Interactive Website Design for experiment.al Animation Lab
Zack Nguyen
experiment.al Animation Lab at UTDallas is a research lab exploring the boundaries of animation beyond industry standards into the poetic, the abstract, and the unknown. Over a 6-month collaboration, I co-designed an interactive website that didn’t just present the lab’s work but acted like it—looping, morphing, revealing itself through time. My role was to design interactive prototypes that embodied the language of experimental animation, then work with a development team to bring those ideas to life on the web.
Challenges:
More experiments meant more challenges.
How do you design a site that doesn’t follow a linear structure, but still feels intuitive?
How can motion itself become a form of navigation—without overwhelming the user? How do you speak to both artists and scholars in one space, when their expectations for digital experiences differ?
How do you translate fleeting, hand-drawn animations into stable, buildable web interactions?
Rather than solving one fixed problem, we embraced a shifting set of design tensions: expression vs. usability, clarity vs. chaos, research vs. play.
Final Concept Overview:
Color Block Interface This design embraces visual minimalism with high-impact color fields that function as dynamic entry points into the lab’s content. Inspired by the grammar of animation frames and abstract composition, each block becomes a moment of interaction, encouraging play, curiosity, and exploration.
Hover Interactions
Each color block includes hover-activated animations, such as:
Revealing video loops, animated SVG drawings, or sound-reactive movement
Project titles fading or sliding into view
Micro-interactions like cursor changes or shifting gradients
These interactions are designed to feel like frame glitches or jump cuts, nodding to the experimental ethos of the lab—making even navigation feel like part of an animated experience.
Accessibility Considerations
Motion is subtle by default, with options to reduce animation for sensitive users.
High-contrast color choices meet WCAG 2.1 contrast ratios.
Blocks include keyboard navigation and screen reader support, with descriptive alt tags and aria labels for each interactive region
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Posted Jun 13, 2025
Co-designed an interactive website for experiment.al Animation Lab at UTDallas.
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Timeline
Aug 9, 2021 - Dec 10, 2021
Clients
The University of Texas At Dallas
