Client Overview
Ticktockrobot are an animation studio whose original creative and idiosyncratic design is at the heart of all they do. They have worked with a huge array of clients, communicating to an eclectic range of audiences across almost every industry sector, from high end broadcast, to education, charity, start up and service. They work with advertising agencies and production companies to businesses new to commissioning animation. It was the latter that ticktockrobot wanted to create a new project tracking portal for.
The Brief
Ticktockrobot wanted to create their own bespoke client portal that would enable the client to review each stage of the process and provide feedback in a clear and concise manner, all in the same place. They wanted it to be part of their website so it was always easy for clients to find it. Lastly it needed to be simple and to the point.
Often they found clients were unsure of the process in creating an animation, and during the production process feedback gets lost in a string of emails and conversations that can be hard to track, revise and review. Also, scope creep and drip fed feedback can often occur, which in a process as complex as animation can lead to issues further down the line. Character designs or style frames for example, once designed and rigged for motion, are timely and therefore expensive to alter once the next stage of production has begun. Ticktockrobot wanted a clean and robust system that clearly illustrated the process as well as giving clear referencing to previous stages.
Many off-the-shelf project management tools have too many options and features that end up clouding and confusing the pure functionality of the portal, without being used or required.
Our Solution
We worked with Simon’s concept for the client facing portal using our own system, Blend, as the underlying engine. He detailed the required process and layout based on their general workflow, using a tabbed interface to separate out each project stage, from concept and storyboarding through to imagery, animatics and final delivery.
He also suggested using a calendar element to highlight required task deadlines on both sides and a global area to upload project documents such as contracts and specification documents.
An important aspect of the functionality was to provide clear sign-off points based on a fixed number of feedback rounds, preventing any progress until a clear “signed off” box was ticked so this was added to Blend as a new feature in the project database.
The interface was built into the existing Ticktockrobot website for a seamless look and feel. Data is exchanged with the Blend API using a combination of automated background tasks as well as real-time interactions.
For file uploads we integrated Dropbox rather than relying on website storage. This was a decision made based on the large file sizes involved in animation. Files are added to Dropbox right inside the Blend interface and then displayed as downloadable files in the client portal.
Ticktockrobot can log into their own website CMS to onboard new clients easily, giving them login access to only the projects they need. Every interaction is logged and timestamped in Blend providing a full “paper trail”, keeping everything clear and uncomplicated.
Results
The first project the tracker was used on was for a multi episode animation project with a client in a completely different time zone [Australia and China]. We had to produce over 50 animations of between 2 - 5 minutes long in approximately 18 months. This meant many episodes were being created and reviewed simultaneously, with a large team working on the project.
The tracker enabled us to cleanly and efficiently share, review and respond to feedback all in one location. The logistics of organising a job of this scale, with a remote team across the globe [the project happened over lock down] would have been much harder without a bespoke portal that cut out any unnecessary options, navigations and UI.
Having the client commit to each stage also allowed for a tight project pipeline to remain on time, with very little back stepping required because focus at each stage of each animation was maintained and adhered to. Our client was a large agency who had used various off-the-shelf tools before, and the feedback on the portal was outstanding. Since then we have used it on every project that comes through our doors, and every single client has happily used it, finding it easy and natural to use.
Summary
Steve, Whitespace’s head of web, understood immediately what we were trying to achieve. As we progressed with the build and started to use it, we discovered certain features were needed to improve the usability. Every time we suggested these Steve took the time to thrash out the details before employing it perfectly.
The process has been a challenging yet rewarding and a fun one to work on, largely in part to Steve’s patience, understanding and forthright attitude in creating something that has already become the centre point of our production process. We can’t recommend Whitespace highly enough. The end product works brilliantly and as intended and is already improving both client relations and production efficiency for us. Thank you!”
You can see the Blend-powered portal in action here:
https://www.ticktockrobot.co.uk/client-portal/
Username: Human
Password: IAmNotARobot
Ticktockrobot also created their own explainer animation to illustrate how to use the tracker and highlight its features [it is what they do after all].