Showreel 2018
A showreel depicting my best work and showcases my chosen career path; Character Animation.
Friday, 18 May 2018
Showreel 2018
A showreel depicting my best work and showcases my chosen career path; Character Animation.
Sunday, 13 May 2018
Production - Sound
Production - Sound
Sound production began halfway through editing and I began with extracting the dialogue I needed from the recording files I had originally recorded. Once the top two layers where finalized with the dialogue files, I started on adding sound effects on the next few layers. The sounds I had planned to use would be a mix of realistic and traditional cartoon sounds, depending on where they would be needed. Though I already had numerous sound effects from my animatic and more I gathered over the last couple of weeks, Additional one had to be downloaded to create a more in-depth atmosphere as my film also depended on sound as well as the quick animation.
Sound production began halfway through editing and I began with extracting the dialogue I needed from the recording files I had originally recorded. Once the top two layers where finalized with the dialogue files, I started on adding sound effects on the next few layers. The sounds I had planned to use would be a mix of realistic and traditional cartoon sounds, depending on where they would be needed. Though I already had numerous sound effects from my animatic and more I gathered over the last couple of weeks, Additional one had to be downloaded to create a more in-depth atmosphere as my film also depended on sound as well as the quick animation.
Wednesday, 9 May 2018
Production - Editing
Production - Editing
Friday, 4 May 2018
Production - Editing Scenes
Production - Editing Scenes
Original Scene
The falling scene was meant to be a demonstration of my animating skills, however as I was already several days behind in terms of animation and composition, the scene was rushed. The scene itself was comprised of only five frames, the first one dragged across the screen using advanced animation tools.
Edited Scene
The edited scene was re-animated three weeks after my expected deadline for animation. I aimed to add more frames so the piece flowed more smoothly and worked far better then the original.
Production - Fog Effect
Production - Fog Effect
To give the establishing shot of my film a bit more character, I decided to employ a Fog Effect to give the scene a more 'spooky' vibe to it. The scene comprised of several layers that made up the image and also already had a trucking shot in on the kitchen window of the house, so i know I would need to figure out how best to insert the effect without throwing the entire perceptive off.
After watching several tutorials on YouTube, I managed to create a believable Fog Effect by following the simplest tutorial I could find. By employing the Fractal Noise Effect, I created the Fog by messing with the effect controls and then duplicating the layer and changed it's settings also. This allowed me to create a thicker Fog that appeared to have more depth to it as it was not simply just moving one way or held the same thickness.
Saturday, 28 April 2018
Evaluation Draft
Contents
The final animation film that was produced primarily focused on character animation.
In this essay, the main topic that will be discussed is the process of development for
one of the main characters, Creak, the zombie who is present throughout the film.
From the initial premise, to concept and to finally animating and compositing, the
development of a fully-fledged character is a lengthy process riddled with difficulties
in trying to create an engaging character. In addition to the creation of Creak from
basic concept to a flushed out character, a variety of media, from TV to Film, will also
be discussed. Such media that inspired the personality of the character and also the
artists who influenced the general physical appearance and style of Creak will be
mentioned. In addition, the thoughts and emotions expressed through this project will
also be examined and what can be taken from it.
The original idea presented for this film was a monster vs. baby concept, a solid idea
for a short animation comedy, as it would involve monsters interacting with humans.
The early editions of this story had several versions, ranging from the idea that a
werewolf was actually just an over-sized dog that wanted to play, to the scenario
where a child was eaten after the werewolf survived all the traps the child placed for
it. Eventually the werewolf would be replaced by a zombie as the main character,
due to the fact that the concept had much more flexibility in terms of story and the
body humour that could be placed in it. The concept of the monster vs. baby was
influenced by Hotel Transylvania and its sequel, a film about a human who marries a
monster and must try to fit into their society while the monsters deal with his
unexpected arrival. The film provided several stereotypes of monsters that could be
used in terms of character actions and personality.
Design
With a finalised premise of ‘what if a zombie was sent to babysit a human child?’ The
story aspect of production ventured into design. The original concept of the zombie
moved from a horror genre inspired character to a quirky humanoid that was
essentially just out of place in his world and was simply trying to do his best. In terms
of character design, much of the influence for the character’s appearance came from
the works of Genndy Tartakovsky, the director of Hotel Transylvania. The concept art
from the films portrayed the ghoulish creatures with a quirky nature despite their
normally terrifying stereotypes and could be seen in their designs. The objective was
to test what strange designs could be produced from their influence.
Style
With the design of Creak, the idea was to do a style that was simplistic and yet would
be easy enough to follow on-screen. Tartakovsky, known for creating the animated
television series, Samurai Jack, Dexter's Laboratory and Star Wars: Clone Wars for
Cartoon Network was the main influence to the style of the film. What is appealing
terms of character design is Tartakovsky’s use of simple characters with angular
designs and thick, flowing outlines. Although these designs may not seem inherently
nice to look at, it can be suggested that they are designed so for a purpose. From a
personal point of view, the limited number of outlines seems to help streamline the
images and thus, the animation clicks for the viewer. Implementing these aspects
into the style of the character design was key in creating a
simplistic yet effective method that focused the audience on the character. My
attempts at Tartakovsky's have shown me that my own character designs are still too
overly complex and I will need to simplify them further. Thus the finalised version of
Creak was born.
Animation
The main animation for Creak began after the first initial scenes and his character
was introduced in a way that fit his personality. With slow, lumbering movement as
he trudged his way into the house and a big, dumb grin on his face. The character of
the mother had little time for him, though she is quick to threaten him if anything
happens to her child, much to Creak’s horror. Creak then proceeds to investigate a
noise from upstairs and discovers the baby is no longer in its crib and scares the
zombie even more. From a compositing point of view, up to this point the animation
done for Creak was mainly kept above the waist, in which most of his movement was
focused on his arms and facial features. With the exception of a rather awkward,
heavy-footed walk cycle up the stairs, his animation was simple and easy to do, so
much that a guide was not needed in order to keep track of the animation.
However, after this point, his animation only increased and with it, the difficulty. The
animation for Creak only grew harder as his movement became more elaborate and
took on different points of perspective. Some of these scenes proved overly difficult,
so much so that it became difficult to envision the scene as the character turned a
certain way or his hands twisted through a fast-moving action.
Software
Into production, the main software used in preparing scenes and overall animating
was Toonboom Harmony, a software used by several companies in Ireland that
allowed for fast animating in any style. However, Toonboom Harmony can oftentimes
prove to be too much at once as it aims to be an all-in-one software, so during
production it was understandable that it was difficult to remember what tools where
which and even the shortcuts for them. Further into production, the software grew
easier to handle as the animation settled into a steady flow of production. The
20-second quota a week was met at a slow pace at first, but once a routine was put
in place the workload set for that week was finalised alongside work that had not
been done in the weeks before.
Problems
Production for the film began slowly, problems ensued due to unforeseen trouble
with the backgrounds for the animation. This would put production back by several
days, however the problem was solved by adding several seconds of animation to
the 20-second quota for that week. The animation for Creak was a problem in its
own as frame-by-frame animation can be long and tedious, however a key factor lay
in his design. Due to his more cartoony style, the level at which his animation was
created was far faster than previous projects. Investing in simplistic design choices
allowed for more creative camera shots and gave a level of freedom to movement.
Into the second half of the animation, the workload increased as did the enjoyment
creating the film also. A key problem came later on in some of the final scenes as it
was primarily a lip-sync for both Creak and the baby. What made this scene more
difficult however, was the fact that the two characters only made guttural sounds
instead of words. The problem was resolved however, by taking reference videos
and following that example, which proved useful as the scenes where completed far
faster than anticipated.
Software
Once the animation was finalised, the small details added and each scene was
coloured, the final export was taken from Toonboom and placed in Aftereffects to
begin post production. Two weeks where given to Composition, the process of taking
all the assets done up till now, animated or otherwise, and putting them in the final
product or film. In Aftereffects, a vast array of tools, effects and other properties
allow for an animation to be taken to a whole other level, taking that rough animation
and producing a product fit for showcasing. The animation of Creak was taken into
this software by exporting the animation as separate layers, so that each could be
composited on their own, or an effect could be added to or between each layer. For
Creak, his animation was outlined with a highlighting effect to give him more of a
3D-esque feel his animation was duplicated into a shadow effect to give the
environment the same feel. Lighting effects were added over the animation of Creak
so that there was one more aspect to the scene before it was rendered and exported
as the final animation sequence.
Problems
Due to the delay that occurred during production, the original schedule was thrown
off point and time was taken out of the weekend in order to finish the animation. That
problem also carried over into the time allocated to composition and nearly a week
was lost to finalising animation. The problem was fixed however by working through
the day and finalising over fifteen scenes that day and another twenty the next. Thus,
compositing was put back on schedule and enough time was left over to add
additional effects and camera shots. Like Toonboom Harmony, a relevant lack of
experience or lack of time using the software meant that trying to get a handle on the
programme was rather difficult. However, after several tutorials and tips from
lecturers, the software was easy to grasp and production began in earnest.
Through the development of a student film in the degree year, the experience was a
change to the last few years and introduced a more structured schedule that was
easier to follow. During the first few weeks of the year, the project caused a spike in
my anxiety, as at certain moments it felt like the effort put into the piece was not
worth the final product. In the initial development stage, I grew several frustrated due
to the story, and the number of times I had to go back and edit the story, change
certain scenes or aspects so that it appealing from a story level, but that same story
grew to complex and I lost the original idea I had in the first place. By Christmas I
just wanted to animate, growing tired of constantly changing the idea to the point
where I did not even like it anymore. However, the excitement I felt when production
began and we finally began to animate in earnest pulled me out of the slump I found
myself in. I got back to the swing of the software and the fun I had animating certain
scenes due to either their funny content or doing something new.
Important Aspects;
The initial idea of the project worked, a premise such as monster vs. child offered
many different routes in terms story and characters, however the story grew too
complex and had to be reined back in to an acceptable level. I did not anticipate the
level of work leading up to production, but I’m glad I did it in the end as it helped
ease the workload, by finalising backgrounds in Photoshop rather than Toonboom
Harmony and whatnot. Style-wise, the cartoon style I went for allowed for greater
freedom in terms of movement and cheating, however it also meant some scenes
lacked detail for how fast they were.
1. Hotel Transylvania. (2012). [film] USA: Genndy Tartakovsky
2. Hotel Transylvania 2. (2015). [film] USA: Genndy Tartakovsky
3. Wikipedia, W. (2018). Genndy Tartakovsky. [online] Available at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genndy_Tartakovsky [Accessed 18 Apr. 2018].
11
- Pg. 2. Introduction
- Pg. 3. Pre-Production
- - Concept
- - Design
- - Style
- Pg. 6. Production
- - Animation
- - Software
- - Problems
- Pg. 9. Post Production
- - Software
- - Problems
- Pg. 10. Reflection
- Pg. 11. Bibliography
Introduction
In this essay, the main topic that will be discussed is the process of development for
one of the main characters, Creak, the zombie who is present throughout the film.
From the initial premise, to concept and to finally animating and compositing, the
development of a fully-fledged character is a lengthy process riddled with difficulties
in trying to create an engaging character. In addition to the creation of Creak from
basic concept to a flushed out character, a variety of media, from TV to Film, will also
be discussed. Such media that inspired the personality of the character and also the
artists who influenced the general physical appearance and style of Creak will be
mentioned. In addition, the thoughts and emotions expressed through this project will
also be examined and what can be taken from it.
Pre-Production
ConceptThe original idea presented for this film was a monster vs. baby concept, a solid idea
for a short animation comedy, as it would involve monsters interacting with humans.
The early editions of this story had several versions, ranging from the idea that a
werewolf was actually just an over-sized dog that wanted to play, to the scenario
where a child was eaten after the werewolf survived all the traps the child placed for
it. Eventually the werewolf would be replaced by a zombie as the main character,
due to the fact that the concept had much more flexibility in terms of story and the
body humour that could be placed in it. The concept of the monster vs. baby was
influenced by Hotel Transylvania and its sequel, a film about a human who marries a
monster and must try to fit into their society while the monsters deal with his
unexpected arrival. The film provided several stereotypes of monsters that could be
used in terms of character actions and personality.
Design
With a finalised premise of ‘what if a zombie was sent to babysit a human child?’ The
story aspect of production ventured into design. The original concept of the zombie
moved from a horror genre inspired character to a quirky humanoid that was
essentially just out of place in his world and was simply trying to do his best. In terms
of character design, much of the influence for the character’s appearance came from
the works of Genndy Tartakovsky, the director of Hotel Transylvania. The concept art
from the films portrayed the ghoulish creatures with a quirky nature despite their
normally terrifying stereotypes and could be seen in their designs. The objective was
to test what strange designs could be produced from their influence.
Style
With the design of Creak, the idea was to do a style that was simplistic and yet would
be easy enough to follow on-screen. Tartakovsky, known for creating the animated
television series, Samurai Jack, Dexter's Laboratory and Star Wars: Clone Wars for
Cartoon Network was the main influence to the style of the film. What is appealing
terms of character design is Tartakovsky’s use of simple characters with angular
designs and thick, flowing outlines. Although these designs may not seem inherently
nice to look at, it can be suggested that they are designed so for a purpose. From a
personal point of view, the limited number of outlines seems to help streamline the
images and thus, the animation clicks for the viewer. Implementing these aspects
into the style of the character design was key in creating a
simplistic yet effective method that focused the audience on the character. My
attempts at Tartakovsky's have shown me that my own character designs are still too
overly complex and I will need to simplify them further. Thus the finalised version of
Creak was born.
Production;
The main animation for Creak began after the first initial scenes and his character
was introduced in a way that fit his personality. With slow, lumbering movement as
he trudged his way into the house and a big, dumb grin on his face. The character of
the mother had little time for him, though she is quick to threaten him if anything
happens to her child, much to Creak’s horror. Creak then proceeds to investigate a
noise from upstairs and discovers the baby is no longer in its crib and scares the
zombie even more. From a compositing point of view, up to this point the animation
done for Creak was mainly kept above the waist, in which most of his movement was
focused on his arms and facial features. With the exception of a rather awkward,
heavy-footed walk cycle up the stairs, his animation was simple and easy to do, so
much that a guide was not needed in order to keep track of the animation.
However, after this point, his animation only increased and with it, the difficulty. The
animation for Creak only grew harder as his movement became more elaborate and
took on different points of perspective. Some of these scenes proved overly difficult,
so much so that it became difficult to envision the scene as the character turned a
certain way or his hands twisted through a fast-moving action.
Software
Into production, the main software used in preparing scenes and overall animating
was Toonboom Harmony, a software used by several companies in Ireland that
allowed for fast animating in any style. However, Toonboom Harmony can oftentimes
prove to be too much at once as it aims to be an all-in-one software, so during
production it was understandable that it was difficult to remember what tools where
which and even the shortcuts for them. Further into production, the software grew
easier to handle as the animation settled into a steady flow of production. The
20-second quota a week was met at a slow pace at first, but once a routine was put
in place the workload set for that week was finalised alongside work that had not
been done in the weeks before.
Problems
Production for the film began slowly, problems ensued due to unforeseen trouble
with the backgrounds for the animation. This would put production back by several
days, however the problem was solved by adding several seconds of animation to
the 20-second quota for that week. The animation for Creak was a problem in its
own as frame-by-frame animation can be long and tedious, however a key factor lay
in his design. Due to his more cartoony style, the level at which his animation was
created was far faster than previous projects. Investing in simplistic design choices
allowed for more creative camera shots and gave a level of freedom to movement.
Into the second half of the animation, the workload increased as did the enjoyment
creating the film also. A key problem came later on in some of the final scenes as it
was primarily a lip-sync for both Creak and the baby. What made this scene more
difficult however, was the fact that the two characters only made guttural sounds
instead of words. The problem was resolved however, by taking reference videos
and following that example, which proved useful as the scenes where completed far
faster than anticipated.
Post-Production
Once the animation was finalised, the small details added and each scene was
coloured, the final export was taken from Toonboom and placed in Aftereffects to
begin post production. Two weeks where given to Composition, the process of taking
all the assets done up till now, animated or otherwise, and putting them in the final
product or film. In Aftereffects, a vast array of tools, effects and other properties
allow for an animation to be taken to a whole other level, taking that rough animation
and producing a product fit for showcasing. The animation of Creak was taken into
this software by exporting the animation as separate layers, so that each could be
composited on their own, or an effect could be added to or between each layer. For
Creak, his animation was outlined with a highlighting effect to give him more of a
3D-esque feel his animation was duplicated into a shadow effect to give the
environment the same feel. Lighting effects were added over the animation of Creak
so that there was one more aspect to the scene before it was rendered and exported
as the final animation sequence.
Problems
Due to the delay that occurred during production, the original schedule was thrown
off point and time was taken out of the weekend in order to finish the animation. That
problem also carried over into the time allocated to composition and nearly a week
was lost to finalising animation. The problem was fixed however by working through
the day and finalising over fifteen scenes that day and another twenty the next. Thus,
compositing was put back on schedule and enough time was left over to add
additional effects and camera shots. Like Toonboom Harmony, a relevant lack of
experience or lack of time using the software meant that trying to get a handle on the
programme was rather difficult. However, after several tutorials and tips from
lecturers, the software was easy to grasp and production began in earnest.
Reflection
change to the last few years and introduced a more structured schedule that was
easier to follow. During the first few weeks of the year, the project caused a spike in
my anxiety, as at certain moments it felt like the effort put into the piece was not
worth the final product. In the initial development stage, I grew several frustrated due
to the story, and the number of times I had to go back and edit the story, change
certain scenes or aspects so that it appealing from a story level, but that same story
grew to complex and I lost the original idea I had in the first place. By Christmas I
just wanted to animate, growing tired of constantly changing the idea to the point
where I did not even like it anymore. However, the excitement I felt when production
began and we finally began to animate in earnest pulled me out of the slump I found
myself in. I got back to the swing of the software and the fun I had animating certain
scenes due to either their funny content or doing something new.
Important Aspects;
The initial idea of the project worked, a premise such as monster vs. child offered
many different routes in terms story and characters, however the story grew too
complex and had to be reined back in to an acceptable level. I did not anticipate the
level of work leading up to production, but I’m glad I did it in the end as it helped
ease the workload, by finalising backgrounds in Photoshop rather than Toonboom
Harmony and whatnot. Style-wise, the cartoon style I went for allowed for greater
freedom in terms of movement and cheating, however it also meant some scenes
lacked detail for how fast they were.
Bibliography
2. Hotel Transylvania 2. (2015). [film] USA: Genndy Tartakovsky
3. Wikipedia, W. (2018). Genndy Tartakovsky. [online] Available at:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genndy_Tartakovsky [Accessed 18 Apr. 2018].
11
Friday, 20 April 2018
Evaluation Plan Outline
Evaluation Outline;
2000 Words
Approaches;
Pre-production, Production, Post production
Structure;
Title; Kelly Herbert,
1715557, word count
Contents;
Discuss the outline
of the story and the overall theme and how that changed.
Discuss the artists
and styles that were researched in the pre-production.
Implement the weekly
production diaries from the blog
Discuss the sound
development and putting the final animation together.
Reflection.
Images; Concepts and
the pictures that influenced them, Shots from film (progress and the final
shots), Schedule screenshots.
Introduction;
Begin with the
premise of the animation and briefly mention the original idea that started it
before introducing the animation story line. Describe how you wanted to approach
this project in terms of style, design and production.
Main Section;
Pre-Production;
Discuss initial concept and the final premise, the problems that arose with the early
development, introduce the characters and setting, talk about the concept
and final design of characters and setting, talk about production schedule and
devising your time where it was needed.
Production;
Reference to the
production diaries and discuss the final design choices for the animation.
Discuss the problems faced while in production and how you fixed them or found
ways around them. Discuss software.
Post-Production;
Discuss sound design,
where you needed to add additional sounds and a backing track, record updated
audio and worked around timing for the new audio. Compositing in Aftereffects
and adding effects also. Discuss the final product.
Reflection;
Description;
Development of a
student film, the people who were there; lecturers, fellow classmates and
family.
Interpretation;
Feelings; Talk about
the anxiety the project caused during the first week of production and how at
certain moments it felt like the effort put into the piece was not worth the
final product. Talk about the frustration during the development of the story
due to the number of times I had to go back and edit the story, and by
Christmas I just wanted to animate. The excitement that I had when we finally
began in earnest to animate and getting back into the swing of the software.
The fun I had animating certain scenes due to either their funny content or
doing something new.
Important Aspects;
What went well and
what didn’t; The initial idea worked, however the story grew too complex and
had to be reined back in to an acceptable level. I did not anticipate the level
of work leading up to production, but I’m glad I did it in the end as it helped
ease the workload (e.g. Backgrounds down in photoshop rather than Toonboom,
following the schedule rather than going in blind). Style-wise, the cartoon
style I went for allowed for greater freedom in terms of movement and cheating,
however it also meant some scenes lacked detail for how fast they were.
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