Week 5- Force Trajectory

 

This sessions work looked at anticipating movements and how to add it into animation. For the Moom character lifting weights, it means him crouching down before lifting the weight and leaving his arms stretched longer to show that he is lifting something heavy. There are still some issues with the arm lengths and elbows as the arms are ever so slightly different in lengths.  

Maya - Lighting and Rendering 2 - Stand Ins (Proxies)

 Stand Ins, or Proxies, are an effective way to populate a render without slowing down the render view or the viewport. You can create a Stand in through a Arnold setting which results in a bounding box that represents the volume of your chosen object. You can then duplicate this box to create multiple versions of the same object. 

The viewport only shows the bounding box, which can sometimes hinder the process, for example, if the robot model faced a certain way you wouldn't be able to see where the robot is currently facing. A fix for this is using the viewport draw mode to insert a low res depiction of the object inside the box.

Final Render

Maya - Lighting and Rendering 2 - AOV's

AOV’s are essentially separate renders using different setting in Arnold Maya, which can be composited together in after effects to create a desired final image. The AOV’s are created in the render settings and saved as an .exr file so that all the layers are saved. In after effects the images are then composted together, in the image below the colour and shading is more effective than the normal render straight from maya.

Final Render 

Character Design - Week 5

 After last weeks session I started to develop my sidekick character further as well as looking into facial expressions and basic landscape designs. After looking at some of my sketches this week, Justin suggested that I add more thought into the silhouette of my Kaiju character, and that my sidekick still needs some more thought as she is a bit on the generic side at this point. 

Kaiju Sketches 

Quick Landscape Design

Sidekick Sketches 

Maya - Lighting and Rendering 2 - Sub Surface Scattering

 This tutorial goes into depth about texturing the skin on a pre-made model and using sub surface scattering to create the right texture to the skin. There are six maps to replicate the layers and surface textures of real skin and create extra detail that isn't there. When bringing in the final Displacement map, in the render view the character will look like a large blob which can be fixed by turning on auto-bumping and reducing the height in the displacement attributes. The final step is to create an ambient occlusion render as well as a beauty render, and edit them together in photoshop.

Final Render

The Martian - Structural Theories and Story Telling

After watching Gravity, we were tasked with finding another linear film that uses the act structure. Films like this are more commonly plot driven with little story. I decided to look at the Martian.

Exposition 

This stage is the introduction to the film's main characters, essentially setting the scene. In the Martin, this is when the audience is introduced to Mark Watney and the rest of his crew. 

Inciting Incident 

The inciting incident is when the crew realises that the storm will prevent them from leaving Mars safely. 

End of Act: Plot Point 1

Mark is struck over the head during the storm and the crew wrongly presume he is dead and make their way back to Earth. Mark wakes up and returns the the groups 'Hub' to avoid running out of oxygen. 

Mid Point 2 (Act 2)

This is when the main character faces their biggest obstacles, for Mark this is a limited supply of food and now way to contact Earth for a rescue. 

Plot Point 2 (End of Act 2)

This stage is when Mark is able to contact Earth and create a food source for him to live off whilst waiting to be rescued. However, a ship launch sending supplies to his rescue crew is destroyed and he now believes his death is inevitable. 

Race to the Climax 

With all of the main issues resolved, Mark rushes to another station on Mars to retrieve a device that will essentially sling shot him to his crew mates ship. 

The Twist?

As Mark finally reaches the atmosphere, his crewmate fails to catch him and he is left unable to reach the ship. He pierces his pressure suite and uses the escaping air to push him towards the ship.

Denouement End

Mark reaches the crew and they return to Earth. Mark becomes a survival instructor for astronaut candidates. The film concludes with scenes of his crew members in their current lives. 

 

This film has an Arc Plot. Although there are scenes in which the main character is not followed, the plot still remains linear. I believe the ending to be closed as there is no more story left. Although the film is heavily plot driven, there are not a large amount of questions left for the audience to ask. 

 

Week 4 - Rhythm and Hang Time - Moom Poses

During this weeks class we looked at adding in extra poses in the animation to create smoother transitions, as well as the importance of the graph editor. When it comes to using the graph editor to clean up animation, if you use it too mush, the animation no longer has any artistic input. However, if you don't use it at all the animation will inevitably end up looking messy. Essentially in the graph editor the curves need to look smooth and rounded. 

Character Design - Week 5

During this weeks character design we looked at facial expressions (human and animal), sidekick characters and folds in material. In particular, facial expressions and the importance of certain facial features. Eyebrows are the most expressive feature, so even if the character is an inanimate object, by creating an eyebrow from a section of that object instantly gives it character. 

Character Design Do’s and Dont’s

Animal Character Facial Expressions

Object Design

Project Sidekick Designs

Art Jam - Ink Blots

 For this weeks art jam we filled the page with coloured shapes at random. We then had to create characters out of these shapes. I found this task difficult but really informative as it got me thinking about shape/ form and how to make my own characters more diverse in shape as well as generally more interesting and dynamic forms.

Life Drawing - Week 2

 During this weeks life drawing we started of with a few quick poses. The model changed between two poses in minute intervals so that every time I went back to the other drawing there was some movement or change. We also did a few 30 minute drawings and I experimented with pen and mark making.  

Collaboration - Script

 I have edited the scripts so that they fit our developed story line and added them into one full document.

'The Wrong Response To' by Alex on Scribd

Collaboration - Story Boards

 Both myself and Molly have created story boards for each skit. These are not set in stone but just so we can get the animatic together which Torran will do. 

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Character Design - Week 4

 I have decided to create a few more draft designs for the Kaiju and it’s sidekick. I like the idea of the Kaiju being childlike fitting with the chibi art style, a gentle giant of sorts. I’m still working on the stylisation but it is developing. Often in Kaiju films the creature has some sort of bond with a female character, the female character often with a link to music or song. I have decided that my sidekick character be a musician but also young to establish some similar characteristics. I also like the idea of bright acidic colours for the Kaiju, however, I am undecided if it would be more effective to have earthy tones to contrast the bright city.

Kaiju Thumbnails

Sidekick Thumbnails 

Collaboration - Script Ideas

 After deciding in locations and character outlines, we have decided to each write some draft scripts. We plan to have story boards and animator created by the end of this week.

Skit 1

EXT. Cave, Sunset

A news reporter (Bob) stands to the left of the frame. A group of cave people can be seen standing around a pile of wood bashing rocks together. 

Bob: Good Evening, it's coming up to 2000 bc at 5:30pm and I am here witnessing what we believe to be the invention of man made fire. 

The news reporter looks back to observe the group, as they do a stone strike lights the wood and creates a fire. The group begin to jump up and down with joy.

Bob: Well there you have it folks the... the um... uh.

Just as Bod attempts to finish the story one if the cave people lifts a piece of the fire wood and holds it close to their face causing their hair to catch alight. The cave person throw the wood into the air, hitting another person causing them to catch alight. The group bump into each other causing them all to have a piece of hair or clothing on fire. They begin to frantically run up and down yelling. 

Bob: I uh.. well... I'm Bob Wright and this has been science discovery news.

Bob signals for the cameras to be cut. Just before the screen goes to black one of the cave people runs behind Bob screaming with their hair alight. 

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Skit 2

EXT. Mayan Temple, Midday

News Reporter stands next to a trio of mayan people, the are huddled in discussion. 

N: Good afternoon, it's 1000 b.c. and I'm here with a group that think the have predicted an peculiar event called the "Solar Eclipse", In which the moon will pass in front of the sun and leave us in complete darkness. 

The trio nod in excitement. The sun begins to disappear and the group look up shielding their eyes slightly. 

N: So, how long will this eclipse last then?

One member if the group looks up with a panicked look 

M: Oh well... we hadn't really thought about that. 

The group are now in darkness and all that can be seen are their eyes. The trio blink for a moment. Then they begin to panic, running around and smashing into things. Suddenly the light from the sun appears. Two of the trio are hugging each other tightly screaming, they open their eyes and quickly jump apart, one pushes the other and brushes their clothes off. The third of the trio can be seen shaking in fear on the ground. They also open their eyes jump up and laugh. 

M: Ah see nothing to worry about. 

News reporter looks to the camera and sighs.

Mayan Temple Reference 

Maya - Lighting and Rendering 2 - Fog (Legacy) and Atmosphere

 In the Arnold render setting there is an option to create aifog. This creates a fog like texture  which can be placed around the scene with settings to create the desired effect as well as changing colour. By adding a temporary background in the render view you can create some interesting effects. 

Arnold also offers aiatmosphere volume. This creates a similar fog like effect to make the atmosphere in your scene more of less dense. Like many other lighting or rendering options as soon as you add these to a scene it slows down render times, however it works effectively to create atmosphere in a scene. 

Maya - Lighting and Rendering - Depth of Field

Depth of Field works in Maya through Arnold to blur out the foreground midground or background to create the desired depth of field, resembling a real world camera. In the Arnold settings of Arnold you are able to change many things like focus distance, aperture size and aperture aspect ratio. 

Through the Arnold tab in the camera you can also add effects like vignette. The depth of field in Arnold works effectively however it has a long render time and you also have to render without the added blur before hand and composite the two together if you want to change between the two. 

Depth of Field Final Render

Week3: Animation - Moom Poses

 During this tutorial we looked at animating Moom with key poses to resemble a piece of reference footage. Setting the scene correctly is important in this process.

Before posing Moom:

-Changing the Graph Editor from Spline to Stepped.

-Changing the animation Tangents to Flat and Stepped in preferences.

-Setting the timeline to 25fps. 

-Making sure the Character Set is uploaded so that everything key frames in one timeline. 

I then key framed three main poses and two extra in between. Below are the results so far as this will be continued next week.

Maya - Lighting and Rendering - Photometric Lights

Photometric Lights in Maya are an effective way to create realistic lighting in a scene with soft shadows, using an IES files to resemble a real world lighting.

The lights are placed around the space to resemble real ceiling lights. 

Final render after added lights.

Rango - Character Archetypes and Storytelling

 After watching 'The Princess Bride' this week we were tasked with finding the same character archetypes in a film of our choosing. I chose to watch Rango a it follows the traditional Hero's Journey. 

The Hero 

Rango is the hero of the film, hence the films title. He follows the traditional archetype, however there are some grey areas in the film (lying to the towns people) that don't follow a traditional hero's journey which could present Rango as more of an anti hero. He seems to get out of most situations through luck. 

The Shadow 

The Hawk is introduced at the begging of the film and plays a strong role throughout, even after it's death Rango uses its shadow to scare Rattle Snake Jake. The Hawk's only priority is to hunt other animals and seeing as the audience are first introduced to the bird through it's shadow it fits this archetype well.

The Herald

The Mariachi Owls narrate Rango's journey from beginning to end, much like a Greek Chorus, however Rango can see and hear them so in many ways they are the call to action. It could also be argued that Road Kill could be the Herald as he represents the call to action. 

The Threshold Guardian

The Hawk/ Frog Creature when Rango first walks into the desert. It is one of his first trials and almost causes him to turn back. The idea of the other side and the road could also represent this archetype. 

The Trickster

The Mayor of Dirt is technically the shadow or 'Big Bad' of the story', but the audience does not learn this until later on, he presents himself as an ally to Rango therefore he is the trickster. 

The Mentor

Road Kill is the first living animal Rango meets on his journey and when he is at his lowest point he brings him back to save the town. He gives him useful advice therefore he is the Mentor. The Spirit of the West could also be considered Rango's mentor as he is referred to often throughout the film. 

Allies

Most of the townspeople quickly become Rango's allies, these include: Doc, Mr. Merrimack, Priscilla, Spoons, W.B and Mr Timms. 

The Mother

I found this difficult to find as there is no real mother type in this film. I decided that the water or walking cactus could represent this role as both guide Rango in times of need. 

The Father

There is no real mention of fathers, other than Beans' father, however the Spirit of the West seems to be the only other character to fit this role. 

The Child 

Priscilla fits this archetype well. Rango meets her when entering the town of dirt and she becomes an ally. 

The Maiden

Beans fits the traditional maiden archetype in a sense, this film follows a western story structure, however she aids the group more than hinder's them. Usually the maiden is helpless and constantly needs saving, but Bean's contradicts this role. 

The Shapeshifter 

Rattle Snake Jake is a fierce villain throughout this film until very late on when he realises he has been tricked by the Mayor of Dirt. He soon swaps sides and vows to leave the townspeople alone for good. Rango himself could be seen to fit this role. He changes his backstory throughout and often lies, only to come out with the truth near the end of the film, he is also a literal shapeshifter as he changes colour. 

Character Design - Week 3

 This week we started off by looking at environments, the first task was to make a caricature out of an existing piece of architecture. I chose to emphasise the gothic architecture in Big Ben, focusing on the sharp edges and long line work.

I was then given a character and had to design a space which I thought they would live in. I was given Pharaoh’s palace and had to design the same with the word ‘decadent’ in mind.

As well as architecture and spaces we also looked at body language and the arcs the run through both human and animal structures.

Character Arcs

 Pharaoh Character Arcs

Animal Character Arcs

Art Jam - Monster Mash

 I took part in Meg’s art jam in which the theme was ‘Monster Mash’. I used randomised numbers to pick the number of arms, legs, eyes as well as a role and personality. I then had to create some thumbnails creating a character with two arms, four legs, 3 eyes, artsy and chill. I then had to pick the best one and go into more detail. I found this task really beneficial as I was able to create some designs in an environment where I didn’t care about the outcome, and I actually really like what I have come up with.

Monster Thumbnails

Final Design

Moana - Myth and Storytelling

 After last weeks lecture we were tasked with finding the hero's Journey story structure in an existing animation.

The Ordinary World

In the introduction to the film Moana's grandma sets the scene with a story introducing some key characters. Moana is introduced to the audience through a song which literally describes here world and way of life. The ordinary world (the known world) is Moana's island. 

The Call to Adventure

There is a hint at this step when Moana is given the heart of Te Fiti by the ocean, but the main call to arms is when the fish start dying and it becomes apparent that the island is dying. 

Refuse the Call

There is a brief period in the introduction when Moana gives up on the idea of leaving and decides to focus on her duties, and again when she crashes her canoe and decides that the journey is too difficult. 

Supernatural Aid (Mentor)

Moana's grandmother acts as her mentor in the into to the film but her main mentor/ supernatural aid is when she meets Maui a demigod with shapeshifting abilities. 

Crossing the Threshold 

Moana literally crosses the threshold when she jumps off of the ledge into the underworld. Before this her surroundings are fairly normal, when she jumps she becomes surrounded by all manner of spirits and supernatural creatures. Crossing the threshold could also be argued as the scene in which Moana decides to leave the island.  

Belly of the Whale 

When Moana enters the cave of Tomatoa. This is when she and Maui are almost outmatched. 

The Road of Trials

This is when Moana begins to learn how to sail. As well as this she comes across various creatures which she must defeat and throughout the film she takes over Maui and takes control. 

Meeting the Goddess

This moment is at the end of the film when Moana meets Te Fiti. It could also be argued that Moana's meeting with her grandmother's spirit resembles the stage also. 

Women as Temptress

When Te Fiti is in her volcano form and destroys Maui's fish hook, she gives Moana a reason to give up and go home. The great thing about this film is that there is no love interest to drive the story so in some ways Moana is her own worst enemy. 

Atonement with the Father

Maui is somewhat of a father figure to Moana. When he tells her the story of his creation they strengthen their bond immensely. This stage also occurs when Moana sees her grandmother's spirit as she gets some closure.  

Ultimate Boon

This is when Moana returns a second time to Te Fiti to try and defeat her. She and Maui settle their argument and work together to save Te Fiti. 

Refusal to Return

Moana has a few moments when she almost gives up but the most poinient is when she is almost beaten and throws the heart of Te Fiti back onto the ocean. 

Magic Flight

This is when Maui returns as an actual bird to help Moana after his fish hook is almost destroyed.

Rescue from Without

This same as the last stage, this is when Maui returns to help Moana. This stage could also be when Moana comes to a realisation that Te Fiti is the volcano and returns her heart. 

Crossing the Threshold 

This is when Te Fiti's heart is returned and she begins to grow back all of the lost plant life. 

Apotheosis

When Moana and Maui are properly introduced to Te Fiti and she holds them in her hand. She forgives Maui and thanks Moana for returning her heart. 

Master of Two Worlds 

This is the moment when Moana realises that she is the one that will save her island and is able to use everything she has learnt on her journey to restore the heart. 

Freedom to Live

When Moana returns home and leads a group of canoe's to the ocean. She changes how her people feel about the ocean and instead of placing a stone in the pile of past rulers she paces a shell, symbolising the new begging.