Week 7, 2nd Character design

Posted on November 21, 2022December 1, 2022 by Odhran

After looking further at my previous character design (Bailey the Banshee), I found that her design would be too difficult to replicate through modelling. Due to this, I decided to try designing a new character which is not mentioned too often which in this case is an myth from Cornish folklore known as the “Cornish Owlman”. For this character, I took a look at multiple interpretations of what the Owlman could have looked like from multiple artists and even the potential drawings of three supposed “eye-witnesses” and based my design of the generalized trends with these designs while taking a similar approach to the design process that would have been done by Gennedy Tartakovsky. In the end, I came up with two approaches to the design of the character, including a more ancient-looking design with the character sporting ancient-style robes, while the second design goes for a more modern design with a 1920s style tuxedo design which also can feed into the potential role of the character to which I’m currently intending to name the character Reginald or “Reggi”. In my possible head-cannon for Reggi, he will mostly be responsible for conducting the Hotel’s orchestra and is always specific about how he conducts the band. With this, I based Reggi’s design on the sort of look carried by orchestra conductors from around the 20th century as that would have been the time when the supposed Owlman sightings in Cornwall occurred to tie Reggi’s design further to the legend. As for Reggi’s props I have decided to go with either a themed Conductor’s baton or a song book both of these props are derived from multiple designs with the song book being given a purposefully old and antique look to its cover complete with brass fixtures while the baton is derived from both modern and old fashioned designs from over the years but has a simple skull for a head to tie the prop to not only the character but also the context of Hotel Transylvania. I have found this design to be easier to replicate as Reggi requires less complex shapes to replicate an also is a more appealing than Bailey’s design. I intend to use Reggi as my finalized design for this project.

Reference links

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=cornish+owlman&hl=en&sxsrf=ALiCzsbLCH-k6ZM1wDXbdeopZsI5qtOm7A:1669061964930&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjQg5ysjMD7AhXFVMAKHcOZAwgQ_AUoAXoECAIQAw&biw=1920&bih=961&dpr=1#imgrc=h2gZyP35EaNz-M

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=orchestra+conductors+19th+centurey&hl=en&tbm=isch&sxsrf=ALiCzsYKtuB32s3rOlslvuCWk0B5iqzooA%3A1669129895607&source=hp&biw=1920&bih=961&ei=p-Z8Y86XIo3WgQa7zbSoBA&iflsig=AJiK0e8AAAAAY3z0t-9JfSsiWQU7kXzEITWlTaiEawSU&ved=0ahUKEwiOh4m0icL7AhUNa8AKHbsmDUUQ4dUDCAc&uact=5&oq=orchestra+conductors+19th+centurey&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzoECCMQJzoFCAAQgAQ6CAgAELEDEIMBOggIABCABBCxAzoGCAAQBRAeOgQIABAeUABY7lBg8FZoAXAAeACAAVaIAeEPkgECMzWYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZw&sclient=img#imgrc=a2FL2QYUP1UY-M

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=orchestra+conductors+equipment&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwj81uK9icL7AhUelScCHYtNAF4Q2-cCegQIABAA&oq=orchestra+conductors+equipment&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQA1AAWKoZYOcfaABwAHgAgAFHiAG8BJIBATmYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZ8ABAQ&sclient=img&ei=u-Z8Y7yNN56qnsEPi5uB8AU&bih=961&biw=1920&hl=en#imgrc=oHPTNu3ydBfroM&imgdii=piIW1zqNhwoMcM

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=ancient+books&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwizmOCNmcL7AhVOgc4BHelZAVEQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=ancient+books&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQ6BAgjECc6BAgAEEM6CAgAEIAEELEDUNYMWPoxYK80aABwAHgAgAGSAYgBvQySAQQ0LjEwmAEAoAEBqgELZ3dzLXdpei1pbWfAAQE&sclient=img&ei=Hvd8Y7ORCs6Cur4P6bOFiAU&bih=961&biw=1920&hl=en#imgrc=lC-cmMq5qMdryM

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=conductor%27s+batton&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjVx_-TmcL7AhVclicCHbkuCWwQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=conductor%27s+batton&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzoECAAQQzoFCAAQgAQ6BAgjECc6CAgAEIAEELEDOgcIABCxAxBDOgQIABAeOgYIABAFEB5QqQhYjy1g0DBoAHAAeACAAWGIAcwKkgECMTmYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZ8ABAQ&sclient=img&ei=K_d8Y5WGENysnsEPud2k4AY&bih=961&biw=1920&hl=en#imgrc=LAKkiVKgigtRIM

Week 8 Further animation Practices/ Introduction to storyboards.

Posted on November 17, 2022 by Odhran

For Week 8, I started with further animation practices involving animating a sack of flour and how it should behave physically when manipulated in dynamic ways. I found this exercise to be rather enjoyable. however, I did need to come back and add extra frames to certain aspects of the animation to make it more clear to the audience on what is actually occurring on screen but aside from this, I didn’t find this exercise to be too difficult. For the second half of the lecture, I focused on storyboards and how to use them. I was given a prompt and had to design a storyboard for it, in this case using the flour sack as a mage, I also found this exercise to be rather fun when working with a rather unusual prompt and I found it rather fun creating a setting that could possible be utilized for an animation.

Week 7 Initial Animation practices (Ball Bounce Variations and Slow-in/Slow-out Examples)

Posted on November 17, 2022December 15, 2022 by Odhran

For week 7, I started my first practices with 2ND animation with Krita. The practice consisted of animating different bouncing balls of differing masses to show an understanding of how different objects behave physically. Following this, I had to use different framing techniques to show how it affects the movement of objects including the use of principles such as slow-in and slow-out and squash and stretch. I found this exercise to be rather interesting and enjoyable for the most part, the only aspect I struggled with at the beginning was starting the frames of the animation of creating new keyframes. However, after some experimentation i was able to get to grips with the software and found it very reliable and was able to navigate the workings of the animation tools Krita offers.

Coursework 2, Week 7 Gennedy Tartakovsky Art style study and concept sketches.

Posted on November 15, 2022December 1, 2022 by Odhran

with the beginning of the 2nd component of coursework, I was given the prompt to create a model of a character design that would fit into the “Hotel Transylvania” film series. In order to understand the character design of this film series, I had to take a look and examination of the conceptual artwork for character designs created by the director of the movies, The acclaimed animator/director Gennedy Tartakovsky. the first 2 images reflect 2 of my character studies of some of Tartakovsky’s previous character designs to understand how he approaches designing different characters and what methods Tartakovsky uses to differentiate his character designs.

From these studies I was able to come up with some ideas for my character design. I am in planning to base my character on the Irish mythological monster “The Banshee” and with this I came up with an initial name for the character which is “Baily” this is subject to change with later iterations however. I gathered reference of multiple interpretations of the banshee that have been developed by previous artists and I gathered aspects I liked from each of them to come up with a design while following the curriculum of Tartakovsky’s character design processes. as I thought further about what her role would be, I have been considering using setting her role as a singer within the hotel’s entertainment team which is more reflected in the second design. But, I believe I need to utilize more reference for this design to make it more authentic and seem more fitting for not just her positioning within the character lineup along with appropriation of her design for her role as a character.

Helpful Reference Links:

http://livlily.blogspot.com/2012/12/hotel-transylvania-2012-concept-art.html

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=banshee+mythology&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwj99perqqv7AhXuVqQEHe1CDb0Q2-cCegQIABAA&oq=banshee+myth&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQARgAMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQ6BAgjECc6BwgAELEDEEM6BAgAEAM6BAgAEENQ8hBYsTlgxkZoAnAAeACAAa8BiAG3BpIBAzkuMZgBAKABAaoBC2d3cy13aXotaW1nwAEB&sclient=img&ei=LfpwY72sE-6tkdUP7YW16As&bih=961&biw=1903&hl=en#imgrc=Vd9116S4X77aDM

https://characterdesignreferences.com/art-of-animation-8/art-of-samurai-jack

https://characterdesignreferences.com/art-of-animation-2/star-wars-clone-wars

https://www.google.com/search?q=traditional+irish+hairstyles&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999&sxsrf=ALiCzsartD91LAOCppI0qsj3kHNPAP-JeQ:1668432651192&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjgzoX84637AhXFoVwKHd24B8EQ_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1920&bih=961&dpr=1#imgrc=h4nsqFmn6LLbNM&imgdii=gZ7Pgz6oKDRZgM

Week 5 Character design Exercise and Progression.

Posted on November 9, 2022December 8, 2022 by Odhran

For the 5th week, I took look into character design and how to use even random shapes to create characters as seen in the first class exercise. I found this to be slightly challenging and if i were to do it again, instead of thinking of the shapes as a potential head design, I may want to consider creating a full-body pose for a character within the proximity of the shape. For the second class exercise, I had to stylize 3 iconic American actors to understand how to simplify the shapes as well as maintain the emotion evoked by the actors in question who were Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra and Orson Welles respectively. I found these exercises to be rather enjoyable and I aimed to utilize mainly one shape for each of the actor’s designs to convey shape language and theory. As for the homework for this week, I was tasked with creating some sketches for potential character designs for my Group project (Group 7). This was a rather long process and required quite a bit of thought on how the characters where to be designed. for the main character, I wanted to create a young yet matured and mischievous look but found it hard to convey this first time around, although with the help of referencing as well as some inspiration from some iconic western movies, particularly Arrigo Colombo and Giorgio Papi’s 1964 film (A fist full of Dollars), and further consideration on the features of the character’s design, I can say I’m satisfied with my progress so far on the main character. The dragon’s design was even tougher however, as old western themes tied in with dragons is a rather unorthodox combination, it was eventually decided that the dragon’s design would be based on multiple desert-dwelling reptiles like the desert horned lizard and the horned rattlesnake. However, I found my designs that used the lizard as reference to not be too intimidating and not very appealing and so I decided to look at other media as reference in this case the Game of Thrones prequel series “House of the Dragon” which had the type of designs for dragons that I wanted my design to resemble. and so with these references along with using attributes from the previous references, I was able to finally get a design I was satisfied with as shown below. If I was to do this again, the one aspect I would improve is my use of referencing. This is due to the fact that I feel I should place much more emphasis on using references when designing characters rather than working from instinct as this exercise has proven to me that it is impossible to draw new characters just from memory alone as it can leave out subtle details and make the character seem unappealing and empty and will not evoke what the character should be correctly.

Image ref links:

https://www.google.com/search?q=cowboy+bandits&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwi9-N-SkaL7AhULWxoKHQIfBNkQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=cowboy+ba&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQARgAMgQIIxAnMgQIIxAnMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQ6BAgAEEM6BwgAELEDEEM6CAgAEIAEELEDUPIuWPc-YOpHaABwAHgAgAFciAHSApIBATWYAQCgAQGqAQtnd3Mtd2l6LWltZ8ABAQ&sclient=img&ei=zSdsY_3dIIu2aYK-kMgN&bih=961&biw=1920&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999#imgrc=8qMEPy6gANbZ6M
https://www.google.com/search?q=young+cowboy&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999&sxsrf=ALiCzsYmVLOylVFuehZixFTjmoMnxL1HAQ:1668032459662&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiei-2RkaL7AhWPhv0HHfMiDT8Q_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1920&bih=961&dpr=1#imgrc=Pg2Vf798bKt5pM
https://www.google.com/search?q=young+cowboy&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999&sxsrf=ALiCzsYmVLOylVFuehZixFTjmoMnxL1HAQ:1668032459662&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiei-2RkaL7AhWPhv0HHfMiDT8Q_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1920&bih=961&dpr=1#imgrc=9djoyUpQAD1WfM
https://www.google.com/search?q=young+cowboy&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999&sxsrf=ALiCzsYmVLOylVFuehZixFTjmoMnxL1HAQ:1668032459662&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiei-2RkaL7AhWPhv0HHfMiDT8Q_AUoAXoECAEQAw&biw=1920&bih=961&dpr=1#imgrc=KyR7DtTeCjePwM
https://www.google.com/search?q=house+of+the+dragon+dragons&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwinlfirlaL7AhWIgc4BHT0LCqQQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=house+of+the+dragon+dr&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQARgAMgsIABCABBCxAxCDATIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgYIABAFEB4yBAgAEB4yBwgAEIAEEBgyBwgAEIAEEBgyBwgAEIAEEBgyBwgAEIAEEBgyBwgAEIAEEBg6BAgjECc6CggAELEDEIMBEEM6BAgAEAM6BAgAEEM6BggAEAgQHlCTEliBFmDtIGgAcAB4AIABRYgB8AGSAQE0mAEAoAEBqgELZ3dzLXdpei1pbWfAAQE&sclient=img&ei=NCxsY6erBoiDur4PvZaooAo&bih=961&biw=1920&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999#imgrc=2F7HDIYT1BtMWM
https://www.google.com/search?q=desert+lizard&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjW2IG5laL7AhVU0oUKHbfzB-AQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=desert+lizard&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzIECCMQJzIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDIFCAAQgAQyBQgAEIAEMgUIABCABDoGCAAQBxAeOgYIABAIEB46BwgAEIAEEBg6BAgAEEM6CAgAEIAEELEDOggIABCxAxCDAToHCAAQsQMQQ1DhDliSJGCqJ2gAcAB4AIABnQGIAfQJkgEEMTAuNJgBAKABAaoBC2d3cy13aXotaW1nwAEB&sclient=img&ei=TyxsY5b1H9SklwS355-ADg&bih=961&biw=1920&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999#imgrc=QVQMswIXxVWLpM
https://www.google.com/search?q=horned+rattlesnake&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwik3YStlqL7AhWW44UKHcYABB4Q2-cCegQIABAA&oq=horn&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQARgAMgQIIxAnMgQIIxAnMgcIABCxAxBDMgQIABBDMgQIABBDMgcIABCxAxBDMgQIABBDMgQIABBDMggIABCABBCxAzIECAAQQzoFCAAQgAQ6BwgjEOoCECdQigdYoBxg8StoAXAAeAKAAXKIAYoKkgEEMTQuM5gBAKABAaoBC2d3cy13aXotaW1nsAEKwAEB&sclient=img&ei=Qi1sY6S0M5bHlwTGgZDwAQ&bih=961&biw=1920&rlz=1C1CHZN_enGB999GB999#imgrc=ygUAGTBdx2E8IM

Coursework 1 Final Summary.

Posted on November 3, 2022November 6, 2022 by Odhran

With the end of week 5 marks the end of The first component of Course work for 3D Digital literacy. This post is a compilation of all the final outcomes from all the work from the past 5 weeks. I can confidently say that I am far more comfortable with how to use Blender effectively and that I understand some of the key information regarding the program along with the use of Adobe substance painter and Krita to assist in texturing models. Trial and error is present in all models with some taking more than 2 attempts to perfect, the causes of the problems I encountered range from not setting the transformation settings objects correctly to not marking seams on objects properly, by restarting projects I found it easier to pinpoint where faults may occur and how I can solve them as well as allow to get a better understanding of Blender’s functions and how to properly utilize them. If I were to start this coursework piece again, I would try and increase my skillset even further by doing a set of models outside of the coursework curriculum in order to further understand how to communicate my ideas in modelling objects within blender. The following is a list of all my finished projects ranging from rendered models to animations.

Week 5 Homework Helmet modelling and texturing.

Posted on November 3, 2022 by Odhran

Following the introduction the Substance Painter in week 5’s lecture, the homework for week 5 consisted of modelling and texturing an helmet of your choice the initial idea I had was based on an Original Character from a few years back to which I sketched out basic template to the helmet design before modelling began, the helmet itself is loosely based on an old Irish helm design dating back to around the early 15th century. the modelling process was tough with this piece to which I needed to be reworked over 4 times before it worked correctly and unwrapped properly, this was due to some edges of the model being made inaccessible due to the design of the helmet which made it immensely difficult to mark all the necessary seams on the model which then meant that the textures would not apply to the masks properly in SP. This was rectified by marking 1 half of the helmet correctly and then removing the other half of the model and then applying a mirror modifier which then copied the seams I had marked on both halves, which then allowed for the model to be textured correctly following this. Overall I am satisfied with the end results of this model and I now have an idea of how i can use some of Blenders modifiers to help me unwrap models easily for use with Substance Painter.

Week 5 Introduction to Adobe Substance Painter.

Posted on November 3, 2022 by Odhran

For Week 5, I was introduced to Adobe Substance Painter and had to texture a War hammer with substance painter. Unlike Blender, its properties where rather difficult to get used to and I found the use of masks to be rather difficult first time around, it took a lot of trial and error to understand how Substance Painter’s masking mechanic functions as well as create a texture pattern I was Happy with. But, due to the war hammer being unwrapped correctly, the many materials used in the texturing process did apply very well to the model, following this the textures were baked and extorted to a file to then be applied in Blender to which the results are presented below.

week 2 Skateboard model revisited.

Posted on November 2, 2022 by Odhran

I have had a review of some of my previous modeling practices and I was not satisfied with the result of the skateboard and so, I decided to take another attempt at modelling the skateboard to which the original example can be seen first followed by the remake below. After increasing my skill-set and with more experience at using Blender, I can happily say that I’m satisfied with the redesign and I feel it is a much more realistic and accurate interpretation of a skateboard compared to the previous attempt.

Odhran Maguire's Animation Blog

Month: November 2022

Week 7, 2nd Character design

Week 8 Further animation Practices/ Introduction to storyboards.

Week 7 Initial Animation practices (Ball Bounce Variations and Slow-in/Slow-out Examples)

Coursework 2, Week 7 Gennedy Tartakovsky Art style study and concept sketches.

Week 5 Character design Exercise and Progression.

Coursework 1 Final Summary.

Week 5 Homework Helmet modelling and texturing.

Week 5 Introduction to Adobe Substance Painter.

week 2 Skateboard model revisited.