ANIMATING
When it comes to my process for animating I usually start by taking videos of myself as a reference if I can’t find any good references online. I then use the references to aid me when creating my animations. Some scenes in my animation are more simple than other scenes such as the scene of her hair blowing in the wind which didn’t require many references. For the animation where she is floating in the air I looked into clips of people sky diving, these videos didn’t really show the kind of move meant that I wanted for that scene but it was still helpful to look at. The same goes for the scene where she bursts out of her own chest,I looked at the chest bursting scene from alien but it wasn’t a very clear defence so I had to try my best to come up with hoe the animation would look.
Animation references found online-
The mirror animation scene was probably on of the more complicated shots as it needs to separate character bodies at different angles to synchronise at the same time.I simply took videos of myself in the mirror doing the actions I wanted to draw.
RENDERING
For rendering I looked back at the music video “Siames My Way” for my inspiration. I noted that the music videos environments and backgrounds where usually very dark , probably to set the tone but it also made the animated characters stand out more as they where highlighted by a bloom effect around them. The video and backgrounds also had a grain added to them which gave it an older feeling. I applied this when rendering out my animations so most of the scenes are set at night or evening since the sky and the stars are a big part of the trailers story. I then would make the characters colours match the tone of the scene and add a bloom effect around the character. I really liked how this look because it gave the animation that dream like look that I was trying to go for. I also went very thin on the line art for the style I was going for. I would layer a,Brent lighting on top of the characters and backgrounds to help the character blend in more with the scene and give it that vintage look.
This one still from the music video is a good example of the element of the rendering i really like and want to incorporate into my own rendering. The magenta tones and the grain along with the glow of the characters themselves.
editing and sound
When it came to editing everything together I tried to edit it in an interesting way to the music I chose , mostly having it in time with the music beats. I also used the camera a lot or draw the viewers attention to certain aspects of the scenes and to make it look more dynamic and interesting. As for the sound effects I used royalty free sound effects in some scenes and then some sounds effects from sailor moon , for example the sound the shooting star makes. The voices heard are from me putting my voice into an ai filter to make it sound like a different person. The dialog itself is really cheesy but I was trying to go for that magical girl fantasy adventure vibe. The Dialog is also star speaking.
sound effects used-
backgrounds-
As previously stated I wanted the backgrounds to be dark and set at either night time or during the evening. To have the backgrounds be consistent I used mostly blues, purples and reds for most of them. I purposefully wanted certain backgrounds to look a little more sinister like in the scene where she floats a way the sky becomes more red. This was to add more mystery to the trailer and the scene itself. In the backgrounds I wanted there to be lots of call backs to the night sky with the stars and moon. There is always a grain present on all the backgrounds.I feel like not only does the graininess give the backgrounds that older animation feeling but it also makes the backgrounds look a bit more detailed in other wise empty spaces.I didn’t include some of the backgrounds used in the animation because a few of them where simply just coloured backgrounds with lighting and grain applied.
Scraped backgrounds-
scrapped these backgrounds as they didn’t fit the vibe I wanted to go for the animation.
unfinished animations-
There were a few animations I want able to have rendered and finished before the deadline , however I would like to have them finished to add to my portfolio after submission. These scenes include a quick Montage scene showcasing the other characters and their personalities. Also a scene where she is climbing up the stairs and is looking around inquisitively, then she reaches the top and has a shocked reaction. I thought this scene would make the trailer seem more interesting and make the viewer question what was happening in that scene for the hypothetical “show”.
Removed-
this animation was taken out of the video as I feel like it doesn’t match the rest of the animation ,the quality of the animations and rendering itself is very low and looks a bit awkward.
All finished animation processes
HUG
For the hugging animation I used a reference of myself I took. I definitely think I could redo this animation again and improve on it but I think it works overall for its intended use to add more context to the relation ship between these two characters in the short trailer. I decided to place them in Naomi’s bedroom I had previously designed in the pitch bible.
CHEST BURST
I tried to use references I found online for this animation but when they didn’t give me quite what I was looking for I opted again to use references of myself. It was hard because it would take more imagination to create a scene like thsi but I think it ended up coming out the way it was intended to look. I think this scene is one of the animations in the trailer that would make the viewer question what exactly was happening and bring more curiosity. I ended up applying a simple background to this one since the main focus was the action happening.
Shocked reaction –
For this one I once again used a reference of myself. I like how this animation came out and I wanted her to look very expressive in these scene since in the clip right after this one it’s revealed she is being confronted by a giant Orc form the fantasy real she has been transported to.another simple background has been used for this scene.This was also the first scene I tested the full rendering in and I liked the result so kept applying it to every other animation.
Ear twitch
A very simple scene shown after her transformation sequence just to show the fact that her form itself has changed into a fantasy elf and that she is no longer human to peak interest in the trailer.
Floating away-
this was definitely one of the more complicated scenes to create as it had the character moving in a lot of ways that where not natural to how people normal move since she is twisting and turning while floating up into the air. For this I looked at sky diving references and anything I could find of people floating or flailing. Overall I’m happy with thsi animation and I think it works well in the trailer and adds more interest to the concept.
lip sync-
I really enjoyed animating this scene as I enjoy lip syncing. For this scene I wanted to showcase more subtle movements like when her smile grows slightly at the end of the animation. I used a video reference of myself lip syncing to the audio I had created.This scene comes directly after the shooting star scene crashes on earth to hint that she is the cause of the star. I also added in a camera movement to the scene because I felt as though the camera movement made it feel as though the viewer was looking out of Naomi’s eyes and seeing star speak right in front of them.
shocked eye-
for this animation I applied squash and stretch to emphasis the characters shock at what they are seeing (the character being Naomi). In the first version of the animation I had not included the shooting star being reflected in her eye until I got feed back from a tutor advising me to add it in to make the scene make more sense. I also wanted her eyes to shine at the sight of what she sees to show excitement and awe. I like how this animation turned out.
Mirror-
This was one of the more complicated scenes I animated and once again I used video references of myself to create this.I think the angle I have animated the right side character is slightly off but I felt as though that angle would make the animation a little more readable. I like how this animation came out and I tried to add movement in that would show her unsure emotions of what she is looking at in the mirror before coming to an acceptance. The background is simple and is just the character in a dark room in front of a mirror. I added shininess to the mirror to differentiate the reflection from the real body more easily.
catching star-
The animation for this was once again made by using references of myself imitating catching a star. The background is one of the more complicated backgrounds that i put her in to show where she is in the scene.
hand reaching out-
this scene was is simply showing Star putting her hand out for Naomi offering her friendship. I used a reference if my own hand reaching out and then applied the rending style Iv been using throughout the animation. Another simple colour background but the middle is highlighted specifically so it will highlight the hand reaching out.
Star falling- FLASH WARNING ❗️
I enjoyed animating this scene because I got to make a stylised shooting star animation. A simple animation that loops in order to give the effect of the star falling. I added some chromatic aberration because stylistically I thought it worked for this type of animation and made it look more dreamy.
wind blowing-
this scene is mostly here to establish the character and where she is in relation to the story. Staring wistfully into the ocean. This scene also gives a more mysterious vibe to the overall trailer. The background is once again one of the more complicated backgrounds to establish where she is and the area she witnesses the star shooting from.
orc-
this scene was a still image I rendered out in the style of the rest of the animation and I just used the cameras to pan up to the orc to give the effect of Naomi looking up and seeing how huge this orc was in front of her.
(non of these scenes where animated or rendered in any specific order)
Final outcome
overall I am happy with my final outcome and I definitely learned a-lot form this project, i just wish I had been able to do the full 40 seconds as I had previously intended but I ended up not having enough time to render the final few scenes. I think I managed to achieve the overall vibe I was trying to go for and I’m quite happy with the rendering of the animation and also the way it is edited and put together in time with the music . I would probably focus more on just doing a few very detailed animations rather than a full trailer if I were to do this again.