Dear Notebook reader,
We’ve been working in the field of animation and explainer videos for a decade now. Every single day we turn data and information into powerful animated stories. We’ve failed. We’ve succeeded. But most importantly, we’ve learned.
At some point we started to compile all the most important lessons we’ve learned in a little notebook – as a way to get smarter and make sure we didn’t repeat the same mistakes over and over. A few notes quickly became a lot, and this notebook was born.
Basically, the notebook details everything you need to consider when working with explainer videos: lessons learned, insights and dos & don’ts. Based on our own experiences, we wanted to create useful, hands-on advice in a digestible format.
We use the notebook ourselves in our daily work. So this notebook also gives you the opportunity to benefit from our all the lessons we have learned and become a better animator.
Given that our knowledge and experience will keep evolving, so will this notebook. So follow our Instagram for updates.
We hope you enjoy our notebook!
All the best,
The Notebook
on Animation
Hard-earned insights from our notebook
about animation and explainer videos.
Hands-on, honest and condensed.
Get the brief right
The brief is the foundation for any successful animation project. It’s the roadmap that will guide us through the creative process, ensuring we stay on track. By clearly defining the purpose, target audience, and publishing platform of the project, we’re able to make
informed design decisions and create effective visual communication. Don’t let an inadequate brief hold you back – invest the time to get it right; we promise it’ll be worth it.
Trim, trim, trim
An effective explainer video is short, concise and rarely over two minutes long. Although it’s difficult to do, when making an explainer video you need to trim your content so that only the essential information is left, and anything redundant is removed. Keep asking yourself: Is it essential to the story? If not, leave it out. A perfectly trimmed story will be concise, convincing and so much more powerful.
Always define your goal
It’s easy to get excited about creating an explainer video but, before you dive in, take some time to define your end goal. What do you want to achieve with this project? Your goal should guide every aspect of the video – from the information you include and the story you tell, to the style and length of the final product. Without a clear goal, your project will lack direction and is less likely to achieve the desired results.
Story is paramount
You can’t turn a poor story into a great explainer video. No matter how hard you try to add cool, magical and brilliant design, it’ll still be a weak story wearing fancy cosmetics. Even the best design simply can’t rescue failed content. Instead, prioritise your story and ensure it’s compelling and engaging. With a great story as your foundation, you’ll be able to create a video that resonates with your audience.
