POLKADOT POISON FROG

Storytelling of the endangered Polkadot Poison Frog and its habitat

Conveying a story about the endangered Polkadot Poison Frog and its habitat, the Panama Forest, in different mediums.

Timeline

7 Weeks
(Spring 2022)

Programs

Adobe Ai/Ae

Roles

Graphic Designer

Motion Designer

Skills

Illustration
Motion Graphics

Initial Research

Polkadot Poison Frog

In order to accurately depict my animal in its habitat, I analyzed its proportions and forms, as well as the visuals of the environment of the Panama forest. At this step, I was focusing on the following:

  • Incorporating a story: “logging” in the background to show why the frogs are endangered

  • Scale: How to best show elevation, depth, and size of the frog and its habitat

  • More Research: Look into the types of plants that are in the Panama Forest

Animation

Storyboarding

Animation

Transition

This project required me to work with a partner to create a sequence between our two animals living in the same habitat. As such, my partner had an animal that was nocturnal and lived in higher elevations. For the transition scene, we decided on panning up the forest trees, as the monkeys live in higher elevations than the frogs. I used the foliage as a way to create the transition for the backgrounds, as we had different colors and styles of assets.

Final Thoughts

Reflection & Takeaways

This project pushed me to blend text and imagery in storytelling, focusing on how an animal interacts with its environment. Through illustration, I explored visual hierarchy and composition, ensuring that the text and imagery worked together cohesively to convey the narrative. Crafting a compelling story required balancing scientific accuracy of the animal's body proportions and behavior with artistic expression, making the information both engaging and informative.


The stop-motion animation component further deepened this exploration, as it required me to bring the animal’s behavior to life in a way that felt organic and expressive. The process of frame-by-frame animation emphasized motion as a storytelling tool, showcasing the dynamic relationship between the animal and its habitat. I really enjoyed creating the process of creating sound for this video, as we were required to recreate the sounds of the environment and the animal from scratch.