LAUAN403- Apply the Twelve

Apply the Twelve

For the last and final task we were set the task of applying some the previous learnt principles into our last 10 second animation. We were expected to start from the very start and create a storyboard of our idea,  a character development sheet,  a character turnaround template, a characters model sheet and the final animation. 

My character is based around a character called Blob. He takes a trip to the bus stop to collect his ticket and walks to the bus stop to wait. However, the wind starts to blow and pulls the ticket out of Blobs hands and he is left standing shocked. 

Positives: 

• I created a funny but simple storyline. It is easy to understand and easily likeable. 
• The storyline, animation and character wasn't too complicated but still very effect. 
• Created a likeable and relatable character. 
• Planned every aspect of the animation out so I knew exactly how long my animation was going to be and what was going to happen in every scene. 

Even better if: 

• I only had time to do a seven second animation. If I had managed my time effectively I could of added more to the storyline making it ten seconds long. 
• I could of created more anticipation with the ticket flying away by holding the frames a little longer and making the character facial features change more often. 
• Could of given myself more time to add colour to the storyboard. 

LAUAN403- Secondary Action

Secondary Action 

Secondary action is an action that happens after the primary motion. This adds a realistic complexity to an animation. For this task we were asked to create a short hybrid demonstrating secondary action. In this task we had to ask one of our peers to film us doing an action; for mine I decided to do a simple shrugging of the shoulders and as I shrug them devil horns and tail pops up. I used photoshop to edit my video by drawing over each frame of the video. 

                                                 Before the secondary action happened. 

Positives:

• The tail and horns pop up after the first action in the video is complete; clearly showing the secondary action afterwards. 
• It is simple but effective for this task 

Even better if: 

• If I planned out the animation by using a storyboard. 
• Doing a few videos as I did this secondary action short and simple. I could have made it more eye-catching by doing an action more interesting than devil horns and the tail. 
• Manage my time more effectively so the quality of the work could have been better. 

          

                                                    After the secondary action happened. 

LAUAN403- Follow Through and Overlapping

Follow Through and Overlapping 

Follow through is the: 

• (in sports) continue the movement of a stroke after the ball has been struck

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11525)

Overlapping is:

• a period of time in which two (or more) events or activities happen together.

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11525)

For this task we were set the goal of creating an animation around stacked boxes being pushed and then suddenly coming to a stop demonstrating the the principle. For this animation I decided to do three boxes stacked on top of a wooden crate with wheels. The crate gets stopped and tipped by rock on the floor making the three boxes fly off the crate and onto the floor in different motions. 

Positives: 

• I took into count what the boxes were made of and what could of been in them. 
• All the boxes react different to a sudden stop creating a more realistic motion. 
• Planned out so I knew what the boxes were made of and how they would move when the crate hits the rock. 

Even better if: 

• If I had someone or something pushing the crate as it looks like it is moving by itself.
• I wouldn't fall behind in work so I could add extra objects such as, a person pushing the crate. 

LAUAN403- Staging

Staging 

Staging is important within in a storyboard so the animate knows what motion the character or the scene is going to undertake. Staging is a: 

 

• The method of presenting a play or other dramatic performance.

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11532)

For this task we were asked to create a storyboard that shows the staging information such as: 

• Environment
• Characters 
• Shot framing 
• Lightening 
• colour 

The storyboard is based around the nursery rhyme 'Humpty Dumpty'. 

 

Positives:

• The storyboard clearly states the environment, characters and shot framing.
• The images are clear on the storyboard demonstrating what the actions of each scene are. 

Even better if: 

• Adding colour or explaining the mood of each scene. 
• Explaining or showing the lightening so the person knows the mood of the scene. 

LAUAN403- Anticipation

Anticipation 

Anticipation is when an object is about to make a movement or do an action. We were given the task of creating a short animation which clearly shows an anticipation of an object undertaking an action. I chose to do a rocket about to launch off the moon: 

 

Positives: 

• I used squash and stretch within this animation. This created a more power anticipation as the rocket squashes down for a second until it stretches to takeoff creating an impact. 
• Creating a background, adding sound, and creating a short storyboard helped to set the scene for the rocket. 

Even better if: 

• Holding it on the squash for a few second more could of made the launch of the rocket more intense for the audience. 
• Could of made objects move within the background to make the animation more realistic. 

LAUAN403- Squash and Stretch

Squash and Stretch

Squash means to: 

• Crush or squeeze (something) with force so that it becomes out of shape

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11531)

Stretch is when: 

• (of something elastic) be made longer without tearing or breaking

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11531)

This next task was to carry on from task 7 as exaggeration can be used within squash and stretch. Squash and stretch is used to add a dramatic effect within a movement. We were given to tasks to complete for squash and stretch and these were:

• Animation 1 - The ball must be dropping straight down.
• Animation 2 - The ball must have some lateral motion as it drops.

Animation 1: 

Positives: 

• I chose a bouncy ball for the ball drop. I think you can tell that it is a bouncy ball in my animation as I made a massive stretch as the ball hit the ground, it then returns to normal as it leaves the ground. 
• I took into consideration the material of the ball and how this could effect the movement of the bouncy ball.    

Even better if: 

• I made the ball bounce until the ball wouldn't bounce anymore. I think this would have had more of an effect because I could of shown how the squash or stretch would change when the ball starts to lose its bounce. 

Animation 2 

Positives: 

• I created a background to set the scene for the lateral motion creating more of a story for the ball.     

Even better if: 

• I slowed down the animation as I could of exaggerated the ball bounce more showing of the squash and stretch motion. 

LAUAN403- Exaggeration

Exaggeration

Exaggeration is something that is: 

• 'enlarged or altered beyond normal properties'

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11526)

For this task we were given the task of creating five short abstract animations based around the sounds given to us. I picked sounds in which i could picture the movement of the sounds within my head and which appealed most to my senses. I chose sounds: 

• 4 
• 6
• 10
• 11
• 14

As these were the sounds I thought could be best visualised through animation.  

Positives: 

• I think i successfully completed the task and explored the different shapes or lines that could be used to exaggerate the sound to the audience. 
• I used a different method than I normally do. for example, I normally plan out my animations with a storyboard however, for this task I chose to listen to the clips on repeat and create my animations based on what I was hearing. 

Even better if: 

• I used other methods of creating these animations other than photoshop and dragon frame. Such as, paper cut out or plasticine. 
• Used a variety of colours instead of the ones I used for each animation as it would have made the short clips more interesting.   

LAUAN403- Solid Drawing

Solid Drawing 

Solid drawing is when you take form, weight, volume, and solidity into consideration when drawing. This was task was set to better our observational skills through drawing human forms. We were set 20 sketches that have been drawn from life and not from photographs. 

Positives

• I kept the drawings to a two minute time base throughout the whole 20 sketches. 
• As the drawings went on I think I got better at drawing the motion from using my line of action. I was able to catch the motion enough for someone to understand what the person in the sketch was doing.  

Even better if: 

• At first I struggled to catch the motion in people as I was not good at looking away from my sketch book. If I was to re-do this task I would look away from my sketch book as I would have been able to catch the motion better looking at the person that was moving. 
• I could of added more shade within my drawings as I got better, as this would of given my drawings a more of a realistic look. 

LAUAN403-Arcs

Arcs 

An arc is explained as an non-mechancial motion that does not move in straight line but moves in curves. For this task we had two sequences to create: 

• Sequence 1 - You must create an animation of a pendulum using Photoshop video layer animation. The swing of the pendulum must be 2 seconds and you must produce it at 12fps.

• Sequence 2 - You must develop a short looping animation using Photoshop video layer animation which employs pendulum motion as the primary movement.

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11523)

For task one I did a a simple pendulum to show how I was learning about arcs and so I knew what I could improve on in the second sequence.

Positives for sequence one:

• When corrected on the pendulum I took the advice and tried to apply it to my second sequence.
• The arc movement ran smoothly however, if spaced correctly the pendulum would have more of a realistic appeal.

Even better if for sequence one:

• The pendulum does not start in the right place as it starts at the bottom when it should start at either the top left or right for a realistic appeal. 
• The movement is not smooth enough as drew each frame of the pendulum too close together however, if I spaced the pendulum correctly it would swing smoothly. 
• Could of planned out with a storyboard. 

For my second sequence I did a cat sitting on a wall swinging its tail and this was to try a show my improvement from the first sequence. 

Positives for sequence two:

• After taking the advice, I applied it to the second sequence and tried to make the cats tail arc correctly.
• Gave my animation a background and added colour. 

Even better if for sequence two:

• The sequence could have either been put on loop or made longer so you able to see the arc more clearly. 
• Could of handle my time management better in this task. 
• Struggled with the motion of the cats tail in the sequence making the movement of the tail a little sloppy.

• 
  

LAUAN403-Easing

Easing 

Easing means to- 

• move carefully or gradually.

(http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11529)

For this task we had to create an animation that clearly shows the acceleration or deceleration before a object moves or stops. As well as the movement, it was an requirement to add sound to this animated sequence, making sure that we consider the sound and apply it to the animation. I chose to do the movement of a roller coaster as not only is it a simple movement but I tried to better my time management within this project. 

Positives:

• I considered the sound that I applied to the animation resulting in the sound fitting the clip perfectly. 
• It was simple and I was able to complete it in time within the module. 

Even better if: 

• Consider how long I hold on some of the frames for better movement. as it could of shown the acceleration and the deceleration more clearly. 
• The timing within the animation could of been slowed down a lot as it was too fast. 

LAUAN403- Appeal

Appeal 

For task three we were set a task of creating a character based on their personality, actions, and their motivations. To start the task we were giving a list of the type of personality our character could have; I chose the joker. Moving forward, we were then given a character development sheet that explains the characters background, personality, family, attitude, motivation, and appearance. To end this task, we then had to do a model sheet of dynamic poses and a turn around of our character. 

Positives: 

• I think I captured the joker in my character from the appearance. Such as, his emotion on his face and his personality by how colourful and bright he is. 

Even better if: 

• I got better at the dynamic poses as I struggled to draw my character in different positions other than just standing. 
• I gave myself more time to develop the character and make him digital instead of hand drawn. 

LAUAN403- Straight Ahead and Pose to Pose

Straight ahead and Pose to Pose 

Straight ahead is- 'The linear production of each frame of an action.. 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 etc.' (http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11528).

Pose to Pose is- 'Where the frames for key poses of an action are produced before the in-between frames are calculated and drawn. (http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11528)

For the straight ahead approach we had to create a animation with plasticine that had to morph from one shape to another shape. I chose to morph a cupcake to make it look like it is melting into the blob. 

Postive:

• The morph from the ice-cream into the blob was smooth. 
• The colours were bright and eye-catching. 

Could be better if:

• I take into account the shadows that I could be casting over the stage. 
• To add a few more frames at the end so it does not stop so suddenly. 

For the Pose to Pose morph I decided to base it on the same storyline however, this animation was paper-cut out. 

Positives:

• I was able to give the cupcake a personality as I found it easier to add a face onto the paper-cut outs rather than on the plasticine. 
• Learning from the plasticine animation, I made sure no shadows cast over any of the images. 

Even better if:

• I thought of a new storyline and morph for the second animation.
• Might have been more eye-catching if I created a background as it was a little plain behind the cupcake. 

LAUAN403- Pixilation

Pixilation 

A pixilation is:

• a technique used in film whereby the movements of real people are filmed or edited in such a way that they appear to move like artificial animations. (http://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/mod/page/view.php?id=11522)

The task was to create a short animation using pixilation. I chose to do a simple storyline based on being possessed as I could make my body look like it was being dragged down the hallway. 

Positives: 

• I succeeded in making my body look as if it was gliding down the hallway.
• The music really sets the scene in this animation.

Even better if: 

• The animation was better thought out and planned with a storyboard.
• I could of done more movements than just being dragged down the hallway to show that I was possessed.
• Keep up with the deadlines as I fell behind and couldn't create what I originally wanted to do.