At long last, filming for the final animated short film for the project has begun. I began chronologically with the first scene which is slightly different from most other scenes in the animation. It deals with pixilation animation, a stop motion technique where live actors are animated like a puppet would. It creates a unique surreal quality with the possibility to bend the laws of physics and the environment. I won't be utilising pixilation to achieve surreal effects but instead will be using it to incorporate a live actor within a story that features a stop motion character.
Due to the length of time I needed to animate these shots and the availability of other people, I animated my own hands for this scene. However I needed my hands to be very steady during filming in order to keep the movements between frames from jumping around too much. I encountered this potential problem earlier during the creation of my photographed animatic and came up with the solution of capturing frames with my foot. Luckily I have a portable numeric keypad which I have keyed to the stop motion software I use. This method worked quite well and it was relatively easy enough to animate like this. Its important to note that had I used another actor, the quality of movement would be different as I'd have less control with how that person can hold their pose but I'd also have greater control to take my time to fine tune the position of the actor between frames. I feel the method I used was the most practical for my own time as well as how big a role it plays on the animation on the whole.
A large part of the project has been documenting process so for this final animated outcome I will be time-lapsing my animation process. These time-lapses won't be perfect, I'll be using different angles, different speeds and avoiding focusing on motion blur or lighting but they'll serve their purpose. Interestingly enough, the time-lapse of the first scene showed some very interesting results. Because I was moving my hands in slow motion, the sped up timelapse showed my hands moving at a surreal slower movement. I wouldn't have thought to try a concept like this but I have seen it used effectively before. I may have tried out an animation test earlier in the year had I known about this technique however I may also try out this technique at a further date.
Overall I'm happy with finally starting to animate the final outcome and look forward to making progress. Due to the nature of stop motion there will be some shots I am happy with and others where I know could have been better. Because of the straight ahead process of stop motion, things are difficult to change. I accept that this is just how it is but as long as I do my best and evaluate the work I do, I will hopefully get a little better each time.
Thursday, 31 March 2016
Lego Batman v Superman - Post Mortem
A few days ago I completed my Lego animated version of the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice film. This has been an ongoing project alongside my Honours project and earlier in the month I decided to commit to finish it before the movie's release date. While it did mean I had to put my Honours animation on hold at an inconvenient time, I felt it was necessary to move this secondary project out of the way in order to fully commit to my Honours project. I also wanted the video to be uploaded at the relevant time. Had I completed it later it would have been a couple of months since the movie's release and it wouldn't have had the same impact.
This was the final outcome and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The animation has been my most ambitious project from a technical stand point requiring over 100 shots and a large number of multiple sets. As its a blockbuster movie, there were also a number of visually complex shots including explosions, flying, fighting and cinematic shots I had to re-create.
This blog post will analyse this project as the work I've done on it has affected the way I've gone about my Honours project. While I don't intend to use this animation in my submission, the thought process, techniques, lessons and feedback have directly fed into my Honours project and without it, my Honours project would be in a very different position than it is now.
This was the final outcome and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The animation has been my most ambitious project from a technical stand point requiring over 100 shots and a large number of multiple sets. As its a blockbuster movie, there were also a number of visually complex shots including explosions, flying, fighting and cinematic shots I had to re-create.
This blog post will analyse this project as the work I've done on it has affected the way I've gone about my Honours project. While I don't intend to use this animation in my submission, the thought process, techniques, lessons and feedback have directly fed into my Honours project and without it, my Honours project would be in a very different position than it is now.
Lego as a Tool for Filmmaking
Not only was Lego the subject of the animation but I discovered interesting ways to use Lego to assist the actual animation process. One such way was using Lego to position and move the camera in shots. I use a webcam for filming since it connects to my computer to be used as an input for animation software. I've always used a Lego cradle to steady the camera as it doesn't have a good stand of its own plus it helps to attach directly to the surface its filming on.
While I've used Lego as a camera movement tool in the past there were new things I tried. As I was recreating the trailer which is very cinematic in nature, there were camera movements that I wouldn't normally consider so had to come up with solutions on how to replicate them. There was one shot which required the camera to be elevated gradually, so I built a make-shit elevator rig.
In another shot I required the camera to rotate around a centre point of the set. I connected a few Lego bricks together to make a long rod connected to a Lego turntable which I concealed beneath the set. The camera then slid along some flat tiles. I'd move the camera by hand at a steady rate.
However there was a shot which was seven seconds and required the camera to follow a character running up a street. The camera needed to be following the character steady so some maths was involved. If you're interested in that: The run cycle in the shot lasted 6 frames which moves the character 2 studs forward. The distance between 2 studs is 16mm so each frame the camera needed to move 2.67 frames. This was the longest shot in the trailer so I sought the help of a friend to help move the camera while I focused on the character and environment movements.
I've thought more about the materials being used as well. As I've historically worked with Lego in my animations, I hadn't thought about the material's properties compared with other materials. As I've been exploring different materials throughout this year, its highlighted what is unique about animating with Lego and what traits it has within the medium of stop motion.
Points of movement. Lego has seven points of movement (two legs, two arms, two hands and the head) which defines the way most people will interact with them - through playing, posing or animating with them. However animation isn't limited to just these points of movement. There's nothing to stop you from removing an arm and positioning it in anyway you want, provided you can support it and hide the support. I did this a few times throughout the trailer such as when Wonder Woman smashes her bracers together or when a poor background guy surrounded by water waves his arms about to get the attention of Superman. But in general, the seven points of movement defines the movement of the characters. Subtler movements have to be done different whereas the chest can't bend and the head can't look down, the waist has to move instead. A real life person moving this way wouldn't look natural but for Lego it's just accustom to see that type of movement.
It's clear The Lego Movie (2014) were aware of the vast number of stop motion animated videos by fans and so much of the character's movement emulated the style of stop motion animations. With some exceptions, the characters keep their rigid bodies and often hop about or pay little attention to the restrictions of their own bodies and movement.
During the long running shot I mentioned earlier, I had the problem of not being entirely sure on how to animate the oncoming smoke and rubble coming from the collapsing building. I settled on simply pouring a box of Lego slowly over the course of the shot and moving the large quantity of bricks as a single mass similar to how I animated with rice earlier in the year.
Interestingly enough, most views have actually came from YouTube's suggested videos feature (where my video will show up along side other similar videos). While I've heard many users complain that this feature doesn't work in a lot of people's favour, it seemingly does for me.
Observations
As with most animation projects, each new project brings new things to discover.I've thought more about the materials being used as well. As I've historically worked with Lego in my animations, I hadn't thought about the material's properties compared with other materials. As I've been exploring different materials throughout this year, its highlighted what is unique about animating with Lego and what traits it has within the medium of stop motion.
Points of movement. Lego has seven points of movement (two legs, two arms, two hands and the head) which defines the way most people will interact with them - through playing, posing or animating with them. However animation isn't limited to just these points of movement. There's nothing to stop you from removing an arm and positioning it in anyway you want, provided you can support it and hide the support. I did this a few times throughout the trailer such as when Wonder Woman smashes her bracers together or when a poor background guy surrounded by water waves his arms about to get the attention of Superman. But in general, the seven points of movement defines the movement of the characters. Subtler movements have to be done different whereas the chest can't bend and the head can't look down, the waist has to move instead. A real life person moving this way wouldn't look natural but for Lego it's just accustom to see that type of movement.
It's clear The Lego Movie (2014) were aware of the vast number of stop motion animated videos by fans and so much of the character's movement emulated the style of stop motion animations. With some exceptions, the characters keep their rigid bodies and often hop about or pay little attention to the restrictions of their own bodies and movement.
During the long running shot I mentioned earlier, I had the problem of not being entirely sure on how to animate the oncoming smoke and rubble coming from the collapsing building. I settled on simply pouring a box of Lego slowly over the course of the shot and moving the large quantity of bricks as a single mass similar to how I animated with rice earlier in the year.
Comments/Feedback
The YouTube comments section is a weird and wonderful place. Having been a long time YouTube user I've seen most of it. I never expect a lot of meaningful feedback on my videos, in general the fans don't much care for the quality of the animation. They may notice it but the feedback is going to be along the lines of "this is good", "this bad", "this is amazing", etc. most of the time. That's okay, for the most part I am pretty good and self analysing my work and there is a large user-base of other "brickfilmers" around. There are sites dedicated to giving more detailed feedback on brickfilms but the nature of this animation being based of an existing work makes it less interesting to share and talk about on these sites. Instead, this video is aimed at the fans of Lego, Batman, Superman and my own followers.
Majority of comments I received on my video upon upload were "he's back" and "you're alive" and most of the rest were overwhelmingly positive. This is great for morale and I feel good to be back and to still be welcomed among fans and the community of other YouTube animators. This is step one in my goal to reignite my YouTube channel, my website, brand and professional persona. Along with my honours animation, I hope this is a good way of selling myself for the future.
Stats
As expected I received a quick drop in subscribers as I'd reminded people that I was still alive. After three years of inactivity, not all of my subscribers will be interested in Lego videos any more. Fortunately after a couple of days I was back on the rise again and subscribers were flowing in nicely. Views were typical but suddenly picked up a couple of days in. During the weekend my video was featured on JovemNerd, GeekTyrant and Nerdist which brought in a sudden influx of viewers. This is why I wanted to release the video when I did, any later and interest in the movie wouldn't have been as strong.
Interestingly enough, most views have actually came from YouTube's suggested videos feature (where my video will show up along side other similar videos). While I've heard many users complain that this feature doesn't work in a lot of people's favour, it seemingly does for me.
Monday, 28 March 2016
Animatic - Version 2
Although later than expected, I now have a first draft animatic for the second revision of my story (I had created a first draft animatic previously before the story idea changed). This animatic is adapted from storyboards I had created earlier with some minor alterations and a completed ending.
I chose to approach the animatic differently than I normally would and chose to use photographs of the posed character and the set to block out poses and actions. Editing them into a video would help me with pacing and timing as well as communicate my story idea to others easily. It also gave me an opportunity to try out camera positions and lighting setups and generally get a feel of how I would be working on and moving around the set later on.
I chose to approach the animatic differently than I normally would and chose to use photographs of the posed character and the set to block out poses and actions. Editing them into a video would help me with pacing and timing as well as communicate my story idea to others easily. It also gave me an opportunity to try out camera positions and lighting setups and generally get a feel of how I would be working on and moving around the set later on.
The animatic does however switch to drawn frames half through which I had to do due to suffering from back pain after a pretty intensive week of animating prior. Unfortunately I had also lost my drawing tablet's pen so was limited to drawing with a mouse. Generally I wouldn't use this quality of drawing but I needed to complete some form of an animatic by the end of the weekend in order to stick to my schedule which was already pretty tight. The animatic still communicates my story idea but had I started it earlier and spent more time on it I would've achieved a higher polished result.
I was initially less enthusiastic about creating an animatic as it has previously taken me a great deal of time to create. My experience of animation over the years has been mostly thought up on the spot without the need for previous planning. Throughout university I have tried to focus more on the pre-production side of things in order to produce higher quality work as well as learn how the industry operates. This is especially useful when working with others. So while less enthusiastic, I felt it was necessary to complete an animatic for both the project's and my own benefit.
From here I will now be able to start animating and I'll be able to use the animatic as a guide to timing and planning out shots. It'll also help me with scheduling and monitoring my progress. Like the Batman V Superman trailer animation I just created, having a video (in this case the animatic) to work from will be beneficial.
Monday, 21 March 2016
For the Greater Good
This week I've deviated from my Honours project and have been focusing on another stop motion animated project. That project is a Lego recreation of the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice trailer. I began working on that project last year not long after the original trailer was released. I worked on it on-and-off during my fourth year at university as a side project. I chose to animate this trailer as I'm personally a fan of Batman and always wanted to recreate a trailer in Lego. As I am approaching the end of my university studies I wanted to revive my YouTube channel so that I had a range of work I can use as a portfolio for my time beyond university.
My YouTube channel is a big part of my life and its the reason why I'm studying this course. During my time at university among other distractions I've not put the channel aside. However I wanted to come back with a bang, something impressive, in order to revive my channel. My channel remains a good outlet for getting my work out there and it also acts as a good backup plan in the case that I cannot find work easily.
Last week prompted a sudden acceleration in the pace of this animation's development and I'm fully committing myself to finishing the animation in time.
I spoke with my supervisor Lynn and showed her the current progress of this animation. While she supported me with finishing this project there were concerns about my Honours project and the lack of work shown for this week. I'm aware that I shouldn't be taking breaks from my final year's work like this but I made the decision that getting my Lego Batman v Superman video out would be beneficial in the long run and help to prepare myself for time beyond university.
Last week has been fully committed to the animation and I've spent most of my waking hours working on it. Thankfully I am on schedule and my written schedule for filming has been spot on for the last week and a bit. With that in mind I am on track to finish it by the movie's release this week. Lynn did raise the concern about "burning out" and I'm aware that's a concern. But I am in high spirits and I enjoy what I do so hopefully all goes well.
In response, I will need to ensure I keep up the pace in order to catch up on missed time working on my Honours project. I've agreed for next week to work on completing my animatic.
My YouTube channel is a big part of my life and its the reason why I'm studying this course. During my time at university among other distractions I've not put the channel aside. However I wanted to come back with a bang, something impressive, in order to revive my channel. My channel remains a good outlet for getting my work out there and it also acts as a good backup plan in the case that I cannot find work easily.
Last week prompted a sudden acceleration in the pace of this animation's development and I'm fully committing myself to finishing the animation in time.
I spoke with my supervisor Lynn and showed her the current progress of this animation. While she supported me with finishing this project there were concerns about my Honours project and the lack of work shown for this week. I'm aware that I shouldn't be taking breaks from my final year's work like this but I made the decision that getting my Lego Batman v Superman video out would be beneficial in the long run and help to prepare myself for time beyond university.
Last week has been fully committed to the animation and I've spent most of my waking hours working on it. Thankfully I am on schedule and my written schedule for filming has been spot on for the last week and a bit. With that in mind I am on track to finish it by the movie's release this week. Lynn did raise the concern about "burning out" and I'm aware that's a concern. But I am in high spirits and I enjoy what I do so hopefully all goes well.
In response, I will need to ensure I keep up the pace in order to catch up on missed time working on my Honours project. I've agreed for next week to work on completing my animatic.
YouTube Networks and Stuff
Fourth year is a busy time and second semester can be especially stressful as coursework is being finished up and there's more pressure to get the work done. For some reason stressful events tend to bunch up at the same time and right now is no exception.
I've been part of the Machinima Entertainment Network for a few years now, which means my channel is managed by Machinima and they pay me a revenue share from advertisements displayed against my videos. YouTube has a large number of networks and a large number of channels associated with those networks. When I was initially invited to the Machinima network they were just starting out with expanding to partnering with other channels. When I received an invitation I thought it was a mistake as Machinima were only associated with big people often focused on gaming. They explained they were now reaching out to other channels with different content to increase the profitability of their network. From my understanding, for a YouTube network to be worth running, you need a lot of partners to make it worth it. YouTube networks were great for protection from YouTube's less than perfect copyright striking system and having someone to reach out to for support was a good benefit. It also opened up the opportunity for collaborations with other content creators and to promote content through Machinima's channels. Today, there are an enormous amount of networks and I frequently receive offers from startup networks. Today they no longer offer the same benefits such as copyright strike protection and customer support from many networks is difficult to deal with.
Machinima were revising their contracts in November of last year and they offered me a pretty good deal. However I wasn't as enthusiastic about networks as I was before as they no longer offer the same benefits as they used to. These days everyone is in a network and I wasn't as bothered about being in one anymore. I reached out to Machinima with some general questions about the contract but they didn't reply. I figured it wasn't really worth being in a network so I wasn't too bothered about signing. They never unliked my channel so I kind of just ignored it while my channel was in limbo.
However I've been making an effort to restart my YouTube channel by uploading new content and I have a video I've been working on for a while in the works. I have considered other YouTube networks or going it along and the opportunity presented itself this week when Machinima finally unlinked my channel (without a notification though). While I planned on contacting them eventually this was one less thing I had to do.
Revenue sharing on YouTube is pretty great. By choosing to display advertisements next to your videos, every view or interaction builds up and you can earn money. Obviously more views equals more money and my channel has a decent amount of views for some reason. When I first created animations for YouTube I never imagined it would even be a possible career option. When I got accepted into the exclusive YouTube Partnership Program in 2008 it was a great opportunity to earn a little bit of money. As a kid, it was great and it helped to fund future videos. During my time at university its been enough to keep my afloat in addition to other funding (SAAS, parents, etc.). Machinima dealt with payments through their system but as I was no longer partnered with them I had to set up my channel with Google AdSense again like it was when I was a standard YouTube Partner.
As my AdSense account has been inactive for some time, I ran into a couple of problems when trying to re-associate it with my channel again but after a day of teething problems I'm all set up again. I'm now motivated to continue on with my animation that I am creating for the channel which is a Lego re-creation of the Batman v Superman trailer which I have previously discussed on this blog. My goal is to complete it soon in order to restart my YouTube channel with new content.
Monday, 14 March 2016
Animation Discussion - Return to Oz (1985)
Return to Oz (1985) is a sort of sequel to The Wizard of Oz (1939), based on the novels by L. Frank Baum. It's not an official sequel to the film but follows the events of the film and borrows some elements from it. While its not a live action film it does have some stop motion elements from it.
I watched the film a good few times when I was a kid and while I thought it was pretty dark and even scary in comparison to The Wizard of Oz, I also really liked it. I was recently watching this film when I spotted those stop motion scenes and this was the first time I had watched it and analysed it for its animation. The stop motion scenes I'll talk about in this blog are particularly related to the Nome King and his followers.
I couldn't find out much about how the visual effects were created so some things in this post will be good assumptions. Its obviously stop motion animation but I have a feeling that Nicol Williamson, who voices him and plays him in human form later in the film, was used as a reference for the animators as the facial animation matches with his own acting style very well.
The nomes possess a metamorphic quality to the way they are built and also move. While the characters themselves were built with clay in real life, in the story they are made of rock. The visual effects team did a great job of using the clay to emulate the metamorphic quality of rock, and how it might move if it could. Additionally, the nomes are seamlessly blended into real life rocks, the clay texture matches the real rocks so well its very difficult to tell where they clay is blended in to the rock.
The characters themselves while in rock form consist of just their face with limited details, some have eyes and some don't, same with noses. Different rock types have different looks for the characters. For example a character appearing underground has a jagged appearance whereas a character appearing on a smooth boulder has a more circular appearance.
The Nome King appears to the main characters in a few forms, his rock form shows up at the entrance as well as inside his mountain. Later, he slowly changes to become more human. I really like how the transition works as each step towards human gives him more detailed anatomy until they switch the stop motion model to a live actor as he emerges slowly from the rock wall. The Nome King's transformation is made sinister through the use of stop motion as the surreal change from stop motion to live actor emphasises the sinister actions of the character himself. Keeping the texture from the clay parts in the live actor's costume helps blend this well.
The Nome King's death near the end of the film also has some fantastic moments. I like the way the clay crumbles away like rock formation crumbling from being unstable. Moments like his eyes turning back to rock are also sinister but fascinating to watch.
I watched the film a good few times when I was a kid and while I thought it was pretty dark and even scary in comparison to The Wizard of Oz, I also really liked it. I was recently watching this film when I spotted those stop motion scenes and this was the first time I had watched it and analysed it for its animation. The stop motion scenes I'll talk about in this blog are particularly related to the Nome King and his followers.
I couldn't find out much about how the visual effects were created so some things in this post will be good assumptions. Its obviously stop motion animation but I have a feeling that Nicol Williamson, who voices him and plays him in human form later in the film, was used as a reference for the animators as the facial animation matches with his own acting style very well.
The nomes possess a metamorphic quality to the way they are built and also move. While the characters themselves were built with clay in real life, in the story they are made of rock. The visual effects team did a great job of using the clay to emulate the metamorphic quality of rock, and how it might move if it could. Additionally, the nomes are seamlessly blended into real life rocks, the clay texture matches the real rocks so well its very difficult to tell where they clay is blended in to the rock.
The characters themselves while in rock form consist of just their face with limited details, some have eyes and some don't, same with noses. Different rock types have different looks for the characters. For example a character appearing underground has a jagged appearance whereas a character appearing on a smooth boulder has a more circular appearance.
The Nome King appears to the main characters in a few forms, his rock form shows up at the entrance as well as inside his mountain. Later, he slowly changes to become more human. I really like how the transition works as each step towards human gives him more detailed anatomy until they switch the stop motion model to a live actor as he emerges slowly from the rock wall. The Nome King's transformation is made sinister through the use of stop motion as the surreal change from stop motion to live actor emphasises the sinister actions of the character himself. Keeping the texture from the clay parts in the live actor's costume helps blend this well.
The Nome King's death near the end of the film also has some fantastic moments. I like the way the clay crumbles away like rock formation crumbling from being unstable. Moments like his eyes turning back to rock are also sinister but fascinating to watch.
In general, I'm not quite sure if they got the tone of the film right. In comparison to The Wizard of Oz, Return to Oz is a darker film with scarier characters. The stop motion only adds to the creepiness of some characters and while this is great if that was the intent but as a kid I don't remember entirely enjoying watching the film for that reason.
Return to Oz sits in that great time of visual effects just before CGI explodes in popularity in the 1990s. As such, the stop motion greatly enhances the longevity of the film as it doesn't look cheap or out of place as it might do if it were created 10-20 years later with computer generated effects. The use of stop motion adds a layer of magic and mystery to the environment that I think only stop motion can do best. The hands and arms for a doorway is an iconic shot from this film.
I was surprised to learn that the Nome King and his followers weren't the only stop motion animated characters. A scene with Jack Pumpkinhead later in the film used a stop motion puppet in order for the Nome King to interact with him and eventually eat him. The design of the character itself has similarities to Jack Skellington in The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993).
While the film itself doesn't live up to the magic and wonder of the original The Wizard of Oz, the visuals did and it was even nominated for the 1986 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
While the film itself doesn't live up to the magic and wonder of the original The Wizard of Oz, the visuals did and it was even nominated for the 1986 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
Production and Pipeline Test
With my armature ready to go and my set design taking shape I wanted to test the production process of my animation for this particular project. There are things I haven't tried before such as animating with an armature in a larger set, so I wanted to ensure I understood the process a bit better before beginning to animate the final animated short.
Next I wanted to consider my lighting. My usual setup is two lights on either side which I move around to get a good even lighting across the set. I also have a third light on-hand if its ever needed. This animation is different in that its actually okay to show the lighting setup since the story focuses around an actual animation set so I didn't need to position them too far away. I wanted to ensure that the set was well lit so that the wire armature stands out from the background. Moving the lights can achieve different effects.
I didn't have anything in mind before animating other than a few simple actions. I made a lot of it up on the spot but wanted to focus more on simply becoming more accustomed to moving a wire armature over other materials I've used before. I stuck down the legs at first so I could get to grips with the basics without worrying about the armature's balance.
I ended up animating seven seconds of the character trying to unstick its feet. The very first movement was unscripted so it can feel detached from the rest of the short narrative, it was after the first action I decided the armature character was going to attempt to pull up its leg.
The movement I was able to achieve with the character was quite overwhelming, with most parts of the armature being able to move without any set limb size or points of rotation that you get from 3D. Like with clay there can be a tendency to have more fluid and bendy movement that can contrast with reality. More professional armatures don't have the range of movement available but are constricted to defined limbs. As I wanted to have my armature appear more rigid as outlined in my storyboards I will need to make sure I do not move too many parts of the armature at this point in the story.
I also tried out some balancing with the armature. With one foot tied down balancing the rest is relatively easy. During my final animation I will either hide the foot that is tied down or hide the thing that's keeping it held down.
The animation quality itself isn't the greatest. While there are some points I am proud of, there isn't a lot of consistency in the timing of the animation and some of the techniques such as "easing in and out" and "anticipation" could do with some work. However this animation test wasn't particularly concerned with quality and was more to test the pipeline so there were corners I did cut and things I that I would normally correct or focus more on were ignored for now.
Finally I brought the animation into Sony Vegas and used the colour correction tool in addition to the brightness/contrast tool to alter the look of the animation so it was more readable by reducing the reddy-brown tone and highlighting the armature more.
The animation I did was useful in allowing me to complete a shot from start to finish. I was able to identify where I might have troubles with when it comes to working with the armature. It also gives me a starting visual so that I can add-to and amend the set and overall visual look to the set design.
While this was one approach to filming, I will also consider the other options for camera angles and staging. I took a few shots of potential ideas.
While building the set and armature I was aware that I'd be working on a bigger scale than I am used to. I didn't realise how big until placing the camera and setting things up for filming. My initial setup didn't leave much space for the camera so I rotated the table giving me more room for the camera while still keeping adequate room for the set pieces.
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Next I wanted to consider my lighting. My usual setup is two lights on either side which I move around to get a good even lighting across the set. I also have a third light on-hand if its ever needed. This animation is different in that its actually okay to show the lighting setup since the story focuses around an actual animation set so I didn't need to position them too far away. I wanted to ensure that the set was well lit so that the wire armature stands out from the background. Moving the lights can achieve different effects.
I didn't have anything in mind before animating other than a few simple actions. I made a lot of it up on the spot but wanted to focus more on simply becoming more accustomed to moving a wire armature over other materials I've used before. I stuck down the legs at first so I could get to grips with the basics without worrying about the armature's balance.
I ended up animating seven seconds of the character trying to unstick its feet. The very first movement was unscripted so it can feel detached from the rest of the short narrative, it was after the first action I decided the armature character was going to attempt to pull up its leg.
The movement I was able to achieve with the character was quite overwhelming, with most parts of the armature being able to move without any set limb size or points of rotation that you get from 3D. Like with clay there can be a tendency to have more fluid and bendy movement that can contrast with reality. More professional armatures don't have the range of movement available but are constricted to defined limbs. As I wanted to have my armature appear more rigid as outlined in my storyboards I will need to make sure I do not move too many parts of the armature at this point in the story.
I also tried out some balancing with the armature. With one foot tied down balancing the rest is relatively easy. During my final animation I will either hide the foot that is tied down or hide the thing that's keeping it held down.
The animation quality itself isn't the greatest. While there are some points I am proud of, there isn't a lot of consistency in the timing of the animation and some of the techniques such as "easing in and out" and "anticipation" could do with some work. However this animation test wasn't particularly concerned with quality and was more to test the pipeline so there were corners I did cut and things I that I would normally correct or focus more on were ignored for now.
Finally I brought the animation into Sony Vegas and used the colour correction tool in addition to the brightness/contrast tool to alter the look of the animation so it was more readable by reducing the reddy-brown tone and highlighting the armature more.
The animation I did was useful in allowing me to complete a shot from start to finish. I was able to identify where I might have troubles with when it comes to working with the armature. It also gives me a starting visual so that I can add-to and amend the set and overall visual look to the set design.
While this was one approach to filming, I will also consider the other options for camera angles and staging. I took a few shots of potential ideas.
Tuesday, 8 March 2016
Supervisor Meeting - March 7
This week's supervisor meeting was mainly discussing my plans for the next few weeks and going over how my presentation went in the previous week.
I sent over my dissertation structure/plan earlier in the week and was told I should expect more detailed feedback later in the week. I did get some quick feedback such as how I could go about combining a discussions section with my "making of" section and that I should considering merging the "making of" section with my methodology since they are both outlining the same thing.
Last week I was able to get in contact with the supplier of my armature kit and was told I was sent the wrong type of glue in the kit I ordered. The good news is they replaced my armature free of charge so now I am able to begin animating again. I was asked on-the-spot what its name was and I came up with "Kenny the armature".
I explained how my set design wasn't yet complete but we discussed that animating a quick test show would be beneficial. This week I will test my production pipeline by animating a test shot and hopefully gain a better understanding of the composition, staging and lighting of my setup. I will also try out some post production filters such as colour correction or balancing contrast which will help me to fine tune my lighting so that if I do choose to use filters I will be able to do so with greater ease.
We also discussed things I'll need to look at further down the line such as the graduate show and final presentation. For the graduate show things like business cards, a poster and a website are needed. I figured these would be easier to tackle once I'm mid-production and have a better understanding of what my animation will look visually. Lynn suggested a movie poster would be good to make and I'll consider how I want to make that soon.
I also managed to acquire additional clay from Ian Donald who had allowed our Global Game Jam team to use clay the university had earlier in the year. The clay was sitting unused in a locker so if I have a use for it, I will now have access to it. I will probably use these additional materials to add more details to my set, and if needed to my character.
I sent over my dissertation structure/plan earlier in the week and was told I should expect more detailed feedback later in the week. I did get some quick feedback such as how I could go about combining a discussions section with my "making of" section and that I should considering merging the "making of" section with my methodology since they are both outlining the same thing.
Last week I was able to get in contact with the supplier of my armature kit and was told I was sent the wrong type of glue in the kit I ordered. The good news is they replaced my armature free of charge so now I am able to begin animating again. I was asked on-the-spot what its name was and I came up with "Kenny the armature".
I explained how my set design wasn't yet complete but we discussed that animating a quick test show would be beneficial. This week I will test my production pipeline by animating a test shot and hopefully gain a better understanding of the composition, staging and lighting of my setup. I will also try out some post production filters such as colour correction or balancing contrast which will help me to fine tune my lighting so that if I do choose to use filters I will be able to do so with greater ease.
We also discussed things I'll need to look at further down the line such as the graduate show and final presentation. For the graduate show things like business cards, a poster and a website are needed. I figured these would be easier to tackle once I'm mid-production and have a better understanding of what my animation will look visually. Lynn suggested a movie poster would be good to make and I'll consider how I want to make that soon.
I also managed to acquire additional clay from Ian Donald who had allowed our Global Game Jam team to use clay the university had earlier in the year. The clay was sitting unused in a locker so if I have a use for it, I will now have access to it. I will probably use these additional materials to add more details to my set, and if needed to my character.
Thursday, 3 March 2016
Progress Presentation 2 Feedback
Today I gave a presentation detailing the progress on my honours project. As I attended early I was the first to present, although only in front of two other classmates and lecturer David Lyons. I also listened in to a number of other following presentations and listened to the responses of those which was beneficial.
I showed a collection of work from last semester and this semester demonstrating my tests with different materials so far. I explained how different materials can give different qualities of motion, and how different qualities of motion can evoke different effects, atmospheres and themes.
Finally I explained my current situation through my showing of scenes from my current story idea. I talked about different options for the ending and what I'd be doing to develop an ending to the story. I also talked about my schedule and how I plan to begin animating the final story very soon.
Presentation Content
My presentation slides can be downloaded to view through my Google Drive. In the presentation I explained where I was with my project during the first progress presentation, and how I came to my first structured research aim regarding the stylistic affordances of stop motion animation. I explained how I was currently focusing particularly on materials and movement in stop motion animation and how I am researching these through looking at other animators' work and exploring these myself through practical tests.I showed a collection of work from last semester and this semester demonstrating my tests with different materials so far. I explained how different materials can give different qualities of motion, and how different qualities of motion can evoke different effects, atmospheres and themes.
Finally I explained my current situation through my showing of scenes from my current story idea. I talked about different options for the ending and what I'd be doing to develop an ending to the story. I also talked about my schedule and how I plan to begin animating the final story very soon.
Feedback
Feedback to my work was positive and those in attendance didn't have any concerns about the scope, content or direction of my project. I believe I did a good job covering all aspects of my project so there were no queries about what my project was about or what I was trying to achieve.
Again, my character animations that I did from Global Game Jam (which I also included in this presentation) were received well.
I was praised for doing multiple tests on different materials to explore the different characteristics that can be achieved. David Lyons also liked how my research aim was still loose and that by going through my final animation I can make conclusions as part of a "post project rationalism".
I was also suggested to check out [insert name when I find out who it was] who has done work into visual-only performance that would be appropriate to consider since my character does not speak.
Other Presentations
I stayed around for another three hours listening and watching other classmates' presentations. In addition to giving them my own feedback, I found the feedback they received from others to be beneficial myself. I was able to see what things people are looking for in a variety of projects, and if anyone had information missing, other people would ask for that information. From that, I was able to understand the successes of my own presentation.
I found the other animation projects to be the most interesting and I was curious to see the other aspects people are exploring in animation. There was a project focusing more on narrative and characterisation, and a project focusing on animation pipelines and character performance. From the feedback those presentations got, I came to the conclusion that my own animation-focused tests have been greatly beneficial on gaining a greater understanding for the scope and schedule of my final animations. The projects I mentioned hadn't looked too much into the production of the final artifacts so were considered to be too large for the time we had left.
Afterthought
I felt more confident with this presentation compared to the last, probably because I was more prepared and had more work to show, in addition to having a greater idea of the direction I was aiming towards for the project. Because of my enthusiasm to present, I was first to present, and therefore not all classmates were there to watch my presentation and give feedback. With greater attendance I might have received more varied feedback. However the feedback I did receive was positive and gave me confidence that I was more or less on schedule and doing an adequate amount of work.Tuesday, 1 March 2016
Animation Discussion - Out of the Inkwell (1919 - 1921)
This is the first in a series of blog posts I will be making. These "Discussion" posts will consist of myself talking about a short animation and analysing its techniques, themes and narrative. The series of posts will be similar to my earlier case studies but not as in depth, I think of them as mini case studies. My hope is that doing these quick evaluations will help me to establish points and examples in my dissertation, in addition to broadening my knowledge of animations seen.
The first animations I'm going to look at are from a series called Out of the Inkwell animated by Max Fleischer.
This animation is 95 years old at the time of writing which is pretty early in the film and animation industry. In this animation Ko Ko the Clown is drawn by the animator onto paper. The ink from his pen flows out of it (animated) and forms the clown and the colour of his clothing. The clown moves around and talks to the animator (in that classic; switch to text then back to footage style). Meanwhile in the studio room another pair of live action characters are conversing: one man appears to be creating a model of another man's face.
The clown ends up leaving the confines of the paper and I love the eventual interaction of the clown character and the second modelling scenario although I wished they'd have had the clay head interact from the beginning, there was potential for some good gags in there. Standout moment for me is the animator throwing a clay ball into the animated scene and the clown getting hit - three materials all interacting with each other.
While the film itself feels dated, the animation by modern standards holds up. The clown is very cartoony and there's lots of exaggeration going on. The animation appears to be rotoscoped over existing film footage which for the most part is brilliant but at times it can get a little uncanny since the movements are so close to real life which don't always translate well into animation. The animation pacing is also very fast and frantic which has its pros and cons in a film like this. I think this is down mostly due to the way that old film often had that strange speed to it due to the nature of manually projecting the film.
From a narrative stand point there does seem to be a lot of "filler" content where the clown spends a lot of his on-screen time skating around, doing tricks and frantically moving across the screen. I feel the film focuses a little too much on the clown and not on what's going on with all the characters in the scene. I've already said I would've loved to have seen more interaction with the clay head and the live action actors. I think though, because of how animation was so magical and unique, that more time was spent on this as a visual spectacle.
That being said I can understand why Max Fleischer is so beloved for the time and still today. I checked out another short from the Out of the Inkwell series.
In this animation, which was produced 2 years before the previous animation I talked about, it again features Ko Ko the Clown and an interaction with the animator. This time a pesky fly keeps landing on the paper infuriating both the animator and the clown character.
The film is shorter in length than the other I've discussed and I think its better for it. The interaction between the animator and the character is more concise and the chemistry is greater as they have a common foe.
The animation itself isn't as fluid and focused upon but the character's actions don't seem as out of place. The rotoscoped actions are noticeable compared to the non-rotoscoped: the facial animations are more stylised compared to the real life actions that have been translated to animation. I do think the rotoscoped movements are great but the transition to a stationary character is sometimes jarring. Just like the modelling short, the animation is still very good and I particularly like how he plays with depth and the use of props.
I loved the interaction between the fly and the character and there were a good number of gags that played across very well. I was hoping that the "fly trap" would trap the fly in the drawing but that might also have not worked well.
The ending to how they catch the fly is genius, only I wish there was some setup before hand. The clown jumps through the paper (which is a spectacle itself) and climbs into the inkwell. While I think it was a great way to lure the fly in, he initiates the jump through with no apparent intention and the animator seems to know immediately what to do. I imagine this was more of a time constraint. I can relate to approaching the end of an animation and not sure entirely how to end it so just rush it.
Again, despite any flaws, the animation still holds up and with this short in particular: the humour and narrative are still relatable and its a joy to watch.
The first animations I'm going to look at are from a series called Out of the Inkwell animated by Max Fleischer.
This animation is 95 years old at the time of writing which is pretty early in the film and animation industry. In this animation Ko Ko the Clown is drawn by the animator onto paper. The ink from his pen flows out of it (animated) and forms the clown and the colour of his clothing. The clown moves around and talks to the animator (in that classic; switch to text then back to footage style). Meanwhile in the studio room another pair of live action characters are conversing: one man appears to be creating a model of another man's face.
The clown ends up leaving the confines of the paper and I love the eventual interaction of the clown character and the second modelling scenario although I wished they'd have had the clay head interact from the beginning, there was potential for some good gags in there. Standout moment for me is the animator throwing a clay ball into the animated scene and the clown getting hit - three materials all interacting with each other.
While the film itself feels dated, the animation by modern standards holds up. The clown is very cartoony and there's lots of exaggeration going on. The animation appears to be rotoscoped over existing film footage which for the most part is brilliant but at times it can get a little uncanny since the movements are so close to real life which don't always translate well into animation. The animation pacing is also very fast and frantic which has its pros and cons in a film like this. I think this is down mostly due to the way that old film often had that strange speed to it due to the nature of manually projecting the film.
From a narrative stand point there does seem to be a lot of "filler" content where the clown spends a lot of his on-screen time skating around, doing tricks and frantically moving across the screen. I feel the film focuses a little too much on the clown and not on what's going on with all the characters in the scene. I've already said I would've loved to have seen more interaction with the clay head and the live action actors. I think though, because of how animation was so magical and unique, that more time was spent on this as a visual spectacle.
That being said I can understand why Max Fleischer is so beloved for the time and still today. I checked out another short from the Out of the Inkwell series.
In this animation, which was produced 2 years before the previous animation I talked about, it again features Ko Ko the Clown and an interaction with the animator. This time a pesky fly keeps landing on the paper infuriating both the animator and the clown character.
The film is shorter in length than the other I've discussed and I think its better for it. The interaction between the animator and the character is more concise and the chemistry is greater as they have a common foe.
The animation itself isn't as fluid and focused upon but the character's actions don't seem as out of place. The rotoscoped actions are noticeable compared to the non-rotoscoped: the facial animations are more stylised compared to the real life actions that have been translated to animation. I do think the rotoscoped movements are great but the transition to a stationary character is sometimes jarring. Just like the modelling short, the animation is still very good and I particularly like how he plays with depth and the use of props.
I loved the interaction between the fly and the character and there were a good number of gags that played across very well. I was hoping that the "fly trap" would trap the fly in the drawing but that might also have not worked well.
The ending to how they catch the fly is genius, only I wish there was some setup before hand. The clown jumps through the paper (which is a spectacle itself) and climbs into the inkwell. While I think it was a great way to lure the fly in, he initiates the jump through with no apparent intention and the animator seems to know immediately what to do. I imagine this was more of a time constraint. I can relate to approaching the end of an animation and not sure entirely how to end it so just rush it.
Again, despite any flaws, the animation still holds up and with this short in particular: the humour and narrative are still relatable and its a joy to watch.
Supervisor Meeting
My original appointed supervisor, Lynn Parker, returned from absence this week so I had an opportunity to rehears explaining the current state of my project, ahead of this week's progress presentation. I explained the changes to my project since the project proposal whereby I had focused on materials and movement in particular from the wider range of stylistic affordances I had planned to look at.
I showed my work from late last semester and the beginning of this semester and focused mainly on the recent development of my storyboards and a practical test from last week. Using the feedback from this, I will shape my presentation to cover things I've missed or need to expand on.
I showed my work from late last semester and the beginning of this semester and focused mainly on the recent development of my storyboards and a practical test from last week. Using the feedback from this, I will shape my presentation to cover things I've missed or need to expand on.
Storyboards
I showed the current iteration of my story idea which was well received. Like previous feedback, because I hadn't storyboarded the ending, my explanation of the ending wasn't enough to communicate my ideas. I will ensure I have storyboarded an ending even if it isn't set in stone as the final ending idea.
I am apparently approaching the project well in regards to tying my practical work to my written work. My storyboard is doing well to highlight techniques and themes I have been researching.
Practical Work
Feedback on the pixilation/clay animation was interesting in that my attempt to animate one thing at 15fps and another at 30fps was unusual and not often approached. Interestingly, there was an uncanny feel to the real life hand which was running at the higher frames-per-second. This was the opposite of my intention when initially creating the animation where I thought having the hand appear smoother would make it appear more "real". However due to the nature of pixilation animation and my attempt at it, I had made the character feel more natural than the real hand. This was something I hadn't considered until now, and while this doesn't detract from the created work, it does shed some light on how I might approach future pixilation. The lower frames-per-second gives of the animated charm I like and so pixilation animation at this same fps will probably feel more natural in this fps.Presentation
I showed my presentation draft which consisted of showing previous work, current work, the storyboard for my final animation, and where I was going next with the production of the final animation.
The structure of the presentation was overall good. I will want to introduce my concept better by showing some examples of other work that is similar to mine before going into the story.
I am perhaps showing too much of my storyboards and would be better to pick some key shots to better communicate what my story is and the themes I am focusing on. Although I wasn't particularly too keen to make a new animatic for the revised story idea, I recognise that I will need to as part of the creative process which will allow me to understand the pacing. Since my last animatic helped me to communicate my idea and identify faults, I will now definitely be looking to make a storyboard for this new idea.
Lynn also showed some animations which had similar themes to the animation I was creating. She showed early animations that often featured the animator alongside the animation. These early animations started as camera trickery and were used more for performance purposes rather than focus on characterisation.
This is some of the animations Lynn showed me, I'm going to continue researching this area so that I can expand my knowledge and potentially include some of these as examples in my dissertation.
Lynn also showed some animations which had similar themes to the animation I was creating. She showed early animations that often featured the animator alongside the animation. These early animations started as camera trickery and were used more for performance purposes rather than focus on characterisation.
This is some of the animations Lynn showed me, I'm going to continue researching this area so that I can expand my knowledge and potentially include some of these as examples in my dissertation.
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