INFORMATION DESIGN - FINAL PROJECT: ANIMATED INFOGRAPHICS
INFORMATION DESIGN - FINAL PROJECT: ANIMATED INFOGRAPHICS
9/2/2026 - 25/3/2026 (Week 1 - Week 8)
Nur Adila binti Nazary (0377352)
Information Design / Bachelor in Design (Honours) in Creative Media / Taylor's University
Final Project: Animated Infographics
1) Lectures
2) Instructions
3) Class Activity
4) Flip Class
5) Process
6) Feedback
7) Final Outcome
8) Reflection
LECTURES
Week 5
Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto
What is Manuel Lima's 9 Directive Manifesto?
It is a set of 9 principles that guide designers on who to create effective information visualisation that clearly present data and make complex information easier to understand
The main purpose of it is to guide designers in creating visualisation that help people understand information easily.
The 9 Directives Manifesto:
1) Form Follows Function
The design of visualisation should focus on explaining the data clearly. The purpose of the design is to help users understand the information not just to look visually appealing.
2) Interactivity is Key
Interactive elements allow users to explore data themselves. This encourages investigation and deeper learning from the visualisation.
3) Cite Your Source
Always indicate where the data comes from. Providing sources increases transparency and help users trust the information presented
4) The Power of Narrative
Humans understand information better through stories. A good visualisation should guide the audience through the data in a meaningful and engaging way.
5) Do Not Glorify Aesthetics
Visual beauty should not be the amin goal. Aesthetics should support the information, nor distract from the message.
6) Look for Relevancy
Every piece of information included in the visualisation should serve clear purpose. Designers should question why the information is being shown.
7) Embrace Time
Time based data can reveal patterns, trends and changes over periods. Although time is complex to visualise, it provide good insights.
8) Aspire for Knowledge
The goal of information visualisation is to transform data into knowledge. It should help people understand and gain insights from complex information.
9) Avoid Gratuitous Visualisation
Visualisation should simplify information, not create confusion. Designers should avoid unnecessary elements that add noise instead of clarity.
Week 6-7
For Week 6 to 7 all are self studying. Take this time to continue with our final project.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED IN WEEK 5 LECTURE:
In Week 5, I learned about Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto, which provides guidelines for creating effective information visualisation. These principles emphasise that designs should focus on clarity, relevance and credibility rather than just aesthetic and making it look pretty. I also learned that good visualisation should help transform data into knowledge and make complex information easier for viewers to understand.
Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto
What is Manuel Lima's 9 Directive Manifesto?
It is a set of 9 principles that guide designers on who to create effective information visualisation that clearly present data and make complex information easier to understand
The main purpose of it is to guide designers in creating visualisation that help people understand information easily.
The 9 Directives Manifesto:
1) Form Follows Function
The design of visualisation should focus on explaining the data clearly. The purpose of the design is to help users understand the information not just to look visually appealing.
2) Interactivity is Key
Interactive elements allow users to explore data themselves. This encourages investigation and deeper learning from the visualisation.
3) Cite Your Source
Always indicate where the data comes from. Providing sources increases transparency and help users trust the information presented
4) The Power of Narrative
Humans understand information better through stories. A good visualisation should guide the audience through the data in a meaningful and engaging way.
5) Do Not Glorify Aesthetics
Visual beauty should not be the amin goal. Aesthetics should support the information, nor distract from the message.
6) Look for Relevancy
Every piece of information included in the visualisation should serve clear purpose. Designers should question why the information is being shown.
7) Embrace Time
Time based data can reveal patterns, trends and changes over periods. Although time is complex to visualise, it provide good insights.
8) Aspire for Knowledge
The goal of information visualisation is to transform data into knowledge. It should help people understand and gain insights from complex information.
9) Avoid Gratuitous Visualisation
Visualisation should simplify information, not create confusion. Designers should avoid unnecessary elements that add noise instead of clarity.
Week 6-7
For Week 6 to 7 all are self studying. Take this time to continue with our final project.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED IN WEEK 5 LECTURE:
In Week 5, I learned about Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto, which provides guidelines for creating effective information visualisation. These principles emphasise that designs should focus on clarity, relevance and credibility rather than just aesthetic and making it look pretty. I also learned that good visualisation should help transform data into knowledge and make complex information easier for viewers to understand.
INSTRUCTION
CLASS ACTIVITY
For Week 6 to 7 all are self studying. Take this time to continue with our final project.
CLASS ACTIVITY
For Week 6 to 7 all are self studying. Take this time to continue with our final project.
FLIP CLASS
FLIP 4
Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto
On our fourth Flip activity, we had to make a presentation about Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto. The reason why we did this its because the lecturer wanted us to apply these directive manifesto into our designs in the future.
Research:
The lecturer gave us a few references and explanation in his slides which helped us a bit. What we had to do was to explain the topic and the 9 directive with one good example. At the end of the slides, we also needed to add 1 good infographic that follows the directives and 1 bad infographic that doesn't follow the directive then elaborate and explain the difference between the two. This presentation was required to have a deep research about it, so we divided the work equally.
Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto
On our fourth Flip activity, we had to make a presentation about Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto. The reason why we did this its because the lecturer wanted us to apply these directive manifesto into our designs in the future.
Research:
The lecturer gave us a few references and explanation in his slides which helped us a bit. What we had to do was to explain the topic and the 9 directive with one good example. At the end of the slides, we also needed to add 1 good infographic that follows the directives and 1 bad infographic that doesn't follow the directive then elaborate and explain the difference between the two. This presentation was required to have a deep research about it, so we divided the work equally.
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| Figure 1. Researching progress #1 |
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| Figure 2. Researching progress #2 |
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| Figure 3. Arranging Information |
Presentation Preparation:
After gathering the information, we organised our research into short presentation using Canva. The slides were arranged clearly so the information is easy to understand.
CANVA LINK: Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto Slides
After gathering the information, we organised our research into short presentation using Canva. The slides were arranged clearly so the information is easy to understand.
CANVA LINK: Manuel Lima's 9 Directives Manifesto Slides
Project 1, Part 2 Overview:
Focus: Animated Instructable Poster
ANIMATED INSTRUCTABLE POSTER
This is a pair project where we needed to animate our instrcutable poster as the base. The animated infographic must be within a 60 seconds created in a 1280 x 720 px composition. A timing map, storyboard and animatic were required to show process from the start to finish. The animation needs to match with the style and mood of the original instructable poster while maintaining clarity throughout the video. The main goal is to translate a static instructable poster into a moving visual, where motion is used to improve understanding and engagement.
Style References
For the style references, we used the chosen instructable poster as our main reference, since the animation is based directly on it. With that, we kept the same colour palette / colour theme, illustrations, typography / fonts to maintain consistency between the poster and the motion version. The overall visual style needed to feel calm yet playful just like the original poster.
We created a Google drive to organise and keep track of all our references.
Colour reference:
This colour palette was taken directly from the poster, including the colours used in the typography / fonts. This made sure that we had a strong visual consistency throughout the animation.
Visuals / Illustrations:
All visuals and illustrations were drawn in Procreate first then, vectorized in Adobe Illustrator to maintain quality and avoid pixelation in the animation video. There were a few added illustration added for the animation, but they still follow the original recipe instructions and style.
Typography / Font:
We only used one font throughout the whole video of the animation to maintain consistency and avoid visual clutter.
We chose Parson as our main font since it was bold, easy to read and slightly curved, which matches the style of the instrcutable poster.
Final video animation process / production
1) Setup
Before starting the animation, we both used a preset of 720p: 1280 x 720 px in 25 fps for 60 seconds, following the assignment requirements and ensuring consistency.
2) Import assets / files
After making the preset / composition, I imported every illustrator file that has the visuals and illustrations that we needed in our animated video. I imported it by Composition so that every layer is there remained editable.
Towards the end, I made sure that each motion is running smoothly, by adding the Easy Ease to each keyframe to make it flow nicer.
I also used some Youtube video tutorials as my guide such as:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQ5wqg10x_I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYko-6tXxWw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sSa86kDliY
I also referred to several Youtube tutorials to improve specific animations, especially for more complex actions such as the potato peeling motion.
In the end, this project shows how a static information can be translated / changed into a animated visual, where motion is used to improve clarity, hierarchy and viewer understanding.
WHAT TECHNIQUES I'VE USED:
Focus: Animated Instructable Poster
ANIMATED INSTRUCTABLE POSTER
This is a pair project where we needed to animate our instrcutable poster as the base. The animated infographic must be within a 60 seconds created in a 1280 x 720 px composition. A timing map, storyboard and animatic were required to show process from the start to finish. The animation needs to match with the style and mood of the original instructable poster while maintaining clarity throughout the video. The main goal is to translate a static instructable poster into a moving visual, where motion is used to improve understanding and engagement.
RESEARCH AND INSPIRATION:
Instructable Poster Selection
Between me and my pair, Xaviera, we chose my instructable poster to animate because, it was already well structured, making it would be easier for us to translate into motion. The poster was also finished earlier, allowing us to get a head start on our animation process.
This is the finished instrcutable poster.
From here, Xaviera and I needed to transform this static poster into a full instructional recipe motion video on how to make Pitta Di Patate.
Song Selection
For our song selection, we decided to use "Done" by Cooking Mama Soundtrack. This was a suitable choice because the song relates to cooking which matches the theme of the animation.
Comparing to other tracks, this particular song had a pace that both of us could manage, as it was not too fast or too slow. The duration of the song is around 1 minute and 2 seconds, which fits well with the assignment requirement of a 60 second video.
By choosing this, the overall flow of the whole animation remain consistent without the need for heavy editing.
Instructable Poster Selection
Between me and my pair, Xaviera, we chose my instructable poster to animate because, it was already well structured, making it would be easier for us to translate into motion. The poster was also finished earlier, allowing us to get a head start on our animation process.
This is the finished instrcutable poster.
.jpg) |
| Figure 4. Final instructable poster |
From here, Xaviera and I needed to transform this static poster into a full instructional recipe motion video on how to make Pitta Di Patate.
Song Selection
For our song selection, we decided to use "Done" by Cooking Mama Soundtrack. This was a suitable choice because the song relates to cooking which matches the theme of the animation.
Comparing to other tracks, this particular song had a pace that both of us could manage, as it was not too fast or too slow. The duration of the song is around 1 minute and 2 seconds, which fits well with the assignment requirement of a 60 second video.
By choosing this, the overall flow of the whole animation remain consistent without the need for heavy editing.
 |
| Figure 5. Done song by Cooking Mama |
Style References
For the style references, we used the chosen instructable poster as our main reference, since the animation is based directly on it. With that, we kept the same colour palette / colour theme, illustrations, typography / fonts to maintain consistency between the poster and the motion version. The overall visual style needed to feel calm yet playful just like the original poster.
We created a Google drive to organise and keep track of all our references.
 |
| Figure 6. Google Drive track |
Colour reference:
This colour palette was taken directly from the poster, including the colours used in the typography / fonts. This made sure that we had a strong visual consistency throughout the animation.
 |
| Figure 7. Colour palette taken |
All visuals and illustrations were drawn in Procreate first then, vectorized in Adobe Illustrator to maintain quality and avoid pixelation in the animation video. There were a few added illustration added for the animation, but they still follow the original recipe instructions and style.
 |
| Figure 8. Illustrations drawn #1 |
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| Figure 9. Illustrations drawn #2 |
Typography / Font:
We only used one font throughout the whole video of the animation to maintain consistency and avoid visual clutter.
We chose Parson as our main font since it was bold, easy to read and slightly curved, which matches the style of the instrcutable poster.
.png) |
| Figure 10. Parsons font used |
IDEATION
With all of the references finalised, we started working on our storyboard, timing map, animatics then the final animation video.
Storyboard
We combined both of our bests ideas into our storyboard so that the animation refelects both of our strengths. This is also a way to show teamwork and collaboration. Xaviera focused more on clear instruction flow, while I focused on visual motion and animation.
This was our first draft of the storyboard:
After the first draft we decided to expand and refine it further.
We both wanted the storyboard to be engaging, consistent and easy to understand. In the storyboard, we drew a box that shows the visuals and arrow motions supported with texts that explains each scene. The storyboards helped us with the visual flow and transitions, making the animation process smoother.
Here is the final storyboard:
This storyboard was designed to make sure that viewer's can easily follow the recipe steps within a short duration.
The red strokes / arrows in each box represent the motions and the green strokes / arrows represent the transitions.
Timing Map
After the storyboard was finalised and finished, we started on our timing map to break down the 60 seconds video. We made sure that each scene had enough time to clearly show the instructions and motion before transitioning to the next part. This helped us plan the pacing of the animation more effectively.
We used the visuals from the storyboard then added extra notes at the bottom of the each scene to explain more about the movement and transitions.
Here is our timing map.
Animatics
After making the storyboard and timing map, we created a simple animatic. The purpose of this was to test how each element moves and how the overall flow of the animation works. We used basic animations such as position, opacity, scale and keyframes.
The visuals were taken from the poster, but the background was kept white to focus only on the movement.
With all of the references finalised, we started working on our storyboard, timing map, animatics then the final animation video.
Storyboard
We combined both of our bests ideas into our storyboard so that the animation refelects both of our strengths. This is also a way to show teamwork and collaboration. Xaviera focused more on clear instruction flow, while I focused on visual motion and animation.
This was our first draft of the storyboard:
 |
| Figure 11. First draft storyboard |
After the first draft we decided to expand and refine it further.
We both wanted the storyboard to be engaging, consistent and easy to understand. In the storyboard, we drew a box that shows the visuals and arrow motions supported with texts that explains each scene. The storyboards helped us with the visual flow and transitions, making the animation process smoother.
Here is the final storyboard:
 |
| Figure 12. Finished storyboard #1 |
 |
| Figure 13. Finished storyboard #2 |
This storyboard was designed to make sure that viewer's can easily follow the recipe steps within a short duration.
The red strokes / arrows in each box represent the motions and the green strokes / arrows represent the transitions.
Timing Map
After the storyboard was finalised and finished, we started on our timing map to break down the 60 seconds video. We made sure that each scene had enough time to clearly show the instructions and motion before transitioning to the next part. This helped us plan the pacing of the animation more effectively.
We used the visuals from the storyboard then added extra notes at the bottom of the each scene to explain more about the movement and transitions.
Here is our timing map.
 |
| Figure 14. Timing map #1 |
 |
| Figure 15. Timing map #2 |
After making the storyboard and timing map, we created a simple animatic. The purpose of this was to test how each element moves and how the overall flow of the animation works. We used basic animations such as position, opacity, scale and keyframes.
The visuals were taken from the poster, but the background was kept white to focus only on the movement.
.png) |
| Figure 16. Animatics process #1 |
 |
| Figure 17. Animatics process #2 |
Final video animation process / production
1) Setup
Before starting the animation, we both used a preset of 720p: 1280 x 720 px in 25 fps for 60 seconds, following the assignment requirements and ensuring consistency.
 |
| Figure 18. Preset settings |
2) Import assets / files
After making the preset / composition, I imported every illustrator file that has the visuals and illustrations that we needed in our animated video. I imported it by Composition so that every layer is there remained editable.
 |
| Figure 19. Import composition |
In some cases, I imported specific layers as footage to isolate and animate certain elements more easily.
 |
| Figure 20. Import footage |
3) Animation
For the animation, I followed the storyboard and timing map closely.
I used simple animation techniques such as moving the position, scale and opacity's keyframe. Even though the animation is simple, they were carefully timed to match the motion and clearly show the instructions.
I used simple animation techniques such as moving the position, scale and opacity's keyframe. Even though the animation is simple, they were carefully timed to match the motion and clearly show the instructions.
 |
| Figure 21. Animation keyframes |
I also used some Youtube video tutorials as my guide such as:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQ5wqg10x_I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYko-6tXxWw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sSa86kDliY
I also referred to several Youtube tutorials to improve specific animations, especially for more complex actions such as the potato peeling motion.
In the end, this project shows how a static information can be translated / changed into a animated visual, where motion is used to improve clarity, hierarchy and viewer understanding.
WHAT TECHNIQUES I'VE USED:
The animation was created in Adobe After Effects using keyframes to control the movement of each element. The position, scale and opacity were adjusted to animate the visuals based on the storyboard and timing map. Ease Ease was applied to the keyframes to make the motion smoother and more natural. Some elements were animated using layer separation and parenting to keep the animation organised and easier to control. The animation was carefully timed to match the music and pacing, to make sure that each step is clear and easy to follow.
FEEDBACK
All designs were sent to the lecturer for some feedback and some improvements.
Project 1, Part 2: Animated Instructable Poster
The lecturer mentioned that I needed to add more motion to the scene where the potatoes are being boiled. He suggested making the potatoes move up and down with a bounce like movement to make the animation more dynamic. He also recommended adding a flame element to the scene so that it matches the original poster design and improves visual consistency.
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| Figure 22. Before feedback (Animation Instrcutable Poster) |
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| Figure 23. After feedback (Animation Instrcutable Poster) |
WHAT I IMPROVED
For the animation, I improved the movement by adding a bounce effect to the potatoes and included the flame element. This made the scene more dynamic and helped communicate the cooking process more clearly. It also improved the overall visual consistency with the original poster.
WHAT COULD BE DONE BETTER
I could further improve by refining the smoothness of the animation, especially the timing and transitions between scenes. I could also experiment with more suitable motion effects to strengthen the overall flow while still maintaining clarity and simplicity.
FINAL OUTCOME
Project 1, Part 2: Animated Instructable Poster
Storyboard (Animated Instructable Poster)
Timing Map (Animated Instructable Poster)
Youtube link (FULL VIDEO ANIMATED): https://youtu.be/9Ri37drsIoc
Storyboard (Animated Instructable Poster)
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| Figure 24. Final storyboard (Animated Instructable Poster) #1 |
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| Figure 25. Final storyboard (Animated Instructable Poster) #2 |
Timing Map (Animated Instructable Poster)
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| Figure 26. Final timing map (Animated Instructable Poster) #1 |
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| Figure 27. Final timing map (Animated Instructable Poster) #2 |
Youtube link (FULL VIDEO ANIMATED): https://youtu.be/9Ri37drsIoc
REFLECTION
Experience
This project was quite challenging, especially because we had to translate a static poster into a motion graphic video. Since After Effects is still quite new to me, it took time to understand how to animate everything properly and follow the timing map. Doing this as a pair project also required communication and teamwork to make sure both side ideas were combined well.
Observations
I realised that motion graphics are not just about adding movement, but about using motion to guide the viewer's understanding. Timing and pacing are very important, because if the animation is too fast or too slow, it can affect how clearly the information is communicated. I also noticed that consistency between the poster and animation is important to maintain the overall design style.
Findings
From this project, I learned how to translate a static design into a time based visual using animation. I also improved my skills in After Effects, especially in suing keyframes, timing and easing to create smoother motion. Overall, this project helped me understand how motion can be used to strengthen clarity and make in formation more engaging.
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