One of the themes in my proposed narrative is the power of stories and the written word. One way to illustrate this through animation is to show pages of text literally coming to life. I was inspired by the Asics ad posted previously () and my stop motion tests to try some origami-based animation. The animation itself wasn't overly successful (more inbetweens needed as much of the motion is getting lost) but I'm keen to explore this avenue further.
Monday, 23 May 2011
More Animation Tests
I was playing round with some stop-frame animation the other day. Again, I can't yet relate this directly to my program of study - but there is inherent value in testing out a different form of animation.
Tuesday, 17 May 2011
Animation Test
I'm not sure how this relates specifically to my practice - I just really had the urge to make something that moved so I roto'd a start and end picture and sketched the in betweens.
I still think this is going to be relevant somehow - I'm just not too sure when that will become apparent!
I still think this is going to be relevant somehow - I'm just not too sure when that will become apparent!
Tuesday, 10 May 2011
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
Look Development: Paper World
After lots of experimenting here's my first image of a shape with a paper texture. (Sorry the background image isn't great quality - my camera's broken so I resorted to my iphone.) There's loads of work still to do - but from a starting point of barely knowing how to create a light in Maya I'm pleased with my progress so far.
Thursday, 28 April 2011
Character Design: The Writer
Weerawat's been really kind and done some more stylised designs for the writer character. It's definitely got me thinking about a slightly different route for the design:
Look Development: Paper World
I've UV'd my model so now onto texturing and lighting.
Getting the UV's working took much longer than I expected. I'm still at a stage with Maya where everything's going swimmingly then I hit a button, everything suddenly looks totally different and I've no idea how to get back to where I was. In the end I used automatic UVing with 6 planes which was perfect for a simple model like this where most faces are parallel to one of those planes.
I think that I need to get my head around how Maya wants me to think if that makes any sense at all! It's a steep learning curve but there's definitely light at the end of the tunnel and I'm really enjoying learning. I particularly like being able to work in 3D and I'm glad I made the choice to go down this route.
Getting the UV's working took much longer than I expected. I'm still at a stage with Maya where everything's going swimmingly then I hit a button, everything suddenly looks totally different and I've no idea how to get back to where I was. In the end I used automatic UVing with 6 planes which was perfect for a simple model like this where most faces are parallel to one of those planes.
I think that I need to get my head around how Maya wants me to think if that makes any sense at all! It's a steep learning curve but there's definitely light at the end of the tunnel and I'm really enjoying learning. I particularly like being able to work in 3D and I'm glad I made the choice to go down this route.
Contextualisation
Animation is everywhere at the moment!
From CGI films like Pixar's Up to the traditional approach of Sylvain Chomet in The Illusionist there appears to be an ongoing and increasing demand for animation in all it's forms.
TV advertising is also following suit. Different types of animation are being used to sell us anything from from insurance to pints (see below).
The enduring strength of animation which comes through in all of these examples is its ability to create a mood or convey a message in a way that's perhaps more heightened or exagerated than through live action. As techniques for digital animation get more sophisticated, the ways in which this can be achieved become ever more diverse.
I'm interested in how stylised animation (whatever the technique) can be used to convey a message more effectively than a different medium would, and specifically in using CGI to do this. Hopefully, this new understanding coupled with specific CGI technical skills, will allow me to join the growing ranks of people already working to bring the unique potential of animation to fields as diverse as games, commercials, broadcast and feature films.
From CGI films like Pixar's Up to the traditional approach of Sylvain Chomet in The Illusionist there appears to be an ongoing and increasing demand for animation in all it's forms.
TV advertising is also following suit. Different types of animation are being used to sell us anything from from insurance to pints (see below).
The enduring strength of animation which comes through in all of these examples is its ability to create a mood or convey a message in a way that's perhaps more heightened or exagerated than through live action. As techniques for digital animation get more sophisticated, the ways in which this can be achieved become ever more diverse.
I'm interested in how stylised animation (whatever the technique) can be used to convey a message more effectively than a different medium would, and specifically in using CGI to do this. Hopefully, this new understanding coupled with specific CGI technical skills, will allow me to join the growing ranks of people already working to bring the unique potential of animation to fields as diverse as games, commercials, broadcast and feature films.
Program of Study
My program of study has shifted a little as I've worked through the first stage of the Masters course.
Initially I was interested in looking techniques in animation that could best elicit an emotional response from a viewer. However, as I began to research the existing work in the field I realised that there was a common theme emerging.
All the films that I thought had a real emotional impact used their medium as an intrinsic part of telling their story: whether it was claymation depicting bodies merging in a passionate embrace or sophisticated CGI used to create a fantastical dystopian alternative world the strengths of the medium were married with the message and that's what made these animations stand out for me.
Based on this my focus has shifted slightly: I realise that I'm particularly interesting in exploring what makes for successful visual storytelling and, within that, how the strengths of animation as a medium can be used to underscore the key story themes.
I'm particularly interested in learning 3D software in greater depth so I will focus on developing skills in Maya and my aim over the duration of the masters course is to create a short piece of narrative animation with a style that compliments the themes of the story.
Initially I was interested in looking techniques in animation that could best elicit an emotional response from a viewer. However, as I began to research the existing work in the field I realised that there was a common theme emerging.
All the films that I thought had a real emotional impact used their medium as an intrinsic part of telling their story: whether it was claymation depicting bodies merging in a passionate embrace or sophisticated CGI used to create a fantastical dystopian alternative world the strengths of the medium were married with the message and that's what made these animations stand out for me.
Based on this my focus has shifted slightly: I realise that I'm particularly interesting in exploring what makes for successful visual storytelling and, within that, how the strengths of animation as a medium can be used to underscore the key story themes.
I'm particularly interested in learning 3D software in greater depth so I will focus on developing skills in Maya and my aim over the duration of the masters course is to create a short piece of narrative animation with a style that compliments the themes of the story.
Wednesday, 27 April 2011
Look Development: Paper World
Inspired by Su Blackwell's work (here's her 'Snow Queen') I decided to start testing out some shapes with paper textures in maya.
I've modelled a stag so the next step is to start playing around with lights and textures.
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