Medium

Medium is an American online publishing platform developed by Evan Williams and launched in August 2012. It’s a platform where people can read important, insightful stories on the topics that matter most to them and share ideas with the world.

Research

As a group, we decided to stick with the script presented with the brief: Joan Westenberg's The Death of Critical Thinking Will Kill Us Long Before AI.

The Objective

My objective for this project is to communicate with my teammates, organize and design an explainer video that gets people thinking.

Teammates

Isabella Smith: https://isabellamsmith.com/

Sofia Tea: https://sofiaytea.com/

Script

In the age of viral media, many are losing patience for complex texts.

Sensationalism overwhelms us, fragments our focus, and makes reading feel like an intimidating chore rather than a tool to educate and empower.

Algorithms manipulate the truth and fuel clickbait, distorting genuine conversation.

No system can replace human insight—but we risk abandoning a millennium of valuable comprehension.

Will we let our critical thinking slip away, or choose to protect it?

Concept 1: Traveling Information

“Focus on how important it is how information travels and gets retained. Abstract and literal imagery.”

UPBEAT

BOLD

ENNERGETIC

Designed by: Sofia Tea

Concept 1: Ai Generated Information

“A journey through using an AI generator to demonstrate the overwhelming simplification of thought that’s happening all around us.”

MUTED

SIMPLE

ELEGANT

Designed by: Isabella

Concept 3: Critical Thinking Transforms Us

Abstract design and story telling that communicates how a lack of reading and critical think can transform us and how we think.

ABSTRACT

CALM

BRIGHT

I wanted to create a direction that was bright and attention-grabbing. I wanted to portray education and critical thinking as lighting and stars to convey the importance of it.

Motion Test and Anamatic

KEEPING MOMENTUM

Adding motion tests and style frames to our animatic really helped us communicate with our art director and each other. This allowed us to check timing and pacing, visual appeal, and storytelling.

We also used an AI voice so we could hear where the script was and wasn’t working without spending time in the recording booth.

Final

THE GRAND FINALE

First Pass Animation and Styleframe

Cel animation is done in as many layers as possible. The animation is then added to After Effects to add the lighting. This is MUCH easier than doing it by hand and probably saves 15 hours of work.

To do the book-to-phone shot, I used 3D in After Effects. It's a fairly simple process of creating precomps, parenting all layers to a control null and carefully lining them up.

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