Adam 'MCA' Yaunch Beastie Boys tribute - After Effects Animation Project

For those unfamiliar, the late Adam 'MCA' Yaunch was part of a group that were loved by generations of people, The Beastie Boys. The amount of people that were inspired by the Beastie Boys is unfathomable; they represented a celebration of youth - and everything that came with it. I think this is why they were such a relatable group to so many people. Having released a new album only last year (2011), MCAís passing came as a shock to most - no more Beastie Boys - what a devastating revelation.

For my animation project, I decided to focus on creating a tribute to MCA and all the good times Iíve had, and will continue to have listening to their music. The song 'Super Disco Breakin' provided the soundtrack for the 30 second animation about skateboarding and street art - two pastimes I enjoy whilst listening to the good ol' Beastie Boys.

The animation portrayed a character walking into the shot and viewing a sign prohibiting skateboarding. The song begins playing when the character removes the blasphemous sign from its fixtures, spray paints wheels onto the base and uses the now converted signboard to skate through the rest of the art-product built cityscape. The shot finishes when an oversized tin of paint sprays upon the view until it becomes blacked out.

The animation was created using green screen, and a green cardboard skateboard to track the positioning of my hands in the shot. The background was hand drawn, and the sound effects of paint and skating were recorded on my camera. This animation represents my own personal enjoyment of the Beastie Boys - which I'm sure many will associate with. RIP MCA.