NOV Flowback 3D animation

3D Animation

Product Rendering

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Project Description

In our experience, it is often the "simple" projects that require more creative pre-planning. How can you make an easy 3D flythrough look exciting when nothing is really having to be animated? In this 3D flythrough animation we made for NOV, the request was simple: make our customers sit through a minute long video about our product. We don’t want voice over, but we do want it to be informative and, as always, badass.

Challenge accepted.

This story feeds its viewers with swooping 3D camera moves, eye-guiding animated lights, and mouthwatering candy-apple red paint. Half-way through watching this 3D flythrough, you might forget it’s about metal pipes and you might start feeling hungry!

Why having a 3D flythrough animation of your product will make you rich

Even if you have hands-down, objectively THE best, obviously superior product compared to your competitors – you’re barely half way there. Your customers need to see it. They need to instantly understand it and want it. You need to stop them from walking past your booth at a tradeshow or stop them from scrolling past your post on Linkedin. It needs strong visual storytelling. Regardless of your product, customers are expecting to see an efficient, well-made video to make a purchasing decision.

If it’s not in your budget or there’s not enough time to do a full explainer or how-it-works video of your product, that’s okay! Making a 3D flythrough animation is an option that can be equally eye-catching, informative, and necessary. Showing what your product looks like in an interesting, beautiful way like a 3D flythrough helps customers visualize the product in their space and how it will solve their problems. That’s one customer you didn’t have before.

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Step 1: Script & Audio

The beauty of this animation is that the entire story was told without a narrator. This not only saves money on copywriting services and hiring professional voice talent, but also makes for a more efficient story that can be told to a wider audience. Some people don’t or can’t listen to the audio, like when scrolling through social media or when at a noisy trade show. In this case, it was important to the client to hit all of the key selling points even if the person watching couldn’t hear the video at all. Despite this, a script is still an important building block of the animation to help plan the flow of the story.

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Step 2: Storyboard

This frac flowback animation was all about showing each product in the system in an eye-catching way. We create a storyboard to help us determine what goes where, composition, and what the on-screen text should say. This helps us (and let’s be real, sometimes the client too) visualize how the equipment is laid out in practice. This is the step that helps us solve problems with the sequence and design so as to ensure an understandable and efficient story.

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Step 3: Styleframe

A styleframe is what we call a single frame of the animation that is fully rendered and composited. It’s the closest glimpse of what the final animation will look like weeks before we finish it. It’s kind of like cheating, but allows the client to make big changes to the look and feel while the project is still young. This is an especially helpful phase of the project for clients who don’t know what an animatic is (see next step) and think we’re bait-and-switching them with crappy graphics. Don’t worry, it will move like step 4 but look like step 3!

Video poster

Step 4: Animation

4 steps deep and we’re just now making it move! When done right, the setup takes a long time and it’s all downhill from there. This is where execute the plan: tell your story and make your product look awesome! Let me say what you’re all thinking: This does not look very awesome. You’re totally right, not yet! Making this ugly early 90’s looking draft render is just the first step! Giving our clients the opportunity to make big adjustments in this round saves them time and money before it becomes more difficult to change later.

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Step 5: Render and Composit

After the animatic is approved, we click the render button and the video is done. Just kidding, this is a highly time consuming and technical process where art meets science meets religion. Each second of animation is just 24 still frames flashed quickly in sequence. We take all those little render babies and layer them together in what’s called a “composite” or “comp”, it’s like fancy photoshop. Once rendered and comped, even metal pipes can look tasty enough to eat!

Step 6: Send it to the Bank

Play this baby at your trade show and get ready to lose some personal space and see the insides of a lot of people’s gaping mouths. This particular piece meant the sales engineer could spend his days engineering new products instead of sitting on a plane on the way to meet yet another oil and gas tycoon for the day on-location. It meant not exposing the entire company to Covid. It meant the sales calls and the entire sales cycle could be drastically reduced because of a more efficient, visual presentation. Don’t just take our word for it, here it is straight from the client!

" Motion Giraffx is a top-notch vendor to work with. They are quick to respond with creative ideas and really walk you through the creative process with help and resources available to make sure the final product is dynamic and as impressive as possible. We’ve used them for photoshoots, videos, and animations, and each time they have delivered on time and in budget. This team is always available to take my calls, and they truly understand my needs and how to accomplish our goals! "

Kayla Sherer

Measureable Results

Josh Teekell

As our go-to video partner, Motion Giraffx always feels like an extension of our team, consistently exceeding expectations with every project.

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Josh Ulla

By simplifying complex topics into visually appealing content, Motion Giraffx increased our client interactions by 25%.

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Ben Rice

The video's impact was clear; 20-30% more customers approved quotes, feeling confident and trusting in our products.

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Christian Diaz

Cara and her team provided exceptional service, adapting quickly to feedback and consistently meeting our project deadlines.

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Bailey Da Costa

With a tight deadline, Cara delivered a perfect 3D animation, demonstrating outstanding responsiveness and visual expertise.

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Josh Teekell

Finding high-quality 3D animation in Houston is tough, but Cara and her team consistently deliver top-notch video content.

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Chad Cummins

Their ability to turn complex topics into simple, shareable content has made our company and products more relatable and understandable.

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Kayla Scherer

Every project with Motion Giraffx has exceeded our expectations, enhancing our brand's appeal with their creative insights and talented team.

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Ben Durand

Their innovative approach made complex robotic actions clear and engaging, perfectly aligning with our customer's technological needs.

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Jamie Lucas

Our partnership on a complex 3D animation project was perfectly executed, resulting in a collaborative success that thrilled our client.

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Julianna Arnim

Their process from script to storyboard is impeccably managed, providing top-notch visual content that engages and excites our audience.

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Courtney Roberts

Their creativity in video production has consistently brought our projects to life, exceeding expectations with their artistic and technical skills.

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Court Hill

The innovative and detailed animations by Motion Giraffx have made our complex concepts easily accessible and understandable to our audience.

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Chester Moore

Their production for Kingdom Zoo was superb, creating content that stands out on major TV networks like National Geographic and Animal Planet.

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Aleksey Matyushev

Their storytelling through advanced CGI is outstanding, transforming simple concepts into engaging and captivating video narratives.

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Bill Chalmers

Motion Giraffx has a unique ability to make complex air conditioning systems easily understandable through clever animation techniques.

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Daniel Boskind

Their precise 3D renders for our TV show on Motortrend have consistently delivered clarity and excitement, enhancing our visual storytelling.

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Amanda Wood

Cara’s professionalism and dedication ensure every project is timely and of high quality, making her an ideal partner for graphics and 3D animations.

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Professional Netting Concepts

Their 3D Animation has significantly enhanced understanding and increased traffic to our products, perfectly capturing our vision.

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Fuel Tech

Their dedication to creative excellence has consistently resulted in visually stunning and effective animations that captivate our customers.

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Jeff Williams

Delivering outstanding renders and animations with minimal back and forth, they understand our needs right from the start.

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Corinne Chalmers

Their honest, reliable, and creative approach to video and animation projects has made them invaluable in our marketing and training efforts.

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Daniel Stark

The quality of their video production for our outreach event was beyond amazing, exceeding our high expectations and professional standards.

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NaturalSci Reg

Brad and Cara are brilliant; their outstanding communication and dedication to service have made each project a success.

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Sopary Bou

Their meticulous attention to detail and polish in animations enhance every project, making them a stellar team for complex visual tasks.

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Alex Winter

Highly recommended for any collaborative design work, their excellent design and execution skills set them apart in the industry.

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Anne Agenes

Working with this dedicated team has consistently delivered unique and impactful content, enriching our projects with their creative touch.

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Jim Thorson

Their original content delivery is not only fantastic but uniquely impactful, setting a high standard for creative excellence in every project.

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Leslie Clark

My internship at Motion Giraffx was invaluable, offering extensive exposure to exciting projects in a supportive and creative environment.

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Fabian Jones

The highly realistic 3D animation for our gym equipment was impressively detailed, enhancing the presentation of our innovative designs.

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Josh Ulla

Their exceptional ability to translate vision into reality makes them a top choice for any visual marketing needs, consistently delivering high-quality work.

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Corinne Chalmers

Their creative process ensures that each animation is tailored to clearly and engagingly convey our complex concepts.

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Josh Ulla

Their deep understanding of our client base through innovative visual communication has revolutionized how we connect with our audience.

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Dustin Jacobson

Their superb artistic and technical skills often exceed our expectations, delivering products that thrill our customers every time.

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Daniel Boskind

They've consistently provided outstanding work on time and within budget, enhancing our television show's visual impact with every episode.

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