Create then Animate: Beginner Workflow in Illustrator & After Effects

Explore a complete workflow from illustration to animation in Adobe Illustrator and After Effects.

If you've been wanting to get into animation, but haven't known where to start, this class is for you.

Have you been hesitant to get into animation because you didn't think you were good enough at drawing, or felt that the software was too intimidating?

What if I told you that you don't even really have to draw to illustrate? And that adding motion to your illustration is achievable, even if you've never opened After Effects before.

Using this winter cabin scene as an example, I'll show you my complete workflow starting from inspiration and planning through illustrating and animating. Here's what's covered:

You'll learn how to:

• find inspiration yet still create a unique piece of work
• organize your ideas into a moodboard
• get ideas out of your head by sketching
• use your sketch as a starting point for illustration
• utilize basic shapes to create an outlined illustration
• use the pen tool to create organic shapes
• color your illustration and add details
• prepare your illustration for animation
• import your illustration into After Effects
• animate an object's position and adjust its motion path
• create masks
• animate colors changing
• animate scale and opacity
• use the wave warp effect to animate smoke
• animate snow (and make it loop!)
• render (export) your animation as a .mov, .mp4, or gif file

Plus loads of tips for working efficiently that will get you started on the right foot. This is the class I needed when I was first getting started in motion design!

I'll show you every step to recreate my wintery scene, but in doing this, every step will teach you something useful that you'll surely come across when creating your own illustrations and animations. Depending on how comfortable you’re feeling, you can follow along with me, or create your own version of a scene that looks a little like mine, or nothing like mine–it’s up to you!

This class is perfect for beginners to Adobe Illustrator and After Effects; no prior experience with either program is necessary. But, if you are already a seasoned artist, this class will help you understand how you can add motion to your work.

If you're interested in getting into motion design this is a perfect first step!

After this class, check out my other classes to keep learning!

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Music credit: Track: Travel With Us — Vendredi [Audio Library Release], Music provided by Audio Library Plus