Storytelling Thoughts From EACG Fest

BLOG

Epic ACG Fest, Stoking Passion for Animated Stories

Storytelling is a powerful tool that mankind has been using for thousands of years. Our brains our wired to comprehend stories. Studies show that we only retain about 10% of what we read the first time on a bulleted list, compared to 70% of what we hear in a story. Be it oral tradition or digital animation, a good story can communicate information, pull at heartstrings, and inspire action.

I recently witnessed animation’s versatile storytelling potential, and was reminded of the spark that initially ignited my passion for animation. Last week I was pleasantly surprised when Eric Ling, who works for the Maeya Cultural Exchange Group, reached out to me on Facebook. He wanted to know if I’d like to be an animation judge, award presenter, and give a short speech at the upcoming Epic ACG Fest in Albany, CA!

As I watched each submission, the effort, time, and love the creators poured into their work was easy to see. It takes monumental effort to bring a world to life in an animation. One has to study physical movements, human behavior, and a myriad of other subjects in order to make their work believable. Animations take a long time to create. Often, teams of people spend months or even years creating the final product. Most of all, animation takes passion. The immense effort and long hours cause even experienced artists to burn out if they overexert themselves. Being passionate about animation helps keep one’s flame alight during challenging times. But that’s not all the festival submitees possess.

Making an animation is one thing. Showing to the world requires something more. Most people would agree that a singer taking the stage to serenade in a lounge or melt faces in an arena is courageous. Most people would also agree that an actor or actress pouring their heart out on stage or screen takes courage. Well, animation requires similar courage to release one’s work to the world, often to the harshest critics of internet comment boards. I saw that courage in all the people who made themselves vulnerable in order to share their work, learn from the feedback they received, and grow as artists and individuals.

At time of writing, the awards have yet to be handed out. So, who knows how this story will end? If you want to find out for yourself, check out the festival for yourself! You can learn more and buy tickets at: http://eacgfest.org/Home.html

How To Make an Inspirational Website & Be Found Faster

A website is frequently a person’s first impression of a business. At its best, your website could be the ultimate target audience magnet, creating loyalty to your brand and bringing your audience to you in droves.

Motion Graphics or Animation, Why Should I Care?

For our purposes, the easiest way to decide if you need an animation or motion graphic is to decide if you’re telling a story or giving life to something normally seen as dull.

Animation Trends on How to Really Catch Their Eye

Expert animation artists can utilize animation trends that enhance the simplicity, realism, and splash of the design trends by letting technology do more of the work.

Top 3 Animation Trends That Grab More Attention

How do you get people to stay on your website once they land there? You capture their attention. There are many ways to create reader engagement – some more annoying than others. Currently, graphic animations are proving to be one of the most popular attention-grabbing devices.

How to Get the Most Punch from Your Animation

If you’re going to go to the effort and expense of creating a quality animation, why not implement it to give your website the biggest boost possible? To get the biggest bang out of your animation, pay attention to its quality, location, and attributes.

10 Questions for Getting the Most from Animations

Animations on your website is a powerful way to attract and inform viewers – provided it’s done right. Before starting on an animation project, there are ten questions you need to answer so that you can get the best results from the final product.

Four Advantages of Animation Over Live Video

These days, most people understand the power of video in marketing. What many people miss is that an animated video is frequently far more impactful than a live one. Consider these four advantages animation provide:

Motion Graphics to Promote Who You are to Your Clients

The world is full of people. You cannot – nor do you want to – do business with all of them. Trying to fit in with everyone is not only exhausting and a waste of time, it destroys your credibility. If you say whatever it takes to make the sale, someone will catch you in a contradiction.

Great Storytelling with Animation Can Make Your Marketing

When looking for marketing advice, the word “storytelling” seems to pop up everywhere. What is so special about a story that the idea seems to have taken over the world of marketing? Advances in science and the cave man brain.

Debunking 7 Myths About Motion Graphics Videos

Despite its popularity, there are a lot of misconceptions about Motion Graphics Videos and their effectiveness. So, I want to address some of the ones I often hear.

Working with Karl and his team was fantastic! He managed the production process on his side effectively and was extremely prompt with communication and delivery.

Harry Litvack

Owner, Lit Digital Media

One of the great things people should know about Karl is that he is a person of integrity and completely focuses on providing as much value for others as possible.

Clifton Mbanugo

Owner, Clifton Creative Web

Get Started

Boost your clients' online marketing ROI with Animated Videos!

Schedule a Call

Phone

(925) 998-4116

Our Team

Squash and Stretch Production's team consists of numerous local writers, graphic and visual designers, other animated video artists and designers, voice over artists, and audio designers. We can put together a team to fit almost any project, working in almost any visual style. If you have an idea for a motion graphics video, odds are we can make for you on time and on budget.

You'll love the results!