Working in the Visual Effects and Motion Graphics Industry
What does identifying your target audience help you decide when planning a motion graphics project?
It helps determine the style, tone, and content that will best engage and communicate with viewers.
Which After Effects panel shows all your imported files, footage, and assets?
The Project panel.
What’s one reason it’s important to rename your layers in the Timeline panel?
It keeps the project organized and makes editing faster and easier to navigate.
Which tool do you use to draw shapes or paths in After Effects?
The Pen tool or Shape tool.
Which panel do you use to queue and export a composition in After Effects?
The Render Queue panel.
What key factor determines which codec or file format you should use when delivering a video?
How and where the video will be delivered or viewed (e.g., email, broadcast, or social media).
What are two important settings to check when creating a new composition?
Frame rate and resolution (or duration and aspect ratio).
What does pre-composing do to your selected layers?
It groups them into a single composition, simplifying the main timeline and allowing for grouped effects.
What is the difference between point text and paragraph text?
Point text expands in one line; paragraph text wraps within a text box.
What export format is commonly used for high-quality social media videos?
H.264 (MP4).
What pre-production document visually represents how your motion design will unfold shot by shot?
A storyboard or animatic.
Which menu allows you to save, reset, or customize your workspace layout?
The Workspace menu (found under Window > Workspaces).
What’s the difference between blending modes and opacity?
Opacity changes overall transparency; blending modes determine how a layer interacts with layers below it.
How can you animate text without manually creating keyframes?
By applying and adjusting text animation presets.
What is the purpose of using Adobe Media Encoder instead of just the Render Queue?
It allows background rendering, multiple export formats, and more compression options.
What kind of permission is needed to include a recognizable person in your video project?
A model release
What’s the purpose of Media & Disk Cache preferences in After Effects?
To improve performance by storing previews and renders on disk for faster playback.
Which tool allows you to create or edit a mask on a layer?
The Pen tool or Shape tools.
What panel is used to fine-tune effect properties after they’re applied to a layer?
The Effect Controls panel.
Before exporting, what should you check to make sure important visuals aren’t cut off?
The title-safe and action-safe zones.
What’s the difference between public domain and Creative Commons content when using third-party media?
Public domain content is free for any use without restrictions; Creative Commons requires following specific licensing terms (like attribution or non-commercial use).
What’s the difference between composition markers and layer markers?
Composition markers mark points in the entire timeline; layer markers apply only to a specific layer.
What is the render order, and why does it matter when combining multiple effects or layers?
It’s the order After Effects processes layers and effects; it affects how final visuals look and interact.
How do spatial and temporal interpolation affect keyframe animation?
Spatial controls motion path curves in space; temporal controls timing and speed between keyframes.
What’s the difference between lossless and compressed export settings?
Lossless keeps full quality with large files; compressed reduces file size with some quality loss.