Oakland University Partnership
Four Winds Connections had the opportunity to collaborate with Professor Dho Yee Chung of Oakland University and her Motion Graphics undergraduate students in spring of 2024. The work and artistry students poured into developing animated short videos for Four Winds Connections was inspiring. Two videos, created by Nicole Alessi and Caithleann Newell, are highlighted on our website home page and Northfield Pet Food Shelf page. Here's what the they have to share about their work.
Nicole Alessi
“I created this video to draw attention to the Northfield Pet Food Shelf. It was created over the course of a month, with 24 frames drawn digitally in Procreate and the video created in Adobe After Effects. I wanted the video to feel like a story in a children’s book. I was inspired by the animation style of the movie Ernest & Celestine, which has a charming, sketchy, watercolor style. The dog is based on my dog Finley, while the snoring sounds were taken from a video from a few years ago of my old dog Tasha. I recorded the door opening audio while the truck audio is a free sound effect from Pixabay. This video was the final project for my Motion Graphics class.”
Caithleann Newell
"I was approached, along with the rest of my class at Oakland University, with the challenge of creating a video for Four Winds Connections. Immediately, I knew I wanted to find something that encapsulated the human and community-centric nature of their programs. The solution I felt was watercolor. As every frame of the story would be hand-drawn and painted by me, there would naturally be inconsistencies. However, these little imperfections, rather than taking away from the piece, helped a level of uniqueness making it one of a kind and beautiful. The process of creating each frame for the video was fairly time-consuming. Not only did I have to draw, paint and scan each frame, but I also had to work around my three excellent feline supervisors, Eclipse, Neko and Vader. Be it spilled ink, pushed computer buttons or knocked water; it can be said the project would not have been the same without my lovable assistants. The story I hoped would be something everyone could relate to in some way. I chose a non-verbal method of delivery so that the story would not be tied to any set language. This would allow more people to be affected by my work."
Nicole Alessi
“I created this video to draw attention to the Northfield Pet Food Shelf. It was created over the course of a month, with 24 frames drawn digitally in Procreate and the video created in Adobe After Effects. I wanted the video to feel like a story in a children’s book. I was inspired by the animation style of the movie Ernest & Celestine, which has a charming, sketchy, watercolor style. The dog is based on my dog Finley, while the snoring sounds were taken from a video from a few years ago of my old dog Tasha. I recorded the door opening audio while the truck audio is a free sound effect from Pixabay. This video was the final project for my Motion Graphics class.”
Caithleann Newell
"I was approached, along with the rest of my class at Oakland University, with the challenge of creating a video for Four Winds Connections. Immediately, I knew I wanted to find something that encapsulated the human and community-centric nature of their programs. The solution I felt was watercolor. As every frame of the story would be hand-drawn and painted by me, there would naturally be inconsistencies. However, these little imperfections, rather than taking away from the piece, helped a level of uniqueness making it one of a kind and beautiful. The process of creating each frame for the video was fairly time-consuming. Not only did I have to draw, paint and scan each frame, but I also had to work around my three excellent feline supervisors, Eclipse, Neko and Vader. Be it spilled ink, pushed computer buttons or knocked water; it can be said the project would not have been the same without my lovable assistants. The story I hoped would be something everyone could relate to in some way. I chose a non-verbal method of delivery so that the story would not be tied to any set language. This would allow more people to be affected by my work."