and now there are programmes dedicated to one genre, for example Channel AKA plays mostly UK Hip/Hop, UK Rap and Grime, there are instances where they will play American Rap and Hip/Hop but it is very much an Urban music channel, because of the genre of music they play they need in-programme graphics to go with it.
The video underneath is an example of in-programme graphics, before the video you see the short title sequence and througout the video you see the logo in the bottom right hand corner. Most of these channels use simple designs so you know exactly what channel your on. They weren't always that simple though, in this example of Top of the Pops motion graphics were just really starting out so they used weird and crazy ones during Kylie's performing 'Hand on Your Heart'.
In-programme graphics have changed a lot over the years due to the changes in technology and the fact that music has also changed a lot and and now there are programmes dedicated to one genre, for example Channel AKA plays mostly UK Hip/Hop, UK Rap and Grime, there are instances where they will play American Rap and Hip/Hop but it is very much an Urban music channel, because of the genre of music they play they need in-programme graphics to go with it.
The video underneath is an example of in-programme graphics, before the video you see the short title sequence and througout the video you see the logo in the bottom right hand corner. Most of these channels use simple designs so you know exactly what channel your on. They weren't always that simple though, in this example of Top of the Pops motion graphics were just really starting out so they used weird and crazy ones during Kylie's performing 'Hand on Your Heart'.
Top of The Pops: Kylie performs 'Hand on Your Heart'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x11WVz0HpTg
Titles and in-programme graphics for news and factual programmes
News channel title sequences can vary depending on what kind of channel it is as a whole, for example BBC use a very formal introduction to their programme because that's what kind of channel it is as a whole.
Titles and in-programme graphics for news and factual programmes
News channel title sequences can vary depending on what kind of channel it is as a whole, for example BBC use a very formal introduction to their programme because that's what kind of channel it is as a whole.
This video this is the BBC News intro from the 1950's, the difference between these two is massive. The old one would have been spectacular then but if this was showed today audiences would be really confused about what they were watching and this shows the expectations of audiences today.
BBC News had different theme music back in the 50's then it does today, music and the making of music has changed too, in the 50's intro there would have been musicians in a room recording whilst nowadays a producer would of been sat in a studio pressing buttons to make the sounds instead of playing actual instruments.
Channel 4 are a little less formal in the way that they introduce their programme, even the title sequences they use are more informal.
This link will take you to Channel 4's news intro in 1990 and there are also a lot of huge chenges regarding these two intros, this too would of been at the height of technology but nowadays it's nothing like what could be made today. Channel had the same music then as they do now and this is because music has changed less since the 90's than it has with the 50's.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvvFAhmkh0M
The use of virtual backgrounds in presented programmes
Virtual backgrounds in presented programmes are becoming more and more popular as time goes by, most of the presented programmes you see today are most likely to have a virtual background. The reasons for this is cost. It costs less money to make a decent looking background virtually than it is to go to a location and build a set, with virual backgrounds all you need is a greenscreen and you can film anywhere. Lots of news programmes also have virtual backgrounds, in the news the weather announcements are greenscreened anyway but some programmes actually have the whole of the background virtual too.
Film Titles
Lots of film titles also use motion graphics because it's alot cooler to look at and they keep people interested, Action movies are most likely to have motion graphics because they involve explosions and other things of the same nature. The Fast & Furious films are the probably the most well known films to do with cars so of course the title sequence will be full of cars, the motion graphics used are cars exploding, aeroplanes exploding, cars flipping and such, they have done that purely because it is a car film and straight away you know what film it is. End credits also use visual effects too, in the film 'Friends with Benefits' the whole end sequence is visual effects. The hands moving throughout the sequence are digitally made hands and refrence to the beggining of the film when Justin Timberlake is using a touch screen computer.
Virtual backgrounds in presented programmes are becoming more and more popular as time goes by, most of the presented programmes you see today are most likely to have a virtual background. The reasons for this is cost. It costs less money to make a decent looking background virtually than it is to go to a location and build a set, with virual backgrounds all you need is a greenscreen and you can film anywhere. Lots of news programmes also have virtual backgrounds, in the news the weather announcements are greenscreened anyway but some programmes actually have the whole of the background virtual too.
Film Titles
Lots of film titles also use motion graphics because it's alot cooler to look at and they keep people interested, Action movies are most likely to have motion graphics because they involve explosions and other things of the same nature. The Fast & Furious films are the probably the most well known films to do with cars so of course the title sequence will be full of cars, the motion graphics used are cars exploding, aeroplanes exploding, cars flipping and such, they have done that purely because it is a car film and straight away you know what film it is. End credits also use visual effects too, in the film 'Friends with Benefits' the whole end sequence is visual effects. The hands moving throughout the sequence are digitally made hands and refrence to the beggining of the film when Justin Timberlake is using a touch screen computer.
Visual effects in film and television productions
Visual effects are being used more often in the films of today and directors can express themselves even through film because of the effects that can be created however, CGI is expensive in films and that's why the budgets for blockbuster films are getting higher and higher every year but they are also still profiting hugely which co-insides with the fact that the younger generation have had this technology around them in almost every film and every new movie promises more and more in terms of the technology used to make it. Films that you wouldn't usually associate with using special effects still use a lot of digital effects, for example in 'Friends with Benifits' in the airport scene they digitally painted a plane in the background. TV shows also use a number of visual effects, 'Once upon a time' uses a lot of visual effects and even though sometimes i feel that a lot of films and TV shows don't need all the effects i think this is one of the shows that work better because of them, it's a fairytale story so you need effects to make it more believable, because this programme is so well written you don't look at all the special effects used in it which is for me more enjoyable.
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