Motion Graphics | Tinsel Town News Now

10857247_10152825877204426_8592689807047272827_o_BW — Rupa Rathod

Nothing is more exciting for a music fan than getting tickets to see your favorite artist live in concert. The feeling of your body vibrating to the bass of a beloved song in a giant arena is simply euphoric. However, when enjoying the experience, it is easy to forget how many people it took to make the concert so incredible. Not only is there the talent, dancers, and band that one can see, there are also many that have worked tirelessly behind-the-scenes. Rupa Rathod is one of those people. As an industry leading motion graphics designer, the intricate visuals displayed on the giant screens of the show are her masterpieces.

Having worked with several iconic musicians, such as Shania Twain and Kylie Minogue, Rathod’s work has been seen and appreciated on a global scale. She loves what she does, not only working alongside some of the world’s biggest stars, but also being able to merge her passions for music and design.

“Everything catches my eye; shapes, colors, photography, art and perspective, they’re all influences. I’m constantly working out how to turn anything I see into something graphical, abstract and moving. I’m very practical and hands on so my interest in design and art have always been very much a part of who I am,” said Rathod.

Two years ago, Rathod saw great success with her work on the “Wild, Wild World Tour” for the popular band Bastille. The global tour allowed the motion graphics artist to work closely with award-winning Creative Director, Rob Sinclair, band management, and the band themselves to create and produce the screen content with LA based production company and studio, Blink.

“I developed a good working relationship with the band. It’s the notion that you understand their world and so you have their trust on something so important to them. It’s what grounds me the most during these projects and what I aspire to always have with artists and bands,” Rathod described.

Loosely set in a slightly playful dystopian world, the vision for the tour visuals was very specific but also required a lot of collaborative development. The brief for this tour was the notion that big brother was watching and controlling you, set in a future where the whole world was ruled by a fictional corporation, World Wide Communications. Rathod’s understanding of Sinclair and the band’s vision was trusted by the entire design team instantly.

“It’s unusual for a tour, especially with an indie band to have such a strong narrative, so I was sold from the moment I read the concept. In my mind, there was no end to the amount of scenarios that could be created in this dystopian world. I was completely submerged in this environment and pitching my designs, having them approved and then being able to develop all the ideas into real working visuals was hugely rewarding,” said Rathod.

Copy of L1002960 — Shot from Bastille “Wild, Wild World Tour” stage

On a tour such as Bastille’s, the set design is always the beginning of the process. Rathod and her team began producing strong concepts and inspirational references. Once the setlist was completed, Rathod got to work.

As Producer, her role was to develop the initial brief, and oversee and direct the team of animators and visual artists. This involved digging a bit deeper into the references and going back with an initial design. Once her approach was approved, she collaborated Blink’s team of motion graphics artists to bring the visuals to life.

As she is so hands on when it comes to the visual aspect of the production, Rathod is ideally placed to see the project through the final stages of rehearsals. For her, it all comes together when she gets into a production rehearsal with the full band, lighting and all departments working together. As a creator of visual content, her job isn’t just to make great visuals, it’s to create content that’s cohesive with a huge live concert spectacle. Some of the best video moments in the show were not conceived until this rehearsal block, so a big part of Rathod’s job was turning ideas around sometimes overnight to test them on screen the next day. This also allowed her to form a good relationship with the band.

Rupa_Kyle_AppleMusic_Bastille — Rupa Rathod and Kyle J Simmons, keyboard player of Bastille

“I worked with Rupa on the “Wild World” world tour across 2016 and 2017, where she was in charge of creating all the video content for our live show. Her creative abilities are second to none and to be able to interact with her on an artistic level was a hugely fulfilling experience. We hope to use her again and again during the next touring cycles. She is without doubt one of the best in the industry at what she does, quite apart from being one of the nicest,” said Dan Smith, the lead singer of Bastille.

Rathod stayed on this tour for the first few shows, which allowed two weeks to tweak and change content prior to the band’s first big night at the O2 in London. Seeing the fans’ responses from her work made the entire experience even more worth it.

“The reaction from fans as well as reviews acknowledged the visuals I produced and was a welcome recognition of how important the visuals are to the overall concert experience. It’s a completely multi-sensory experience and seeing it through from start to finish is always the most rewarding part. It’s always such a priceless moment when you see it go live, a feeling that I don’t think will ever leave me,” she concluded.

To stay up-to-date with Rathod’s work at Blink Inc., check out their website.

Top Photo: Rupa Rathod, Tom Colbourne and Steve Price working on Bastille Tour

1150136_10151813976276153_1984082562_n — Ana Lossada

Ana Lossada, a leading motion graphics designer, loves what she does. She doesn’t wake up with that feeling most know all too well on Monday mornings. She doesn’t feel her week is a monotonous blur until Friday night. She is eager to go into work every day. For her, every day is different, and she has the ability to share her gift with the entire world.

Lossada’s work has impressed international audiences. When working with The Walking Dead, Lossada worked on The Journey So Far, a two-hour special summarizing the first six seaons of the show, as well as the virtual reality experience, a 360 teaser for their upcoming season. She captured the feelings of the main character of Netflix’s Atypical, a teenager with Asperger’s syndrome, with her work on the opening for the show. Working with Disney Jr on the spots Be Inspired with The Lion Guard and Be Your Best with Miles, she worked to encourage young kids to live healthy, active, lifestyles. Her career has been formidable, and nd now, her most recent work on the opening sequence Disney’s new series Raven’s Home, based off the old classic That’s So Raven, has generated quite a lot of attention.

“Disney Channel wanted the main title for their new upcoming show to be as catchy as the old one. As a fan of the old show, I could not say no,” said Lossada.

Raven’s Home is Disney Channel’s new spinoff from their major hit TV series in 2003. Lossada was in charge of creating the live action set that was used for the main title. She had to plan how the talent could interact with the set as well as how they could place the talent next to their names as they appear in the opening credits. She created several different mock-ups for the set using 3D software (Cinema 4D and Octane Render) as well as Adobe After Effects. The selected set had a LED wall that displays animated graphics that Lossada designed and animated herself. During post-production, she oversaw the selection of typography and animation by the interns, as well as adding visual effects to certain shots that needed it.

“Ana’s graphics and visual effects knowledge made her an instant asset to our design team and clientele. Her willingness to constantly go above and beyond her normal call of duty has shown through all of the projects that she’s worked on throughout her tenure with us. Not only has she been a key member of our post-production process, but has now been working with our live-action productions team, lending her talents to assist in shoots and constantly growing in all areas of television and film production. You just know that if she’s involved you don’t have to worry about her giving 110 per cent and whatever is assigned will be done thoroughly and to the best of her ability. You simply can’t ask for much more than that with any employee and we are so thrilled she’s a part of our team,” Mike Greggs, who worked alongside Lossada on the project.

The main title was released in July of this year, and has already reached over 1.2 million views on YouTube alone, as well as being shared through social media and various websites. It has been featured in Buzzfeed, E! Online, and TV Guide, to name a few, with articles praising the opening for its creativity and the way it honors the original content.

As a motion graphics designer, it is not often that Lossada actually gets to go to a set, despite being a vital part of the filmmaking process. More often, she works behind the screen of a computer. However, with the Raven’s Home opening, she worked on the pre-production and production side. Everyone she worked with had the opportunity to see what she was capable of, and just how well-rounded she is for any task. All of her skills were put to use, including designing, illustrating, animating, and even producing. She put everything she had into this project to ensure it resulted in perfection, and it did.

“I rarely get to go to sets, because I usually can’t due to work, but they needed extra help. While on set, I was able to aid with live-animation for the LED wall, and also helped out on the production to ensure it ran smoothly,” she said.

Lossada’s design and visual effects knowledge made her an instant asset to the design team and clientele. Her willingness to constantly go above and beyond her normal call of duty has shown through all of the projects that she has worked on. Not only is she a key member of Big Machine’s post-production process, but she has now been working with their live-action production team, lending her talents to assist in shoots and constantly growing in all areas of television and film production.

“I’d suggest to students entering the creative industry, they should open their expertise not only to design, but conceptual thinking and execution skills. Especially today, where there is always something new (interactive for example), they need to be able to adapt fairly quickly to the evolving technology and software updates, and be able to execute an idea based on the rising technology,” said Lossada.

Watch Lossada’s outstanding work in the Raven’s Home opener here, and watch Raven’s Home on the Disney channel to see it on a regular basis.

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