Nestled in between bustling, moving metropolises, and rolling countryside that bore witness to consequential and defining moments throughout American history, Gettysburg College is a place that acknowledges the power of place. While memory is an aspect of history, of documenting what was and who was, we know that history is much more than memory, but rather a living and breathing entity that continues to thread itself into the here and now.

Inspired by the history of the College and the memories created here, I pulled archival winter photos from the College’s Special Collections in Musselman Library and created a living and breathing scrapbook that transports viewers through time to the present, the tapestry of stories of all those that have walked our snowy paths and hallowed halls twisting and tying together with those currently here and eventually those that are yet to come. I took this scanned images into Photoshop to create multiple layers from each, then brought them into Adobe After Effects and used a few different puppeteering tools to animate those layers and bring the photos to life.

The video launched on the College’s Youtube channel in December 2023, as well as being sent out as part of an email campaign from the President’s Office to students, staff, and alumni. It was awarded a Bronze award in the CASE Circle of Excellence Global Awards, the annual higher education marketing awards through the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.