The NodeFest 2024 motion design event opened yesterday in Melbourne with this syncopated sequence of jazz-fueled typography by creative director Zoe Crocker and the crew at Sydney studio Never Sit Still.

Zoe Crocker: “The brief we set ourselves for these titles was to visualize the daunting and chaotic R&D journey we go through as motion designers. There is an emotional and mental toll as we progress from chaos to clarity, and the character in our film takes us on that hectic journey towards creative epiphany.
 

“The brief we set ourselves for these titles was to visualize the daunting and chaotic R&D journey we go through as motion designers.”

 
“We believe that music is an important partner to motion and movement so finding the right sound for this piece was so important. For me, there was only one way to accompany the madness of our concept and visuals: jazz.

“To bring the frenzy of visuals to life, we worked with long-time audio collaborators Smith and Western who commissioned jazz saxophonist and composer Scott Langley to write the track, and record outstanding live performances.

“The result is a beautiful anarchy of visuals and sound. A seamless melding of individual contributions. A look and sound that is totally unexpected for the motion design genre.”
 
 

 
Client: The Node

Production: Never Sit Still
Studio Director: Mike Tosetto
Producer: Sharon Lim
CD: Zoe Crocker
Creative Lead: Jonathan Pui
Designer: Jonathan Pui, Supriya Bhonsle, Melany Webster, Sylvia Leo, James Vallance, Max Cao
2D Animator: Jonathan Pui, Supriya Bhonsle, Zoe Crocker, Melany Webster, James Vallance, Howe Tom, Chantelle Micallef, Mulanne Phan, Sylvia Leo, Isabelle Trudgian, Max Cao
3D Animator: Jonathan Pui, Bruno Borio, Howe Tom, Max Cao, Sylvia Leo, Nancy Li

Music/Sound Design: Smith & Western
Composition: Scott Langley
Trumpet: Dane Laboyrie
Trombone: Nigel Crocker
Saxophone: Scott Langley