Swinburne student wins national award for motion graphics
In Summary
- Swinburne student wins Best Student Ident at Node Fest 2017
- Hopes recognition will help her in the digital media industry
- An ident is a short video clip that usually proceeds a program
Swinburne student Jennifer Dudgeon has used retro graphics to win the best student ident category at the national awards for motion graphics and animation, Node Fest.
An ident is a video clip that usually plays a few seconds before a program starts, in this instance it was a short clip that identified Node Fest.
Ms Dudgeon, a digital media design student, was recognised in the category of Best Student Ident for her work titled ‘Pixels’. She says her goal was to convey what Node Fest is all about, connecting motion graphic designers.
“I thought, what better way to show this than through an 8 bit style? I began researching into pixel art and 8 bit style graphics and was loving the 80s retro look,” says Ms Dudgeon.
From there she decided she had the right style for her ident. While researching, she was inspired by the image of a couple silhouetted in front of a city the city skyline.
“This was what really influenced the story of my ident.”
Pixels from Jennifer Dudgeon
Winning the student category gives Ms Dudgeon access to cutting-edge 3D animation software alongside tutorials to master it. Plus a “really cool trophy”.
“I honestly didn’t think that I was going to win. When I was notified that I won, I was ecstatic. I couldn’t believe it!” she says.
Node Idents Supercut 2017 from Node Fest
Swinburne digital media design lecturer James Berrett, says that Ms Dudgeon’s ‘PIXEL’ has a unique visual style with a strong sense of design, as well as a clear narrative that creatively answered the brief.
“Jennifer’s success reflects the quality of student outcomes and teaching in Motion Graphics across the School of Design and in particular in the Digital Media Design course,” he says.
Ms Dudgeon hopes that the recognition of her work at an established festival will give her some backing for when applying for professional roles in the future.
“I was also able to connect with some really great motion graphic designers at the event who currently work professionally and were happy to share tips for a junior in the industry. It was a great experience and I’m really glad I participated in the competition.”