Here’s the recently completed promotional video for the MxV1 – a revolutionary putter with a curved surface that matches the diameter of the golf ball ensuring a perfect hit each time.

The MxV1 Putter is based on the principals of Newton’s Cradle (MxV = mass x velocity = momentum).

“The radius of our putter face is exactly that of a standard US Golf Ball (1.68 inches) and even with a minor tolerance we have found more accurate strikes and optimal roll” says Brian Wittman (inventor of the MxV1) “By essentially striking a ball with another ball, you almost can’t miss the center of gravity.

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A few weeks ago I had to produce a set of bespoke animations based on my ‘old-school’ weather symbols for use in an app – each as a single sheet of individual frames that could be cycled through within the app.

Anyway – it got me thinking about the (’new’) BBC weather icons I designed back in 2005 and whether I could produce a similar set of my own with more realistic weather effects using proper particles and then animate them somehow on a web page without resorting to animated GIFs…

With any luck you’ll be able to see a little ‘light snow showers’ icon looping away on the left there.

For anyone interested, I’ll quickly explain how it’s done… …read more

Just a quick heads up to say the new Mike Afford Media promo reel is finally online. You can choose to watch it here on mikeafford.com which should be viewable (thanks to the miracle that is HTML5 with Flash fallback) on most browers and certain shiny smartphones. Or if you prefer you can always head over to the Mike Afford Media YouTube Channel and watch it there, or check the slightly higher quality version over on Vimeo
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The All New Adventures of Flannel Alan

Titles and content sequences for The All New Adventures of Flannel Alan – a brand new reboot of the original ‘Flannel Alan’ children’s TV show.

The characters from the original series have been completely redesigned and updated, and most of the show is now 3D animation instead of live action and puppetry.

The graphics were made using Cinema 4D for the 3D bits, and composited in After Effects.
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Hey there Wine lovers!

We’ve recently completed some motion graphics for this great new wine app from TV wine expert Olly Smith.

Available now from the iTunes store

For more details, see also Olly’s site at ollysmith.com/online/wine-app

“The app offers help choosing the perfect bottle to accompany food or the occasion and is packed with nearly an hour of exclusive video content, demystifying wine and providing essential ‘how to’ advice on everything from serving to decanting.
Olly says: “This app is about maximizing your enjoyment of wine and taking the risk out of trying something different.”
The app uses GPS technology to find your nearest wine stockists wherever you are in the UK, and features video profiles of some of Olly’s favourite sommeliers. There is even your very own interactive wine horn!”

And if you’re now wondering what an interactive wine horn looks like, well read on for a sneak peek…! …read more

Election Graphics, Virtual Reality and Swingometers

So, they’re off! The 2010 Election Campaign starts now, and while most people will be wondering who’ll be in No.10 next month, I’m wondering who’ll come out on top in the Election Graphics stakes.

The last BBC Election programme I worked on was back in 2006, and there’s a part of me that misses the excitement of a live election broadcast. Often weeks, months (sometimes years) of work all come together for one almighty extravaganza. A nail-biting marathon of TV graphics where the entire programme is only a power-cut away from disaster.

Swingometer

I notice the BBC has launched its Election 2010 website – and among other things they already have a nice interactive swingometer here with a neat explanation from Jeremy Vine for the uninitiated.

There’s a possible hint of the Election night graphics by way of a branded banner at the top of all of the Election 2010 web pages : party-coloured discs or buttons radiating from a central point.

It’s hard to say whether this is ‘Campaign’ branding, or ‘Election’ branding – I would guess by now that the various departments are all working to the same design guidelines by now.

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Conference : 10-14 September
Exhibition : 11-15 September

Although I won’t be able to make it over to Amsterdam for IBC this year, I thought I might just give a quick heads up to all you media types that my old pals from RT Software are exhibiting again this year. RT Software’s tOG 3D system is the technology behind some of my virtual studios and many of the real-time election graphics that appear on my site.

RT Software at IBC (RAI Amsterdam) : Hall 3 (3.A59)

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3D animating graphics for corporate video

Some example graphics recently completed for Headlines – one of the UK’s leading corporate communications agencies. …read more