What is an Animated Video?

At one point, animated videos were largely made up of the same styles of footage that essentially all cartoons resembled. Over the years, complex animation tactics have come together so that now when you ask, “What is an animated video?” You’re likely to get several different answers that relate to animation style and the various techniques that go into animated video production.

What is Animation?

The key concepts that are of most importance when someone asks, “What is an animated video?” Tend to be related to the style of animation.

Animation is a term used to describe the capture of static images in a sequential format such that they appear to be playing or moving to mimic real world motion. Animations from the early days resembled flip books. In fact, all cartoons once resembled the flip book.

However, today’s animation styles are much more complex and include a lot of technical input. The days of flip book animation are gone. Behold, today’s animations feature various graphics and designs produced using complex computer technology.

Sophisticated animation techniques, such as those used to produce famous programs such as The Simpsons or Toy Story go well-beyond the original strengths of character artists and flip style motion creation. Computer animations are intricate, exciting, and extremely complex compared to the original art.

When is Animated Video Used?

Animated videos are used for a wide variety of purposes in business. Explainer videos often use animations to deliver key concepts and instructions to audience members. These animations can be hand drawn, simulated, or otherwise created.

Sometimes, we see animations used on loading pages to represent some level of interaction on the screen as we wait for a page to load. These types of animations are generally more relaxed but they are important to the overall user experience for your website.

We also see animations used in transitions. These animations include things like computer generated swipes, wipes, or other forms of adjustments taking place on the screen to change a scene or visual. Gradient fades and shrinking are also forms of animations.

Motion graphics are another form of complex animation that can be used to improve user experience on a website. These animations include things like call-to-action buttons and similar conversion elements on the screen.

Types of Animation

There are many types of animations today. While traditional animation involved the creation of frame-by-frame drawings in sequential order with slight adjustments to illustrate movement, the process is much more complex today. Common types of animated video include:

• 2D vector animations
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• 3D animations
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• Stop Motion

To learn more about what an animated video is or for help deciding which style or type of animation is right for you, give Beverly Boy Productions a call today at 888-462-7808!