Our process very simple. It isn't much different than any other animation studio. But within each step lies the magic. We use techniques that bring a script to life, add depth to illustrations, and give you a feeling.
PHASE 1
SCOPE
The scope is the "big picture" of the project. The big picture is made up of three main elements: Goal, Length, & Budget.
GOAL
What is the purpose of your project? It could be anything but usually it's tied to a desired outcome. You might want to educate your customers about your product, market your services to new leads, or train employees on company policies.
LENGTH
How many videos do you need? How long should they be? If you don't know, we can coach you on best practices, depending on your Goal.
BUDGET
What is your budget? If you have a budget in mind, we can work with it, if not, we can figure out how much your idea will cost.An average project costs between $5k to $10k per finished minute.
CONTRACT
We both sign the dotted line and get to work.
KICK-OFF MEETING
In the kick-off meeting, we want to get as many sources of information, stories, and ideas into the mix as possible. Bring your documents, slide decks and scribbled on napkins because you never know when inspiration may strike. Be organized but also trust your intuition. We will have lots of questions and spend this time exploring and thinking.
CONCEPT
We're looking for the big idea. A dramatic story, a thorough explanation, or maybe some some silly character dialog. Whatever concept you choose, it will achieve your goal. Sometimes the concept is obvious and straightforward. Other times it needs to be massaged, worked, and re-worked before it comes together in just the right way.
PHASE 2
SCRIPT
A script is the blueprint for your project. Every word, every scene, every idea is structured and written out before any animation is created. Animation takes a lot of time, so that's why getting the details right in the script is so important.
VOICE OVER & MUSIC
Pacing, tone, and emotion are on our mind when choosing a professional voice over artist and music tracks for your project. The voice and music is often the first to be completed which gives us a chance to listen, close our eyes, and imagine how the animation moves and flows.
STYLE FRAMES
The first pieces of artwork you will see are the styleframes. These could be keys scenes, main characters, or important graphics. As the visual style is developed we listen to your feedback and keep it on brand.
PHASE 3
STORYBOARD
For some projects we will storyboard all the key scenes in the animation. Each storyboard frame is carefully created to be visually clear and to harmonize with the other scenes. Notes concerning motion, transitions, sound effects and audio are written below each storyboard frame. You then have the opportunity to see all the artwork before it is animated. This makes any visual changes simpler and ensures that the animation will look just right.
ANIMATION
This is where the magic happens. Animators take the illustrations and graphics and make them come alive, syncing them to the audio track. Every movement and motion is thought through to communicate concepts, emote feelings and seamlessly guide the viewer through the video.
COMPLETE
How to get started.
There are a couple ways to start the process. If you already have a budget for your project, we can provide a scope of what can be done within that budget. If you know what you want and would like to know how much it costs, share your idea with us, describe what you need and if you can, provide examples of videos or artwork.
A typical process includes a bit of back and forth about budget and scope.
