DANIEL SCHMIDT
MOTION DESIGNER & ART DIRECTOR
Daniel Schmidt is an award-winning Motion Designer and Art Director with more than 20 years of experience creating films, motion design and visual experiences for international brands, agencies and creative studios.
Working across art direction, motion design, animation, look development, compositing and visual effects, he develops visual ideas from the first concept through to the final frame.
His work combines creative thinking with hands-on production, allowing him to shape the visual direction of a project while also understanding how to bring it to life.
FROM IDEA TO FINAL FRAME
Daniel started his career at Sehsucht in Hamburg in 2005, working as an Art Director and Motion Designer on international advertising projects for brands including Audi, Adidas and Mercedes-Benz.
Since becoming independent in 2010, he has worked with agencies, production companies and creative studios across advertising, automotive, television, branding and visual communication.
Over the years, he has worked with brands including Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Adidas, Montblanc, Toyota, Porsche, Volkswagen, Nissan, Suzuki, Deutsche Telekom, ARD Das Erste and Sky News, among many others.
His experience spans both creative development and production, from defining a visual language and developing style frames to animation, compositing, visual effects and final image refinement.
ART DIRECTION MEETS HANDS-ON CRAFT
A central part of Daniel's work is the connection between the idea and its execution.
He can develop the visual direction of a project, but he can also get deeply involved in the actual making. Animation, compositing, look development and image refinement are not separate from the creative process, but part of it.
This allows creative decisions to remain connected to the final image.
It also means Daniel can contribute in different ways depending on what a project needs: from developing the visual concept of a film to taking on a specific sequence, refining a shot or supporting an existing production team.
SELECTED PROJECTS
MERCEDES-BENZ · CHASING LIGHTS
Design · Art Direction · Lead Animation / Compositing
For Mercedes-Benz Chasing Lights, Daniel worked across design, art direction, animation and compositing, combining visual development with hands-on execution.
The project is part of his design reel and represents the kind of work where creative direction and detailed production come together in a single workflow.
Art Direction · Animation
Daniel worked on the art direction and animation of the Mercedes-Benz Logo Reveal.
Along with his Telekom logo animation, it is among his most widely seen motion design work.
TELEKOM · LOGO ANIMATION
Motion Design · Brand Animation
Daniel created the animation for the Telekom logo, translating the distinctive brand identity into motion.
The piece is one of his most widely seen motion design works and is a strong example of his work in brand animation.
AUDI · LIGHT STRINGS
Design · Animation · Award Film
For the Audi Award 2016 Show in Ibiza, Daniel worked with Blackspace on ten animated trailers projected onto a large-scale transparent installation made from layered nylon strings.
The 20 × 3 metre projection surface consisted of 18 km of nylon cord, 740 strings and ten layers. Daniel contributed design and animation to the project.
Audi Light Strings received ADC Gold, Red Dot Award and iF Design Award recognition.
TOYOTA · WAKU DOKI
Art Direction · Motion Design
For Toyota's Waku Doki campaign for the RAV4, Daniel worked on motion design and art direction.
The project was created for Toyota Mexico together with Ferrer Mexico, ACA Films Mexico and Velvet Mediendesign.
SUZUKI · MORE CARS
Look Development · Art Direction · Lead Compositing
For Suzuki's More Cars campaign, Daniel developed the visual look for five television commercials promoting the brand's new range of cars.
He was responsible for look development, art direction and lead compositing, combining car and background plates in After Effects to create the campaign's distinctive inky visual treatment.
NISSAN · DAYS & ROOX
Look Development · Motion Design · Art Direction
For Nissan's Days & Roox television commercial, Daniel developed the look, motion design and art direction.
The film uses colourful particle lights to attract two pumpkins and reveal Nissan's new car models. Daniel developed the visual direction and style frames before production and worked with Velvet in Munich on post-production.
MEGA TV · MEGA MEGA
Art Direction · Animation · Look Development · Compositing
For Greek television channel MEGA TV, Daniel worked on the channel's on-air redesign, developing a new motion language for idents, lower thirds, sponsor frames and other broadcast elements.
He worked across art direction, animation, look development and compositing, developing the behaviour of colourful particles and integrating graphic elements with live action and 3D space.
MORE PROJECTS
Daniel's design reel includes work for Magnesia, Unicredit, Sky News, Tetley, Richemont, Audi, Toyota, Roshen, ARD, Suzuki and Nissan, with roles ranging from design and art direction to animation, compositing, look development and creative direction.
THE LAST TEN PERCENT
A particular strength of Daniel's work is visual refinement.
Timing, lighting, composition, texture, integration and small changes in movement can have a disproportionate effect on how an image feels.
His background across animation, look development and compositing allows him to work deeply into these details while keeping the original creative intention intact.
The goal is not to add detail for the sake of detail.
It is to recognise what the image needs, what it does not need, and when it finally feels right.
A FLEXIBLE CREATIVE PARTNER
Daniel works with brands, advertising agencies, production companies and creative studios in different roles and at different stages of production.
He can join an existing team for a specific production task, contribute to the visual development of a project, take responsibility for art direction or work across the complete process from concept to final delivery.
This includes both ambitious high-end creative projects and the day-to-day production work that keeps a project moving.
Whether the task is developing a visual concept, creating style frames, animating a sequence, building a composite, refining a shot or simply helping get the work finished, Daniel brings the same attention to the final image.
CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY
Generative AI and other emerging technologies have become part of Daniel's creative toolkit.
He uses AI for exploration, ideation, image development, experimentation and selected stages of production, combining new technologies with more than two decades of experience in art direction, motion design, animation and compositing.
The tools continue to change.
The creative judgement does not.
AWARD-WINNING WORK
Daniel has contributed to projects recognised by ADC, Cannes Lions, Red Dot, D&AD and iF Design Award.
His work includes Audi Light Strings, which received ADC Gold, as well as Red Dot and iF Design Award recognition.
BRANDS, AGENCIES & STUDIOS
Over more than 20 years, Daniel has worked with a broad range of international brands and creative partners.
Selected brands: Adidas, ARD Das Erste, Audi, Audi Sport, Bacardi, Bosch, Braun, Deutsche Telekom, Emirates, FIFA, IKEA, Lancôme, Mercedes-Benz, Montblanc, Nissan, Porsche, Sky News, Suzuki, Toyota, Volkswagen, WMF and ZDF.
Selected agencies & studios: Sehsucht, Blackspace, Markenfilm, Mutabor, Infected, Velvet, Animationsfabrik, Acht, The Marmalade and Schönheitsfarm.
WORK WITH DANIEL SCHMIDT
For motion design, art direction, animation, visual development, compositing, visual effects or creative production, Daniel works with brands, agencies, production companies and studios worldwide.
From the first idea to the final frame, the goal remains simple:
Make the idea stronger. Make the image better. Make the final result feel right.
