About :-)
Sam Cohen (she/they) is a full time motion designer based in Portland, OR. She received her BFA from SUNY New Paltz in 2010 and her MFA from University of Oregon in 2014. They are inspired by 90s nickelodeon tv shows and cartoons, Pee-Wees playhouse, old candy logos, Allison Schulnik claymations, Don Hertzfeldt animations, autobiographical comics like Lynda Barry and Alison Bechdel, Vox Explained on Netflix, and their grandmothers tchotchke collection. In their free time they love walking their dog Lottie, swimming in the river, and watching movies and cute videos of hippos and basset hounds.
Credentials
Intermediate 3D Animation (C4D Ascent)
The student is now fluent in Cinema 4D, 3D animation, and has learned several other 3D tools. They can use multiple renderers, cloners, and vertex maps, and have a handle on character rigging. The student understands sculpting tools, how to use Collision and Displace deformers, and how to utilize Generator Objects like Lathe, Atom Array, and Cloth Objects to generate geometry. They know universal render concepts like global illumination, ambient occlusion, samples, & more.
Intro to 2D Character Animation (Character Animation Bootcamp)
The student understands key character animation skills such as pose-to-pose, walks, runs, jumps, and throws. They are able to break down a scene, create a character performance, and put actions together. The student can add personality to their animations.
Visual Essay Production (Explainer Camp)
The student knows how to handle every part of a motion design project from Script to Final Render. They have a strong foundation in animation and design skills, and a very strong grasp on Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and After Effects. The student has experience creating bids and schedules, storyboarding and sketching, recording scratch Voice Overs, cutting an Animatic, creating style frames, script writing and even sound design. They are able to handle the entire creative execution.
Principles of Animation (Animation Bootcamp)
The student has learned the principles of good animation, and how to apply them to motion design in Adobe After Effects. The student has completed at least 70% of the rigorous 12 week online course, and their work has been critiqued by a professional motion designer as part of School of Motion's Teaching Assistant Program. The student had access to their TA for the full duration of the course as well as all of their other peers and has lifetime access to the course material and the community.
Intro to Adobe After Effects (After Effects Kickstart)
The student knows the most commonly used After Effects tools and best practices. They are confident in navigating the After Effects interface and have experience animating professional storyboards. The student is capable of animating type, working with both Photoshop and Illustrator artwork in After Effects, basic parenting, shape layers in After Effects, using different effects, basic animation principles, and different keyframe types.
Intro to Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator (Photoshop and Illustrator Unleashed)
Has learned to create their own artwork from scratch using professional motion workflows and techniques, within Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator. They have experience with the pen tool, bezier handles, cutting out and compositing images and creating style frames.