Illustration & Visual Narrative - Task 4: Final Project

Name: Caitlin Alina Anthony - ID Nr. 0383177

Module: Illustration & Visual Narrative

Task 4: Animated Illustration with Captions

Quote / Script

"Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

Description of Inspiration

This quote spoke to me as soon as I read it, because I am a firm believer in “You Only Live Once” and so I knew I wanted to do the animation video on this quote. My inspiration flew wide open, I wanted it to be someone who is in their 60s looking back at their life with some regret of what they hadn’t done when they were younger. I wanted to incorporate the boats that the quote speaks on and some adventures like exploring the ocean, nature, etc. I personally took my life as inspiration, I am doing my student exchange but also traveling to new countries in Asia when I can, I even added some of my own photos in the mood board. One photo even made it to the final video.

Mood Board

I wanted to have a simple yet creative art style to my animation, bright colors, lots of sunsets, a very warm color palette. I used a combination of photos from Pinterest and my own photos that I am in.

Storyboard

Rationale

I think I chose this quote because it’s what I live by and see myself within these frames. The animation reflects that, each scene is symbolic of emotion, movement, and quiet transformation. I used minimal illustration and soft motion to emphasize stillness, introspection, and flow. Every element was chosen to visually support the message without overpowering it.

Final Output

Detailed Information

Software:

Adobe Illustrator was used for creating the illustrated elements, Adobe After Effects for animating them, and CapCut for final editing, captions and audio integration. Final converting of MOV to MP4 in Adobe Media Encoder.

Illustration Techniques:

I used all previous methods taught in classes to create my illustrations such as, pen tool, width tool, eclipse tool, gradient, smoother, etc.

Animation Techniques:

I used position keyframes to create movement and flow between frames, as well as the puppet tool to add organic motion to the character.

File Dimensions & Format:

The animation was designed in 1080 x 1920 and exported as a MOV then converted to mp4.

Duration: 20 seconds

Captions: English

Layering:

I decided to name my layers in alphabetical order, so frame 1 was A1 to A22, frame 2 was B1 to B12 etc.

Self Reflection

This project tested both my patience and technical skills, especially troubleshooting Illustrator to After Effects imports. Despite following the instructions from lectures and online websites and videos, the layers weren't recognized correctly, and the artwork appeared black or grouped incorrectly. Troubleshooting this took a lot of time and delayed my workflow, but eventually, I was able to reorganize the file structure and find a workaround. If I had to do it again, I would structure my Illustrator layers more carefully from the beginning to avoid technical issues I ran into during import. I'd also love to explore smoother transitions and maybe use motion blur or depth techniques to elevate the feel.

I learned the importance of organizing layers properly, planning ahead, and adapting when things break (and they did). I'm proud of how I turned frustration into something meaningful and visual. It was also fun to make my own voice over, just my voice did not quite fit the vibe, so I used a voice changer. I really enjoyed this project, I can't choose my favorite out of all 4 projects tho!