From the website “coldhardflash.com” the animation that I chose was “This Land.” This animation is a JibJab creation and features President Bush and John Kerry and is a comical animation about the 2004 presidential election. I believe this was the best out of the 10 because it is funny and well done. JibJab is a developed company that wanted to make a strong political comedy to poke fun at the 2004 election because of all the hype surrounding it. This video brought a lot of popularity to JibJab’s creative idea as well as the election. Up until this video Flash was thought of as a “poor mans” tool but proved that when combined with creativity it can be a very useful program.
The storyline consists of Bush and Kerry mocking each other. There are many colors and the drawing style focuses around realistic characters with cartoon background. This strategy works well with the humorous story that is being told. The characters are very important because they are the ones telling the story. The sound of the animation is coming from the characters which adds to the comical aspect.
All of these features worked together and created one of the most memorable videos of the 2004 election. This video went viral and it was almost impossible to not have seen it. The simple concept of two candidates speaking and mocking each other was enough to draw people into the video and the election. Everyone remembers the tension and problems with that election which helped make the video as popular as it was.
The JibJab concept of moving a mouth of a face on a moving body is now so popular that it can be used by importing your own pictures. For some reason people like seeing faces doing funny things and movements. Especially when it is either someone you know personally or a public figure.
Flash has only expanded since the days of “This Land” and is now one of the most popular programs for creating animation. It is used by professionals and well as by the younger generation. Despite the iPad’s conflicts with Flash, it remains used and an essential program in the design world.
