In a post-covid world, how might motion design evolve?

Motion design is a discipline that uses animations and visual effects to incorporate graphics and graphic design into video production. Film, videos, text animations, and web-based animations are all examples of motion design.

Motion design was one of the few creative areas that actually experienced growth during the pandemic. While many live filming projects were suspended under the conditions of COVID-19, the demand for 2D and 3D motion design and animation spiked. But where are we now that many filming projects have resumed and how could motion design evolve for this new post-pandemic era?

The benefits of motion design are now obvious

In 2020 many organisations tried motion design for the first time due to restrictions and experienced the benefits. From the flexibility it offers to cost effectiveness and the enormous scope of creativity, investing in motion design is not something that many enterprises now want to move away from. This has created a new market of businesses that see this as a viable alternative marketing solution to video and want to continue to work with it.

The potential for expansion is broad

While motion design may have come into its own during the pandemic, especially in a social media and online context, it now has a lot of potential to expand into other advertising forums. Many advertisers are already looking to connect with their audience in the places where they now are – outside and in public – which is creating an increase in demand for posters and billboards, for example. Motion design has great potential to support these goals and provide more creative options in a more cost effective way. Now that a broader spectrum of industries has seen what motion design can do it is something that could be rolled out to many more businesses.

Live action + animation

Given the flexibility and adaptability of motion design there is also a great deal of potential for more hybrid projects that bring this together with live action. This could potentially be a huge growth area for motion design and a great opportunity for evolution. As more and more brands see the effectiveness and benefits of the motion design approach – and want to integrate this into their own marketing – it’s going to considerably move the industry forward. This is especially so as brands today are keenly focused on identifying opportunities to stand out and, as the live action + animation market is still relatively fresh ground, this represents a great way to be distinctive and new.

Motion design was already a growing market

Yes, the pandemic provided additional momentum for motion design but this was already a popular sector with considerable investment behind it. The multi-channel nature of the online world presents challenges for customers and also for the brands that are trying to reach them. Motion design is a great tool for helping consumers to navigate this and for giving businesses opportunities to build strong relationships and ensure that customers remain engaged. Given that many of the new digital habits that were formed during the pandemic show no signs of disappearing, this is a situation that isn’t likely to change.

Motion design experienced a boom during the pandemic – and this looks set to continue as the sector goes on to evolve.

Scott Fleary are a leading designer and installer of scenery, set construction, and technical solutions for the creative industry. More information on Scott Fleary's services can be found here: https://www.scottfleary.com/services