The Top Trends in Motion & Visual Design For 2021
…and how to use them in your digital strategy this year!
If there’s one thing we learned this past year, it’s that creativity never stops. We can always find new ways to do everyday things and animation, motion and graphic design are no exception. This year more than ever before, these three visual disciplines have become even more powerful tools when it comes to unforgettable storytelling and captivating marketing campaigns. Elevating a simple brand story into a visual experience your audience can’t stop thinking about, but where do we start?
We’ve brought together all of that creative goodness to one place as we present to you our top trends for Motion and Visual Design in 2021.
Overview
- 3D Design
- Nature Elements
- Vivid Colour Schemes
- Kinetic Typography
- Retro with Grainy Texture
- Seamless Transitions
Make It Tangible with 3D Design
One of the trends that is sure to shape 2021 is making your designs appear tangible with 3D elements. Already on a steady rise for the last couple of years and certainly showing no signs of stopping, 3D design is sure to be capturing your audience’s attention in the upcoming year. With 3D design elements you can bring your audience closer to the action and allow them to get up close and personal with your brand or product.
<vimeo Yanga https://vimeo.com/370300282>
3D animations are great for storytelling. You can tell your brand story, show your product’s best features, or explain complex concepts by creating animations on a tiny 3D island composition.
To increase the usefulness of your video, make sure you understand your target audiences’ needs and what their position/place in the buyer journey is before creating your animation.
Adding Nature’s Beauty to Motion and Visual Designs
Like seen in Yanga’s video above, the use of botanic and organic material in design is increasing in popularity. Elements like plants, animals, flowers, seeds and basically, anything that’s alive — can be implemented in your design. We see this a lot in simple fine line designs. It works perfectly in your marketing strategy when promoting organic products or brands on social media.
What’s great about these elements, is that it works surprisingly well with a variety of colour schemes. Soft designs can be created with faded colours like lighter green or mauve. To create a subtropical effect, go with more vivid and saturated colours. You can even implement patterns of wood or the veins of leaves to create texture in your design. You can’t go wrong with a nature theme.
Vivid Colours
Speaking of colours, the vivid colour schemes are becoming more and more apparent. We see this everywhere, like brands updating their logos to more saturated designs. With colour saturation you can make your brand or product stand out, whether it’s with a logo, product design, a new website or your motion design. If this fits your brand, give it a go! Add these vivid colours to your motion designs to grab your audience’s attention and make a lasting impression.
Kinetic Typography
Now when it comes to typography, we see a couple of trends happening here. Most of the trends we see are the ones mentioned above, but applied to typography for motion designs. Think of some cool 3D designs, with loads of texture and colours. You can make your typography look colourful and bold, or even futuristic. It’s up to you.
But the one trend we cannot forget to mention, is kinetic typography. It’s been done before but will only get better from here. Kinetic typography is all about timing and finding the right shapes to place your text in. The important thing here is to create a design that fits with what you want your audience to know and feel.
<vimeo Kinetec Typography https://vimeo.com/419739978/>
Retro style motion graphics with a grainy texture
An old friend is back! Retro-styled motion graphics will be seen all through 2021, complete with matching colour palettes and grainy texture. Retro-inspired trends typically last longer than any other, and for good reason. It’s nice to take a break from this fast moving world. These kinds of designs bring you back to the old, simpler times. And the best part is, is that does not only apply to motion graphics, but other visual designs as well!
<vimeo Retro Style https://vimeo.com/181537175>
Seamless transitions in animation
One trend we love in this list is the use of seamless transitions. These are animated effects in motion that help you create an invisible cut by blurring the passage from one clip to the next. They move fluidly without interruption, pushing attention forward.
You can add seamless transitions by using transitions that match the beginning of the next clip.For example, you can add a tilt or rotation to take the viewer to the next clip smoothly. The same goes for sideways motions, zooming in from a wide shot to a close up or vice versa, morphing the element or applying a fitting colour gradient to let your colours fade into the similar colours of your next clip. This will ensure that your transition is as seamless as possible.
In this next clip you will see a great example of seamless transitions.
