Guest Spotlight: Jonti Rudd, Curator of the MoGraph Encyclopedia

Jonathan Rudd , Age (31), Where are you based? Shefford, Bedfordshire

Job: Freelance Motion Designer

Hobbies: Walking, making games, Theme Parks, Pub Quizzes, Cinema

Link to portfolio: jontirudd.com

Link to the encyclopedia: jontirudd.com/mograph

Journey in Motion Graphics:

• What sparked your interest in graphic design, and how did your journey begin in the field?

I did not have too much of an interest in specifically graphic design. I was more interested in animation and how objects moved, or how something should move. When I was about 15 I learned to animate with stickmen and was inspired by a lot of stickman animations and fights. Eventually, I found Adobe After Effects and spent a lot of time learning it. I went to university and focused most of my third year in creating games for VR as I wanted to see what else I could use my animation skills for, I learned how to code, and all of the various steps in 3d to get a final render.?

From there I got a job in events production, I moved to another events company, and then moved again to a company that made websites.

• Are there specific life experiences that have significantly influenced your approach to motion graphic design?

I have always wondered where my interest in how stuff moves comes from, and one of the earliest memories I have of this was from watching trains. I was obsessed with Thomas the Tank Engine at an early age, but the thing I found satisfying was watching the wheels and the pistons that made the wheels spin. There was something about how parts would rotate, and other parts moved forwards and backwards and it would all make the wheels round. All the motion together was just satisfying to watch.?

While I was at uni I did a course which was more about broadening your horizons about using digital media, looking at other technologies and seeing how video can be used to enhance them. I did projects to do with live events, VR, elements of game design, and projection mapping. Some of this was not entirely related to motion graphics, but more to how they add to an experience.? All this experience got me a job in an events company and ultimately led me to become part of the NextGen Showcase

Motion Graphic Encyclopedia:

• Running the Motion Graphic Encyclopedia is a remarkable endeavor. What inspired you to create this comprehensive resource, and how do you see it impacting the motion graphics community?

The Motion Graphic Encyclopedia is a culmination of a number of steps I have taken on my own journey in motion graphics.?

I was working for a company a couple of years ago which unfortunately I had to leave. I struggled with writing treatments, at the time I did not have much experience with it due to my first job and the nature of how that operated, my first job was very much an agency whereas my second job was more direct to client. I remember embarrassing myself in a charette (or blue sky meeting or whiteboard meeting) with not being briefed on a project, but not having any contribution to it either because I was put on the spot.?

Upon leaving the company I started a new job and from there I reflected on the previous job and what I had struggled with. I took a course called the Process Of Motion and learned the process of writing a treatment, and all of the missing parts to the work that my previous job had required. I spent a lot of time in the pandemic practicing this, to the point, I made a word document that would write my own briefs, this was before chat GPT existed. After practicing, I came across a problem with how I was responding to my briefs and writing motion scripts.

I had no name for the technique I wanted to use. Everything was abstract, and I was looking at inspiration, thinking ‘I wanna do that!’ but not really understanding why a company or agency was making the decision to use a certain technique in a video. Justifying all the decisions is one of the most important parts of the process. I also found that other motion designers don’t always justify their choices and do it because it looks cool.

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So I made a document that listed every motion graphic technique I had found, with a brief description of what it was and why it should be used and some examples, so that when I was in a situation where I needed to come up with ideas quickly and justify them on the spot, I had it. I think other people have been in the same situation and struggled with the same sort of problem.?

Eventually, when I started freelancing I spoke to a lot of other motion designers about it, I mentioned it in job interviews and noticed that other people were interested and wanted to see the document that I had been writing. I tested it in one of my jobs last year to see if I could use the document to help pitch a technique to show some information and it worked.

When building my website, I saw this as an opportunity. If I release a topic every single week, the resource itself will grow in time and will snowball into a massive library of go-to tricks. It doesn’t have to be loads of information, just enough to get someone or myself started with an idea. If I updated it on a specific day too, it means the audience will get used to that and will expect it at a certain time on a certain day, I once tested this in an office eating bananas at exactly 4 pm, and it caught on, that might sound a little crazy, but really, people like routine.

It's aimed at producers and directors as well as other motion designers as in some cases they have no idea what terminology to use or they fall back on the ‘it looks cool’ reasoning. It bridges that gap between the designer and the producer if that problem arises. It also helps with the whole ‘the client doesn’t know what they want until they have seen it in a situation’?

It gets people to come to my website which has my portfolio on it and builds trust. If lots of people are visiting, then it's likely they might see my reel, and look to think ‘Maybe we should hire Jonti, he knows what he is talking about’.?

As well as all of this from the freelancing perspective, it helps me get in contact with other people, it’s a form of networking as the work shown on the resource is not mine. I take no credit for the videos themselves. It comes from people who are far more talented than me, but it means that I have a reason to compliment them on something they have produced. It helps build that relationship with other motion designers and makes them aware of the fact that their work is embedded on my site and that I am writing about it. It's free publicity for them.?

• Your resource focuses on explaining not just 'what' motion graphic techniques are but also 'why' they matter. Why do you believe it's crucial for designers to understand the reasoning behind the techniques they use?

The why of the why. I think it is crucial because it is all about confidence and trust and looking at the project from an objective standpoint. So much of creative work is subjective, and therefore it becomes hard to really understand what is right and what is wrong. In some cases, there are definitely wrong answers, but in others, they just need further justifications or more information or other elements added.?

I feel there is a large problem with imposter syndrome in motion graphics because of the fact that people will just make choices and the client will nod their head thinking ‘That’s cool yeah let’s go with that!’ And then the person pitching ends up thinking how the heck did I pull that off?! and questioning it all. Justifying that "why" and understanding why their choices work helps the motion graphic designer justify themselves and their confidence.?

• Among the wealth of content in the Motion Graphic Encyclopedia, do you have a favorite article or topic that you found particularly fascinating or enjoyed working on? What makes it stand out for you, and why do you think it's valuable for designers exploring the world of motion graphics?

There have been one or two articles that got quite a lot of traction over the past few months. One of which I never understood why.? My favourite topic is the one about motion graphic guide animations. They feel the most modern and one of the best ways of storytelling I have seen. https://www.jontirudd./post/let-me-be-your-guide

Contributions to the Community:

• In envisioning the Motion Graphic Encyclopedia's role, how do you hope it contributes to the broader motion graphics community? What impact do you aim to achieve with this valuable resource?

I would hope that it spreads and the resource itself becomes something people come to as a form of inspiration, but also just that extra bit of a push to help them go in the right direction.?

Note to the future:

• As the curator of the Motion Graphic Encyclopedia, how do you envision its evolution in the coming years? Are there specific areas or trends in motion graphics that you plan to explore or feature in the future, ensuring the resource stays dynamic and relevant to the ever-evolving landscape of motion design?

I intend for it to keep growing as much as possible. I will keep updating it until I have run out of topics which I doubt will happen for years. There are topics I want to cover including projection mapping and live events techniques, sound and music, and more historical techniques which have been used for years without even knowing!?

Anything you would like to add?

The Mograph encyclopedia came from a weakness I had and from having my confidence chipped away and having to rebuild it. It is a response of being told I am not capable of something when I am fully aware that I can.