3 Ways To Create Animated Explainer Videos On A Budget

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When I was growing up I really wanted to be good at art. In first grade our art teacher had us do an activity where we drew a line on a piece of paper. My line was squiggly and imperfect. I was nervous. After everyone drew their lines she made an announcement. She explained that creativity isn't about having a perfectly straight line, it doesn't look like one thing.

At that point, I felt really good about my squiggly line and my artistic abilities. As time went on I realized that I did not have an innate talent for illustration. I desperately wanted to be an amazing illustrator. 

When I went on to college I minored in Art Studio, focusing on graphic design. For one project, we had an animation activity. The project was to create rotoscope animations by capturing footage on camera, importing it into Photoshop, and tracing over frame by frame with illustration tools. *cringe*

It took a really long time to put together. I wasn't great at it either. About 10 years ago, I created this clip of me walking. It probably took 4 hours to make.

When I began my career in elearning design/dev, I realized that making something amazing from scratch does not equal creativity. Sometimes it's about working with what you have, especially if you have strengths in other areas. Such as in my case, where I'm not an amazing illustrator or animator. 

My lack of skills did not defeat me. Over the past two years, I've been slowly working on building my animation skills but not to become an animator. I want to be able to tell a story with animation and fulfill my longing to create. I also want to be able to fill a need for using animation to illustrate tough concepts and processes and get people excited about learning. There's one caveat. I don't build anything from scratch.

The cost and effort to create highly customized animated videos are very high. According to Yum Yum Videos a short high quality custom animated video can take anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks to produce. Their costs on average range from $6,000 to $12,000. It's not necessarily cheap by any means but if you're looking for something super custom it might be right for you.

I don't have the time or budget to create extremely customized animated explainer videos. Therefore, my next step was to research cost effective ways to create them.

Here's what I found.

1. Explainer Video Toolkit 4 For After Effects

Cost: $49

Time To Develop: Medium-High

Learning Curve: Moderate

My main go to for creating semi-custom animations has been using something like this Explainer Video Toolkit 4 for After Effects. The tool is an add-on to After Effects. There are over 1000+ elements in the pack. I really enjoy creating the customized characters and flexibility of the animations. There is a bit of a learning curve when it comes to using the product. I recommend taking a LinkedIn Learning course in After Effects before diving into using it. In addition to this kit, Video Hive has tons of other animation assets that can be edited in After Effects.

Check out what you get in the toolkit

2. Vyond

Cost: Varies. Per month or per year plans. Plans per year look like they go from $299 to $999 per seat depending on a lot of factors. Take a look at the plans.

Time To Develop: Low

Learning Curve: Low

What used to be GoAnimate is now Vyond. I have never used Vyond before, however I hear it is very easy to use. The tool seems like a good choice when you're in a time crunch for video production. When I think of tools like this I don't generally associate them with something that is easy to customize but I'll let any users speak for themselves! Let us know your thoughts on this in the comments. 

Check out this example of a video made with Vyond

3. Vidbotz

Cost: Videos starting at $1,850

Time Investment: Low

Learning Curve: None

Vidbotz is a company based out of Seattle that creates screencast demos, animated explainers, and more. When it comes to video their starting prices are low in comparison to a lot of firms. You can give them scripts, direction and more and they basically do everything for you. They have a 5 day turn-around time. They also do localization.

Check out an example of this video for Microsoft made by Vidbotz

Have any tips or resources for creating animated videos on a budget? Share in the comments!

-Mel