Happy Anniversary Series

The Happy Anniversary Series is a collection of looping animations designed for a private client. The initial scope of work was to create a looping GIF celebrating work anniversaries for each month the company’s employees were assigned to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the course of nine months, our team developed 24 concepts and 10 final looping animations spanning March through December of 2021.

Each month, I made it a point to learn a new skill in Adobe After Effects. My favorite part of the final reel is seeing how far the production quality has come from its humble beginnings in March.

There were a few items we had to keep in mind starting out. The client’s brand standards dictated the shape of the cake and the colors we were allowed to use in the illustrations. Fortunately, their color palette was expansive and their design direction was minimal for the series. However, it was incredibly important to the client that each month portrayed the seasons as accurately as humanly possible. In the initial stages, we spent days researching seasonal fruits, vegetables, and flora in the Farmer’s Almonach until we had a total of 24 concept sketches to pitch. Each concept featured a real cake made from fruits and vegetables that were in season for their corresponding month. The background also featured flora in bloom at that specific point in the year. Once we had our concepts fully fleshed out, the client narrowed the scope until each month had a single course of action.

This series was particularly special to me because it helped me steadily grow as a motion graphics designer. Each month, I made it a point to learn a new skill in Adobe After Effects. From learning a basic rain effect in April to manipulating different warp and light settings to create a dramatic heatwave in June, I was able to expand my toolkit along the way. My favorite part of the final reel is seeing how far the production quality has come from its humble beginnings in March.