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Motion Design Toolkit

This book offers a comprehensive overview of techniques, processes, and professional

practices in the area of Motion Design, from fundamental building blocks of organizing
time and space in production to managing workflow, budgets, and client relationships. The
authors provide insight into the production process from concept through execution in areas
as diverse as social media to large-scale projection mapping for events and festivals. Readers
will learn through real-world examples, case studies, and interviews how to effectively
use their skills in various areas of Motion Design. Industry professionals provide unique
perspectives on different areas of Motion Design while showcasing their outstanding and
inspiring work throughout. This is a valuable resource to students who aspire to work in a
broad range of visual communication disciplines and expand their practice of Motion Design.

Austin Shaw is an assistant professor of design at Western Washington University.

Previously, he taught at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, Georgia,
where he was a professor in the motion media department for ten years, and at the School
of Visual Arts in New York City for three years. For nearly 20 years, and in tandem with
teaching, Austin has worked as a motion designer for clients including Target, Ferrari,
FedEx, McGraw-Hill, Ralph Lauren, and VH1, and as a creative director, designer, and
animator for companies such as Superfad, Digital Kitchen, Brand New School, and Curious
Pictures.

John Colette is a professor of Motion Media Design at the Savannah College of Art
and Design in Savannah, Georgia, where he previously served as department chair. As a
professor, he has led collaborative industry research projects for external clients such as
BMW Technology Group in Silicon Valley, Samsung, Microsoft, and Adobe Systems.
Motion Design Toolkit
Principles, Practice, and Techniques

Austin Shaw
John Colette
Edited by Danielle Shaw
Cover image: Chrissy Eckman
First edition published 2023
by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
and by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 John Colette and Austin Shaw
The right of John Colette and Austin Shaw to be identified as
authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with
sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act
1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be
trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for
identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

ISBN: 978-1-032-06058-3 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-1-032-06057-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-20052-9 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003200529

Typeset in Univers
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
This textbook is dedicated to the many generations of our
students for pushing and inspiring us.
Contents

Acknowledgments xi
List of Contributors xii
Foreword by Patrick Clair xiv

Introduction1

1 Focus and Flow 3

Working With Space 5

Working With Time 11
Getting Started in Motion Design 12
Designing Time and Space 13
Creative Brief: Basic Transformations 20
Professional Perspectives: Orion Tait 22

2 Between the Keyframes 29

Keyframe Interpolation 29
Spatial Interpolation 32
Temporal Interpolation 34
Graph Editor 35
Creative Brief: Audio and Non-Linear Interpolation 50
Professional Perspectives: David Conklin 52

3 Masking, Type, and Project Structures 57

Masking57
Project Structure and Organization 64
Prepping Assets 65
Creative Brief: Type and Masks 71
Professional Perspectives: Jordan Lyle 74

vii h
j Contents

4 2D Character Rigging 79

2D Rigging 79
After Effects Compositions and Pre-compositions 89
Creative Brief: 2D Character Rig 92
Professional Perspectives: Wendy Eduarte Briceño 94

5 Z Space and Virtual Cameras 100

Z Space 100
Virtual Cameras 102
Multi-view Layouts 104
Camera Movement 108
Creative Brief: Z Space 114
Creative Brief: Stills in Motion 116
Professional Perspectives: Ariel Costa 118

6 Physical Cameras 123

The Image Revolution 123

Camera Basics 124

7 Editing for Motion 133

Editing133
Spatial Editing 138

8 Animation Techniques 145

Early Optical Inventions 145

Twelve Basic Principles of Animation for Motion Designers 146
Understanding Frame Rate 149
Easing With Frame by Frame 149
Extending Frame-by-Frame Animation 151
Making Frame-by-Frame Animation 152
Stop-Motion Animation 153
Dope Sheets 155
Frame-by-Frame Techniques 155

9 Compositing 158

Compositing158
Track Mattes 159
Green Screen 161
Blending165
Color Correction 166

h viii
 Contents j

10 Motion Design Production 168

Production168
Professional Perspectives: Boo Wong 181

11 Audio and Motion 184

Creative Work With Sound 184

Entry Points 185
Time Is the Link Between Motion and Audio 185
Sound and Image Hierarchies 186
Sound-Off Environments 187
The Aura of Sound 187
The Material of Sound 188
Recording Sound 190
Recording Voice 191
Editing and Using Sound 192
Creative Considerations 193
Simple Audio Processing 194
Simple Instruments 194
Professional Audio Production 194
Creative Brief: “Everyday” Sounds and Images 196
Professional Perspectives: Mitch Paone 199

12 Motion Design Systems 205

Production Systems 205

Software Systems 207
Design Systems 210
Media Systems 211

13 Projection Mapping and Immersive Media 219

The Space Around Us 219

The Projection Workflow 221

14 Professional Practices 231

Hard Skills and Soft Skills 231

Culture235
Professional Perspectives: Peter Pak 237

15 Business Tools 241

Media as Software 241

Scope242

ix h
j Contents

Specification244
Design244
Client Liaison 246
Linear Motion Works 248
Production: Build 249
Production Schedules 250
Shot and Asset Lists 251
Test252
Delivery: Implement, Review, and Maintain 253
Team Management 254
Tracking Milestones 255
Contracts and Agreements 256
Copyright, Intellectual Property, and Work for Hire 256
The Freelance Incentive 257
The Hold System 258
Building Reputation 258
Professional Perspectives: Erin Sarofsky 260

Index 266

h x
Acknowledgments

A monumental thank you to Danielle Shaw for editing this book.

We want to thank Patrick Clair for writing the foreword to this textbook and for inspiring
the motion design community with his awesome work.
Thank you to Chrissy Eckman for designing the hero artwork for the cover of this
textbook.
Thank you to all the industry contributors for sharing your time, insights, and examples
of your work and process. Thank you, Wendy Eduarte Briceño, David Conklin, Ariel Costa,
Jordan Lyle, Peter Pak, Mitch Paone, Erin Sarofsky, Orion Tait, and Boo Wong.
A big thank you to Michael Thomas Hill, Chace Hartman, and Erin Sarofsky for your
insights and help throughout. Thank you to David Conklin and Nicole Colvin for additional
editing support.
We would also like to thank the publishing team at Routledge for your patience and guid-
ance throughout the process. Thank you to the interior design team for creating a beautiful
book.

xi h
Contributors

PROFESSIONAL PERSPECTIVES—INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTORS

Wendy Eduarte Briceño

David Conklin
Ariel Costa
Jordan Lyle
Peter Pak
Mitch Paone
Erin Sarofsky
Orion Tait
Boo Wong

ADDITIONAL PROFESSIONAL CONTRIBUTORS

Hazel Baird
Peter Clark
Nando Costa
Chrissy Eckman
Madison Ellis
Michael Thomas Hill
Stephen Kelleher
Scholar
Kyle Shoup

STUDENT CONTRIBUTORS

Rita Albert
Nicole Colvin
Gabe Crown
Vero Gomez
Jayson Hahn
Oliver McCabe
Jessica Natasha

h xii
 Contributors j

Meghan O’Brien
Nicole Pappas
Rosalinda Perez
Christopher Roberts
Mercedes Schrenkeisen
Jack Steadson
Yifan Sun
Akshay Tiwari
Samantha Wu
Phoebe Yost

xiii h
Foreword
Patrick Clair

There’s nothing more exciting than the prospect of a career in Motion Design, a field that is
emerging, evolving, and fundamentally new.
I’ve spent 20 years practicing an art form that didn’t exist just a generation before me.
Of course, we could discuss the history of animation and the clunky text effects of optical
printers; all this history is valuable and should be studied and venerated for where it got us.
But, for practical purposes, the desktop computer revolution of the late ’90s and early aughts
gave birth to the modern “motion designer.”
It’s a hybrid task, and that’s exactly what I love about it—part graphic designer, part
editor/animator. To deploy a cliche: storyteller. I was attracted to it because of the sheer
number of dimensions of thought it required. From art history to salesmanship, it promised
new challenges every day. It was a frontier in a world where it felt there weren’t many left.
I was a young film student in the early 2000s when pioneering shops like Psyop and
MK-12 were posting wild new work that seemed to blend 3D animation, rotoscoping, and
live-action into cheeky, playful—and strikingly cool—pieces of design filmmaking. Music
video collectives like Shynola were inventing stunning new aesthetics with each project,
never treading old ground. Lynn Foxx, from my understanding a group of architecture stu-
dents, were bringing music to life with organic and mesmerizing films.
Meanwhile, I was stuck at home, staring vacantly at my “screen direction” degree,
penniless and wondering what was next. Living in a city with no film industry and 60 film
students graduating each year . . . where could I go? Without the money to go and shoot
films, what would I do?
As I consumed vast amounts of inspirational new work, a new world unfolded before
me. I had used After Effects to add defocus to a live action shot once. My friend and editor
had used it to create the credit roller for our student film. Now, I started to see that it was a
portal into a world where anything was possible. If I wanted to create the animated logo for an
art nouveau biker gang, I could—but why? I could mash up my holiday footage of Banksy art-
works with maps of the Berlin subway system in a lame attempt to recreate my favorite T-shirt
designs in motion. I could create title sequences for films I could never afford to actually make!
It was all terrible of course, but it felt amazing. That’s where it began for me. I enrolled
in a “compositing and title design” post-grad and was off and running. Friends and rela-
tives would ask what I would do after graduating, and I would say, “Title Design isn’t a real
job, this means I’ll be making ‘motion graphics for advertising.’ ” I loved those words—
“motion graphics”—even as my aunts’ and uncles’ eyes glazed over with a mixture of

h xiv
 Foreword j

misunderstanding and disinterest. I’m still shocked today that professional title design ever
became an option in my career, but that was a long, long time later.
It began with craft. And that’s what this book can teach you. Every professional journey
begins with long years of practice, imitation, and tutorials. I have a saying that I find useful:
“don’t be a thief, be a kleptomaniac.” When you’re new to a discipline, there is no choice but
to be derivative. Look at the best work—the stuff you love, that makes you burn with jealousy
inside. And slowly, over years, figure out how they did it. Copy them, until you know their
tricks (just don’t copy them on a paid job; that’s not OK).
A wise lecturer of mine once posited an answer to an impossible question: what is cre-
ativity? He suggested it is nothing more than the combination of two previously uncombined
elements. That’s why I say be a kleptomaniac. Stealing from your favorite artist is derivative.
Combining your two favorite artists in one aesthetic is being creative; it’s making something new.
But first, do the work.
I’ve spent countless hours rotoscoping. I’ve spent three months doing nothing more
than adjust the lens flare intensity on a football branding package between 9% and 13%
(with a 45-second plus frame refresh rate—ah, the early days of HD!). Every formidable
creative director I’ve encountered spent their time as a junior, learning their craft through
experience and hard graft. Trust me, that experience will serve you well down the track.
I worked on lots of ugly stuff. I made so many, many mistakes. I worked on sketch comedy
shows, where imitation and speed were the priorities over aesthetics. I worked with arrogant,
low-end commercial clients that ruined projects with their poor choices. Oftentimes, I was able
to ruin projects with my own poor choices. Over time, I think I got better. I’ve always had a chip
on my shoulder that I went to film school and not proper design school. I’m terrified that all those
design grads know all these secrets I don’t—handshakes and code words. I think it helped me
to want to learn from every job, to make up for this shameful inadequacy.
In the first ten years of my career, I watched every single piece of Motion Design I could
find. On blogs like Motionographer and Stash, there was a torrent of new work every day,
and I loved watching it—even as it bruised my ego. How could I ever make stuff this good?
But honestly, I loved just being immersed in the work. Eventually, I started to find my own
voice—clumsily at first (well, still clumsily today, if I’m honest). Finally, I could look beyond
Motion Design and start to find inspiration in art, architecture, and the world.
Meanwhile, while I was lost in the layers, an entire industry flourished and matured.
Obviously, Motion Design for commercial purposes absolutely exploded, becoming a legit
and mainstream part of the design and communication industry—ubiquitous even.
The renaissance of title design that Kyle Cooper had kickstarted in the ’90s with Se7en
had flourished into ten-plus studios regularly turning out stunning title sequences for the best
shows on TV (an industry undergoing its own technology-fueled revolution). Motion Design
was spreading (literally) onto more and more surfaces. Today, these things we anachronis-
tically call “phones” are portals to a billion sites and apps that call for the art of designing
elements in motion. Car dashboards now need motion designers. So do tablet computers,
smart surfaces, streaming platforms . . . the list is endless.
Meanwhile, as the potential for our output changed, the way we could make it changed
as well. Of course, some of this is leaps forward in what a home system can do; it’s a
common truism to say that a contemporary bedroom setup can outperform a major studio

xv h
j Foreword

infrastructure. From GPU cards to cloud rendering and more, physical infrastructure is no
longer a barrier to world-class work. When I graduated film school, the biggest barrier to
starting a studio would be the $40,000 investment in a pro-level Betacam tape deck. A tape
deck! Any student reading this doesn’t even need to know what that means. When I started
Antibody in 2013, all we needed was a few iMacs, some IKEA desks, and some space in a
shared office. The barrier to entry is low.
Of course, the key is that you need clients—and that’s where the most important revo-
lution comes in.
Sometime in the late aughts, the internet made the world about the size of a city—and
almost no one noticed. I didn’t notice until 2012, when I simultaneously got clients in Mon-
treal and Paris. I lived in Sydney, and the fact my work was on Vimeo meant that people who
liked my style could find who I was and hire me. From then on, the physical reality of my life
started to separate from the virtual spaces that connected my work. Ever since then, my life
has been spread across at least the time zones of America, Australia, and Europe. Far from
being a creep of work into life around the clock, it’s been a relief—an opportunity to live life
where I need to for my family and find the work that can sustain us.
With a global audience, you can go incredibly niche. This is the most important les-
son I ever discovered. It promises a life of freedom, artistic satisfaction, and meaningful
relationships.
Antibody has been using a “distributed workflow” model for years—just a fancy way
of saying that we live near our family while we get to do work for clients from anywhere.
These days I live in Sydney with my wife and son, while my closest collaborator lives on the
far side of the country to me. My producer lives in Ohio, my visual researcher is in Colorado,
my Houdini guy is in rural France. We live where we want to; we work hard. Sometimes job
schedules demand a phone call early or late at night, but most days I walk my son to school
and engage with work on my terms. The freedom is thrilling, and it’s available to almost all
of us in a post-pandemic world.
But it starts with foundations—and this book is the perfect way to build those. The jour-
ney is so, so much fun, and discovery is rewarding at every turn.
I’ve seen some things. I’ve met my heroes (some of them) and learned why you
shouldn’t). I’ve had a son and experienced the surreal thrill of gazing into the eyes of a brand
new human life. I’ve realized my childhood dream of directing a car ad—with lights and
sirens across L.A., blacked-out camera cars, and drone-covered stunts. But right up along-
side these high points was the deep thrill I felt when I discovered that a “compound blur”
with the right matte could imitate the aesthetic of a tilt-shift lens, and I could make my little
AEFX (After Effects) comp look (a bit) like the one my design hero had just posted to Tween
(that’s right, I started reading Motionographer when it was still called Tween; color me old).
Motion Design will continue to change at a breakneck pace. Most people reading this
book will, in a few years’ time, have skills and technical capabilities that I’ll never understand.
The pace of this change is why I think a career in Motion Design is such an exciting pros-
pect—and for those of you just dabbling, the editors and web designers, becoming that little
bit more of a hybrid creative killing machine is not to be underestimated.
The future is hungry. Get devoured by it.
Patrick Clair

h xvi
Introduction

This book grew slowly. We met over a decade ago at a Southern Art School, where we were
both teaching. Austin was part of the faculty, having relocated from his career in Motion
Design in New York City. John had arrived from Sydney, Australia, where he had most recently
run a production studio, part of a long career in both teaching and industry.
As we became colleagues and friends, we watched the program where we worked
grow and achieve a singular status in Motion Design education. We saw graduates leave to
commence stellar careers, start studios, lead the design teams of major media companies,
and work in a dazzling variety of new areas of creative practice.
The students we taught were not always majoring in Motion Design. In the early courses
in our program, two-thirds of the students came from other areas of practice: graphic design,
filmmaking, production design, user experience design, advertising, and illustration. Gradu-
ate students came from these disciplines, and many others, to add Motion Design skills to
their professional offerings. We saw a generation of emerging creatives who not only saw
Motion Design as part of their personal inventory of tools but also thrived once they had
access to a foundation in this work.
We cultivated students to invent new and surprising work, as well as excel in their craft
once they were given foundational skills in Motion Design. Each breakthrough felt like a key
to a lock opening a door to an immense space of creative and professional possibility.
At the open-air tables of a coffee shop in Savannah, Georgia, we met for coffee after
class, talked about the students we were working with, and shared stories of their progress
and success. Talent was not something we dispensed from on high but something that
seemed to bubble up inside the many creative people that surrounded us. We embraced
our role as guides, signposting and sharing what we had learned in our own decades of
practice, but always eager to see a student do something that surprised us, exceeding our
own capacities in some way.
Over years, we discussed breakthroughs in the classroom, particularly the students
who thought they were defined by a particular practice but found a new perspective or
even a new calling through their progress in Motion Design. To our surprise, this process
was not painstaking; it happened often in a matter of weeks, and usually in the very early
stages of study.
This book evolved from those discussions and from those students. Over more than ten
years, we wanted to see what moments in the classroom were those catalysts for change.

DOI: 10.4324/9781003200529-1 1 h
j Introduction

What transformed a graphic designer into a capable motion designer so quickly? What gave
an advertising major the ability to make a compelling motion-based pitch after only a few
weeks? What aspect of professional practice seemed hidden in plain sight? We wanted to
find the essential toolkit for a motion designer—to give a clear orientation for the sounds,
images, animations, installations, and practices that were expanding our students’ creative
horizons and professional opportunities. We wanted a toolkit for Motion Design, a map for
the new skills that could open up creative practice.
No book is everything. There is an endless range of tutorials and specific information on
technical practices and a stunning array of software and platforms for production. We have
compiled our collective experience and knowledge on relevant tools and techniques. A book
is not designed to be the end but the start. In this spirit, we have tried to make available a
framework for the practical, technical, and professional aspects of this discipline to orient
existing creatives in the practice of Motion Design.
Time does not stand still, and the work described in this book is part of a living process
of change that shifts and morphs both media, its distribution, and its audiences. It is fair
to say that Motion Design is a blend of animation, graphics, and filmmaking, with a side of
interactivity if that is required. It is easy to see the origins of contemporary Motion Design in
the painstaking animation done on Oxberry cameras and on optical printers. The techniques
of paste-up and collage animation are visible in a lot of modern work, as is the laborious
development of multi-plane animation to add depth to the frame.
The scope and range of digital systems has made Motion Design a hungry hybrid. Visual
music, 2D and 3D animation, stop-motion animation, all forms of editing, cinematography,
and graphic arrangement feed into a singular platform and develop new and surprising forms
of mixed media. It is impossible to catalog the range of possibilities in this new world, and
its products keep expanding into new relationships with audiences. What was once oriented
to “broadcast design” finds its home today on cell phones, on public screens, projected into
museums as sculpture, and displayed at massive scale on the sides of buildings.
In a previous age, every creative practice was discrete, its means of production com-
plex, and it was often expensive and difficult to access. To use a sound studio was a world
apart from working in a darkroom or with an optical printer. Each required what seemed
like an apprenticeship and an understanding of the arcane and particular physical proper-
ties of the medium. Today, these practices not only sit adjacent to each other, but they
inform one another and hybridize through the endless creative labor of the art and design
communities.
This book is written with an embrace of that closeness, with a recognition that for many
creatives, their practice is perhaps weeks away from embracing a new world of possibility
that may sustain them for years to come. We hope they surprise themselves!
For our part, we have been sustained and nurtured by the kindness and care of peo-
ple we have worked alongside, who shared their insights and experience, who subtly
mentored us, and who were kind enough to be there for our journeys. We may be islands
in the stream, but the stream touches us all.

h 2
Chapter 1
Focus and Flow

Motion Design works with both space and time. The space is usually a screen or frame that
changes or animates over time. Motion Design is a uniquely flexible medium because it
works with tools that integrate various media and technology extremely well.
Software such as Adobe After Effects is modeled on the traditional processes of optical
printing in filmmaking and title design. In these analog processes, layers of imagery were
printed onto a single piece of film, exposing multiple images together within that frame.
The designer was deeply involved in the planning and layout of every element. For example,
a piece of type would be exposed in one pass, and adding another element to the same
sequence required the film to be precisely rewound in the camera. Then the new element
was exposed in the desired place onto the same frame of film. After the different passes
were exposed as planned, the film was processed in a lab; so, it could be days until the work
was screened. Traditional Motion Design practices were extremely painstaking and drawn-
out processes.
Digital tools give us instantaneous feedback on all aspects of a work, where visualiza-
tion is an active process of experimentation with and refinement of a design. Historically,
analog media involved multiple recording and display formats such as an audio recording, a
photograph, or a moving image. The designer required very specific skill sets to work with
each medium. Darkroom printing of a photograph was quite different from recording or edit-
ing an audio tape.
The shift to digital treats all media as files, and the computer becomes a universal plat-
form for production, with different processes using the same metaphors: select, cut, copy,
and paste. Learning to work with images in Photoshop or Illustrator, and extending this into
After Effects, is a fluid and logical creative progression because of these affordances. New
formats for media using 3D models, novel display technologies, and interactivity extend and
challenge the boundaries of practice. But they are a progression of digital production, not
entirely different mediums.
Today, there is a higher standard for design because of the vast pool of designers
and artists now working digitally and pushing both creative and expressive possibilities
across different channels. For all these new creative possibilities, persistent principles
are part of the visual language inherited from previous mediums. The still image and the
moving image continue to rely on the same formal foundations that have been developed
over time.

DOI: 10.4324/9781003200529-2 3 h
j Focus and Flow

1.1
Illustration of film-based animation rostrum by John Colette.

The medium has a message: production is revolutionized through digital technology and
its flexible capacity for handling and integrating media. As media evolves, the distribution
platforms also expand the dimensions of practice. A social media video has very different
requirements, because of its context, from a TV commercial or a documentary film. Yet the
DNA of earlier practices is still written through into new and evolving forms, and the design-
er’s awareness of this naturally changes with the times. The toolkit is grounded in a common
understanding of how we create and experience the moving image, and as designers, how
we make the familiar new again.

h 4
 Focus and Flow j

WORKING WITH SPACE

Since industrialization, the visual arts have responded to the times in which they are pro-
duced. The experimentation, ferment, and exploration that developed in the 20th century
produced not only a reimagining of painting, sculpture, and other fine arts but also totally
new categories of practice where art and design can be developed.
Motion Design can dynamically integrate a range of practices and mediums into new
assemblies and new hybrid works. For example, a motion project that mixes photographic
collage with animation and filmmaking creates an innovative style. Graphic design princi-
ples, animation techniques, and cinematic conventions all play a part in the design of the
piece. Yet the principles of each practice must be understood and integrated thoughtfully
to create successful work.
Peter Pak, the lead designer of the Godfather of Harlem title sequence, discusses the
process behind this project.

While researching about the time period and characters in the show, I came across an
image by Romare Bearden. The more I looked into this artist and the fact that he lived
in Harlem during that time period, and his work and themes related to what the show
was about, I thought there was an idea there. Another reason I thought this idea had
potential was a lot of main titles at that time were really sleek 3D. I wanted to create
something that would stand out. I started looking at types of collage animation that
had already been done. I didn’t find anything that quite hit the mark in what I was
looking for. But it was still informative in getting a clear idea of what I wanted to do.
When I was developing the style frames, I tried to make each frame cover a theme
or topic. At this stage I am more concerned about the story and the concept. I figure
out the animation transitions later. First, we need to sell the concept. The animation for
this project was done in After Effects. Half the work was figuring out how we go from
one shot to another. Because it was a one-minute and thirty second main title, it would
have been a lot to be all animated collage. We integrated archival footage in between
collage shots, which also helped to tie the concept into a historical time and place.
Peter Pak, Designer/Director1

In Motion Design, the designer creates and presents a space: the focus. This space, a
frame or even a physical space in the world, alters over time: the flow. What we see, and
how we see it, is open to boundless possibility and, at the same time, subject to very precise
control.
Controlling space involves composition, the spatial arrangement of elements within the
frame. It is not simply a two-dimensional process, where elements are laid out on something
like a page. The screen itself is a frame, but also a window into a world we imagine extend-
ing beyond its edges. Elements within the screen have relationships and depth, and each of
these relationships is open to change over time.
Introducing movement through animation inflects the composition with new values that
can only be expressed in time. Rhythm, syntax, and the meanings created within a sequence
or combination of shots all enhance the creative potentials of the static image.

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1.2
Godfather of Harlem, title sequence. Created by Digital Kitchen for EPIX and ABC Signature. Creative director: Mason
Nicoll. Art director/designer: Peter Pak.

A good place to observe this style of sequence is in the presentation of short, graphic
animations that end in a title or logotype. The resolve, or lock up, presents this last graphic as
the final shot in the piece. The resolve is often introduced through a series of closely framed
images where the final element is either in motion or rendered through a moving camera.
These first shots introduce the color scheme, graphic style, and visual elements. The implied
question of the piece is resolved in the last shot. This technique is used across corporate
logos, news and sport openers, and different examples of main titles.
Figure 1.3 shows a title sequence that presents detailed vignettes of small dots
interacting and weaving into a series of abstract depictions of workplace conflict, power

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 Focus and Flow j

1.3
The Morning Show, title sequence by Elastic. Creative directors: Hazel Baird and Angus Wall.

struggles, and ambition. We pull back in the final frame to reveal an infinite field of these dots
that become a pointillist rendering resolving into the Title Card. Each previous shot in the
sequence is essentially presented as an extreme close-up of the final title.
The designer needs to think from different perspectives: the camera person, the editor, the
animator, the graphic designer, and perhaps even a little bit like a musician or choreographer.
These perspectives are personas, inhabited by the designer, sometimes in a rapid succession.
Each has its own language, and each brings a particular type of thinking to the process.
The range of perspectives or personas needed depends on the project. Because Motion
Design is a fluid hybrid of applications, you might need to think from not only the position of

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an animator or editor but potentially an architect, stage designer, or choreographer. Almost

no area of creative production is irrelevant to Motion Design.
Because of the range of potential inputs, every designer should aim to extend their
creative vocabulary by researching, experiencing, and reflecting on as many forms of prac-
tice as possible. Taking risks and experimenting is sometimes the only way to experience
a new area of practice. So, low stakes, fast turnaround, and somewhat experimental exer-
cises are an important first step. A toolkit is a way of assembling methods to work on
different challenges. Although no one can solve every problem, having the right tools for
a given problem is a great start. The wider your interests, research, and appreciation of
creative practice, the wider your access to ideas and processes for solving problems will
become.
Most motion designers arrive from a previous creative background like illustration or
graphic design, where the potential of making work that moves offers new creative possi-
bilities. Some designers arrive from film and video production, where the formal qualities of
shooting and editing programs are given completely new potential, creatively and commer-
cially, by adding Motion Design. Animators who have worked in studio contexts are drawn to
the level of creative expression and autonomy that Motion Design can provide.
Good designers synthesize possibilities into finished solutions. An ideal toolbox opens
to expansion, new tools, and methods.
Take the example of making the jump from illustration into stop-motion animation. This
process will extend the illustrator’s persona, which brings style, color, composition, and
the ability to make a single frame imply a more complex story. The illustrator’s persona
will combine with the cinematographer’s persona, working through the best lighting, lens
choice, and staging. The animator’s persona will focus on timing and the dynamics of move-
ment translated from single captured frames into a moving image. The editor’s persona will
consider the ordering of shots, the progression of framing, and how the illustrator’s frames
become a linked and cohesive sequence.
These may be the personas of a multi-person crew or blended into a single designer
executing their project alone. A motion designer will always need to embrace a range of
these personas at different times in their career. Each persona considers very specific prob-
lems, but they all contribute to a successful solution.
A motion designer will never stop learning, because the medium itself is in motion.

I was always interested in a lot of different things and ways of communicating vis-
ually. I started studying Graphic Design in school and ended up in Motion Design.
I really enjoyed making things move, but more than anything, I liked solving prob-
lems and delivering messages.
I have learned that in the real world, being in Motion Design, as part of a creative agency
really can mean so many different things. Sometimes, that is creating websites that move,
or content for websites that move, presentations that are interactive, Apps . . . or content
that goes into Apps. Sometimes it’s video that stands alone but it’s been fun to get to
approach every project in such a new way and really find the path that makes the most
sense, rather than just always being told “30 second spot; fill it with this story.”
Chrissy Eckman, Associate Creative Director2

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 Focus and Flow j

Changes in technology are providing new opportunities for alternative media presenta-
tions: projection mapping, virtual reality, and extended or augmented reality. These all expand
and develop the existing space in which Motion Design takes place, so the designer needs
to consider new relationships with their audience, who are no longer simply addressed by
a screen. The media they develop may not be ordered by the boundaries of a frame, and
the audience may have far more ability to interact with the work or to change their point of
observation. If there is a frame in the work, it may be very fluid and subject to change.

Camera as Presence
The eye of the camera becomes, quite literally, the viewer’s eye. The camera orients the
viewer in space and limits what can be observed. Cameras give presence to the audience
within a scene by establishing a sense of perspective and distance from subject matter.
It is no accident that in French, the word for lens is objectif; the idea of the lens as an
objective eye, framing the world for us. The camera is a proxy, a single point that focuses
the image, standing in for the audience who “enter” the world presented to experience a
scene, a story, or a journey.
The photographic image implicitly presents itself as a recording of something in the
world. However, design and animation render spaces not bound by the laws of physics or
optics and can choose to invoke realism or create entirely new representations. The realm of
motion is fluid, with room for nearly any visual aesthetic.
For most designers learning to work with motion, it takes time to shift away from think-
ing about composition solely as an analog to the page—a flat, two-dimensional rectangle to
contain imagery. The idea of the camera helps to start thinking about composition in terms
of space that can be viewed and explored in three dimensions. In Figure 1.4, we see the
idea of spatial composition. The image frame is defined by the camera’s view. Visual ele-
ments are composed in space at varying depths, and the camera can be an active participant
in the animation.

1.4
Infographic depicting the idea of spatial composition as seen through a camera lens.

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1.5
A set of stills from different Motion Design projects created by students to showcase a range of visual styles.
Top left, Visual Effects Realism by Akshay Tiwari. Top right, Reduced Graphic Characters by Vero Gomez. Bottom
left, Photo-Real 3D combined with Typography by Gabe Crown, Jack Steadson, and Samantha Wu. Bottom right,
Papercraft Styled Animation by Yifan Sun.

Rather than being limited to creating just flat, animated drawings on a page, motion
designers can construct spatial compositions in relation to a camera. When elements are
layered and positioned at various depths, any camera movement produces the effect of
parallax, where objects closer to the camera appear to move faster, whereas objects further
from the camera appear to move slower. Again, this simulation of natural motion creates a
more cinematic and engaging experience for the viewer. In addition to camera movement,
elements can animate in the scene, appear from off-screen, or fly into the frame from behind
the camera’s position in space.

Representational Spaces
Compositions contain graphic scenes or spaces. Our presentation of the world in the frame
can range from photo-real to completely abstract. Realism and abstraction are not fixed
poles; they intersect and overlap in different ways to invoke different styles or presentations.
The photographic image of a face is very different from the photo collage of a face, illustrated
face, or any number of ways a face might be painted. Every style carries its own set of mean-
ings, as well as its own set of visual pleasures, and the designer makes a clear choice as to
which of these will suit their purpose.
A composition may range from utilitarian to expressive. A designer may develop a layout
with the objective of communicating a specific idea or message, whereas an artist may work
solely for the experience of creativity or self-discovery. Whatever the intent, the composition
presents a boundary for the work.

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WORKING WITH TIME

From calendars marking seasons changing to devices noting the hours and minutes of the
day, we measure time to manage our lives. We understand time as sequences of related
events, actions, or processes that have a specific order and duration. Rhythm, cause and
effect, or other sequential relationships, in time, form an organizing principle for our experi-
ence of the world. These same principles establish the experience of Motion Design based
on sequence, choreography, and editing.
Our interface for working with time in Motion Design is the timeline: a purely graphic
representation of events occurring in a sequential or chronological order. The timeline can-
not but help to reference film and video, as it is ordered in the same way: a sequence of
frames that play back to produce a moving image. For motion designers, a timeline serves
to define the essential parameters of a project such as the start point, end point, and overall
length. Knowing the duration of an animation allows a designer to plan the narrative struc-
ture, rhythm, and cadence of a project.

Anatomy of a Timeline
A timeline provides a graphic user interface (GUI) to manage and compose audiovisual ele-
ments in time. Assets are placed in timelines as layers, tracks, or objects depending on the
software. Regardless, a timeline offers an interface to display the sequence and the arrange-
ment of visual elements across time and space, and to manage changes in how they appear
and behave.
In animation software, the primary tool to navigate a timeline is the current time indica-
tor. This interface graphic allows us to view and modify a composition at specific points in
a time. With this tool, we can place time markers across a timeline to indicate audio cues,
notes, or any relevant editorial information. Of course, a timeline also allows us to preview
or render the entire edit, or any section of an edit.

Units of Time
A timeline contains a sequence of moments, or units of time: hours, minutes, seconds,
and frames. Frame rate is the number of frames that are sequenced and displayed per sec-
ond. Like a flip-book, the rapid changing of image content in a composition creates motion.
Understanding frame rate is vital because it influences the stylistic quality of motion. Lower
frame rates such as 12 frames per second (fps) work well for low-fi animation or a faux
stop-motion feel. The standard for cinema, 24 fps, produces a life-like feel. Higher frame
rates like 300 fps are used to capture slow motion, because they replay at a slower rate in a
timeline—stretching the way we see time. Getting familiar with the various frame rates used
in Motion Design is fundamental because different platforms have their own requirements.
Think of each frame as a frozen moment, and consider how they combine when played
together to make images feel fluid and alive. This way of thinking translates across pro-
cesses, between still and moving images, to become a foundation of creative practice.
Learning how to manage time and the subtle variations of change over time is a constant
practice for every motion designer.

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Timing
For emerging motion designers, developing a sense of timing is a fundamental skill. For
those who are new to working with timelines, it can be challenging to construct sequences
that feel satisfying and have an organic flow in the movement. Observing nature and per-
formative arts such as music and dance can help to improve one’s sensibility for timing.
However, becoming capable of translating this skill into finished work requires a solid foun-
dation in the principles of motion, knowledge of how to interface with animation software,
and frequent practice.
The core principle of timing is rhythm, “an ordered alternation of contrasting elements.”3
In Motion Design, rhythm is the contrast between slow and fast movement. Slower hero
moments display key compositions that communicate information or elicit emotions. They
also allow enough time for viewers to interpret what is happening on screen. Moments with
faster motion capture attention, bring in new elements or information, or transition—the
transformation of a scene or subject matter in a shot. The interplay between slow and fast
creates an engaging rhythm for your audience.
The overall pacing of motion influences the emotional quality of a project. Faster rhythms
are not only eye-catching but also stimulating. Slower rhythms feel calmer and more reflec-
tive. Like music, the tempo of a Motion Design project determines the sensibility of the
piece.

GETTING STARTED IN MOTION DESIGN

Although it is important to have these broad-stroke frameworks in mind when working in

Motion Design, it also helps to have a user-friendly entry into the practice. Motion Design
can be intimidating for students and creatives from related professions—like graphic
design, illustration, advertising, or film—interested in learning the craft. Getting started
in a timeline can be challenging even for experienced users of digital design tools. The
complexities of software workspaces that include a host of menus, panels, and GUIs can
be overwhelming.
Rather than diving into purely technical learning, get excited about the medium. In a
class setting, we show stellar examples of professional work to inspire creative possibility.
Additionally, we present outstanding case studies of previous student work to motivate new
learners by showing them what they can achieve. Remember, everyone starts in the same
place—not knowing how to do something. Let go of trying to be perfect and take it a step
at a time.

Low-Stakes Exercises
Through our collective experience, which includes decades of teaching Motion Design
courses, we find an incremental approach works best. We start with a series of low-stakes
exercises that encourage experimentation with basic motion principles while practicing
foundational techniques. As exercises, these forays into the medium help develop and
strengthen skills. Students feel less pressure when the stakes are low and the expectations
are manageable.

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Early explorations are iterative, with quick turnaround times. That means short deadlines
with high outputs of bite-size exercises: for instance, a series of three distinct 5-second ani-
mations completed within two days. An assignment structured like this encourages risk-taking
and experimentation. Also, a compressed schedule reduces procrastination and encourages
students to avoid being overly precious. A few weeks of short, achievable exercises build skills
and confidence.
Assignments that ask too much, too soon in the learning process overwhelm students
and can leave them feeling anxious and defeated. A gentle approach affords an enjoyable
experience while helping to build a solid Motion Design foundation. Gradually, as students
gain agency throughout a course, we can present more complex lessons.

I see a lot of students biting off more than they can chew by creating 2-minute films,
or even longer. In my opinion, they should be focusing on 5 and 10 second pieces.
Motion Design students are not trained to make short films, so why are Professors
letting them? If they are learning After Effects in a Motion Design department, then
the presumption is that they are not becoming film makers. If they are talking about
developing characters and narratives, that is called a short film, and they should
transfer to the film department or find a way to bridge the knowledge gap by supple-
menting with proper coursework. In Motion Design classes, I believe students need
to be focused on the tools and a different kind of storytelling that allows them to
introduce a concept and articulate that as quickly as possible.
Erin Sarofsky, Executive Creative Director4

DESIGNING TIME AND SPACE

Basic Transformations
A motion designer works with space and time to direct change in a composition. We accom-
plish this task through controlling how visual elements transform. Learning to make changes
happen over time can be quickly applied across different 2D and 3D animation software,
because they use a similar set of basic transformation properties. This set of properties
includes Position, Opacity, Scale, Rotation, and Anchor Point or Axis. There are far more
attributes and effects that can be manipulated, but all visual layers or objects in software
such as After Effects or Maxon Cinema 4D share these basic transformation properties. They
are building blocks, and a solid understanding of each property is fundamental to the motion
designer’s toolkit.

Position
Position is the spatial location of visual elements in a composition. X, Y, and Z are the three
axes, or reference lines of a coordinate system. The X axis refers to placement or movement
on a horizontal plane, the Y axis refers to placement or movement on a vertical plane, and
the Z axis refers to placement or movement on a depth plane—going forwards or backwards
through space. The position of visual elements in an image is key to establishing effective
composition and affecting a viewer’s interpretation.

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1.6
Graphic representing X, Y, and Z axes in space. In relation to a camera’s view, X position and movement is horizontal,
Y position and movement is vertical, and Z position and movement is forward or backward.

The process of constructing an image involves deciding where to place graphics or

concentrate the focus of an image for maximum effect. The position of visual elements
influences viewer engagement, visual flow, and the interpretation of a piece. Designers
use their aesthetic sensibilities to create compositions that are compelling and inform-
ative. We also use grids and classic principles such as the rule of thirds to inform our
layouts. This blend of intuition and graphic guidelines for image-making translates into
motion as well. Animation of the position property shows changes in a visual element’s
placement in space. Learning how to effectively chart the movement of elements in
Motion Design is a core skill that allows for the choreography of animation performance.

Opacity
Opacity refers to the degree to which a visual element is opaque or transparent. Digital
programs designate a value of 100% opacity to a fully opaque asset, whereas a completely
transparent asset would have an opacity value of 0%. We can set the opacity property to any
value between 0% and 100%, such as 50%, where an asset is semi-transparent. The ability
to control and alter visibility is useful for both spatial and temporal composing.
For spatial purposes, opacity is used for compositing and creating depth. Artful applica-
tion of opacity creates a sense of layering in a composition. Variations in opacity mix visual
qualities such as value, color, and texture between layers to create compelling aesthetics.
Opacity is an effective tool for creating visual cohesion in an image when combined with
blending modes, which are a function that mixes the appearance of layers.
Gradations of opacity over time are useful for the classic effect of fading visuals
on or off. Film editing software offers this effect as a cross-dissolve between shots.
Although we may use opacity as a broad stroke fade between shots, in Motion Design

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1.7
Graphic representing changes in Opacity, from fully opaque on the left to transparent on the right.

1.8
Graphic representing changes in Scale.

we often work in a more granular way. Each specific element or layer can be controlled
with its own timing. Individual elements can appear and disappear in a choreographed
sequence. In addition to purposeful fades, opacity can create flashing effects by turning
layers on and off rapidly.

Scale
In Motion Design, the scale property represents the proportionate size of a layer or object in
a composition. In other words, scale determines how big or small a visual element appears.
X, Y, and Z (for 3D objects) are the values that can be adjusted to specify an asset’s scale.
The X value represents the horizontal size or width of an asset, the Y value represents the
vertical size or height, and the Z value represents the depth or length of an asset. 2D layers
in compositing tools such as After Effects do not have Z depth (most of the time.) However,
3D programs regularly use the Z value of scale to control the volume of objects in a scene.
Effective use of scale helps establish a composition’s focal point, visual hierarchy,
and depth. Scale is also a pivotal tool for controlling positive and negative space in an
image. Contrasts in scale create tension and visual interest for a viewer. In motion, scale
is used to grow or shrink layers or objects. Fast scale changes capture the viewer’s
attention and add drama to a project. Slow scale changes show the passage of time and/
or provide continuous secondary motion. Scaling effects are also used for transitions.
Visual elements can fill the screen to change a background or reduce it to nothing to
reveal a new scene.

Rotation
Rotation is a circular movement of a layer or object around an axis. For spatial arrangements,
rotating visual assets creates dynamic angles or diagonals that direct the eye, break up

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1.9
Graphic representing changes in Rotation.

1.10
Graphic representing the role of the Anchor Point. (A) The Anchor Point is centered to the layer. (B) The Anchor Point
is on the corner of the layer. The top picture shows changes in Rotation, and the bottom picture shows changes in
Scale.

space, and produce compositional tension/interest. In motion, rotation is used to spin or flip
assets and to change camera orientation. Rotation occurs up to 360 degrees or in numbers
of full rotations. For 2D graphics, rotation is constrained to the Z axis. With 3D, rotation can
occur on X, Y, or Z—meaning objects can appear to roll or flip over in space.
In the foundational text The Illusion of Life, by Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, one
of the 12 principles of animation is arcs. “Most natural action tends to follow an arched tra-
jectory, and animation should adhere to this principle by following implied ‘arcs’ for greater
realism.” In Motion Design, the rotation property emulates the feeling of arcs in traditional
animation, adding dynamic qualities to movement.

Anchor Point/Axis
For Motion Design software, the Anchor Point or Axis is the point from which a layer or
object scales and/or rotates. Learning how to manage the anchor point is essential to
controlling your animations. In many instances, software will automatically place a layer
or object’s anchor point in the center of the content. When the anchor point is located in
that central position, any scale or rotation will start from that center point, creating trans-
formations that feel symmetrical. This default setting is typical for assets such as solids,

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1.11
Infographic of the keyframe-based animation.

shape layers, text layers, and nulls generated in After Effects, as well as any type of object
created in Cinema 4D.
There will be times you want to adjust the anchor point to not be centered on a layer.
Perhaps you want typography to animate from the bottom of each letterform in a word, or
you want a graphic to orbit from a point offset at a distance from the layer itself. The ability
to adjust the location of a layer’s anchor point or object’s axis is a gatekeeper to being able
to create a range of different types of animations. Therefore, learning how to comfortably
interface with your creative tools is vital.

Keyframe-Based Animation
Keyframes are GUI devices that display and change the transformation properties of
audiovisual elements on a timeline. A keyframe designates the distinct value of asset
properties at a specific point in time. In Figure 1.11, adding a keyframe to the position
property of a layer placed on the left side of a composition, at 0:00 seconds, marks the
location of the layer at that moment on the project’s timeline. Setting a second key-
frame on the position property of the same layer, at a different location in space such as
the right side of the composition, at 0:03 seconds in time establishes a new value for
position.
The software interprets what happens between the keyframes, automating the pro-
cess of animation to some extent. With traditional frame-by-frame animation, we would have
to draw the asset at each distinct location, for every frame in the sequence. At 30 fps,
that would be 90 drawings to create three seconds of animation. Keyframes exponentially
increase efficiency for this kind of animation. Furthermore, digital tools afford the ability to
non-destructively adjust the values on keyframed properties, as well as the locations of the
keyframes themselves on a timeline.

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Interfacing With Keyframes

Various software has different ways of setting and working with keyframes. For instance, in
After Effects, we use the time-vary stopwatch to put the first keyframe on a transformation
property. This tool “toggles a property’s ability to change over time” as described in the After
Effects interface. Once we activate the time-vary stopwatch and set the first keyframe, any
changes made to that property at a different point in the timeline will automatically set a new
keyframe to record that change.
Cinema 4D manages keyframes a little differently. In this 3D software, we use the
record active objects button to set initial keyframes or a circular icon next to a keyframable
property. In Cinema 4D, you need to record additional keyframes by hitting the record active
objects button or clicking the icon next to a property (unless you enable autokeying, which is
not advised as it records every action you take). This workflow is slightly different than After
Effects, but the underlying principles and practices of keyframing are the same. Regardless
of the software, you will need to learn and adapt to the platform’s interface and method-
ology for managing keyframes. This principle of learning how to interface extends beyond
keyframes, as this ability affords learning of all types of tools.

Duplicate and Offset

When we are satisfied with a sequence of motion on a layer or object, we can capitalize on
one of the strengths of digital media, which is to easily duplicate. Duplication is an amazing
affordance because it saves us from having to laboriously recreate complicated processes.
Duplicating a layer in program like After Effects gives us an exact copy of the layer, including
every keyframed property. When we offset the duplicated motion sequence in time and/or
space, things can start to get interesting.
Offsetting in time involves moving duplicated layers down the timeline. Separating lay-
ers with identical keyframed animation by increments, as few as a single frame, creates
consistent patterns of motion. Offsetting in space is adjusting duplicated layers spatially in
a composition through position, scale, rotation, anchor point, or opacity. Effects or any key-
framable property can be offset as well. Repetition on its own is a powerful rhetorical device
for communicating information to viewers. Offsetting adds staggered variations of unified
patterns and can quickly turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.
In Figure 1.12, we see an example of the duplicate and offset principle. Each layer
in the project timeline has the same exact sequence of keyframes on the opacity trans-
formation property: a quick flash on and off followed by an extended fade off. This set
of keyframes is duplicated in this example, and the offsets are in both time and space.
Temporally, each duplicated layer is slid one frame in time from the previous layer in
succession. Spatially, each layer is offset in position, and some layers are also offset in
scale.
When Figure 1.12 is played in motion, a captivating trail of movement is created solely
from animation of the opacity parameter and purposeful offsets in time and space. We
encourage you to rebuild a variation of this animation yourself, to experience this technique.
Offsetting itself is a rhetorical device, meaning it communicates through the form of pres-
entation; it operates through difference and repetition. Once this principle is practiced and
understood, it can be applied to an endless variety of projects.

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1.12
This screenshot from Adobe After Effects shows an example of the principle of duplicate and offset. We learned this
specific technique from Carlo Vega, artist and director.

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Creative Brief: Basic

Transformations

1.13
Example from Exercise 01—Emotion Graphics by Jessica Natasha. Top images are stills from the completed animation.
Bottom shows pen and paper approach of storyboards prior to motion.

Description/Creative Needs
For this exercise, create (3) different animations using basic transformations.
Basic transformations include:

• Position
• Opacity
• Scale
• Rotation
• Anchor Point

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Conceptual Prompt: E-Motion Graphics

Using only simple shapes and motion, practice using keyframes to express distinct emo-
tions. Explore how variations in basic transformations can affect the emotional tone commu-
nicated to the viewer. Each animation should clearly portray a different emotion.
This exercise has both a design and motion component.

1 Design phase: Pen and paper approach. Work in a sketchbook to roughly draw out (1)
storyboard for each of your motion exercises, for a total of (3) storyboards. The purpose
of these storyboards is to map out the primary compositions for your Motion Design
animations. Work in your sketchbook with pencils, pens, markers, and so on, or with
your preferred digital drawing tool.
2 Motion phase: Use keyframe animation to create motion of your storyboards. Restrict
design assets to simple shapes such as Solids and/or Shape Layers in After Effects.
These restrictions will force you to be creative with how you approach your design solu-
tion. Simple can be quite beautiful and challenging. Consider using contrast in visual
qualities such as size, color, and value to enhance overall screen composition.

Specifications and Constraints

• Suggested composition size(s): 1920 × 1080, 1080 × 1920, 1080 × 1080, or 1080 × 1350
pixels
• Duration: 5 seconds (per animation)
• Hand-drawn storyboards

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Professional Perspectives
Orion Tait

Orion Tait is co-chief creative officer and partner at Buck, an integrated collective of design-
ers, artists, and storytellers who believe in the power of collaboration. With a background in
filmmaking, fine arts, and graphic design, his award-winning work spans a variety of disci-
plines, and his varied body of work is rooted in visual storytelling that continues to push the
boundaries of innovation and quality in the creative arts.
Specializing in design-driven creative, Tait is an experienced and respected leader of teams
that use animation, visual effects, and live action to collaborate with clients from concept to deliv-
ery to produce work that is visceral, innovative, and diverse. He has created content and expe-
riences for a broad range of major brands from all over the world in the advertising, broadcast,
film, and entertainment industries including Coke, Nike, Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, IBM,
Mastercard, BBC2, and Sherwin-Williams. Tait has lectured at numerous schools and festivals
around the globe and served and chaired on several juries, including the One Show, AICP, Clios,
and the Art Directors Club.

Interview With Orion Tait

How did Buck get started?

It’s a funny random story that involves Craigslist. One of my partners Ryan Honey and I met
at a company called Heavy, who published a broadband website that was way ahead of its
time called Heavy.com. Ryan hired me there as an art director and saved me from corporate
drudgery. He and I became fast friends and met a lot of the Buck folks who we continue to
work with today. Heavy was kind of this nexus during that time of the early 2000s at the start
of what we call Motion Graphics now. It was this real creative hub in New York City.
Ryan and I both learned a lot from being there, in terms of what it means to run a crea-
tive company, and what it means to fail at that as well. There were a lot of long hours, a lot
of insanity, and a lot of pursuit of something in the future, as opposed to embracing the now.
At Buck we talk a lot about creating a sustainable creative culture. At Heavy, there was a lot
of stuff that was not sustainable. There was a real separation between management and the
makers and that has influenced the way we run our company now.
I ended up leaving New York after 9/11 and moved back home to Santa Barbara. I was
working for Heavy, telecommuting. I was taking conference calls from the beach, which
was great, but I knew that it was not going to last. So, I was scouring for my next thing and
I came across this posting on Craigslist that looked kind of interesting. Someone wanted to

h 22
 Focus and Flow j

1.14
Beyond Magic: title sequence for David Blaine’s ABC special. 2016 Emmy Winner for Outstanding Motion Design.
Directed by Buck.

start a design and motion studio. I sent the listing to Ryan because he had just had a kid,
living in New York, and struggling at Heavy. I was like, “Look, I am not ready for this . . . but
if you don’t apply to it, I might.”
He applied and it was our other partner, Jeff Ellermeyer, who had posted the ad. Jeff
was looking to build a creative services company out of a back-end web hosting company
that he had. Jeff is about ten years older than Ryan and I and an entrepreneur who had built
a few businesses. One of those was this web hosting business. Jeff comes from a com-
puter systems background but is also a very creative person. He brought in Ryan because he

23 h
j Focus and Flow

recognized that he needed a partner. So, they partnered up and started building out of this
small Korea Town office. They lured me down to Los Angeles and I joined up and became a
partner shortly thereafter.

Where did the name Buck come from?

Jeff’s company that we grew out of was called Fullerene, which is the molecule named after
Buckminster Fuller. Ryan and I were also fans of Buckminster Fuller and when we were
kicking around names, we thought Buck was clever. There is a lot of what Buckminster Fuller
represents and stands for that aligns with the way we work and the way we think about
things.

Because Buck has become so associated with animation, do you still see
yourselves in the creative services role?
We have changed a lot, but we also haven’t. In the beginning, we were positioned right at
this time where there was so much possibility. We could do the same thing with a laptop or
a desktop that a million-dollar Flame suite was offering. There was this grittiness to it, and
we didn’t pigeonhole ourselves. My first job at Buck was creating a website for 50 Cent, but
I was also directing an animated commercial at the same time.
We always thought of ourselves as partnering with our clients to make something inter-
esting. But even more than that, it is the way that we work. We always directed under the
name Buck, even after we became directors. We always worked like a design studio. Get the
people in the room that you need to solve a problem, whatever shape it is. If the shape is
different, add a copywriter or add a strategist. Our flexibility and our fluidity helped us evolve
in ways that I could not have imagined.
We have called ourselves an animation studio in the past. We have called ourselves a
production company. Lately, we call ourselves a creative company. Really, what it means is
that we are thinkers and dreamers as well as makers. We don’t dissociate those. We are
learning to be more focused on strategy as we bring more strategists into our team, but we
don’t separate them. We are all doing it together. We might be prototyping, we are designing
while strategizing, and checking our strategy during production.

What are your thoughts on the creative process?

We call it the “What If?” meeting, which is something that has always happened at Buck
from the day I started working with these folks. But it’s not something that happens every-
where. We are all getting in a room together, bouncing ideas in a collaborative ego-free envi-
ronment where great ideas get thrown away because it’s in pursuit of the better idea. You get
inspired by each other in this way. I think there is an ego component that happens in other
models where you don’t allow for true listening, where you allow for “What if?” moments.
Before you know it, we have built something none of us could have imagined singularly.

How do you approach studio culture?

We try to codify some of the things we did naturally when we were young and dumb,
but also to try and hold onto some of that naivete. There is always going to be a balance
and a tension between organization and freedom. How do we provide enough structure,

h 24
 Focus and Flow j

support, and organization to allow people to be successful without strangling their creativ-
ity in the process? How do we allow the freedom to express and break things and try new
things? It is about who you hire. This is something my partner Jeff talks a lot about, is that
we are really in the talent business more than anything. We have to be very intentional
about being a values-driven organization.

What are the attributes of your favorite motion designers?

When we hire people, we recognize that soft skills are as much a marker of success in
our organization as some of the hard skills. We have had folks come through Buck who are
incredibly talented, insane portfolios, such great artists but their way of working is more
like a solo-artist approach to things. They just aren’t successful at Buck. Not because they
are not amazing, gifted, kind, and talented people . . . it’s just not their way of working.
The students who are coming out of schools these days and the access to information
and teaching online, the level of polish is intimidating. I think it’s even intimidating for students.
The number one thing we hear from people is “I’m not good enough to be at Buck.” I think
that is not true. We are in the business of building, and supporting, and helping to grow talent.
The qualities we look for are curiosity, optimism, humility, vulnerability, and ambition.
Animation is so difficult and process oriented that you need a certain level of attention to
detail, but you also need the flip side of that, which is curiosity. The more you learn, the more
you realize you don’t know. I think animation is a great place for people who like to live in that
space. There are so many incredibly talented people at Buck, but they are here to learn and
to grow from the person next to them.

How does the studio balance passion projects with commercial projects?
We think of passion projects as creative opportunities. Intertwined within the phrase “pas-
sion projects” is the supposition that you are not really getting paid financially. We have
learned that it pays dividends that are quantifiable, but maybe not in a spreadsheet. There
is something about investing your creative capital into creative opportunity that for us has
been a really positive feedback loop. We have learned over the years to do it sustainably.
Treating a passion project like a job is really important. There is a good balance of busi-
ness and creativity that we inhabit. We recognize the value in some of the creative risks
we have taken. We can see the dot from a project like Good Books to something like Apple
Share Your Gifts, or some huge budget job—to be able to draw the line and what that has
meant for us as a business to take those risks and invest in those creative opportunities.
More recently we have been asking, “How do we track creative opportunities?”
There is a lot of software out there that tracks business metrics, but how do you gener-
ate creative opportunity? How do you track that and get data for it, to be able to see we
got more creative opportunities this year, or we were able to spread that around, or this
artist hasn’t seen as much creative opportunity? Not just looking at business metrics, but
how we look at creative metrics is a new and interesting challenge.

Do passion projects help lead clients into new creative possibilities?

A bigger mission of ours is to move the needle where creativity is really valued for the impact
that it has. We would rather invest into something that has a good cause.

25 h
j Focus and Flow

Some of the advice I give to students when they are building their portfolios is to make
the work that you want to make. Put the stuff on your portfolio that is the stuff you want to
do. Create that project if you are not given that brief or opportunity, and I think that is true for
companies that are as big or established as ours.
The stakes are high at our level for some of the clients that we are working with and that
can make them risk averse. So they want to see something that has been done or had that
effect before. We never want to do the same thing again. Nobody here wants to pull out the
same bag of tricks. But sometimes when you are in high-risk place where there is a small
timeline or limited budgets, you can only do the thing that you have done before.
We have seen the dark side of that in our industry, chasing these trends that happen. As
timelines shrink and stakes get higher, clients don’t want to take those risks. Sometimes, it
is unfair that it falls on the creative agencies to invest into pushing boundaries. I wish clients
would invest more into taking those risks, rather than having studios do that. There is a real
danger there, that studios feel like, in order to make a name for themselves, they have to
invest hundreds of thousands of dollars into passion projects. For a smaller studio, it can
break them, and they can’t recover from that.

What are your thoughts on generalists versus specialists?

We have always talked about, pretty openly, that we favor generalists. Especially when we
were a smaller group. It’s probably not surprising since we are named after one of the most
accomplished generalists out there. Buckminster Fuller coined the term synergy, and I think
he was a strong proponent of generalists. I would use the term polymaths: people who are
specialists in lots of different areas. Now, we have a mix of generalists and specialists, but
even our specialists have curiosity to work on different things, and that’s why they are at Buck.
I think as the projects we are tackling or the stories that we are telling get more com-
plex, for them to resonate, it does favor the generalists who can connect the dots. I think
that is where innovation happens. Specialists can push certainly, but the unexpected hap-
pens when folks have a wide range of interests.
What we do has become more and more technical, so it is important that we have really
talented folks. But even a rigger at Buck is there because they love design. There is probably
a wide range of interest that attracts them to a place like this.
Specializing can generate biases that can aggregate as discord, which in turn can lead
to conflict. We’ve seen that as we’ve grown. We have had to break into departments at
Buck to take care of people, but we like to think of the walls as membranes. If you are a 2D
animator at Buck, you are going to be in the 2D animation department. But you might be
one of our best designers. But you are not in the design department. So, how do we create
processes that allow that amazing designer in the 2D animation department to have design
opportunities? That is an example of specialization that starts to breed discord. Generalists
can help breed empathy.

What are some of the challenges of growing as a studio?

We all really love and cherish this place that we have built. The number one fear is that we
are going to somehow “fuck it up.” That’s the common story: “X company used to be amaz-
ing, they grew too big too fast, and now their work has plateaued or plummeted.” How do

h 26
 Focus and Flow j

we make it the opposite story? How do we say, “Buck grew, and they got more diverse, and
got more innovative and creative?”
The other fear that is inextricably tied to the first is the fear that we don’t take advantage
of what we built, for the fear of “fucking it up,” we don’t take advantage of this incredible
creative engine that we built that is capable of so much. How do we continue innovating
and taking risks? Those are the big challenges. But so far, we have taken these challenges
head-on, and it has been really encouraging.
There is a lot of work that we have to do to be a more diverse and inclusive place. We
are much more intentional to make sure our hiring practices are not ruled by our own biases,

1.15
The Road to Recovery: Film for Alcoholics Anonymous. Directed by Buck.

27 h
j Focus and Flow

that we are not only bringing folks in who have benefited from an education that is guided
by those biased networks. How can we continue to push and innovate? To be stronger, we
need to be more diverse. We are constantly evolving. We are a chimeric, multi-headed beast.

What are your favorite projects?

I love animation that is about externalizing something internal. That is one of the things that
I love about commercial animation. AA is one of those for me, just a personal and beautiful
project that was about telling peoples’ stories in a non-narrative and emotional way. I think
animation is so well suited to that. If you tried to tell that story with live action, it could get
maudlin or cheesy. To me, animation is the realm of dreams and emotions.
Along with that is the David Blaine piece, which is doing similar stuff. It’s all about how
you take something internal, trippy, weird, or hard to express and asking: how do we exter-
nalize that for a viewer to understand those feelings? When you tie that with sound, motion,
and color, I think that is the sweet spot. I love the projects that do that.

What suggestions do you have for young designers?

Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, to be honest and take risks. We are always looking
for that little kernel or little spark that shows possibility. When you look at the Instagram
feed it can be paralyzing. It’s hard advice to take, but: put yourself out there. Don’t be afraid
to be persistent. If you get a “no,” keep trying. If there is a place or something that you
want, don’t be afraid to continue. If you are pursuing something that you are passionate
about, someone else is going to see that. You don’t need to have all the answers. The
way that we work, we are looking for potential. We are looking for folks that have drive,
curiosity, and the potential to learn and become great. We are not necessarily looking for
someone who is great out the door.5

NOTES
1 Pak, Peter, Zoom interview with author, October 11, 2021.
2 Eckman, Chrissy, Zoom interview with author, September 8, 2021.
3 Rhythm. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. Accessed November 13, 2021.
www.britannica.com/art/rhythm-music.
4 Sarofsky, Erin, Zoom interview with author, April 12, 2021.
5 Tait, Orion, Zoom interview with author, April 20, 2021.

h 28
Chapter 2
Between the Keyframes

KEYFRAME INTERPOLATION

Very complicated processes happen within software when we animate with keyframes. The
good news is that you do not need to understand all the complex mathematics and program-
ming at work when you keyframe a layer or object. Of course, you can learn as much about
how software functions as you want. But, all you really need to learn is how to interface with
your tools and their range of capabilities.
In mathematics, interpolation is “the process of determining the value of a function
between two points at which it has prescribed values.”1 For some readers, this definition
makes perfect sense. For those who may be scratching their heads, you can think of inter-
polation as the change that happens between the keyframes. Each keyframe stores two
important pieces of data: a point in time and a value. Software knows how to “blend” or
interpolate between these keyframes to create the illusion of a smooth transition. Adjusting
the interpolation allows you to control the rate of change—or how to blend—between those
fixed values and points in time. In other words, it is the way you get from point A to point B.

Two Types of Interpolation

Just like the two primary frameworks of Motion Design, the two types of interpolation are
spatial and temporal. Each type of interpolation functions in two different ways: linear and
non-linear. In relation to Motion Design, linear means straight line, or constant change.
Non-linear is the opposite, meaning curved line, or variable change. Understanding how to
adjust and control the two types of interpolation and their functions as linear and non-linear
are fundamental to the motion designer’s toolkit. To gain this understanding, a closer study
of vector graphics and Bezier curves is needed.

Bezier Curves
Vector graphics are a type of digital media that use mathematics to generate shapes that
are scalable without loss of edge or image quality. The term Bezier curve comes from
Pierre Bézier, a French engineer who “led the transformation of industrial design and man-
ufacturing, through mathematics and computing tools, into computer aided design and
three-dimensional modeling.”2 While working for the French car manufacturer Renault,
Pierre Bézier patented the Bezier curve, which we use to create vector graphics like
fonts, logos, and shape layers. If you have ever used the pen tool inside of Photoshop or

DOI: 10.4324/9781003200529-3 29 h
j Between the Keyframes

Illustrator, you have been drawing Bezier curves! These same paths or splines are also
used for a range of 3D modeling tools. Regarding Motion Design and interpolation, Bezier
paths adjust both spatial and temporal interpolation. An examination of the anatomy of
paths and how to work with them is also invaluable to the toolkit.

Points and Lines

The underlying structure of vector graphics are Bezier paths, and the building blocks of paths
are points and lines. A Bezier path is made up of at least two points, each with a location and
a tangent associated with it. The locations tell the curve where to start and end, whereas the
tangents describe the shape of the curve as it goes from the starting location to the ending
location.
Again, we find that there are two types of points and two types of lines. The first type
of point is a corner point, which creates straight lines if two consecutive points are set to
corner. The second type of point is a smooth point, that creates curved lines. In Figure 2.1,
we see two simple parametric path shapes, a square and a circle. Both are composed of four
points and four lines. For the square, we have four corner points that are each connected by
straight lines. For the circle, we have four smooth points that are each connected by curved
lines. The circle also has handles, which are manipulatable representations of the incoming
and outgoing tangent lines.
With points, lines, and handles, we can design an unlimited array of graphic combina-
tions. One crucial gatekeeper to success in this arena is learning how to effectively man-
age the handles of paths. Fortunately, path and handle behavior translates across software
and function—meaning the same principles and techniques to control the path shape of
an object in Adobe Illustrator are used to adjust the shape of a motion path in Adobe After
Effects. In Figure 2.2, we see an infographic representing three different types of interpola-
tion commonly used in Motion Design: Linear, Continuous Bezier, and Bezier.
When we make vectors using a parametric shape tool or a pen tool, we are using points and
lines to define the vector path. Linear is rather straightforward (pun intended), and you do not
need to worry about handles because there are none. To change the shape of a linear path, you
simply need to select individual points and adjust them in space. Handles come into play with

2.1
A graphic representation of points and lines. The square has corner points and straight lines. The circle has smooth
points and curved lines.

h 30
 Between the Keyframes j

2.2
Graphic representations of interpolation types: Linear, Continuous Bezier, and Bezier.

non-linear interpolation, and there are two ways to manage them: Continuous Bezier and Bezier.
The direction and extent that a handle is moved influences the shape of the resulting curve(s).
Continuous Bezier means that adjusting a handle on either side of a point influences the
shape of both lines connected to that point. More technically, a Bezier point set to “continu-
ous” makes sure that the incoming tangent point, the point itself, and the outgoing tangent
point are colinear—meaning they form a straight line. This setting is great when you want
your paths to elegantly flow from point to point. However, Continuous Bezier will drive you
crazy when you need a path to make a hard stop and change direction, if you do not know
how to convert to the Bezier setting.
The Bezier setting uses handles, but they are not linked. That means an adjustment to a
handle in this setting will only change the curve on the handle’s side of the point. The handles
on either side of a point are independent from each other. This setting allows you to make
paths that are non-continuous. Learning how to convert path points from linear to non-linear,
Continuous to Bezier, and to manage handles is vital. Software typically has interface con-
trols and/or hot keys to accomplish this task.

Pen Tool
The pen is an amazing tool for creating freeform paths in digital programs. Learning how to
interface with the pen tool and controlling Bezier paths takes some work, but the range of
possibilities afforded by this tool are worth the effort. In Adobe Illustrator, the pen tool offers
precise control to draw vector paths that are scalable without loss of edge quality. Once
created, vector shapes are quite modular with easy access to features such as stroke width,
fill, colors, and gradients. We can also easily duplicate paths, separate them into layers, and
organize them by naming layers.
In Adobe Photoshop, the pen tool can draw vector shapes like Illustrator and can also
draw a special type of path. When the pen tool is set to draw paths in Photoshop, we can
draw a non-visible path composed of points and lines within a selected layer. The purpose of
a path in Photoshop is to be converted into a selection. Selections are part of a Photoshop
workflow that allows for precisely isolating parts of an image, such as “cutting” a figure out
of a background in a photograph. When we draw a precise path using the pen tool in Pho-
toshop and convert that path to a selection, we can copy and paste the selected part of an
image or create a layer mask to control the visibility of a layer.
In Adobe After Effects, the pen tool is used for masking techniques, which are like Pho-
toshop layer masks, except they can animate over time with keyframes. Open mask paths

31 h
j Between the Keyframes

2.3
Pen tool options from Adobe Illustrator. The pen draws points and lines that compose paths. The Add Anchor Point
Tool adds points to an existing path, the Delete Anchor Point Tool deletes points from an existing path, and the
Anchor Point Tool converts points from linear to non-linear or vice versa.

drawn in After Effects with the pen tool can also be paired with effects to draw layers on and
off screen. We will examine masking in After Effects later in this chapter. The After Effects
pen tool can also create shape layers—vector layers that are like objects drawn in Illustrator
but with keyframable properties that can animate on a timeline.
In 3D programs like Cinema 4D, the pen tool draws paths called splines that can be
paired with modeling objects to generate 3D geometry. Extrudes, sweeps, lofts, and lathes
are the basic modeling tools that combine with spline paths. We can create splines directly
within Cinema 4D or import paths we draw in Illustrator. Furthermore, the pen tool and Bez-
ier curves translate into Motion Design by controlling the spatial paths of motion for objects,
layers, and cameras in both After Effects and Cinema 4D.

SPATIAL INTERPOLATION

Although Bezier curves are useful in creating shapes, they are also used to control motion.
Bezier curves have two main roles in animation. The primary role is to control the rate of
change between two keyframes. The secondary role is to control the path through space that
spatial (position-based) properties take. In Figure 2.4, we see a simple diagram of a square
moving on the X axis. The two points at the end of the line with the boxes around them sig-
nify our keyframes, where we explicitly set time and position values for our square. With two
keyframes set up, the application automatically blends, or interpolates, between those points.
The line between our keyframes is a helpful GUI called a motion path. This graphic
shows us the path through space that our square travels between keyframes. Furthermore,
the small dots along the line show us where the anchor point of our square will be at each
frame between the starting and ending keyframe. Looking at Figure 2.4, we can tell that the
animation is 18 frames long (18 dots, not counting the one at Frame 0) and that we are cur-
rently viewing the position of the square on the 12th frame. Because our square is moving
on a straight line through space between our keyframes, this diagram shows an example of
Linear Spatial Interpolation.

2.4
Graphic representation of spatial interpolation in a linear motion path.

h 32
 Between the Keyframes j

2.5
Graphic representation of spatial interpolation in a non-linear motion path.

2.6
Graphic representation of the difference between Continuous Bezier, Bezier, and Corner.

Linear Spatial Interpolation is typically the default setting for Motion Design software.
First, we set a keyframe for a layer’s Position property. Then we navigate to another point
in the timeline and change the layer’s location to somewhere else in the composition. This
action sets a second keyframe for the Position property, creating motion in a straight line.
To make our path non-linear, we need to adjust the default tangent handles by clicking and
dragging them to our desired shape. (If a linear path has no tangents, we need to convert the
end points to smooth by using the Convert Vertex Tool.)
In Figure 2.5, we see an example of Non-linear Spatial Interpolation. The square is mov-
ing along a curved motion path through space. Also, notice the Bezier handles extending
from the keyframes. The direction and extent that a handle is moved influences the shape of
the resulting curve. This type of motion path creates a more organic movement than a linear
path, as nothing in nature moves in perfectly straight lines.
Once we start creating motion paths with more than two keyframes for the Position prop-
erty, it gets a little trickier, especially if we want our motion to make drastic changes in direction.
In these instances, we need to adjust the spatial interpolation of the keyframe where we want
these dramatic changes to occur. In Figure 2.6, the first keyframe is set to Continuous Bezier.
The second keyframe is converted to Bezier, allowing for a radical change in path direction.

Interpolation Through Z Space

In Figure 2.7, we see a graphic representation of a motion path through Z space. Layers
that are enabled to be composed in three dimensions can be animated forward or back-
ward in space, in relation to a camera’s view. Using handles, we create motion paths that

33 h
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though she were his son instead of his daughter. Her grotesquely
plain little face and lawless domineering ways as a youngster had
appeared to please and entertain him. He had called her his “ugly
little beauty kid” and “the boss” and “Cairns II.” He had, as she had
grown older, and come home from prep school, then college, spent
long hours with her in the den. Sometimes they had played chess or
backgammon of which they were both fond. Again he would talk
freely to her of his financial operations. It was a school into which
the maxims of Brooke Hamilton would not have fitted. Peter Cairns
had made Leslie’s mind up to his own way of living as he was one
day to learn.
Realizing the flight of time she gathered herself together for the final
episode of her surreptitious errand. She rose, crossed the room to
where a rare etching hung and lifted it from its hook. The space thus
left vacant showed the indentation of a wall safe. Leslie manipulated
the tiny knob with sure fingers. She next pulled open the safe’s door
and moved a tiny switch inside the cavity. A bright light flooded it.
She ran a finger down a stack of small, black, leather-bound
notebooks, bindings out, lettered in gilt, A to Z. She drew the third
book, I to M, from the little pile and sat down with it in the nearest
chair.
“So that’s his name—Lavigne! It sounds French, but he looked more
like a dago. He’s probably forgotten his real name,” Leslie mused
satirically. “All right, Anton. I’ll proceed to tell your fortune. You are
going to receive a visit from a dark woman who knows all about
you.”
Leslie copied the address from her father’s very private directory into
a note book of her own. She replaced the little black book, closed
and locked the safe and made business-like preparations to depart.
She purposed to call at the address she had obtained that same
afternoon. It was not yet four o’clock. She could reach Anton
Lavigne at the Central Park West address in good season if she
started promptly. If he were not at home she would leave a note of
appointment with him for ten o’clock the next morning.
She let herself out of Peter the Great’s den by a curtained door at
the back of the room. It also had a spring lock, its key was also in
the financier’s possession. The stairway was in darkness but Leslie
knew her way without switching on a light at the head of the stairs.
Sure-footed, she quickly made the descent and went cautiously onto
the veranda. Still no one in sight.
Leslie kept as close to the house as she could until she reached its
front. There she crossed a strip of frozen lawn to the drive and
hurriedly followed it to the gates. She could hardly believe as she
got back into the car that she had spent over an hour in the show
shop without having seen sign of a servant. The house was in
perfect order. She was confident that Parsons was still caretaker. She
had seen signs of the steward’s expert domestic management as
soon as she stepped inside. She moodily wondered when she would
see home again. She afterward brightened a little under the dogged
determination to “make things come her way.”
When she reached the somewhat garish apartment hotel which
housed Anton Lavigne she was of the opinion that her good fortune
had held. She received the cheering information that Mr. Lavigne
was in and was soon shaking hands with the dark-faced, suave, but
keen-eyed foreigner. He came downstairs to the lounge to greet her
and conduct her to the family apartment on the fifth floor. He
inquired with the courtliness Leslie so well remembered in him for
her father. He had not seen or heard from him in some time. He
waited with admirable reserve for Leslie to state her errand.
“My father is away from New York at present,” Leslie began when he
had ushered her into a small reception hall furnished in a manner
which suggested its use as office as well. “I am through college now
and starting a business career for myself.”
“Indeed,” Lavigne raised polite commendatory brows. “May I ask,
how long you have been engaged in such an enterprise. You
American girls are so amazing. The English girls, too, for that matter.
In France every woman is a business woman, so we say, but
American girls are the business adventurers. They plan business on
a large scale, and really accomplish what they plan.”
“I hope I shall,” was Leslie’s fervent reply. “My father isn’t helping
me at all. I don’t wish him to do so. I am using my own money, and
he isn’t giving me a word of advice. All I claim from him is a free use
of some of his most private successful methods. That is why I am
here. I know you can be as useful to me as you have been to him.”
She suddenly fixed her eyes on Lavigne with an expression
startlingly like that of Peter Cairns, though she bore small physical
resemblance to him.
“You speak with great confidence—with frankness.” Lavigne’s thick
dark brows drew together. “I knew when you were announced that
you wished something out of the usual. Only your father, Mr. Peter
Cairns, and a few of my special friends have this address.” He gazed
steadily at her as though waiting to hear a certain assurance from
her which his foreign mind toward caution demanded.
“I have just come from the house on Riverside Drive. I took your
address from its usual place. Do you get me?” Leslie spoke in the
best imitation of her father she could muster.
“Ah, yes.” There was relief in the response. “I understand the
situation, I believe. What can I do for you, Miss Cairns?” It had long
been known to Lavigne that Peter Cairns’s greatest interest in life
was his daughter. Such a calamity as an estrangement between the
two would have seemed impossible to this man who had been one
of the financier’s ablest allies for many years. He now believed that
his best interests lay in serving Leslie.
Leslie could tell nothing of the man’s thoughts by watching his face.
No expression or emotion contrary to Lavigne’s will was allowed to
appear on his dark features.
“My business operation is the building of a garage not far from the
campus of Hamilton College. Hamilton is my—er—the college I went
to.” Leslie always stuck at the words “Alma Mater.” “I had a good
deal of trouble obtaining the site, due to the underhandedness of a
crowd of would-be welfare students who tried to make me give it up
to them. They wanted it for a dormitory.”
Lavigne smiled with heartening sympathy and made a gesture of
understanding regret for Leslie’s troubles.
“I found out what their scheme was and managed to get into touch
with the owner of the property before they did. Before he closed
with me they let him know they wanted the site and he charged me
sixty thousand dollars for what I should have paid not more than
thirty-five or forty thousand. When they discovered I had won out
over them they made a great fuss. They circulated very hateful
gossip about how dishonorable I was, and so forth. A rich old crank
at Hamilton, the last of the Hamilton family, sided with these
students against me, though she’d never met me, and presented
them with a dormitory site right next to the property I had bought.
Can you beat that?” Leslie had forgotten dignity in slangy disgust for
the way the matter had turned out.
“Incredible, yet true.” Lavigne lightly raised a hand. “But proceed,
Miss Cairns. I am deeply interested.”
Leslie went on to explain regarding the old houses standing on both
pieces of property. “These students have the advantage of the
services of the only builder and architect of ability in that part of the
country. He knows the labor situation there. He has had plenty of
men since the start. I have a New York firm on the job and they are
slackers. They claim they can’t get the laborers. My ground hasn’t
been cleared off yet. My garage building isn’t started. The old
dormitory is half up. I must do something about it. Two-thirds of
those laborers are Italians, from an Italian colony outside Hamilton. I
want them to work for me. I’ll pay them double, triple, if necessary,
to quit the other operation.”
She stopped. Not for an instant did her gaze leave Lavigne’s face. He
was now looking at her very shrewdly, an odd gleam in his black
eyes. Leslie thought they twinkled. It put her on her mettle.
“This isn’t a schoolgirl quarrel I’ve had with these other students, Mr.
Lavigne,” she said a trifle sullenly. “If you want to know the secret
truth it’s a fight between another student and myself for—to bring
about a certain result. I have as much right to the use of these men
as she—as they—these students have. I don’t care what I pay you to
have you help me. I have a large fortune in my own right. I can
soon prove it to you. This business is really a race to see which side
wins. I’ll win, if you’ll help me. No one need even suspect you of
being concerned in the matter. I want you to engineer it. That’s the
way you’ve always worked for my father, isn’t it?” Leslie asked the
question with innocent ingenuousness. She understood, however,
precisely how much depended upon it.
“Your father’s and my transactions have always been conducted with
great discretion,” was the indirect admission.
“I know that. I know all about certain deals between you and him in
the past. If I didn’t, would I be here now? It’s not simply a question
of the garage operation with me. I’m fighting to assert myself. I’m
going to follow my father’s methods. They’ve been absolutely
successful. What I want I intend to get, if those who can give it to
me are willing to sell out.” Leslie asserted boldly.
“Of course, of course. You are like your father. You are not a minor,
Miss Cairns?” Lavigne inquired tentatively.
“Hardly.” Leslie smiled. “And you don’t have to consult my father. He
has told me to do as I pleased with my own money. I’ll ask you to
observe absolute secrecy in the matter. When the battle is won, then
he is to be told.”
“You may trust me to serve you as best I can, Miss Cairns,” Lavigne
declared with flattering sincerity. “In a few days I will go to Hamilton
and look over the situation. I can tell you then what ought to be
done. Where shall I address you?”
“At the Essenden until day after tomorrow. Then I’m going back to
Hamilton. My address there is the Hamilton House.” Leslie rose to
conclude her call. She was reminded that her father’s interviews with
others were always brief. She was experiencing all the sweetness of
vengeful exultation. At last she was going to “get back at Bean.”
 CHAPTER XX.

MARJORIE’S CALLER

“I thought you were never coming back, Jerry Macy!” Marjorie

dropped into the depths of the near-by arm chair with a weary little
flop. “I’ve worked like mad for as much as an hour getting up my
share of the eats for Ronny’s birthday spread.” She poked out her
red under lip and tried hard to look aggrieved. The sparkle in her
eyes contradicted the pretence.
“How could you harbor such disloyal thoughts of me, Beautiful Bean?
You are beautiful, even if your lip is away out of place,” Jerry
tenderly assured.
“Being beautiful doesn’t make me feel rested.” Marjorie still searched
for cause to complain. “For why did you stay away so long, Jurry-
miar?”
“There’s the cause of my lingering longering.” Jerry held up a good-
sized pasteboard box tied with stout string. “Just wait till you see it.
I had to toddle all around Hamilton in search of a cake. When all
seemed lost we bumped into this glorious, scrumptious cocoanut
layer cake.” She set the box on the table and untied the string.
“It’s a white splendor.” Marjorie stood beside Jerry peeping at the
cake as her chum removed the box lid. “I’ve made the sandwiches.”
She nodded toward a side table carefully covered with a snowy lunch
cloth. “I cracked the walnuts for the brown bread ones and also my
thumb.” She ruefully put the injured member in her mouth.
“How you must have suffered!” Jerry solemnly exclaimed. Both girls
began to laugh. “Leila was in one of her fine frenzies because we
couldn’t find a real cake or any stuffed dates.”
“I was that,” notified an affable agreeing voice from the opened
door. “Did not the people of Hamilton all have their mouths set for
sweet cakes today?” Leila closed the door and joined her chums.
“We could find nothing we wanted.”
“Until in despair we went over to a new bakery on Gorman Street
that just opened yesterday. The woman who keeps it is German. She
has yellow hair and looks just like a pound cake,” Jerry described
with enthusiasm.
“And our dream of a cake was in the window!” exclaimed Leila. “We
thought we would eat it ourselves and tell no one, but we have such
honor about us. We could not bear to think of those who would have
no cake.” She smiled broadly upon Marjorie.
“You are a pair of fakes. You’ve been out having a fine spin while
I’ve been in working hard. The minute dinner’s over you two may
make the fruit salad. That will be your job,” Marjorie sternly
pronounced sentence on the buoyant, hilarious pair.
“I will make forty fruit salads to please you, Beauty, though I do not
know how to make one. Behold in me a helpful Harper.”
“You mean a harpful helper,” corrected Jerry.
“If you mean I am a harp, then I must tell you you are right. I do
not know how you guessed it.” Leila gazed at Jerry in mock
admiration.
“Dinner won’t mean much to us tonight,” commented Marjorie as
she proudly raised the lunch cloth to allow the girls to see the
tempting generous stacks of small, three-cornered sandwiches, the
relishes and various other toothsome viands always welcomed by
girlhood at a spread. “Remember, we are to take nothing but soup at
dinner. It’s to be cream of celery. I asked Ellen.”
“Oh, Marjorie, I almost forgot to tell you,” Jerry suddenly cried out.
“Something has happened to the Hob-goblin’s Folly.” This was Jerry’s
pet name for Leslie’s garage enterprise.
“Happened?” Marjorie’s question contained little interest.
“Yep. There’s a new gang of men at work on the garage. Leila and I
noticed them when we went to town. They were gone when we
came back, but it was after five-thirty. There were as many as your
gang on the dormitory. I think they were Italians. Don’t you, Leila?”
Leila nodded. “They must be a new addition to the Italian quarter,”
she surmised. “Signor Baretti said last fall that nearly all the men of
the quarter were working on the dormitory. He said they had refused
to work for Leslie Cairns’s builders. They would not pay them
enough by the day. Perhaps the new ones are glad of the work. But
how can I judge when I am no boss of Italians, or of any one but
Midget. I shall certainly give her a tart and terrible lecture when I
see her again. I left her entertaining Gentleman Gus. Now I believe
they have eloped.”
Leila’s dark suspicion of Vera set the three girls laughing. Gussie was
the tallest girl at Wayland Hall and Vera the tiniest. The elopement
of the pair was a joy to contemplate.
“I haven’t been near the dormitory for three whole days,” Marjorie
confessed ruefully. “I’ve been so busy since we came back from
Sanford trying to make up for a lot of things I let slide before I went
that I’m a no good manager. Robin is coming early tonight, so she’ll
know what has been going on over there. We may thank our stars
we have such a splendid manager as Mr. Graham to look after the
dormitory for us.”
“And such a Marvelous Manager as Bean to look after the
sandwiches for us,” supplemented Jerry, imitating Marjorie’s tone.
“I thank my stars they’re made, and made without your help,
Jeremiah Macy.” Marjorie waved a finger before Jerry’s face. “There’s
Robin now, I’m sure.” She sprang from her chair and ran to the door.
“Were you at the dormitory today?” Her lips framed the question
before Robin had more than stepped into the room.
“No-o.” Robin’s tone was one of self-accusation. “It’s neglectful in
me, but I’ve not been there since day before yesterday. I must turn
over a new leaf tomorrow. What about you, Dean? I know you’ve
done better than I.”
“But I haven’t,” Marjorie protested. “I’m a day behind you, Pagie.
Jerry and Leila saw Leslie Cairns’s builders have at last gathered up
a supply of workmen. The girls noticed them today when they drove
to town.”
“Her garage will be about as successful there as it would be in
Thibet,” predicted Robin scornfully. “It’s too far from the campus to
be convenient.”
“I wonder if she intends to run it herself?” remarked Jerry. “I can
see the Hob-goblin proudly marching around her own car roost.”
Conversation about Leslie Cairns came to a halt with Jerry’s remarks.
None of the Travelers liked to discuss her. When they did it was
because of some way in which her affairs chanced to touch theirs.
The lively entrance into the room of the “elopers” who had gone for
a ride in Vera’s car, and returned at the last minute before dinner,
brought a welcome diversity of subject.
“What do you care whether we have dinner or not? Think of the
spread we have for Ronny.” Jerry reminded them. “You may have
only soup for dinner. We’re going to have the eats soon after the
party begins so that nightmares won’t be popular along the hall
tonight.”
“You try to be kind-hearted, don’t you, Jeremiah?” said Vera, with a
patronizing smile.
“Oh, yes, I try,” mimicked Jerry. “It’s not my fault if my
kindheartedness doesn’t register. Some people are positively thick,
and—”
The ringing of the dinner gong sent Vera and Gussie scurrying to
their rooms to remove their wraps. Marjorie, Jerry, Leila and Robin
made leisurely way down stairs to the dining room. Dinner began
and ended with soup for the Travelers. The ten original Travelers
were invited to the spread, as were also Phil Moore and Barbara
Severn. Marjorie had invited both of the latter to come over early to
“soup.” Both had nobly refused in favor of study so as to be free to
spend the evening at Wayland Hall without including “unprepared” in
next day’s vocabulary.
“The first thing for us to do to start the party is to move the eats
into Ronny’s and Lucy’s room.” was Marjorie’s brisk decision, as she
and Jerry returned to Room 15 from the dining room.
Robin had strolled down the hall to see Ronny and give her a
birthday present of a curious, vellum-bound book in Spanish, which
she had commissioned her dilettante uncle to buy for her in
Washington at a fancy price.
“We might all heave-ho and lug the table into the other room with
the eats on it,” proposed Jerry dubiously. “On the other hand, there
might be a grand heave-ho-ing of eats on the floor. I don’t like to
take such a risk, Bean. Think of my goloptious, celostrous cocoanut
cake.” Jerry had added “goloptious” to her new vocabulary of one
word.
“Think of my scrumptious, splendiferous sandwiches,” retaliated
Bean with promptitude.
“I’m thinking about them,” Jerry said mournfully. “I could eat one
now, if I had it. So near and yet so far.” She lifted the lunch cloth
and made eyes at the stacks of sandwiches. “This is the result of
only soup for supper. I yearn to gobble the spread.”
“I’ll feed you a sandwich with my own hand.” Marjorie proffered a
nut sandwich, Jerry’s favorite kind, to her hungry roommate.
“Thanks, kind lady. I wasn’t—”
“I know all about you,” cut in Marjorie with an unsympathetic laugh.
“Hurry up, and eat that sandwich. Then help me move the eats; by
hand; not by table.”
Marjorie went to the door and opened it. She came back to the
table, picked up two plates of sandwiches and started with them for
Ronny’s room. Part way to it she encountered Annie, one of the
maids.
“Oh, Miss Dean, I was just coming after you.” The maid’s broad
good-humored features broke into a pleased smile. “There’s a
gentleman down stairs in the living room wants to see you.”
 CHAPTER XXI.

“WE MUST WORK TOGETHER”

“A gentleman to see me?” Marjorie repeated wonderingly. She

turned a look of mild inquiry upon the maid. “Didn’t he give you his
name, Annie?” Marjorie’s thoughts at once flashed to her general.
Perhaps he had come to Hamilton to give her a surprise. Business
might have brought him near the campus. Her cheeks flushed. Her
eyes sparkled at the fond thought.
“Please, Miss Dean, I asked him his name once and he said it, but I
couldn’t understand what he said. He said it kind of low and rumbly.
I hated to ask him again,” Annie confessed, looking her confusion.
“Oh, never mind, Annie.” Marjorie smiled away the maid’s
discomfiture with winsome good nature. “I’ll go down and see for
myself. Please say to the gentleman that I will be down directly.”
Marjorie returned to 15 with the two plates of sandwiches. If she
carried them on into Ronny’s room she would not go down stairs for
the next ten minutes. Oddly enough she thought also of Hal as a
possible visitor.
“Have you changed your mind about letting Ronny have these
sandwiches?” Jerry asked humorously as Marjorie hastily re-placed
them on the table.
“No, I haven’t, Jeering Jeremiah,” Marjorie laughed. “You are to have
the sandwich-moving job. There’s a gentleman downstairs to see
me.”
“What?” Jerry showed mild surprise. “A gentleman in this girl-
inhabited burg! It takes my breath. I mean to have one call on you
at the Hall. Who is he, or is that a secret?”
“I don’t know who he is. I’m going down to see.”
“It might be a book agent who has just heard that you go to college.
It might be a tin peddler who suspects we cook in our room and
wants us to try his tin dishes. It might be a carpet sweeper pest who
has a carpet sweeper that operates in mid air and simply coaxes the
dust up from the floor. Only those gentlemen always hunt by day. It
might be—”
“Good-bye. I’m going downstairs. I can’t stop to listen to any more
of your weird theories, Jeremiah. I’ll be back soon, I hope.” Smiling
over Jerry’s ridiculous suppositions, Marjorie made a hasty start for
downstairs.
The man who rose to greet her as she entered the living room bore
no resemblance to either her general or Hal. Her caller was Peter
Graham.
“Why, good evening, Mr. Graham.” She held out her hand. “This is a
surprise, but always a pleasant one. You must have wondered what
had become of Miss Page and me.”
“No, I knew you were busy, Miss Marjorie.” Peter Graham’s fine face
lighted beautifully at sight of her. “You and Miss Robin have been
very faithful. It has been of the greatest assistance to me. Now we
must work together, more than ever.”
He ceased speaking and looked at her with an intensity of
expression which somehow filled her with vague alarm.
“What is it, Mr. Graham?” Her mind would have instantly formed the
conclusion that this call had to do with some serious crisis in his
personal affairs if he had not said: “Now we must work together
more than ever.”
“The majority of my workers have left me, Miss Marjorie,” he said
with a straight simplicity which marked him as a man worth while.
“They have gone over to the garage operation. There is no question
in my mind as to how the whole thing happened.”
“Leslie Cairns.” The words leaped involuntarily to Marjorie’s lips.
Immediately what Leila and Jerry had said before dinner returned to
her mind with a rush. How precisely it fitted with that one pertinent
sentence: “They have gone over to the garage operation.”
“Yes, Miss Cairns is responsible.” He spoke with quiet surety. “Still, I
cannot understand how she managed so cleverly to keep me in the
dark about her treacherous work until the mischief was done. Day
before yesterday my entire force was at work on the dormitory.
Yesterday three or four of my most useful Italians did not come to
work. By noon today I was deserted except for four Hamilton
carpenters and builders whom I have known and worked with for
years. These four stood by me. Every last one of the others went
over to the garage.”
“Was there—did these men give their reason for going?” Marjorie
asked with admirable composure. “Before you answer, Mr. Graham,
may I go upstairs for Miss Page? She happens to be here this
evening. It is her right to hear as well as mine.”
“I am glad she is here. It is most fortunate for us. We shall be able
to decide what we can do that much the sooner.” The builder bowed
abstracted acknowledgment as Marjorie excused herself and hurried
upstairs. Peter Graham’s mind had dwelt upon nothing else but what
might be done to clear away the ugly situation resulting from Leslie
Cairns’s malice.
She found Robin in the midst of the party group in Ronny’s room.
Under Jerry’s laughable supervision the eats had been transferred
without accident to the immediate scene of the festivity. Ronny, as
hostess-guest of honor, was in high feather. She was hospitably
concocting a delectable mixture which she called “Encanta Manaña”
as she chatted animatedly with her friends. It was a fruit punch
founded on lemons and oranges and further improved by a blending
of fruit syrups. These syrups had been made from the fruits of her
ranch home and put up in the ranch laboratory. They were as
welcome at a spread as was Leila’s imported ginger ale.
Her own little coterie of friends had remembered her birthday that
morning with lavish giving. The top of her chiffonier was covered
with affectionate remembrances, each one selected with a view to
Ronny’s peculiarly strong, attractive individuality.
“I can’t stay up here one minute, girls,” Marjorie hastily told the
revelers. They had listened in blank silence to her as she acquainted
Robin with the dismaying situation. “Go ahead, and have a good
time, minus Page and Dean. We’ll be back within an hour, I think;
perhaps before then.”
A buzzing murmur arose from the group as the partners exchanged
eye messages of undying loyalty, linked arms and marched together
from the room. Page and Dean would fight gallantly beside Peter
Graham for the good of the dormitory.
Entering the living room Peter Graham shook hands with Robin. The
partners seated themselves side by side on a small settee, while
Peter Graham drew a wicker rocker close enough to them to permit
of low-toned conversation.
The builder then began an account of the chief happenings on the
day before the trouble became evident. He followed it with a more
detailed description of the desertion, first of the three or four
Italians, then the rest of the force, except the four Hamilton
carpenters.
“When I saw those fellows I had tried to do well by over on the
other lot I knew there was only one thing had taken them there.
They’d been offered a good deal more money than we were paying
them. I knew Thorne & Foster hadn’t offered it to them.” The builder
smiled, a quiet, scornful smile. “They are niggards.
“I decided to go over and have a talk with Pedro Tomasi, one of the
older men of the quarter. He had always seemed very well disposed
toward me. I went only as far as the edge of the garage excavation.”
He laughed, but in his laugh he showed his deep-lying indignation.
“I was ordered off the lot by Thorne & Foster’s foreman. What
construction would you place on such an act on their part after what
I just remarked of them.” He looked levelly from Marjorie to Robin.
“There is only one can be placed upon it,” Marjorie said tranquilly.
“They are simply obeying Miss Cairns’s orders and pocketing more of
her money.”
“That’s it,” nodded Peter Graham. “It will cost her a pretty penny
before she is through with the affair. I’d like to know how long this
business was brewing before it came to a head. Neither Thorne or
Foster have been in town for weeks. Conlon, their foreman, is hated
by the workmen, especially the Italians. What I can’t understand is
the smooth quietness of the whole outrage. They walked out of our
employ and into that of Miss Cairns’s like a carefully organized body
of strikers. If Miss Cairns managed the walk-out she must have a
certain amount of unscrupulous cleverness,” he ended with grudging
honestness.
“I haven’t the least doubt but that she managed it,” Robin made
indignant assertion. “She has been known to go to great pains to
gain her own way. On the campus, when she was a student here,
she had a reputation for that sort of thing.” Robin’s information was
meant to be impersonal. It was Peter Graham’s right to know Leslie
Cairns’ measure as a mischievous force.
Marjorie had listened to Robin and the builder, her mind weighing
every word she heard. As Robin finished with an angry little
sputtered: “Oh, will we ever be free of that Jonah?” the gravity of
Marjorie’s beautiful face changed to meditative resolution.
“Mr. Graham,” she said, “when first you told me of this I was really
dismayed for a few minutes. I can understand how you feel in the
matter. It is far harder on you than on us. Still, you know, and Page
and Dean know, that nothing is going to stop us from finishing the
dormitory outside God’s will. I am sure we have that. We are
building toward good, not evil. I suppose we couldn’t get these men
we’ve lost back again, no matter how hard we tried. They’ve gone
the way of more money. We paid them all we can afford or will pay
in future. We must not needlessly increase the dormitory obligation
for the Travelers who come after our chapter.”
“I wouldn’t advise taking back any of these men at a cent more than
we have been paying them. We have given them better wages than
they ever before received,” broke in the builder, defensive of the
Travelers’ rights. “I am glad we are of the same mind, Miss Dean.
And you, Miss Page?” He turned to Robin, relief written large on his
strong features.
“What is Page without Dean,” laughed Robin. “What are we both
without Graham?” She made a charming gesture of deference which
pleased and heartened the white-haired builder.
“Whatever you think wise for us to do, we will do. We rest our case
with you, Mr. Graham,” Marjorie’s voice rang with fine loyalty.
“Thank you both for your support,” was the grateful response. “Our
case will have to rest,” he continued, his face wonderfully brighter,
“until I can secure other workmen to take the places of those gone.
It may be a long time before I can collect another force like the one
we had. They were able fellows, and knew their business. I warn
you, the dormitory cannot be completed in time for the re-opening
of college next fall unless we should have the good fortune to find a
new crew of men at once. That is the situation.”
“We accept it with good grace.” Marjorie’s kindly cheeriness did
much to lighten the secret dejection of the builder. “Don’t worry over
it, Mr. Graham. We sha’n’t. We have had trouble with Leslie Cairns
before. On each occasion she has been a loser. We have gone on,
the stronger for experience. We shall rise above this vicissitude, just
as we have risen above the others. Leslie Cairns never seems even
to do wrong successfully.”
 CHAPTER XXII.

GUISEPPE BARETTI’S THEORY

Regardless of her optimistic assertion to Robin and Peter Graham

that right must triumph in the end, Marjorie found it hard to resign
herself to watchful inaction in regard to the dormitory. The winter
days came and went with no change in the situation save perhaps
the addition of a dozen men to Peter Graham’s working force. It
consisted of himself and his quartette of carpenters. He scoured the
region extending for twenty-five miles about Hamilton for men.
Labor happened to be scarce. Workmen invariably demanded twice
as much money for their services as he would pay. The affair of the
walk-out had been circulated far and wide in that section. The
numbers of workmen he talked with demanded as much as “the
Thorne and Foster crew” were receiving.
Miss Susanna Hamilton sputtered volubly to Jonas, Peter Graham
and Marjorie at the dire situation. She sent for Marjorie, Robin and
the builder on an average of once in every three or four days to
discuss the situation. She was at first for bringing in a crew of
workmen from one of the large cities and paying them their own
price within a certain limit to hurry the completion of the dormitory.
She offered to pay the sum needed to do this from her own
resources. To this neither Page and Dean nor Peter Graham would
hear. In the end they won her over to their way of thinking.
Marjorie’s chief private disappointment lay in the fact that she could
not conscientiously begin the compilation of Brooke Hamilton’s
papers, prior to writing his biography, until the dormitory question
was settled and off her mind. This had been the chief reason for
Miss Susanna’s generous proposal.
“I want you and Jerry to come to the Arms in March, sure and
certain,” she said more than once to Marjorie. “You are such a
conscientious child! You will not humor me at all. Suppose Peter
should have to cripple along all spring with a handful of men? Then
you and Jerry will miss the dawn of spring at the Arms. Let me tell
you you will miss something.”
“Miss Susanna, I’ve made up my mind to come to the Arms the first
of March, whether or not the dormitory business is settled.” Marjorie
finally made this concession one February afternoon while taking tea
with the old lady.
“You are my own Marvelous Manager, and a dear child.” Miss
Susanna unexpectedly left her chair, walked around the tea table to
Marjorie and hugged her.
“And you are the dearest of dears. I ought to come here by the first
of March. I feel it as my duty. And I shall love to be with you. The
girls are resigned to Jerry’s and my move. They’ll be here about half
the time. I give you warning beforehand. I’ve nothing but chemistry
on my list since the beginning of the semester. I only devote a few
hours a week to it now. I do wish something would happen to bring
some more workmen to the dormitory,” Marjorie ended wistfully.
“Yes, so do I. I could take that Cairns girl and treat her to a good
shaking with my own strength of arm.” Miss Susanna resentfully
straightened up from her embrace of Marjorie and vengefully worked
her arms. “And to think, I’ve never seen her except once, and at a
distance.” Miss Susanna resumed her chair and continued: “It is too
bad Baretti can do nothing with those Italians at the quarter. It’s the
old story. Money changes the color of everything.”
“I was hopeful of Signor Baretti,” Marjorie said, faint disappointment
in her reply. “He went over to the quarter several times. He said
some one besides Leslie Cairns herself had been influencing the
Italians. He thought she might have hired someone. The Italians
swore that only Thorne and Foster were responsible for the walk-
out. They told Signor Baretti the bosses had offered much money to
have the work done quickly. He says they are not telling the truth,
but he can’t get at the truth among them. I had a talk with him
yesterday. Robin and I stopped at the inn for ice cream. He says he
will try again after a while to make the Italians tell him the truth.”
“He is a fine little man,” Miss Susanna said, nodding approval of the
odd, whole-souled Italian. “He won’t forget that promise, either.”
Guiseppe Baretti had no intention of forgetting the, to him, solemn
promise he had made Page and Dean. The nearly perfect
management of his restaurant to which he had long since attained
left him a good deal of time to spend as he pleased. Usually he
pleased to be busy in the inn where he had achieved affluence. It
was his workshop, and he loved it. Now that the “dorm,” also grown
into his peculiar affection, was in difficulties it behoved him to
become a knight errant.
Imbued with this high purpose he went again and again to the
Italian quarter, a patient, open-eared watchful little questioner or
listener, as the case might be. February was almost ended when he
at last learned something of importance. He came one evening upon
Pedro Tomaso and Francisco Vesseli engaged in heated argument.
He gathered from the torrent of angry words each hurled at the
other the information he was seeking. There had been a “Maestro”
at the quarter, it seemed. He had arranged the new scale of wages.
Baretti heard over and over again the name “Ravenzo.” When he left
the quarter it was with four points fixed in his mind. There had been
a “Maestro” at the quarter. His name was Ravenzo. He had come
from New York. Then had come the desertion of the “dorm” by the
workmen.
What Baretti entertained as a positive belief, the Italians knew
nothing of. This was Leslie Cairns’s part in the dormitory trouble.
They placed the odium on Thorne and Foster. The long-headed
Italian inn keeper laid the primary blame upon Miss “Car-rins.” He
firmly believed if “that one” were made to “behave good” the
troubles of the dorm would end. He had gleaned here and there
enough of Leslie’s past history to know that she was the only child of
Peter Cairns, a well-known financier, and that her home was in New
York.
After his fruitful visit to the quarter he sat down in his tiny private
office at the inn and wrote a long letter in Italian to a countryman of
his in New York connected with an Italian confidential agency. The
purpose of the letter was to establish the identity and business of
one, Ravenzo.
When he had finished the letter he sat very still for a long time and
thought about Leslie Cairns. Ever since he had first seen her as a
freshman at Hamilton, he had detested her. Now he put her through
a mental revue which did not redound to her credit. He wondered
how her father could allow her to “boss herself all wrong.” Perhaps
her father did not know half she did. There were many such cases.
He reflected with old-world wisdom that. “A father don’ want his
childr’n do wrong.” He was also of the conviction that, “A father, he
can’t punish his childr’n they do wrong, he don’ know they do it.”
Guiseppe Baretti was sure that Mr. Car-rins “don’ know much ’bout
what his daughter do.”
His knowledge of Italian nature told him that if the scale of wages
on the Cairns’s garage was dropped to what it had been when begun
by Thorne and Foster, the men of the quarter as well as the
American and Irish workman would be glad to go back to the fair
employ of Page and Dean under the management of Peter Graham.
If Miss Car-rins’s father knew her as she really was perhaps he
would come and take her away from Hamilton. Miss Car-rins was of
age, but a father was a father. Her father was a “big” man. He
probably would have ways to make his daughter behave.
Such was Baretti’s view of the problem he was trying to solve. The
next day he sat down and went over the same train of thought with
the same deliberation. On the third day thereafter he resigned
himself to the composition of a letter in Italian. It was a very long
letter and the first draft of it did not please him. For several days he
kept patiently at it, re-writing and re-vising. Finally he gave it into
the keeping of his Italian manager who was also a high school
graduate. Two days afterward the manager returned a neatly typed,
well-phrased letter in polite English to the little proprietor. Guiseppe
had the pleasure of addressing an envelope to Peter Cairns at his
New York offices. Baretti’s last thought in sending the letter was one
of consideration for Leslie’s father. He wrote on the lower, left-hand
side of the envelope: “For Peter Cairns only.”
 CHAPTER XXIII.

MOVING DAY

“Today’s moving day, Jeremiah! We’d better pack before noon so

that the man can come for our trunks soon after lunch. I shall pack
for keeps. Truly, Jerry, we don’t know whether we’ll be back here
again this year or not.” Marjorie turned from a yawning trunk which
she had pulled into the middle of the room and surveyed Jerry
solemnly.
“Well, if not this spring, then next fall,” Jerry said quickly. “Don’t
weep, Bean. You will make me weep, too. I want to go to the Arms,
though, and you have to go. Would you go if you weren’t going to
write the biography?”
“For a little while, but not for more than that,” Marjorie said very
honestly. “I’m going to miss the girls terribly, and so will you. We’ll
see them often, but this is a kind of break in the good old
democrat’s platform.”
“‘For larger hopes and graver fears,’” Jerry quoted. “That’s the way
things are. We have to go on, you know. Life hates loiterers.”
“You’re just as melancholy over this change as I am, Jeremiah
Macy!” Marjorie cried out. “It’s not fair to Miss Susanna.”
“She’ll never know it,” was Jerry’s consoling rejoinder.
“Indeed, she never shall,” Marjorie vowed energetically. “I am still a
tiny bit blue about the dormitory trouble. I wish it had come to an
end before we started our stay at the Arms. Mr. Graham feels worse
about it than either Robin or I. I don’t allow myself to dwell on the
subject of Leslie Cairns. I feel like joining Miss Susanna in giving the
Hob-goblin a good shaking.”
“Your temper is certainly going to lead you to violence some day,
Bean. That’s the first time I ever heard you address the Hob-goblin
by her household name. It shows rising ire on your part. Let me
calm you by reciting a few Bean Jingles. Ahem!
“Oh, do not rave, then long you’ll wave;
Or with the goblin fight:
Just keep serene, beloved Bean,
You will come out all right.

I am your friend, unto the end,

I’ll stick to you like glue
On me just lean, entrancing Bean
And I will see you through.”

“Thank you, oh, thank you!” was Marjorie’s grateful reception of

Jerry’s improvised tribute. “I’d love to have a book of Bean Jingles.”
“You’ll have to take them down as they are ground out, then, Bean.
I never can remember them afterward. ‘I consider them rather
sweet little things.’ Now I must stop entertaining you and get busy.
If you hear blood-curdling wails outside the door today, don’t
collapse. Leila says she may give a farewell exhibition of true grief in
the hall.”
The very prospect of Leila’s wails set the two girls to laughing. In
spite of the coming separation from their close friends the both felt
lighter of spirit as a result of Jerry’s nonsense.
As the morning sped toward noon, one by one, Ronny, Muriel, Lucy,
Leila and Vera sought Room 15, the headquarters of all their college
years. They were invited to the Arms to dinner that night in honor of
Jerry’s and Marjorie’s arrival. Now they hovered about Marjorie and
Jerry, trying to be cheerful at the blow that had fallen. They had
agreed among themselves not to flivver in the slightest particular.
“But after they’re gone,” Leila had said somberly to Vera, “I shall
howl my Irish head off.” Anna Towne and Verna Burkett had been
invited to take up their abode at Wayland Hall in Room 15 until
either college closed or the two Travelers came back again to the
Hall.
“Robin wanted me to have lunch with her today at Baretti’s, but I
told her I’d meet her there afterward,” Marjorie commented to her
chum audience as she continued to pack. “She forgot for a minute
that this would be Jerry’s and my last luncheon at the Hall for
awhile. I say that, but I’ll probably be over for dinner or lunch about
day after tomorrow.” Marjorie straightened up and viewed her
friends with a smile so full of sunshiny good-will Ronny exclaimed
rather shakily:
“How silly in us to let ourselves be sad about losing you, Marjorie
Dean. We sit here looking like a set of sad sentimental old geese. I
will not do so. Here, let’s dance.” She pirouetted to the middle of the
floor in her inimitable fashion and began one of the utterly original,
graceful dances for which she was famed on the campus. Soon she
had swept the others into it and they were all romping like children.
“If we’re reported for this racket it won’t do the reporter any good.
We’re vacating today. I suppose the Phonograph, the Prime Minister
and the Ice Queen will be so pleased to know we’ve vamoosed.”
Jerry smirked derisively in the direction of Julia Peyton’s room.
Marjorie’s face shadowed slightly at mention of Doris Monroe. Muriel
was still in the dark regarding Doris’s sudden change from gracious
to hostile. Since her Christmas trip to New York with Leslie Cairns,
Doris had been associating constantly with Leslie. More than once
when driving with one or another of her chums Marjorie had seen
the white car flash past them with Doris at the wheel and Leslie
beside her. She sometimes wondered half scornfully whether Doris
had not a very fair understanding of Leslie and her unfair methods.
Then she would quickly reproach herself as having been suspicious
and mean-spirited.
After lunch Jerry promised to see the trunks safely into the keeping
of an expressman, leaving Marjorie free to meet Robin at Baretti’s.
“I cut dessert at the Hall today,” was Robin’s salutatory remark as
Marjorie presently breezed into the restaurant, her cheeks pure
carnation pink from the sharp winter air. “I thought I’d like to have it
here with you. I want some Nesselrode pudding. You know my
weakness for it. Have some? What will you have?”
“I ought to say nothing, but I’ll eat an apricot ice with you. Thank
you, Page, for your invitation.” Marjorie sat down opposite Robin at
the table the latter had chosen. “I finished my packing before lunch.
It seems queer to be going to Hamilton Arms to live for a while.
None of us dared say much about it at the Hall today. A flood was in
the offing. But no one flivvered after all. We smiled at each other at
lunch like a whole collection of Cheshire pusses.”
“The girls will miss you so dreadfully, Marjorie,” Robin said with
sudden soberness. She looked across the table at her partner and
wondered if there could ever be anyone more likeable than Marjorie.
“I’ll miss them, Robin. Jerry and I were ready to cry this morning
until Jerry fell back on Bean Jingles and we laughed instead. Here
comes Signor Baretti.” Marjorie held out a gracious hand.
“What have you hear about the dorm?” was the Italian’s first
question after he had accepted the partners’s united invitation to sit.
“Nothing encouraging,” Robin answered with a dejected little shrug.
“We are going over there today to try to keep Mr. Graham in good
spirits. He has such frightful fits of the blues over this miserable set-
back to the dormitory.”
“Yes; the dorm has a verra bad time. I feel verra sorry. I have try to
help you in some ways, Miss Page, Miss Dean. Maybe one thing I do
have good after while. I don’ know.” The Italian did not offer to
explain his somewhat mysterious reference.
“We know you are always ready to help us,” Marjorie said with
grateful earnestness. “Would you like to go over to the dormitory
with us today, Signor Baretti? I am sure Mr. Graham would be
pleased to see you. You know Robin and I would enjoy your
company?”
“I think I go with you.” The little proprietor accepted with a dash of
pleased red in his brown cheeks. “I have bought the new roadster. I
like you to ride in it, Miss Page, Miss Dean.”
“Thank you for suggesting such a dandy way to escape the wind,”
smiled Marjorie. “The first day of March, and a real March wind. Miss
Macy and I are going to Hamilton Arms today to stay all spring,
Signor Baretti. You remember I told you before Christmas that I was
going there in the spring.”
“Yes, yes! I remem’er. You are to write somethin’ ’bout this Brooke
Hamilton. He is name for the college. Miss Macy—she make another
write ’bout him, too?”
“No; she is going to the Arms with me because she is my roommate.
I couldn’t leave her behind. Miss Susanna wished both of us to
come.”
“I think your friends in the house you live on the campus verra sorry
you go,” commented the Italian.
“Thank you very much.” Marjorie made him an arch little bow.
“You are the quite welcome.” The solemn little man beamed happily
upon her. Her merry graciousness put him at his ease.
He showed not a little curiosity regarding the biography of Brooke
Hamilton. He asked a number of questions about the founder of
Hamilton College and listened eagerly as Marjorie explained as
lucidly as she could regarding the biography of the great man which
she was to write.
When the partners had finished their ices Baretti escorted them,
with proud lights in his black eyes, to his roadster, parked in front of
the restaurant in shining newness. It was only a short run from the
inn to the dormitory. The cutting sharpness of the east wind,
however, made riding preferable to walking. Seated in the tonneau
of the car Robin and Marjorie had hardly exchanged a dozen
sentences when the car had reached the dormitory site and was
slowing down for a stop.
“Look, Robin! What can the matter be?” Marjorie cried in an alarmed
tone. Glancing out from the glassed door nearest to her she beheld
a good-sized crowd of men collected in front of the dormitory
building.
Before Robin could reply, Baretti brought the car to a stop and was
out of it and at the door of the tonneau to assist them.
“What happen, I wonder?” he asked excitedly. “Mebbe is Mr. Graham
or one his men hurt. You stay here. I go an’ see. You don’ go up
there till I come tell you all is right. Mebbe is the fight.”
“We will wait for you here,” Marjorie cast concerned eyes toward the
crowd of men in an endeavor to pick out Peter Graham in their
midst.
As her gaze grew more searching she picked out the builder at the
back of the crowd. He seemed to be the main object of attention.
His hat was off and his thick white hair was being fluffed out on his
head by the wind. He was waving an arm and wagging his head as
though making a speech. Far from fighting, the gathering of dark-
faced men was orderly. They were evidently listening to Peter
Graham in an almost complete silence.
“Marjorie, is it—do you suppose Mr. Graham has been able to gather
that crowd of men to work for him? I hardly dare believe it, but, oh,
gracious, if it should be true—.” Robin clasped her hands.
“If it should be,” Marjorie repeated, hope flashing into her anxious
face. “They are Italians—mostly.” She added the last word as she
made the discovery that a sprinkling of the crowd were American.
Simultaneous with it she made another discovery. The tall Italian at
the edge of the group was Pedro Tomaso. She began to recognize
others among that attentive throng who had formerly been Peter
Graham’s men.
“They’re not new men, Robin!” she exclaimed. “They are the same
ones who went over to Leslie Cairns’s lot.”
“There certainly doesn’t appear to be any one left over at the
garage.” As Marjorie called out her discovery Robin had directed her
attention toward the garage foundation which had risen since Page
and Dean’s workmen had gone over to the other enterprise. Only a
few days before it had been humming with activity. Now the silence
of a tomb hovered over it. Not a man was to be seen nearer to it
than those who made up the crowd in front of the dormitory.
“If Signor Baretti doesn’t come back this minute we’ll simply have to
join the crowd.” Marjorie’s voice was freighted with eagerness.
“Something’s gone wrong over at the garage and these men have
fallen back on Mr. Graham. It must be that. See how respectful they
are. Ah-h, here he comes.”
“Oh, Miss Page; Miss Dean; you see there!” The inn keeper pointed
joyously to the crowd. “They are the ones to leave Mr. Gra’m. Now it
is good enough for them. They have no job atall. Come a man this
morning early. Fire these Italianos, fire the Americans, fire these
men, Thorne an’ Foster. Mebbe fire Miss Car-rins, too, she was here.”
He vented a funny little chuckle on the last remark.
“That is the most amazing thing I ever heard.” Robin stared in a
puzzled way at the deserted garage enterprise. “The only one I
should imagine who could discharge the whole crowd of men would
be Leslie Cairns herself. Perhaps she has sold the operation as it
stands.”
“No; she don’t sell it.” A curiously triumphant expression sprang into
the Italian’s face. “I don’t talk yet to Mr. Gra’m, for he is too busy. I
talk a little to Tomaso. He tell me this man who fires everybody
come to the lot with Thorne and Foster. They both looked scare. He
look here, look there. He is verra smart, big tall man. He laugh verra
mad. He say to Thorne and Foster: ‘You are the couple of skins. You
done. Be glad I don’t put you in jail. Now you get out!’ Then Tomaso
hear Foster say: ‘You don’t understan’, Mr. Car-rins.’ The big man
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