{"id":40483,"date":"2022-11-24T21:31:19","date_gmt":"2022-11-24T21:31:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/articles\/a-step-by-step-guide-to-creating-animations-for-e-learning\/"},"modified":"2024-08-28T20:19:09","modified_gmt":"2024-08-28T20:19:09","slug":"a-step-by-step-guide-to-creating-animations-for-e-learning","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/articles\/a-step-by-step-guide-to-creating-animations-for-e-learning\/","title":{"rendered":"A step-by-step guide to creating animations for e-learning"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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While our Totara Academy team are busy creating our new\u00a0platform for learning professionals<\/a>, we wanted to find out more about what they’re up to. This time, Senior Visual Designer Matt Stokes explains how he creates animations for e-learning.<\/p>\n

1. Gathering requirements<\/h3>\n

The first thing I do when I receive an\u00a0animation script is discuss it with the\u00a0scriptwriter. We talk about considerations\u00a0like whether there are any complex\u00a0concepts that need to come across, or if\u00a0there are hero graphics from other\u00a0learning materials that need to be\u00a0showcased. Our animations generally have\u00a0to work standing alone, but also sit with\u00a0other activities\u00a0– acting as part of a larger\u00a0body of e-learning content.<\/p>\n

Sometimes we devise standard ways of\u00a0displaying things\u00a0–\u00a0key diagrams for\u00a0example\u00a0–\u00a0as part of the prep work for the\u00a0animation. Assets like our course badges\u00a0used in these animations\u00a0are sourced from\u00a0the other materials in our learning\u00a0environment.<\/p>\n

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2. Creating a storyboard<\/h3>\n

I create a storyboard for the entire\u00a0animation, so as everyone can see what I\u2019m\u00a0proposing at a glance, and check that what\u00a0is onscreen works with the\u00a0voiceover. The\u00a0storyboard also includes written\u00a0descriptions of what happens onscreen. It\u00a0answers questions like: how do things\u00a0move? What appears first? How long do they\u00a0stay onscreen? It’s useful\u00a0to make these decisions before the animation has been created.<\/p>\n

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3. Drawing up illustrations<\/h3>\n

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As part of the storyboard, I draw\u00a0up any\u00a0necessary illustrations or icons. We\u2019ve got a\u00a0visual style for our scenario scenes. These\u00a0are fictional displays of situations in which\u00a0Totara Learn features come into their own.\u00a0We always depict them as illustrations\u00a0instead of using stock\u00a0photographs of\u00a0models\u00a0so\u00a0there is no confusion – using illustrations clarifies that this\u00a0is\u00a0an example, not a case study. The pencil\u00a0illustrations are scanned in and worked up\u00a0in Adobe Illustrator.<\/p>\n

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4. Recording voiceovers<\/h3>\n

We then record the voiceover. We do this\u00a0in-house. There are a few of us who are\u00a0reluctantly happy enough to do this. We\u00a0have a microphone and use open source software\u00a0to record and clean up the sound. If you watch any Totara Academy videos, you will hear the voices of the Totara team!<\/p>\n

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5. Bringing the sound and visuals together<\/h3>\n

Next I put everything together. I tackle each\u00a0shot as a separate composition in After\u00a0Effects, in case there is an unavoidable\u00a0change of plan and some of the sentences\u00a0of voiceover need to be replaced. It helps to\u00a0be able to move the shots around to time\u00a0the pauses between sentences, giving the\u00a0viewer a second to take it all in, and\u00a0allowing for more complicated transitions if\u00a0necessary.<\/p>\n

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The title card gets animated first, with our\u00a0signature coloured blocks overlapping to\u00a0house the title. I follow the storyboard, using\u00a0the assets and voiceover for each shot. I\u00a0square off the animation by adding the end\u00a0card that finishes all our Totara Academy\u00a0video content, for consistency.<\/p>\n

6. Internal review<\/h3>\n

We review the animation\u00a0internally, using an online\u00a0feedback tool to anchor the feedback to the\u00a0point in time that it is referring to. No\u00a0ambiguous comments like ‘the thing early\u00a0on’\u00a0or ‘about halfway through’.<\/p>\n

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7. Finishing touches<\/h3>\n

I assess the feedback and make any\u00a0necessary changes. The video is then ready\u00a0to be uploaded to YouTube, to be\u00a0referenced in our courses as an HTML\u00a0block. We use tweaks in the HTML to make\u00a0sure the video responds, and the player\u00a0doesn\u2019t show ‘suggested links’\u00a0at the end of\u00a0the video. We don\u2019t want to lose people to\u00a0cat videos! Here’s an example of a finished animation you’ll find in the Totara Academy.<\/p>\n

Want to see some of Matt’s animations in action? Sign up now for the\u00a0Totara Academy<\/a>\u00a0and explore all of the free content on offer. We’re constantly updating the Academy with new courses, so make sure you check back regularly for the latest content.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>","protected":false},"template":"","tax\/tags":[719,720,806],"tax\/solutions":[778],"tax\/topics":[808],"tax\/industries":[],"tax\/article-types":[1021],"class_list":["post-40483","article","type-article","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/40483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/article"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax\/tags?post=40483"},{"taxonomy":"solution","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax\/solutions?post=40483"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax\/topics?post=40483"},{"taxonomy":"industry-tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax\/industries?post=40483"},{"taxonomy":"article-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.totara.fortyapp.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tax\/article-types?post=40483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}