Happy Thursday everyone -- Well -- after watching my rough animatic at work on Monday, I had about two pages of notes filled with timing, shots, framing, backgrounds that I wanted to change. So starting on Monday night when I got home we more or less went back to the drawing board. I decided to work with the pulse sound -- more precisely the new timing is based almost entirely around the pulsing sound. A built in rhythm to the piece--perhaps a bit on the easy side, but it's much stronger overall -- but still ways to go -- I'll still be posting my final animatic on Sunday. I was shocked today when I colleague at work told me that she'd read my blog -- until that moment I was quite sure I was alone out here in the digital ether. It's fun to think that people can actually stumble upon my random corner of the internet. There's a lot more play with the text -- I'm eager to see which transitions I still like by the end of the weekend. Rough Animatic -- Revised:
The importance of these initial stages cannot be overstated. It is easy to get caught up in wanting to dive right in to the 3d steps but without thorough knowledge of where you're going, how can you possibly know when you get there?
Occasionally happy accidents can work in 2d -- sometimes I'll just start painting with no idea of what I want to paint and just see what shapes start to form. The process has a cathartic element to it, but seldom does it ever result in something that would be shared with anyone. This could apply to 3d applications as well, but only when you're working for yourself, and even then--it will likely be a waste of any time you care to put in to it.
That being said -- the process of the animatic is to capture the overall timing of the piece in 2d--if the majority of the timing can be settled now it becomes exceptionally less painful once reaching the layout/animation phase.
We're laying the foundation for the film -- if the film doesn't work with these big parts in place then it will never work no matter how much detail you flop on top of it. I find myself longing for the details though -- blowing grass and subtle eye darts, or the way Braveheart's coat will flow in the wind. But when you're building a house you don't start with the stucco finish do you?
This is the process I used to set up the timing for the animatic:
Determine the total running length you want for your film (approximately). I find it's also helpful to give a few hundred extra frames (4-6 seconds) because it's easier/faster to remove frames than it is to add them. -- In this case 1 minute. (1440 frames @ 24fps)
Divide each shot equally in the run time -- 1440f/23 shots = 62.6 -- I rounded down to 60f each.
Just preview the film and get a sense of the timing -- WRITE STUFF DOWN AS YOU WATCH -- I guarantee you'll save yourself time and effort-- even if you don't agree with your notes when you come back to them...
As a general rule for the first go around -- For shots that need to be shorter cut the time in half, and for shots that need to be longer, double them. Keep going until you find a "whoa that's too short/long" moment and then you'll have found your range to work in. Timing is a funny thing -- a couple extra frames here or there and all of a sudden the timing of your whole piece can be off. Take the time now to get it right... it's much better in the long run.
Some changes occurred again -- you'll notice that Braveheart's turn after the second text has been removed. The timing was much stronger without it. I may play around with putting it back in before the text for the final animatic -- it helps make Braveheart's shot in the countdown make more sense.
Admittedly the sound is not great -- After Effects is a potent program, but I find it somewhat lacking in audio editing compared to other software I've used, but don't have access too.
And it seems I've removed myself from the Dark Ages and discovered embedded code for videos.
Please forgive my lack of experience--which has somehow allowed my introductory post to be deleted. It gave a basic outline of who I am and what I would like to accomplish with this blog.
I am a professional 3d artist who wants to expand my skills/knowledge/experience through what will (hopefully) become a kick @$$ personal project.
My studies include Computer Animation at Sheridan College, Visual Art at York University, and classical drawing and painting at The Academy of Realist Art.
One might ask "why create a blog at all about these experiences/processes, and just post the final film on You Tube at the end?" The answer is three fold:
1.) Motivation - to hold myself accountable to the production schedule outlined here -- and therefore the potential audience on the internet. Anyone who has ever worked on a personal project like this has likely encountered the difficulties surrounding how nice it is to sleep in, or how much good tv there is on tonight--versus actually sitting down and doing some work on your film.
2.) Sharing - It is a constant pleasure to witness how willing 3d artists/technicians professionals and enthusiasts alike are willing to share their knowledge. I hope to join that proud tradition by sharing and asking what works and doesn't work as I explore the various challenges of 3d production.
3.) Subject Matter - please don't misunderstand -- I really enjoy the studio and project I'm currently working on, but it is somewhat more pink and sparkly than I would ordinarily choose for myself.
So this project gives me a change to work with my darker side -- while at the same time having some fun. It'll help me get through the days of staring at bubbly perky cartoons.
Now on to the darker side. Most people are aware of how trendy it's become to revamp cartoons from the 80s. Just look at Ninja Turtles, Thundercats, Rainbow Brite, He-man (a few years ago). Well hopping on that band wagon I thought I would work with the Care Bears. It was an idea I had a couple of years ago... to take the Care Bears' world to a dark place in the future where No Heart has destroyed Carealot, all but wiped out the Care Bears and Care Bear Cousins, and the people of Earth have to struggle for survival in a world without caring. So it's not really about the Care Bears -- it's about how humanity (should that be capitalized?) runs amok without the Care Bear's vigilance.
The film will be structured like a theatrical trailer in order to showcase what I'm hoping to showcase...
Some kick @$$ modeling (detailed characters and set) A variety of rigs Some basic dynamics (likely fur, fluid and cloth) Some animation A great overall sense of timing, and what makes a great visual experience.
We're going for a little substance and a lot of style -- I am excited -- I think it'll be a lot of fun, and hopefully there'll be a few interested parties along the way.
I have tentatively titled the project -- Care Bears: the Aftermath
Please note -- I am using this blog and project as an educational experience. I am not making money off of any part of my 2d/3d work for this film. I want to share my experiences openlyvia this blog, but I am aware that I am using the names of licensed characters to which I do not own the rights. I am also aware there are individuals out there in the digital ether that take ideas from other people and call them their own.
A quick google will tell you that the rights to the Care Bears are owned by Jay Foreman -- who purchased them (likely from American Greeting Cards) in 1999.
That being said -- while making no claims to the actual names of the characters, their likenesses and story have been changed sufficiently to become new intellectual property.
Without laying claim to the name "Braveheart Lion" (for example) the images, and story are all entirely my creation, and therefore copyrighted to James Austin.
This is supposed to be fun and I'm hoping to learn/practice a few things along the way. Hopefully we can keep things in this spirit throughout the whole process.
Here are the final boards. Some stuff has been changed around. I ended up condensing the three text shots to two -- an old rule I had for myself when writing essays and things: don't use seven words when four will do. It seemed to make statements more impactful.
I had the opportunity to see some of the boards/animatics in progress at the studio earlier this week. It made me realize that I was getting way too wrapped up indetails and colour of the background. That the storyboards are about getting a sense of the action and shot composition. So -- the boards became less and less detailed as time went on, but I still think they do the job they're intended for.
I've got to remind myself that concept art is what determining the overall look of the film is for... that comes later.
Overall I like how it's shaping up. Something I may play with for next week will be a small bit after the last frame -- maybe a reveal on which villain Braveheart is actually turning around to face.
In case it isn't self evident - blue arrows are for camera moves and red arrows are for action within the shot.
For anyone who's curious -- that's a Tenderheart doll that Braveheart picks up off the road.
Next week: Rough Animatic -- It was first described to me as "basically storyboards set to time." I may try posting the file directly on the blog, but I've had bad luck in the past with having to compress the file so much -- the quality tends to be very poor, so it may be a link to Vimeo or YouTube.
Hey All -- A late post this week -- it seems a six month old baby doesn't respect anyone's schedule but their own -- no matter how much you try to explain to them. As promised in the production schedule, and as the title suggests we have rough storyboards this week. I'm reasonably happy with how they've turned out. I've tried to contemplate just how much time this will fill, but haven't come up with anything definitive as there may be some shots added/removed. The beginning feels a little slow -- so there may be flashes to some more of the villains -- close ups of a smile or weapon, or something else -- we'll see in the finals next week. For any children of the 80s out there who may notice a conspicuous absence -- I have deliberately left out No Heart in the countdown of villains for story reasons.
I hope the sound effects and actions are legible.
The modeling of Shrieky has begun -- truth be told I've never modeled a female character before, and was the modeling I was most looking forward to. I've been contemplating how to deal with a few key issues -- namely whether or not I'll include dynamics. I have worked with cloth and fur before, but my computational power at home is somewhat limited, so it may be some elaborate rigs and polygonal hair that's all keyframed -- dunno -- cloth and hair would be more impressive if I could pull it off, but take more time with caching... but keyframed hair/cloth will be more time in the animation stage... just gotta find the right balance...
