the motion is the message

Okay. What does that mean? When Marshall McLuhan theorized that "The medium is the message," he meant that the means used to communicate a message are more important and can have more impact than the message itself. Similarly, in motion graphics, the motion can be more important and have more impact than the graphic element being moved. The way you choose to move, or not move, an element across the screen can enhance the meaning of that element greatly. If, for example, I choose to move a text element slowly, scaling and fading up from black and resolving center screen, I imbue that text element with a sense of drama, focus, and, perhaps, stability. If I take the same text element and spin it around the screen, that same text takes on a sense of playfulness or annoyance, in most cases. The point is that the motion can be your message and before I move anything across the screen I try to think about what that move is going to communicate.