Trying my own animations

 Trying my own animations

Despite having a friend to help with the animation stuff for MoodGlyph, I wanted to improve my animation skills and create some of my own. To keep it simple, I wanted to create a loop of the M logo and the main MoodGlyph logo morphing into one another in order to promote the launch of our publication. The only way I know how to animate is on photoshop, which definitely limited the complexity of the animation. 

Frames

I quite liked the idea of having it frame by frame, as it created a nice hand drawn element to the animation; I don't think that a super smooth animation style would really align with the previous content we posted on our instagram. 

Adding colour

In order to match the animation with the previous content on our instagram, I needed to colourise the design so it fit with the colour theme. I decided to go for a simple gradient, as it would compliment the block colours used in the previous animation. Again, the use of colour also linked better to the concept of emotions and moods used within the publication. 

Instagram feed

Outsourcing promotional animations

 Outsourcing promotional animations

As part of the promotional element of MoodGlyph, we wanted to upload some fun little animations that would promote the release of the publication/ future content. Due to this, I know another creative at Leeds Uni that is super skilled at animation and has offered to help with the project. We wanted to keep it fairly simple, as it needed to be allusive, mainly because we haven't decided whether we're going to sell the publication, or what date - this is mainly going to be determined by how the publication turns out and when we make a website.

I'm super happy with how the animation turned out, as it brought the letterform characters to life; I worked closely with my friend on the animation, as I wanted to be in control of how each letter moved. In this case, the letter C (bubbly) was floating, J (confidence) is stomping, F (excited) is jumping and the M (perplexed) is moving hesitantly. In regards to the colours used, we played around a bit with what worked best, but the main focus was that it had to be in colour as Spencer and I have decided to post only in colour from now on. We both decided on the green colour scheme, as it was bright and fun, and I complimented the colours used within the publication. 

Preparing for print: business cards and sticker design

 Preparing for print: business cards 

I sent off the business cards to print using a business card template with a 3mm bleed. Hopefully, the artwork won't be disrupted as I tried to add a bit of space around the border. I spoke to James at digital print and he said he can print them on Cyclus Recycled 350gsm which will be nice as it will introduce some sustainable elements to the project. Also having it on pretty thick card will add a nice tangible element to the bundle package, and hopefully will be a quality outcome people will want. 

Preparing for print: stickers

Upon feedback, I kept the same alternating black and white sticker concept, and prepared it for printing. I wanted the stickers to have a bit of shine to them, so I decided to print them on gloss self adhesive sticker paper; hopefully this will offer a nice contrast against the paper stock of the publication, as we're printing the actual publication on silk paper. 

Crit notes

 Crit notes

• Emotion flip card 
• T shirts; would relate to the idea of sharing your emotions and wearing what you feel. Could be made to order, people could choose what emotion they want? 
• Stick to the emotion stickers that are super cropped; they relate better to the visual branding of the project so far
• Reversible tote bag; the inside could be the negative emotions and the outside could be the positive emotions 
• Communicate the longevity of the project; visual research. Make sure to include the concepts for the post submission in the design boards/ blogs.
• Uloveprint; might be a cheaper place to print? 
• Just make sure we’re managing our time well 
• Create a plan for a future 
• Scratch card; could design a business card with an emotion already provided as a scratch card- means we could control the submissions

Initial business card concepts

 Initial business card concepts

Because we are including mood rings in the MoodGlyph bundle, I thought I'd make some business cards that communicated the emotions/ moods for the colours shown on the rings. This will create an interactive user experience allowing the user to draw a letterform based on this mood. In order to do so, I needed to create a selection of colours that could feature on the back of the business card. 

Red - fear

Pinkish red - anxious 

Pale yellow/green - uncomfortable 

Orangey yellow - happy 

Pink - passionate 

Blue - relaxed

I thought that it would be best to keep the front of the business card pretty simple, as I don't want it to be too distracting from the actual publication within the bundle; I wanted to stick to using branding from MoodGlyphs' visual identity to provide simple but effective consistency to tie the whole publication package together. However, I feel like this version above is a bit too flat and repetitive; I thought possibly cropping part of the logo would be a nicer way to provide consistency but with a better visual dynamic. 

Here are the back business card concepts I created, which I also kept pretty simple as I wanted to place more emphasis on the colours in order to keep it focused on the mood ring element of the design. Peer feedback suggested that I use the first design, as having the MoodGlyph logo on a diagonal didn't really work with the composition. I also like these designs as the ellipsis shape ties into the branding of MoodGlyph, as the shape is often featured as a motif throughout the visual identity of the project. 

For the front design of the business card, I decided to keep it focused on the main logo for MoodGlyph; the little M character. I thought this would work best as it has more of a stronger link to the visual identity of the project, by featuring the eye motif. Also, I thought it had more potential to play around with cropping to break up the publication bundle. Due to this, the outcome I created is a super crop of the MoodGlyph character logo, and to tie it in further with the theme of emotions, it is coloured in a gradient to reflect the sense of changing moods/ emotions. I think that this concept compliments the back of the business card design well, as it focuses on colour without being overpowering. I also think in the context of the bundle package, having the business card in colour will work well alongside the black and white cover for the publication, as well as the black and white stickers. 

I thought it would be cool as well if the colour of the business card was different for every publication, so each user would get a different version. 

I wanted to create an alternative experiment for the back of the business card that was a bit more abstract; this concept plays around more with the element of a scale, that I feel like is more reflective of moods changing - for example, the user could find a middle ground of the colours? Also, I like how this version links more to the branding of MoodGlyph by having the emotions in ellipsis shapes and in Times New Roman; the only limitation is that it does feel a bit overcrowded possibly. Due to this, I fee like we need some peer feedback on the business card concepts. 

Creating letterform characters

 Creating letterform characters

In order to develop some more content for MoodGlyph, as well as creating some characters for sticker concepts, I decided to create some little characters that showcase some letterforms and bring them to life. This would relate them better to the concept of emotions, as we could animate the characters to move in relation to their emotion; e.g excited could be really bouncy.

I want to get some feedback on these from Spencer/ peers, but I think keeping the characters super simple works best as it emphasises the letterforms and doesn't distract from the actual letters. I think the simple addition of eyes works as well as it links to the visual branding of MoodGlyph; these cartoon eyes have been a motif throughout the project.

Promotional gif concepts