Mograph Techniques: Creating a Sports Bumper

Learn how to create a dynamic ESPN-style animated graphic using CINEMA 4D and After Effects.

How do motion graphics artists create those polished animated graphics for channels like ESPN on such short deadlines? They turn to the high-powered toolset in CINEMA 4D. In this course, EJ Hassenfratz shows you how to use those same tools to create your own dynamic, high-energy sports bumper. Learn how to model the basic elements in C4D and add robotic-style movement with the Mograph module, and take a logo from Adobe Illustrator and turn it into a smart, beveled 3D project. Then EJ shows how to combine it all in After Effects, along with a few special effects. This workflow mimics a real post-production environment and allows a more intermediate look at the mograph module and an opportunity to take your motion graphics knowledge to the next level.

Introduction

• Welcome
• Using the exercise files
• Choosing the right version of CINEMA 4D

1. Exploration of Sports Design

• Exploring sports-design trends
• Examining goals for the project

2. Modeling Scene Elements

• Scene overview
• Modeling support structures using Lathe NURBS
• Modeling tube pieces with Sweep NURBS
• Making the turbine element using hard surface modeling
• Placing elements together in the scene

3. Creating a Logo Capsule

• Modeling the panel piece
• Cloning the panel and adding Sweep NURBS
• Animating the panel opening using the Shader effector
• Modeling caps using Loft NURBS and Symmetry

4. Adding a Show Logo

• Importing the logo from Illustrator using ArtSmart 2 and Extrude Object
• Adding bevel accents using splines and sweeps
• Adding LED texture to text caps

5. Creating and Applying Textures

• Texturing the capsule and animating the text
• Creating and applying the hexagon textures

6. Animating the Scene

• Animating the turbines using the Time effector
• Animate the capsule movement
• Adding and animating a camera

7. Lighting the Scene

• Adding an overhead light with bounce
• Adding blue lights
• Adding an HDRI sky

8. Setting Up for Rendering

• Adding compositing tags and multipass settings
• Adding finishing touches and rendering

9. Compositing in After Effects

• Importing assets and compositing passes in After Effects
• Compositing object buffers
• Adding optical flares with the Video Copilot Optical Flares plugin
• Add motion blur using the MoBlur plugin
• Color correcting the scene

Conclusion

• Next steps