10 best-in-class motion graphic examples

The most inventive and interesting motion graphics videos you can find

Here at Linearity, we’re obsessed with motion graphics and motion design. In our screen-saturated world, examples of motion graphics are everywhere, and when used in the right way, a good motion graphic can do almost anything.

As explainer videos, motion graphics can communicate complicated concepts with simplicity and panache. In adverts, motion graphics can reflect the tone and style of a brand with ease.

For a music video, a motion graphics animation can bring a song to life in a unique way. You can use motion graphics to create dynamic logos, film and TV title design, and so much more.

If you’re starting a career as a motion graphics designer, or are thinking about becoming one, then creating a motion graphics video is a skill you will need to develop.

Those of you who work in content marketing might well already be incorporating motion graphics into your video marketing strategy, and motion graphics are now a core part of most modern companies social media strategy.

Making the abstract understandable

Google Cloud IoT Solutions
One of the best use cases of animated motion graphics videos is to take a concept that is esoteric and tricky to communicate and make it easy to understand. This video achieves that with style. The Internet of Things, the data that it generates, and how this data can be collected, stored and distributed is an example of a concept that should be hard to translate visually.

In this animation explainer video from Google, they found a way to make the Internet of Things clear and comprehensible. It uses an effective combination of movement, abstract shapes and regular graphic designs to show how the IoT and the Google Cloud Platform can work together. The blue and yellow from the Google color palette are primarily used throughout, with the Google red being used sparingly for impact, which makes it feel totally on brand.

Comedic but clever

Duluth Trading Company commercial
Imagine if someone gave you a brief that said, “We need you to make a product video for part of our men’s underwear range, and we want you to communicate that men’s testicles have a different experience in our underwear versus normal underwear, but under no circumstances can you actually use testicles”.

We don’t know about you, but we’d have a hard time with that one! Luckily, the Duluth Trading Company enlisted someone for whom this brief was a breeze. In this entertaining animation, that very message is conveyed expertly without a testicle in sight. It’s one of our favorite promotional videos, and we have to say the sound design is top notch too.

Entertaining infographics

The economy of Coca Cola
Despite being a decade old, this video is a shoe-in for inclusion on the list as it’s still one of the best motion graphics examples that you are likely to see. Made for the Bloomberg television special Inside Coca Cola, this animation video was nominated for the 2012 Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Graphic Design and Art Direction in News and Documentary, and it was well deserved.

It uses a combination of engaging imagery, graphic design elements, and impactful typography to reveal some of the economic facts behind the world-famous brand. Oh and we’re not sure if this was intentional, but we suddenly got very thirsty after we watched it….

One from the experts:

School of motion
You should definitely expect the promo video of an actual online motion design school to be high quality, and this video exceeded our already high expectations. It’s essentially a colorful explainer video that tells you everything you need to know about the School of Motion.

The way it uses shapes and vibrant colors along with elements that show the design process is very cool, and the animation effects it uses really suck you in. This is one of our favorite animated videos on this list, and it’s easily one of the best motion graphics video examples out there.

Storytelling par excellence

Primavera memories (John Carpenter)
The way that motion graphics are used to bring this short interview with filmmaking legend John Carpenter to life is ingenious and effective. In the audio, Carpenter talks about his first musical memory and what it meant to him. It’s a charming and engaging story, and the addition of the animated narrative adds a whole other dimension and elevates it to another level.

This compelling video really demonstrates the way in which motion graphics can be used to enhance storytelling of all types, and why it is such a powerful tool to have in your graphic design arsenal.

News inspiration

The last job on earth (The Guardian)
This video is a brilliant example of how you can use motion graphics to tell a story and deliver a powerful message in an effective way. The video concept is based around a news story that said scientists predict 50% of human jobs could be taken by machines in the next 30 years.

It employs a combination of animation and the sparing use of well-placed text to make you imagine a world of the future, where machines do the work and humans no longer have jobs. To some, a world without work sounds like a utopia, and this video does an excellent job of making you stop and think about what that would look like in reality.

Playful and informative

The enneagram
This is another example of how motion graphics can tackle a concept that seems as though it would be difficult to translate visually. The enneagram is a theory of personality which says that there are nine different personality types. This video uses a beautiful color scheme and geometric shapes and graphics as the basis for explaining each of the personality types and the core traits they have.

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It’s fun, playful and engaging, and really harnesses the ability of animation to reflect moods and feelings. If you’re looking for a masterclass in how to make esoteric emotions and ideas into motion video graphics that can be easily understood, look no further.

Super savvy branding

Slack
Explainer videos are one of the most common applications of motion graphics. The ability of a good motion graphics video to explain how a product works or what it can be used for is unparalleled. This introduction video for Slack does an amazing job of enabling you to understand what the purpose of the communication platform is and how you can put it to use.

This video is also an excellent display of the power of branding. The bright colors of the Slack brand are the only ones that are used and it really ups the impact. Almost every modern company needs good video explainers for its products, and this video is a great blueprint to take inspiration from.

Vintage feel, modern style

The ABC of architects
We love everything about this motion graphics video. It’s essentially an A to Z of the greatest architects of all time, where each architect’s name is displayed before a graphical animation of a building they have designed is animated into life with graphics.

The way the old-timey music is matched with a scratchy visual aesthetic to make the video feel vintage is very clever, the sound design and tempo is perfectly timed with the animation, and the charming imagery that is used throughout really draws you in.

Creativity in motion

Lorn ‘Anvil music video’
As a motion graphics designer, of all the types of videos that you could be working on, music videos are probably top of the list for creativity and freedom. You can really go to town and do almost whatever you want.

This music video for Lorn is a brilliant example of what you can achieve with a combination of imagination and skill. The video draws on Japanese and Belgian comics to create a black and white animation with a clean design that is full of beautiful imagery.

It portrays the year 2100 as a dystopian future where the world is overpopulated, so a postmortem social network is released to combat the problem. If you want to start making your own motion graphic videos, you could start by making music videos for your own favorite songs.

Key takeaways

We hope you have enjoyed this rundown of our favorite motion graphics videos and found some inspiration for your own work or company.

If you’re looking for more motion graphic ideas you can read our our articles on the best motion graphics video channels, current motion design trends, and motion design resources you can make use of.