3-dimensional computer animation is now used extensively in corporate video, essentially to show something which it is not possible to capture with the video camera.

Animation can show:

• the inner workings of a machine or process
• physical events which are invisible, such as microwaves, germs or particles
• a building which has yet to be built
• a product which has yet to be made
• something which is too small, too distant or too dangerous to film

The animator should be provided with as many visual references as possible and probably your corporate ID manual.

CAD or CAD-CAM files may save the animator modelling the object from scratch.

Computer images and live footage can often be blended (composited is the industry term) to give a very realistic result.

Have a look at a sample animation we created for a recent video production for Glasgow City Council.

Next: Editing to Rough Cut >>