Agenda:

• Tuesday: Review for quiz & work on mid-term projects. (Make a banner ad sometime before Thursday)
• Thursday - Review midterm projects. Take quiz

Web animations

468 x 60 is a typical banner ad, but they come in all sizes. Almost all are looping. Most web animations are done with Flash- but animated gifs are still useful and easy to make with AE.

Animated GIF Exercise: Make a banner ad out promoting your TV show. Start by making a new comp at 468 x 60. Use your existing footage items to make a smoothly looping animation.

In the output module, select Animated GIF instead of Quicktime movie. Select "looping" from the option menu.

Name it "banner" and give it the .gif extension, or some computers may be confused. (eg. "banner.gif")

Be sure to preview a copy of your banner before turning it in. Do this by going to Safari or Explorer, then select "Open" from the File menu. Does your banner appear correctly? Does it loop? Turn it in only after you check it.

Place your banner in the "week8" folder. Make sure it's called "banner.gif"

Stencils (chptr 12)

Stencils are similar to Track Mattes, but determine transaprency for all of the layers underneath. You are likely to use this in a pre-comp of some sort. You'll find a stencil option under the "modes" area.

Skills check: Can you make a glint? Use a stencil? Use a track matte?

Homework:

• Read Chapters 13 & 14 of the Meyer book. (3D layers and Cameras)
• Create an entirely new 15 second (minimum) promo or opening title graphic. Create most of the major visual elements from within AE. It must contain at least:
  • An animated 3D layer
  • A visual element whose appearance coincides with an audio element
  • An animated mask
  • A Ramp effect applied somewhere to make a gradient.
  • Turn in a half-size version using any of the following codecs: MPEG-4, iPod, or H.264
  • Be sure to turn in a critique form that indicates where and how you used the effects.

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