World Wildlife Fund: Rhino Extinction Video
A concept video about Black Rhino Extinction that combines a written speech with voice narration and After Effects animations. The project visualizes population decline and recovery, blending data-driven storytelling with emotional impact to raise awareness.
Client:
Concept for World Wildlife Fund
Category:
NGO & Conservation Awareness
My Role:
Motion Designer & Video Editor
Behind the Concept: Why Black Rhinos?
This project centered on creating a motion-driven awareness video using real-world conservation statistics.
After researching several endangered species and comparing their population trends and conservation stories, I chose to focus on the critically endangered Black Rhino. What stood out to me was not only the scale of its population decline, but also the change that followed. Black Rhino populations reached a critical low point in the early 1990s, before conservation efforts helped numbers begin to recover after 1992.
This gave me an opportunity to tell a story that went beyond simply presenting statistics. I wanted the data to communicate both the devastating consequences of poaching and the possibility of recovery when conservation efforts make a difference.
The goal was to translate factual information into an emotional narrative that remained concise, impactful, and visually engaging.
Process: Research & Script
I began by researching Black Rhino population trends, poaching statistics, and conservation efforts to identify the facts that could support the narrative. I focused on statistics that showed both the severity of the population decline and the gradual recovery that followed.
The script was then developed around the contrast between the value placed on a rhino's horn and the cost of losing the animal itself. The opening line, “This is a black rhino’s horn, worth thousands on the black market...”, establishes that contrast immediately and introduces poaching as the central issue.
In After Effects, I explored kinetic typography, timed transitions and animated statistics. Motion and pacing were carefully structured so that each statistic had enough weight to register before moving into the next part of the story.
Final Work: 30 Second Motion Video
The completed motion piece combines typography, animated infographics, and bold visual elements to communicate the scale of the Black Rhino's population loss.
The statistic showing a 98% decline over several decades establishes the severity of the crisis, while the later increase in population after 1992 introduces a sense of hope. Rather than ending solely on the devastation caused by poaching, the piece highlights conservation as evidence that change is possible.
The closing message, “No trophy should ever cost a life,” shifts the focus from numbers back to the individual animal, bringing together the informational and emotional sides of the narrative.
Creative Contributors
Voiceover: Dylan
Photography: Pexels