Exterior Design 2

 I used a screenshot from monterbox to reference look for the exterior environment.

I had a hard time drawing/painting from the reference so i just cut and pasted images from the internet to construct a look for the environment. i slightly warped features to make them look a bit more appealing but the standard look of the house didn't look too bad either. things like the windows i think might be over done a bit.

A quick mock up of how i picture the hallway.

Exterior Design

I developed the layout in isometric with the top on and of to make the scene clear so the group can work from it. now that the layout is a bit clearer i can work on developing some styles for the shrubbery further as well as other assets for the exterior.

i tried to add some sort of stylization to the house design and also show it from the rear view to add dimension to the house. i played with some colors as well, and tried to make the lawn look worn out on the front view. i referenced the style and color form monsterbox which has a nice feel.

Preproduction drafts

I got some draft layouts for the production, i think these work well cos it is nice and cosy like howi pictured in my brief. i just had to find a way to space areas out while keeping it reasonably compact. i didn't want the scope to get too big.

I did a turnaround for the cat. i had a difficult time designing the cat because im not used to animals but my group is up to alter this base design. i wanted it to reflect tubbs innocence, but have slight design features from the mother [more straights vs curves]. 

Progress 2

turnaround for tubbs and some assets for the look frame [the foam from the sink]

PROGRESS

Turnaround

Group Project: Styles

Today i presented my edited animatic with tubbs going to the window. the goup noticed that it read a bit odd as the scene before him approaching the window had the cat getting sprayed. so it looked weird that he would look at the sky daydreaming then notice the cat in danger. some cutting fixed this issue.
Today we continued to determine what style we would like to go for. it was a bit difficult as the group as a whole were torn between what style we would like to go for and what style we know is achievable to a good standard.
I myself am partial towards the painted textures that make the animation look cartoony and fun as to the polished semi realistic look, which i also consider to be an explorable avenue.
I think that the painted cartoony style is effective and in your face, fun and quite unique. i feel the personality you can achieve with this style would suit that of the narrative perfectly.
I was also taught some basics of maya and 3d which i found fun. i was also taught some basics of texturing which is where i expect a lot of my time on this project to be spent. it was a bit of a refresher from some basics i learned a few years ago, and getting to animate a rig was also fun and interesting. i look forward to learning more about the 3d side, but i have to admit i already miss animating drawings. the performance study last week left me feeling a bit "what if" about the media of my project, but i am happy to produce the story by any means and look forward to gelling with my team to pump out an awesome cinematic.

Group Project 3D

Today we started our group projects. I gathered some reference images for the style i think would suit the story. I am getting used to trying to mould the ideas parameters to accomodate the 3d medium. I am finding it a bit difficult because i am not sure how long certain tasks will take and what is and isn't achievable in the time period.

My group does well in trying to fill me in. We had a go at revising the narrative but found the original didn't have many holes apart from the transition from Tubbs' room to heading outside [which i will work on tonight] some ideas were having him in the living room, so he has a better view of what is going on outside. also some members found Tubbs having his own television in his room too unrealistic for the time period we decided [mid 90's]. i would like to work around the bedroom as i feel that it described his fandom effectively without spending a great amount of screen time telling the audience. Arguably he could have his random pieces of fandom littered in the living room as well, however i think it would cut down on transition time [rather than if he went from the lounge to the bedroom to the front yard].

i think it would be more effective to prioritize showing Tubbs fandom/personality really strongly than having the transition be clearer. i think there is a middle ground where we could achieve having both very clear though.

I have found that if a story is weak but has likeable characters, it can still be more  entertaining than if it were vice versa. I feel that my group has a lot of great ideas, but i feel it would suit the story better if the story had a wider scope to accommodate them.

Performance Study - Friday

Today I worked on refining my animation trying to emphasize the last accent "Beh". after some feedback from my peers i got the timing down and added some details to the slam down while keeping the dialogue clear. I also added the finishing touches to my exposure sheet, ready for submission.

Acting Techniques

Today i sharpened up what i had then got some feedback frans, who thought it would be good to push some accents even further and time them out so they hit more distinctly as my dialogue was getting lost in the actions because of their different timing.

Performance Study work

Today i tried to clean up and sharpen up what's happening in my animtion. we were also put into our groups for the 16 week project, we liased in our groups and i am happy to be working on my project with the people that are in my team.

Another Rough Pass

I worked on a new rough pass testing some new acting techniques. i like this version as it has more acting and shows off the character's personality more.

"There's no sugar in this beverage"

Performance study draft

Just been working on Asessment 2, timing out the dialogue i recorded then testing out different acting techniques. I think i'm going to settle with aye peering lower at the glass, as i think it's more Tubbs like. Aye is a difficult character to draw different positions of but Frans suggested i think of him as a flour sack because he has no neck which helped the way i approach his different views and positions.

Presentations

Woke up earlier than usual today to apply finishing touches to the pitch pack and submit it before the deadline 9:30 am.
I felt extremely relieved that i was able to submit what was asked for on time and in the best presentable way possible given the amount of time left. Small formatting details are extremely inconsistent in the pitch pack but the over all aesthetic is still interesting and uniform enough. I would have liked to give myself some more lee-way as i would usually, but i am proud with what i was able to submit and doing it in the clutch makes it even more satisfying.

before my presentation i felt comfortable going scriptless but as i saw most of my peers preparing notes for theirs i did as well. when it came time to present though i felt restricted by my notes and so my presentation started quite monotonous and robotic.
When i looked up to where my animatic was, I was kind of reminded of the last three weeks and how hard me and my classmates worked and how it was all for these two minutes in front of the classroom, then I began to feel much more comfortable, and began to improvise which made the delivery feel more natural and honest.

I enjoyed watching my classmates presentations as, for me, it felt like everyone was sharing a piece of themselves. Whether their story was based on personal experience or even if it was just something they found funny, it was their livelihood for three weeks, and seeing all the people stay late night Wednesday to work on their pitch gave me a sense of community like, we're all on the grind, we all want to do our best. Being able to share dedication like that was a great experience.

Some of the ideas that i personally that stood out to me were;
- A story about a boy whose Rubiks cube releases his imagination, but in turn shows his struggle through dark demonic ghoul like creatures. The ending was quite cute too. I liked the design of this story, and i think the scene where his imagination goes wild has infinite artistic potential.
- Another story was about awareness about poachers who hunt Rhino's for their ivory, doing an awareness piece i think is quite unique as not only are you story telling but promoting a positive message to help.
- A story i thought was extremely interesting was about the child of the grim reaper who is sent on his first assignment but is too good hearted to do through with it. I thought the ending was a nice resolve for the character and the design and aesthetic appeal fits the story extremely well and is just plain nice to look at.
- Another story sold me mainly on the art direction. The story was about a sax player who loses his passion as he gets older but rediscovers it in the end.
- One story i found hilarious was about a child who finds a stick insect and becomes its best friend whether the insect liked it or not. the montage presented was amazing, the timing and humour was dry and silly which was right up my alley, and the awkwardness of the ending was so unnecessary and over the top, that it was perfect. i laughed a lot.
- A story about an acrobat whose running from his guilt and given the chance to change his fate. this story is presented metaphorically and the visuals are incredible, it would be a pleasure to work on this as the artistic direction is so clear and appealing, all while presenting a really thoughtful narrative.
- An idea about a Cop whom is driving with his superior only to find out about his insanity, while on the road his superior crashes their vehicle into an oncoming truck. the ending had me go ooooooooh. I like how the story is grounded, and slightly dark at the same time.
- A story about a God who is just trying to fit in with his peers. This story was adorable and the accompanying animatic, which felt like it was animated, presented this idea amazingly. I am a big fan of this subject/theme of zero to hero.
- A story about a piano player whom is demotivated to do what he loves until he finds the one he loves whom sings along with his playing from outside the window. The art direction for this is beautiful, and i feel the kind of piano music and art style would synergize perfectly.
- A story about a serial killer who is mistakingly allowed into heaven after dying. He over hears a conversation and reflects on his living life and looks to change his fate and ask forgiveness. I like the idea of it being never too late to change and the art style i feel is something i would be comfortable with.
- A role reversal where beastly dragons are civilised and humans are wild savages looking to conquer. This idea i think has a lot of potential and i think fleshing out more details in this story could make it very intriguing.
- A story about a mechanical frog looking to find where it belongs. This simple idea i think would rely a lot on visuals and from what i saw of the designs i think this could be very aesthetically pleasing, as the robotic designs are very impressive.

There were many other great ideas and i have so much respect to my peers who stood up there and presented. It was a bit of a stressful experience but i am glad i was able to share it with the people i did.

PITCH PACK

Today i managed to finish off my animatic, it turned out to be a bit over 2 minutes but i think the timing is a lot better with the pauses and the narrative reads much clearer. I also managed to begin putting my storyboard drawings into the template which was time consuming, but it worked out reading pretty well. I also did the turnaround for Tubbs as well as his colour test and colour keys, having drawn him so many times for the animatic and the storyboard, i felt really comfortable tackling those tasks as i knew what his final design would need to be capable of doing.

Later i also started putting together the Pitch Pack, but found InDesign a very challenging software to tame. It was very difficult not to get distracted today as every minute counted. It didn't help that we had a fire drill today either. I just need to add my schedule in the morning and tweak some presentation aspects.

Animatic

Today i began to work on the animatic, using the frames from my story board. Importing the different layers is extremely tedious but when i get to set the different pieces to move it turns out quite magical. The timing and pacing shifts become even more apparent when they are placed in order and even more so when they have motion. I look forward to how my animatic will turn out.

I looked at the progress of some of my peers today and was impressed and inspired to see how far their stories have come, some of the storyboards and animatics really brought their ideas to life and it helped me get to know what they are about as a person too, whether it their technical skill or something about their personality that shines through their narrative. Its a really cool aspect of this assignment i find. 

Story and background studies

Today i finished my script and storyboard frames, i just need to put them in the template with notations and camera angles. I also did some recording for assignment 2.
next i did some background studies for the designs for the style i want to go for.
i find backgrounds very challenging, i think its just something i need to practice more.
i'm referencing lilo and stitch as its themes are similar to that of my story.
these are where my backgrounds are at right now, i'd like to improve them as much as i can in the time given. i've fond the reference to be surprisingly detailed, but they add to the charm of the style. a lot of the surfaces vary saturation which make it difficult to replicate cos i am not that experienced with color. The style has a paintily kind of style i find appealing.

Storyboard continued

I've been working on my storyboard and found the angles and shading to be challenging yet effective when i manage to get it right. We were given advice to try storyboard the important frames not every single motion as it can get a bit tedious and time consuming.

some of my favorite frames

Tubbs and Storyboard

Today I did studies for Tubbs character, solving how his body will look like and work. I drew concepts from reference images i gathered and decided what i liked and disliked about those designs to come up with my end product. Next i will need to run some color tests. I am plan to try some saturated colours to represent Tubbs' bright and excitable nature, which is also to contrast with his mothers more desaturated colours which reflect her dreary and bored mood.

Later i started working on the story board, i feel a lot more confident with my idea once it came to life on the canvas, the gags and themes i wanted to present are much more apparent with visual aid. i would like to implement extreme angles particularly for scenes where i want Tubb's to appear large and powerful, however i find these shots challenging to draw so i will have to use some reference. I am looking forward to making the animatic.

Mother Design

Today I completed most of the script, and began finalising the design fro the mother character.

After a study I managed to understand what proportions I was looking to aim for so i then started some costume and colour studies.

i added a quick sketch of Tubbs to show the scale between the two.

Script/Storyboarding

I started to refine ideas for Tubbs' design by using the mood board/style sheet i compiled a few days ago. the style of tubbs' is influenced by Russell from UP [the overall silhouette and body shape] Elroy from the Jetsons [face style, proportions] and other young child characters. i like the appeal of Russell's silhouette and i think Elroy's face style is simple yet appealing. i also experimented with giving him realistic proportions with anatomy from lilo and stitch. this design looked okay and looked a lot easier to function/move, however the initial design is more appealing and interesting. once i got fixed on Tubbs' overall shape i tried a few different hair styles.

Later in the day we were given a lecture on backgrounds and staging to prepare us for story boards.

I also managed to begin writing the script for this story and after feedback from my peers, i concluded some instances where Tubbs' goes around saving people could be left out so that i could have fewer well told segments than a few brief segments with little development.