Motion Graphics Curriculum

This lesson introduces the After Effects for Motion Graphics module, where students begin building the essential skills used in real client and studio work, including text animation, greenscreen keying, stabilization, tracking, and integrating graphics with video. Students will also set up a free Pexels account so they can access unique footage for assignments and start creating portfolio-ready motion graphics projects.

This lesson introduces transitions in After Effects, showing students how to move creatively from one shot or scene to another using wipes, pans, zooms, shapes, glitches, parallax, 3D moves, textures, particles, and more. Students will study a wide range of transition techniques and then create five original transition sequences using different styles.

This lesson introduces color control in After Effects, covering the difference between color correction and color grading while teaching students how to use Lumetri Color to adjust exposure, white balance, contrast, LUTs, and stylized looks. Students will experiment with provided footage to practice building a clean color-correction workflow and create more polished, professional-looking motion graphics projects.

This lesson introduces collages in motion graphics, showing students how to combine images, videos, tiles, camera movement, 3D space, scripts, and particle systems to tell richer visual stories in a short amount of time. Students will practice building and animating their own collage using custom visuals, tile systems, camera moves, and motion techniques inside After Effects.

This lesson introduces chroma keying in After Effects, showing students how to remove green or blue screen backgrounds and composite footage, graphics, and environments together using tools like Keylight. Students will practice creating clean keys in common real-world scenarios, including low-resolution footage, fine hair, motion blur, shallow focus, inconsistent backgrounds, and screen replacements.

This lesson teaches students how to bring still images to life using parallax, creating the illusion of depth by separating artwork into layers and moving closer objects faster than those farther away. Students will practice both the Null Method and Camera Method, then build their own layered parallax animation for their portfolio.

This lesson introduces tracking in After Effects, showing students how to extract motion, rotation, scale, and camera movement from live-action footage so graphics feel naturally integrated into the scene. Students will practice using Track Motion, Boris FX Mocha, Corner Pin, the Smoother panel, and Camera Tracking to attach text, screens, effects, and 3D-style elements to moving footage.

This lesson gives students a broader look at advanced After Effects effects and popular third-party tools used throughout the motion graphics industry, including simulation effects, VR tools, Magic Bullet, Trapcode, Video Copilot, Plexus, and RSMB. While there is no formal assignment, students are encouraged to explore the project file as a reference library and start identifying which tools may become useful in their own creative workflow.

This lesson introduces masking in After Effects as one of the most essential motion graphics techniques for hiding, revealing, compositing, and placing graphics or effects into live-action footage. Students will practice practical masking, rotoscoping, Auto-Trace, Roto Brush, Refine Edge, and tracking-based workflows to solve real creative challenges in post-production.

This portfolio lesson challenges students to create a 15–20 second tourism campaign ad using real footage and images, while applying the key After Effects skills from the module like color control, tracking, masking, stabilization, and transitions. Students can also push the project further by adding a collage or parallax shot, giving them a polished portfolio piece that shows they can combine multiple techniques into a professional-looking motion graphics project.

This lesson introduces stabilization in After Effects, showing students how to smooth shaky footage, remove unwanted camera movement, repair motion blur or rolling shutter issues, and prepare footage for cleaner motion graphics work. Students will practice using Stabilize Motion, Warp Stabilizer, Camera-Shake Deblur, Rolling Shutter Repair, and even add camera shake back in when it helps create more energy.

This lesson introduces 3 different After Effects kits:

The Award Ceremony Kit is a customizable After Effects template designed to help students quickly create elegant event graphics.

The Ultimate Maps Kit is a powerful template system that helps students quickly create animated maps with countries, states, cities, routes, markers and more. 

The Whiteboard Starter Kit helps students create polished whiteboard-style animations.

This lesson introduces the Intro to Cinema 4D module, where students begin learning the essential tools and workflow needed to create commercial, brand-focused motion graphics projects. Students will build on their animation foundation while learning how to navigate Cinema 4D and prepare for more polished, professional demo reel work.

This lesson introduces lighting in Cinema 4D, showing students how different light types, shadows, environmental objects, global illumination, visible light, caustics, and lighting setups can shape the mood and clarity of a scene. Students will practice lighting a smartphone, an animated fruit punch scene, and a complex junkyard environment to better understand how lighting supports both realism and stylized motion graphics.

This lesson gives students a guided tour of the Cinema 4D interface, helping them understand the viewport, menus, Object Manager, Attribute Manager, timeline, materials, tools, modes, layers, and project tabs. Students will get comfortable navigating the software layout so the upcoming modeling, animation, and motion graphics lessons feel much easier to follow.

This lesson introduces constraints in Cinema 4D, showing students how to bind objects to other objects, paths, splines, axes, and animated controls to create more efficient and believable motion. Students will practice constraint tags, Align to Path, Align to Spline, and IK-Spline setups so they can build smarter animation systems for future motion graphics projects.

This lesson walks students through the key Cinema 4D preferences and settings, including interface behavior, navigation, viewport quality, saving, auto-save, plugins, units, memory, materials, assets, and import/export options. Students will learn how to adjust the software to fit their workflow and use this lesson as a reference as they become more comfortable working in Cinema 4D.

This three-part rigging lesson introduces students to joints, IK/FK systems, constraints, binding, weight painting, and Cinema 4D’s character rig builders. Students will practice rigging hard-surface objects, organic models, characters, vehicles, and optional complex machinery so they can build smarter animation controls for future motion graphics projects.

This lesson teaches students how to navigate the Cinema 4D viewport, including moving, orbiting, zooming, using perspective and orthographic views, changing panel layouts, and configuring viewport display settings. Students will practice these navigation tools so they can move comfortably through 3D space and work more efficiently in future Cinema 4D lessons.

This three-part animation lesson teaches students how to animate in Cinema 4D using keyframes, frame rate, the timeline, Dope Sheet, F-Curve Editor, and interpolation controls to create more believable motion. Students will also explore Mixamo motion capture workflows, learning how to auto-rig characters, apply mocap animation, import it back into Cinema 4D, and add controls for faster character animation.

This lesson teaches students how to select, organize, group, hide, solo, combine, and manage objects inside Cinema 4D’s viewport and Object Manager. Students will also explore parent-child relationships and useful tags, giving them a stronger foundation for building clean, organized 3D scenes.

This lesson introduces cameras in Cinema 4D, showing students how to plan shots, use camera types and rigs, adjust focal length, depth of field, lens effects, composition guides, and create camera cuts with the Stage object. Students will practice animating cameras and building storyboard-driven shot sequences so their 3D motion graphics feel more cinematic and professionally directed.

This lesson teaches students how to transform objects in Cinema 4D by moving, rotating, scaling, duplicating, arranging, randomizing, placing, and projecting objects within a 3D scene. Students will also learn how axis controls, coordinates, freeze transformations, and dynamic placement tools help create cleaner, more flexible motion graphics workflows.

This lesson introduces Cinema 4D’s MoGraph toolset, showing students how to use cloners, effectors, fields, matrices, fractures, tracers, MoSplines, MoInstances, MoExtrude, and PolyFX to create dynamic multi-object animations and abstract motion graphics. Students will experiment with the provided project files to better understand how MoGraph can generate complex, flexible visuals quickly while still being applied to real client-focused work.

This three-part modeling lesson introduces students to the core Cinema 4D modeling workflows, including hard-surface modeling, organic sculpting, spline creation, and generator-based geometry. Students will practice building a planetary rover, sculpting terrain and character details, and using splines and generators to create more complex 3D objects for motion graphics projects.

This three-part dynamics lesson introduces students to Cinema 4D’s physics-based animation tools, including rigid bodies, soft bodies, cloth, rope, emitters, forces, Voronoi fractures, Pyro, connectors, springs, and motors. Students will experiment with simulations like bowling pins, bouncing soft bodies, cloth, particles, destruction, vehicles, and bobbleheads to understand how dynamics can create realistic motion that would be difficult to animate by hand.

This lesson introduces deformers in Cinema 4D, showing students how to non-destructively bend, twist, stretch, melt, shatter, wrap, displace, and reshape objects or splines in creative ways. Students will practice applying different deformers to understand how they can speed up modeling, enhance animation, and add more dynamic motion graphics effects to their projects.

This three-part rendering lesson introduces students to Cinema 4D’s rendering workflow, including viewport previews, the Picture Viewer, Render Queue, render settings, image sequences, multi-passes, transparency, anti-aliasing, motion blur, global illumination, Sketch & Toon, and render effects. Students will also learn practical production considerations like render times, cloud render farms, and third-party render engines so they can make smarter creative and technical decisions when finishing their motion graphics projects.

This lesson introduces materials in Cinema 4D, showing students how shaders control the color, texture, reflectivity, transparency, glow, depth, and overall visual style of 3D objects. Students will practice creating and applying materials in a fish bowl scene while learning how to use the Material Manager, Material Editor, and Asset Browser to build more polished and believable renders.

This lesson teaches students how to composite Cinema 4D renders in After Effects using multi-passes, EXR files, alpha channels, motion vector passes, Cineware, and exported 3D camera/null data. Students will also complete a final Cinema 4D portfolio project by creating a short product-focused animation that combines modeling, materials, lighting, animation, rendering, and compositing into one polished piece.

This lesson teaches students how to texture objects in Cinema 4D using projection mapping, UV unwrapping, and BodyPaint 3D. Students will practice applying images to objects, creating clean UV layouts, and painting directly onto 3D models so their scenes feel more detailed, customized, and production-ready.

This lesson introduces the Mixed-Media Motion Graphics module, where students begin combining 2D and 3D animation skills while also developing the creative and professional soft skills needed for client work. Students will explore concept-driven design, 3D-to-After Effects workflows, abstract animation, data visualization, infographics, and portfolio-focused mixed-media projects.

This lesson challenges students to create abstract tour visuals inspired by music, using 2D, 3D, or mixed-media techniques to build short, eye-catching portfolio clips. Students will study sample concert visuals and Cinema 4D project files, then experiment with tools like displacement, MoGraph, fields, forces, and simulations to create visuals driven more by feeling, rhythm, and mood than traditional storytelling.

This lesson teaches students how to build motion graphics projects from a strong concept, showing how abstract ideas, visual themes, references, and creative constraints guide the final design and animation style. Students will study real project examples to understand how professional motion graphics artists turn central ideas into clear, memorable, and client-ready visuals.

This lesson introduces data visualization as a practical and valuable motion graphics skill, showing students how charts, maps, interfaces, numbers, and abstract data can be transformed into engaging animated visuals. Students will study professional examples, then create two short data-driven animations using provided Illustrator assets in After Effects, Cinema 4D, or both.

This lesson teaches students how to move 3D data from Cinema 4D into After Effects using Cineware, camera data, nulls, baked animation, passes, masks, and pre-rendered sequences. Students will study real mixed-media workflows and practice combining 3D renders with flexible 2D elements so they can make client-friendly changes faster and create more polished composite animations.

This portfolio lesson challenges students to create a 10–15 second mixed-media product commercial using Cinema 4D and After Effects. Students will choose a product, highlight key features, animate cameras or objects, render passes, composite labels and effects, and output a polished commercial-style portfolio piece.

This lesson teaches students how to blend 2D and 3D styles by using Cinema 4D tools like Sketch & Toon, flat materials, alpha textures, layered scenes, and After Effects compositing to create a cohesive illustrated look. Students will study professional mixed-media examples, then create their own portfolio-ready piece by making a 3D object fit believably inside a 2D environment.

This lesson introduces 3 different After Effects kits:

The Neon Studio Kit is a template for creating glowing neon signs from text or images using either native 2D tools or a 3D Element 3D workflow.

The Phone Gestures Kit is used to create polished smartphone animations, app demos, text conversations, social media screens, keyboards, and cinematic phone moves.

The Storybook Scenes Kit helps students quickly turn images and text into dynamic visual stories using pre-built 2D and 3D scene structures.

This lesson introduces the Advanced Motion Graphics module, where students begin a capstone cinematic title sequence project by following a professional motion graphics pipeline from concept to final output. Students will learn how each stage—ideation, storyboards, styleframes, asset building, animation, rendering, compositing, sound design, and formatting—works together to create a polished portfolio piece.

This lesson focuses on the animation stage of the title sequence pipeline, where students bring their scenes to life through object animation, camera movement, transitions, procedural effects, and timing choices. Students will use their storyboard as a guide while applying motion principles, reference material, and graph editor refinements to create a sequence that feels dynamic, polished, and engaging.

This lesson guides students through the ideation stage of their cinematic title sequence project, helping them brainstorm a fictional film or show concept, gather references, and explore visual directions. Students will study common title sequence formats, watch a real brainstorming process, and use the provided idea template to develop a concept they can carry into the next stage of production.

This lesson walks students through preparing their finished Cinema 4D scenes for rendering by reviewing scene elements, environments, lighting, camera settings, render settings, passes, and output formats. Students will learn how to set up image sequences and render passes for compositing, while also considering render time, quality, file organization, and renderfarm options.

This lesson teaches students how to turn their title sequence concept into a clear storyboard that acts as the blueprint for the rest of the project. Students will learn how to use a professional storyboard template, create rough thumbnails, refine panels, organize shot information, and export their boards as a clean PDF for review.

AThis lesson teaches students how to composite their rendered 3D sequences in After Effects by importing image sequences, render passes, 3D data, and any added 2D elements. Students will fine-tune color, enhance passes, add effects, make edits, and prerender their work so the visual side of their title sequence feels polished and ready for sound design.

This lesson teaches students how to create styleframes, which are polished still images that prove the visual direction, tone, and technical approach of their title sequence before full production begins. Students will study professional examples, explore style choices and technical challenges, then create two different styleframes from their storyboard to test what look works best.

This two-part lesson introduces sound design for motion graphics, covering the basics of Adobe Audition, recording and editing audio, working with voiceover, music, sound effects, and exporting clean audio for animation projects. Students will then apply sound design to their title sequence by choosing a soundtrack, adding optional sound effects, editing clips to match the visuals, and mixing everything so the final piece feels more polished and emotionally engaging.

This lesson walks students through the asset-building stage of the motion graphics pipeline, where they create or gather the 2D and 3D elements needed to bring their storyboard and styleframes to life. Students will study real project examples, plan which assets belong in Photoshop, Illustrator, Cinema 4D, or After Effects, and begin building the raw materials for their title sequence before moving into scene assembly.

This lesson shows students how to finalize their title sequence by working through the post-production checklist, including post-effects, prerendering, quality control, and final export. Students will learn how to check for visual or technical errors, choose the right render format, use Adobe Media Encoder, and output a polished portfolio-ready video.

This lesson moves students into the scene setup stage, where they arrange their finished assets into the world of their title sequence and prepare everything for animation. Students will build out their 3D scenes, apply materials and lighting, plan for 2D elements, and rig or constrain anything that needs to move before the animation process begins.

This final lesson helps students understand how to keep building their motion graphics portfolio after completing the curriculum, using the professional pipeline they practiced throughout the module. Students will explore different portfolio directions, including marketing videos, title sequences, title packages, maps, animated infographics, logo animations, and raw skill pieces, while learning to treat their body of work as a long-term creative catalog.