MTV VMA 2021

Client: MTV Studio: STATE Design Role: Motion Designer, Technical Artist Year: 2021

I built the self-serve M-frame rig behind MTV’s 2021 VMA social campaign: an After Effects setup that let MTV’s own animators resize a 3D-rendered picture frame to any size or aspect ratio, without going back to the 3D artist for every change.

The frame, an ornate 3D picture frame with the MTV “M” notched into its top and bottom edges, ran through 41 official @vmas videos over a month-long rollout, in square posts and widescreen cuts. Working with STATE Design, I took the 3D round-trip out of the loop without losing the 3D look.

Official Videos

Posted on @vmas across the 2021 campaign.

Days of Rollout

August 11 to September 10, 2021, ahead of the September 12 show.

The System

One rig, any aspect ratio, no 3D round-trips.

The rig is fully procedural: JavaScript expressions generate the “M” shape, the frame’s parts position themselves around it, and the Repetile effect repeats the moldings as the frame resizes. The only 3D in the pipeline is Lamek Felix’s original frame render, made in Cinema 4D.

What It Lets Animators Do

Resize the frame from 1500 × 1500 up to 8000 × 8000
Slide the “M” notches along the frame; they keep their angles and proportions as it scales or shifts
Rotate the frame with a checkbox to put the notches on the sides
Replace the media inside the frame by dropping an image, video or comp onto the rig’s Media property

How It Works

The “M” shape is a shape layer whose path is generated with expressions. Starting from a base rectangle, pointOnPath interpolates normalized positions along its sides to segment it, and the same approach builds the top and bottom notches.

The frame breaks down into corners, moldings and top and bottom center notches. Normalizing everything kept the parts snapping together cleanly: corners were precomposed at an angle, rotated to align with the comp edge, then rotated back in the main comp.

Nominee package

Performer announcement

Nominee package

The Source Render

Silver and gold variants. 3D design by Lamek Felix.

Same Frame, Any Format

The rig fits the frame to performer announcements, square posts and widescreen cuts alike.

Handoff

With STATE Design, I made sure MTV’s animators could run the rig on their own: an illustrated step-by-step guide that assumed no prior knowledge, a compatibility check for partners on older versions of After Effects, and live tutorial demos with the client.

The goal: MTV could resize and ship new videos on its own, without a call to the 3D artist.

MTV VMA rig guide: The rig opens on this screen, ready to use. — The rig opens on this screen, ready to use.

MTV VMA rig guide: Drag the rig comp into the timeline of any new comp, in any format. — Drag the rig comp into the timeline of any new comp, in any format.

MTV VMA rig guide: Swap what’s inside the “M” by dropping a new comp into the Replace slot. — Swap what’s inside the “M” by dropping a new comp into the Replace slot.

Campaign

41 official videos on @vmas between August 11 and September 10, 2021: nominee packages across the marquee, social, genre and technical categories, the fan-vote brackets, performer announcements, and a gold-frame variant for the Foo Fighters’ Global Icon Award.