Animation For Video

We receive calls regularly from clients who want animated video production. The term “animation” is often used generically. We often have to ask further what they mean.

This article explains a video production company’s terminology along with examples, video production timelines, and costs. We've included a few demo videos also. With this content, we’ll help you get what you want faster!

Sometimes people are just referring to a motion graphic - a way to bring titles into a explainer video. This article isn't really about that, it's about more advanced animated videos. Read on and learn more about animated content.

What is an animated explainer video?

Many of our clients want animation videos to help them explain their product or service. An animation can help explain complex ideas to your target audience. This choice can be made because there is no other way to demonstrate a concept. Like what happens inside of a sealed tank, a medical animation, or something very small for example. Or, when animation is merely an aesthetic choice. We want an animation because it looks “cool” or there’s not a lot to show with a video shoot (plain office).

An “explainer video” is a branded company video explaining what they do. It’s video content is about a service or product that they market and sell. Every company should have an explainer video front and center on their webpage [and/or products and services webpage]. It’s a way to show potential customers and current clients what you do. It’s also an essential part of your marketing strategy. An explainer video is content that can be used on your social media channels, e-blasts, trade shows, job fairs, and video marketing.

Combine the two and you have an animated video that “explains” what you do or sell. Get it? Animated explainer video!

Video animation for the real world.

The client's needs, goals and budget will determine if the entire video or only portions will be animated. Often we combine video footage we acquire with our camera crew with animations to create a more dynamic overall video. Live action and animation helps explain the product or service better.

Animation for video- 2D & 3D explained.

Now that you understand what an animated explainer video is there are a few “style choices” you may need to consider. Video animation takes on two main options: 2D and 3D animation. Here are 2 frames showing the difference:

2D Animation

3D Animation

Pretty obvious, right?

Television, computer screens and your phone are 2 dimensional (height and width). The image is not very “deep”. In video production we normally try to simulate “depth” through the use of backgrounds, depth of field, etc. Think of the space in back of someone being interviewed. That adds “depth” to the scene. Show something deeper in the scene to simulate a more realistic image to what you see in nature.

2D animation skips the depth. Instead it concentrates on images on a flat plane. This is a bit easier to produce as it simplifies the work. It still does a great job of explaining concepts, it’s just different.

3D animation takes into account the depth of the scene. It’s more realistic as it simulates nature more realistically. This takes a bit more work but the results are often preferred by corporate video clients.

Both video animation styles can be stylish additions to your video production. It’s really about style, goals and costs as to which style to use.

Whiteboard animation anyone?

There is yet another form of animation, whiteboard video. I’m sure you’ve seen them, the 2D animation where a hand comes on screen and writes out words, images and pictures. Yes, we have produced whiteboard videos also.

However, the demand for whiteboard animation is becoming less lately. We think it’s because this animation style was made popular a few years ago. They seem to be thoroughly “played out” at this point. We council against these when clients inquire about our video production service. In our opinion they look dated and a fad whose time has come and gone.

How long does it take to make an animated video?

This is an important question for us. Animation can take longer than a traditional video production. Reason being, we need to create every element in the “scene”. Take for example this video:

This video was produced in 6 weeks [which is pretty fast for the work needed]. Normally we’d suggest two to four months to be safe for videos that are entirely (or mostly) animated.

We were very fortunate because the client had 3D CAD [computer aided design] models for their product, were great with follow up and made quick decisions. Their cooperation really helped speed up the production process.

However, if we were able to head to their plant with a video camera crew we probably could have turned this video around in 2-3 weeks total. Of course, due to the nature of the product this was not possible.

Sometimes our clients' video production is a combination of animation and visuals captured at their facility. In this case it takes less time if we just need to create a few video animations as elements for a marketing video.

How much does it cost to make an animated video?

Probably your next question, right? Video animation is often more expensive than a traditional video production based on a camera crew. Does this seem counterintuitive? Let me explain...

With a camera crew working on your video production we can come to your facility and acquire many images in a standard day. When producing a manufacturing video for example, we can head to the plant and come back with 25-100 [more?] shots at the end of the day. This depends on what the script calls for, physical limitations [huge plant that takes 20 minutes to go from one side to other], and plant processes [machine cycle time produces products every hour], etc.

An animator needs to create all of those elements from scratch with video animation. Put all the elements in place then simulate a camera move, arrows showing workflow, products coming down the conveyor, etc. It’s very time consuming and tedious work. We love it, don’t get me wrong. But trust me when I say that it takes time and a high level of precision to make a compelling animated video. All of this creativity adds to the final cost of a video production.

Who needs animated video?

Almost any industry or business could use an animated video or at least elements of animation. Our video production service is called upon a lot in manufacturing video production due to the need to explain the manufacturing process. [More on our video production service for manufacturing here.]

Animation is also used in marketing, tradeshow and social media video productions. Animation is an easy way to explain things quickly.

Final thoughts on animated video...

Video animation can add clarity to any video production. Whether 2D or 3D, if you have something to demonstrate, an animated explainer video might be the right choice in your brand video and video marketing. Animation is even more powerful when mixed with live action video to explain concepts further.

When looking to partner with an explainer video production company be sure to see examples of work they produced. Have they created custom animation for clients explainer videos or are they just using templates bought off the internet? Make sure they have the ability to customize video animation to represent your brand appropriately.

Here's clips pulled from our animated videos to give you an idea of our capabilities.

Questions or thoughts about our animation video production or need video production service? Feel free to call (630.961.9580) to discuss how Acclaim Media can help you produce your video production efficiently and drive results. Acclaim Media is a Naperville video production company serving Chicago and the suburbs that helps clients with video strategy and video production.

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