Kinetic Typography
Overview
Designed and produced a kinetic typography animation inspired by "The Ballad of Hamantha" by Jack Stauber, a song that tells a surreal yet emotional story through imaginative lyrics. The project focused on translating the narrative into motion by combining expressive typography with custom animated visual icons. Using Adobe After Effects, I created dynamic text animations and supporting graphics that emphasized the song's pacing, emotion, and storytelling while maintaining a cohesive visual style. The song follows the tragic story of Hamantha, a girl born with a ham for a head who dreams of becoming a star, making it an ideal piece for exploring narrative-driven motion design.
Project Type: Kinetic Typography / Motion Graphics Animation
Tools: Adobe After Effects, Figma
My Role
This was a solo project where I managed the entire creative process from concept to final export. I interpreted the song's lyrics, designed the visual direction, animated all typography, created custom icons and supporting graphics, synchronized the animation to the music, and refined transitions and timing to produce a polished final piece.
Project Goals & Results
The objective was to create a visually engaging animation that enhanced the storytelling of The Ballad of Hamantha through expressive typography and motion graphics. By pairing animated text with symbolic visual elements, the project aimed to reinforce the song's emotional progression while demonstrating strong motion design and animation principles.
Goals
- Create dynamic typography that reflects the rhythm and emotion of the song
- Design custom visual icons and graphic elements to support the narrative
- Use animation principles such as timing, easing, and pacing to create engaging motion
- Develop a cohesive visual style that complements the surreal nature of the lyrics
- Produce a polished motion graphics project using Adobe After Effects
Results
- Delivered a complete kinetic typography animation from concept through final render
- Created custom animated icons that enhanced key moments within the song's story
- Produced expressive text animations that reinforced the emotional impact and pacing of the lyrics
- Demonstrated proficiency in Adobe After Effects through typography animation, motion graphics, and visual storytelling
- Created a portfolio-ready project that showcases creative interpretation, composition, and narrative-driven motion design
Process
Audio & Lyric Preparation
I began by selecting the audio track, "The Ballad of Hamantha" by Jack Stauber, and gathering the complete lyrics. I synchronized the lyrics with the audio to establish accurate timing for each line, creating the foundation for the animation and ensuring that every text transition matched the rhythm and pacing of the song.
Storyboarding
Before animating, I created a storyboard to map out the visual flow of the video. This allowed me to plan text layouts, determine when supporting icons or visual effects would appear, and decide which animation styles would best reinforce the emotion and storytelling of each section. Planning these elements in advance helped create a cohesive visual narrative and streamlined the production process.
Asset Creation
Using Figma, I designed custom icons and graphic elements that complemented the lyrics and surreal themes of the song. These assets were created with a consistent visual style so they would integrate naturally with the typography throughout the animation.
Animation
Once the assets were complete, I imported everything into Adobe After Effects and began animating the project. I created dynamic typography animations, incorporated the custom icons, and added supporting visual effects, such as animated rain, to enhance the mood and emphasize important moments in the story. Careful attention was given to timing, easing, transitions, and composition to ensure the motion felt smooth and engaging.
Timing & Refinement
After completing the initial animation, I reviewed the entire video multiple times to check synchronization between the lyrics, music, and motion graphics. I refined animation timing, adjusted transitions, and polished visual effects to improve pacing and maintain readability throughout the video.
Final Export
Once all animations and timing adjustments were complete, I rendered the finished kinetic typography video. The final project successfully combined expressive typography, custom iconography, and motion graphics to create a polished animation that enhanced the storytelling of The Ballad of Hamantha while demonstrating proficiency in Adobe After Effects and motion design principles.
Takeaways
One of the biggest lessons from creating this project was learning how important organization is when working in Adobe After Effects. Since this was my first time using the software and my first experience creating a kinetic typography animation, I quickly realized that keeping compositions, layers, and assets clearly organized was essential. As the project grew in complexity with animated text, icons, and visual effects, maintaining a structured workflow made it much easier to edit, troubleshoot, and refine the animation. This project also taught me how timing, typography, and motion work together to strengthen storytelling, and how even small adjustments to animation can significantly improve readability and emotional impact.
Successes
This project marked my introduction to both Adobe After Effects and kinetic typography, making it one of the most rewarding learning experiences in my portfolio. I'm especially proud of how I was able to combine expressive text animation with custom icons and visual effects to bring The Ballad of Hamantha to life. The final animation successfully captures the rhythm and emotion of the song while maintaining a cohesive visual style. Completing the entire project independently gave me valuable experience in motion graphics, visual storytelling, and animation workflows.
Changes
If I were to revisit this project, I would complete the animation for the rest of the song. Due to project deadline constraints, I was only able to animate part of the song, so I would enjoy expanding the piece into a full-length kinetic typography video. This would allow me to further develop the visual storytelling, introduce additional custom icons and motion graphics, and create a more complete narrative experience.
Contact
I’m always excited to connect and discuss new opportunities, projects, or collaborations. Whether you have a question, a project idea, or want to work together, feel free to reach out!