Interviews with Ali Alfaifi

For me It all started as a hobby in the early beginnings. I used to make short films and enjoy the editing phase of the process. Then slowly got into VFX and that what introduced me to motion design. At the time there was no proper education in my country for this field and it’s still weak to the moment, so I took it upon myself to learn and develop as a motion designer. It involved many online courses and too many hours of practice. In fact, education and learning in this field never stops, so I’m still learning, and I will continue to.

Design is a way of expression, a way of saying!

When you have something to say, and a way of saying it, then you’ll be motivated. I love the idea that I have the mean to get my idea across by making motion design video weather it’s for an advertisement or for a cause.

Both I guess, because when it’s a passion, you’re choosing it and being forced at the same time. In this case My choice led me to changing my whole career to doing exactly what I love every day.

I manly do 2D motion design in the advertising industry. Now I’m taking baby steps towards 3D motion design that is more in the film industry rather than the advertising industry.

Find your passion and keep practicing.

They say, “devil is the details”, great designer will always pay attention to details and never skip them just because no one will notice. Second, great designer will find a way of connecting his design to culture, the audience culture that he is talking to.

To begin with, design is a matter of taste, if it's appealing to the eye, we judge it as a good design. But then we have to look deeper to what was the concept of it, how was it executed, and what problems did it solve. Taking these in consideration help us make a better judgment whether it’s a good design or not.

As I mentioned I’m slowly moving towards 3D motion design in the film industry. My goal is to have the chance to participate in designing the main title design for one of the biggest shows worldwide.

I try to touch all the senses of the viewer of my work. I take care of the sound effects as much as I’m doing with the actual visual work.

In both 2D and 3D motion design I admire so many people and so many studios as well. To name a few, Emanuele Colombo, Andrew Cramer, Sarah Beth, Handle and studios like Elastic, Oddfellows, Man vs Machin and the list goes on.

From my experience, you won’t usually have the time since client work will take all the time. One of the best ways of improving your skills is by doing personal projects. Personal projects give you the freedom to experiment new techniques and styles in the world of motion design and animation that would eventually improve your work.

If I hadn’t switch career to advertisement to motion design as my day job, I would’ve continued my previous job as a plane technician.

Everything around us and everything we use and everything we have was designed and then made. The houses we live in, the cars we drive and the technology we use were all there because they were designed. Design makes life easier and more beautiful. Life is about creation, and creation is done through design.

Thanks to all the great people in the internet who took it upon themselves to make great online courses and tutorials that helped me get started. Thanks to my great family that supported every decision I made to make it through. Thanks to the great agency that I’m working in for giving me the opportunity to switch career and pursue my passion.

Design in general, and motion design in specific is relatively new in my country. There were no proper source of education and information until recently. Now universities have programs for these fields and the internet Arabic content is expanding even though we still need to develop it even more so future artists could learn and flourish.

My ultimate goal is to work on feature films and TV shows in the motion design part and play a major role in the development of this industry in my country.

It affects every level of it, the way cities are designed, the way products are experienced, the art museum we enjoy and even the tools and software we use every day affect how we behave and how we interact. Better design will lead to better society.

For the last 3 to 4 months I’ve been building an advanced online course that aims to help future motion designers to develop faster and be ready for the market. I’m hoping that could help as many as I could.

Specifically speaking about my country, I want to see the film and animation industry compete with the rest of the world. Design and films go hand in hand and seeing them develop and compete in global event is one of my true wishes.

Working in a motion design project is a mix of production and design, and it always depend on what type of motion design project it is. For a typical one-minute video, I go through many steps that include concept, script, storyboard, styleframes, VO recording, animation and final edit. It would approximately take 7 to 15 days.

The first step after understanding the brief will be RESEARCH. And by research, I mean looking for all the information related to the project, problem that you’re solving, the design direction that better fits the project etc.

We’re all designers, you just have to find your area of design.

Kind of like the chicken and egg relationship, right?!

I think design sets the trends, and then trends set the designs until some design sets another trend.

In my field, technology has a big role where they allow us to express and produce design.

After Effects, Illustrator, Premier Pro, Audition and currently getting into C4D.

After getting emotional about how great humans are in coming up with such great ideas, I start thinking and wondering about what the story behind this design was! Not matter how great the design is, the story behind it is always greater and teach a lesson.

I used to work alone for many years and it still has its won benefits, but after working with my great team in UBRAND I sow the real benefit of the teamwork. I could easily say that my motion team at UBRAND is the ideal partner.

Good clients who understand design and know what they want were the ones who influence my design. I always try my best to keep such clients and make sure they’re satisfied.

The journey of learning is never finished, and the journey of practice is never done. Get inspire by things outside of your field, take chances and keep practicing.

I’ve always liked the color Brown, and everything related to it like woods and leather. As far as places, recently I visited Zermatt Switzerland and fell in love with it. Winter and Spring are the best, I’m sure because of the hot weather in my country. As far as brands, and because I discovered it by chance and also, I like leather, my favorite brand is the Italian Benheart.

My passion for art and design started in filmmaking and specially the editing part of it. I believe editing in movies is an art by its own. So that led me to the world of motion design and animation which I found myself in love with. The beauty of motion design is that it combines design and filmmaking into one unique field that people like me could express themselves in.

I started my journey in motion design back in 2012-2013. At the time I had a government job in a different field and I used to freelance on the side doing motion design work for various clients. By 2016 I was already doing work for respected Saudi companies and agencies and also some government sectors. In 2017 I started giving workshops in motion design. The same year I switched career to be a full time Art Director at a Saudi advertising agency leading the motion department.

Everything around us and everything we use and everything we have was designed and then made. The houses we live in, the cars we drive and the technology we use were all there because they were designed. Design makes life easier and more beautiful. Life is about creation, and creation is done through design.

I like designing motion and delivering messages and ideas through them. The beauty of motion design is that you could explain ideas, express feelings and move people through the power of visuals and sound combined.

Lately I’m drown more towards Main Title Design for films and TV shows. This area of motion design is very powerful since it has so much to do with filmmaking and Design. Every Main Title Design gives messages and hints about the show/film that is about to start. It sets the mode of it and excite the audience.

One of the first projects I did was a music video for a local singer that wanted his video to be animated.

In our field of design Behance is considered one of the most popular platforms for showcasing works and getting inspired. As far as technology, it would be the software I use to create and design which include After Effects, Illustrator, Premier Pro and Cinema4D.

The most creative moments for me are when I have a challenging project that would need a totally new direction, and when the project is about a cause that I believe in. As far as creative periods of the day, that would be in the early morning and midnight. I think it has more to do with them being quite times that I’m rarely interrupted.

I focus a lot on the motion part and how things move according to real life. But in general, producing a motion video considers attention to concept, designs, animating, editing and sound.

When I design and animate, I feel excited and lifted. I always see it as composing a song, it moves me and excites me and sometimes it makes me dance, especially as the whole project is rhythmically coming together.

One of the main reasons designers do what they do, is to show others what they have accomplished. When my work is being realized, it makes me satisfied and happy and want to do more.

In my filed “animation and motion design” that would be a collection of “touching idea or message, excellent art direction, beautiful animation, good sound effects and attention to details”.

From my won perspective, I first notice the animation and what techniques the artist used, then I focus on the design and the art direction, finally I look at what kind of message is communicated and how am I affected by it.

In the field of animation and motion design, experimenting is always the way to go to explore new styles. The environment around me has a big impact on my work. The things that inspire me are mostly outside of my field, they could come from music I listen to, a movie I watch, or an outdoor scene.

I see myself more in animation and compositing, and as working in the advertising world I have to explore different styles all the time. With every project or campaign, there are new challenges and problems that we have to solve through design, and that where we develop and get to try new ideas and approaches.

I live in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and comparing to the neighboring countries we are ahead in many ways, and advertising is no different. That gave us the opportunities to learn and develop our skills and get to know new technologies and software that are being used worldwide. The only downside that comes in mind is the lack of pro companies and studios that we could learn from, especially that animation and motion design is a field that is important in many areas such as the Film Industry and the Advertising Industry.

I’m usually contacted for single project or a collaboration on several projects, although I’m needed for specific area such as direction and motion design, but I like to get as much details as passible from the early stages of the project so I could come up. With the best solution.

Companies are ultimately humans working together to accomplish certain goals, so successful collaborations with designers happen when you treat them as humans and as part of the team.

First, if there is no brief, there is no project, even when the project is a personal one you still need a brief for yourself. After that and based on the brief I do my research which cover all aspects of the project from the idea to the art direction. Then I get to the experimentation stage where I try different techniques and what would work for me. Then I get to the normal process of storyboarding, designing, animating and editing the final piece.

Those would be my sketchbook, computer, After Effects, Illustrator, and the whole office. Lately I’m adding a new tool which will be Cinema4D for 3D design and animation.

Attention to details is the key to beautiful design.Simple is harder, and more beautiful.Lastly, discipline is more important than talent.

Being a designer gives you the opportunity to understand life better. And the biggest benefit is that you get to do what you love and get paid. I can’t really see any negatives of being a designer as long as you keep a balance of your social life, especially your family, because design is going to take your work time as well as your free time. It’s your job and your hobby, so balance is important.

Discipline is more important than talent.

Time management, and good eye.

Those would be my sketchbook, computer, After Effects, Illustrator, and the whole office. Lately I’m adding a new tool which will be Cinema4D for 3D design and animation.

Time management is usually not a priority to most artist, But I think it’s the key to a successful career. Design process is all about solving problems, so I deal with the time factor as one of them. A project direction and what would go into it will depend on the time that is given either from me of from a client.

It always depends, but a good piece of animation or motion design would take somewhere between four days to two weeks. It will also differ if it’s a team work or a solo one.

I always get asked how I learned, and the answer is always the same, practice every single day. Another one would be what kind of software I use and what sources of learning I know. With this age of information nothing is impossible.

My current job has taught me a lot, starting by working with and managing artists, and ending with working with big clients and seeing the market from different angles.

I worked and collaborated with private companies like Myrkots, Misk org and Heights agency. And with the government sector like Center for Government Communication, Saudi Energy Efficiency Center. And with celebrities like football player Captain Yasser Alqahtani which I got the A’ Design Award for.

Any motion design project that is related to the film industry.

I’m taking my first steps in the world of 3D animation, and my plan is to get into the film industry by working in visual effects and motion design.

In the agency I work with my team that I manage and it’s taking most of my time now. As far as the freelance work I mostly work alone and develop my designs in my own.

Agency work in never finished, but I’m working on an advanced motion design course that would help new people that are interested in my country since we still don’t have an official complete education in the subject, and the online content in my language is still poor.

People can always contact me through my website or email at any time.Website: alialfaifi.netEmail: hello@alialfaifi.net