30 Whimsical GIFs Let You Explore Tokyo from the Comfort of Your Own Home

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30 Whimsical GIFs Let You Explore Tokyo from the Comfort of Your Own Home

James Curran spent a month in Japan's megacity, documenting his experience in short animations.

Sumo wrestlers, Shibuya Station, and Street Fighter were three of London-based animator James Curran's charming perfect loops inspired by a month-long stint in Tokyo, where he challenged himself to make a new GIF every day.

"A month in a different city is just about enough time to get a sense of what it's like to live there," Curran tells Creators. "The change of scenery helps to give me enough inspiration to make a new animation every day possible."

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Working largely in Adobe After Effects, he says he spent between six and eight hours on each GIF. Curran's Tokyo GIF-Athon is his third portrait of a city in 30 parts, following New York City and Los Angeles. "I started doing them for a few reasons," he says. "Partly as a way to force myself to create a personal project just for fun, as I otherwise find it hard to make time between client projects. If you've told people that you're making something every day then you can't make any excuses." When he's not making GIFs for himself, he lends his mesmerizing, happy-go-lucky aesthetic to brands like Disney, Jolly Rancher, and Lowes.

See the full set on James Curran's website.

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