Monday class,
Today Henry went over what we would be doing this year in character creation, and some of the basics and fundamentals of creature creation. Shown below.
we also talked about how we will have to make portfolios and show reels, and why they are useful, and how they can help in getting a job in the creative field.
Should read list:
3DTOTAL PUBLISHING, ed, 2017. Mythical Beasts: An Artist’s Field Guide to Designing Fantasy Creatures. 3dtotal Publishing.
PUBLISHING, 3. and 3DTOTAL, P, 2020. Fundamentals of Creature Design: How to Create Successful Concepts Using Functionality, Anatomy, Color, Shape & Scale. 3DTotal Publishing.
ZARINS, U, 2017. Anatomy Of Facial Expression. first edition edn. Exonicus Inc.
ZARINS, U. and KONDRATS, S, 2019. Anatomy for Sculptors, Third edition edn. Seattle?: Anatomy Next.
Suggested read list:
We were then given scripts and had to make bullet points about character designs in the scripts so we could have a mental image of the creature and describe it, because I have Aphantasia I struggle to describe what things look like unless I have a physical picture to go off of. So I drew the creatures.
I first made a written out list of the things from the script and then looked up things I think I could use on pinterest.
I then sketched out an idea from the first script and lined it, I went with a grout like character, I really wanted the twisted waist to look like a knot in a tree so I made them more feminine to match the smaller waist.
I did much the same for the second script, wrote out the descriptors and looked up things I thought could be helpful in designing them.
I then sketched out and lined the creature from the second script. I got a strong jellyfish vibe from the description and so I went with that.
again I collected images on Pinterest I thought would help me with a design. I really liked the visuals for this script.
I sketched out and lined the creature from the third script, this one I underestimated, I thought it would be pretty easy but I really struggled to come up with a design that wasn’t just a frog, that was until I found out axolotl are amphibians. But then I just drew a frog with the axolotls little face prongs. That was until I saw the mind flares in Baldur gate. Then I was able to make a design I actually liked.
I gathered images for script four, I was excited for this one because the script made me think of fennec foxes and hamsters 2 of my favourite animals.
I really enjoyed making this lil guy, I had a few different ideas that I couldn’t make work so I had to change them a little. For example I tried to add camel jumps but they just looked like I couldn’t draw the back correctly, so I opted for my other option of a more reptile like back that can store water, but also can be reflective. It didn’t say anything about horns but I thought it fit. And I made the cheeks more puffy to make room for the cheek pouches.
I did some doodles for possible character designs. But script 4 was stuck in my head so I wanted to make something fox like.
Then it was time for my idea creation I wrote out some ideas, and decided I wanted to make a creature from the rainforest that is in the middle of the food chain. Both predictor and prey.
my initial designs, I really liked the design I came up with for script 4 and knew I wanted to make a fox/ cat like creature, but i was stuck on ideas to make it different than my script 4 design, then I made a little ghost fox, which i thought was cute but ghosts can’t really eat actual animals, so I thought maybe a mushroom themed fox which could explain why they can eat poisonous frogs since they are also poisonous.
Thursday class,
Today Alec went over what we will be doing this year in Animation strategies. He noted it would be good to bring a sketch book to Thursday class to make rough sketches (an Ipad also works) but is optional, A drawing tablet will be required, and so will wired headphones. we will be using blender, harmony (toon boom), and adobe after effects. Can also use Premiere Pro, PureRef, and or Handbrake.fr throughout the year.
We will be making walk, and run cycles this semester, in either 2d or 3d.
Should read list:
Cooper, J. (2021) Game Anim: Video game animation explained. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
Hooks, E. (2017) Acting for animators. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.
Rodriguez, D. (2012) Animation methods. Lexington, KY: CreateSpace.
Thomas, F. and Johnston, O. (1995) The illusion of life: Disney Animation. Glendale, CA: Disney
Editions.
Williams, R. (2009) The Animator’s Survival Kit. Main – Revised ed. Faber & Faber;
Suggested read list:
Lango, K. (2019) VTS Animation Tutorials. Available at:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUXOZBYo_-RVUdL8tzr8oMZKNLMW5G0Le
Tindall, B. (2013) The Art of Moving Points, Apple Books. Hippydrome Publishing.
Available at: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-art-of-moving-points/id639498241
Wells, P. (2006) The fundamentals of animation. Lusanne: AVA.
Wyatt, A. (2010) The complete digital animation course: the principles, practice and
techniques of successful digital animation. London: Thames & Hudson.
We then took a break.
Then we messed around on blender for a bit posing two pre-made models called Rain and Snow.
The Rain model.
The Snow model. The torso twisted weird at the end and I didn’t know how to fix it with out completely restarting the model so I just left it since none of the controls changed it at all.
Then Aodhan taught us about toon boom harmony. harmony is a very gross program, it feels really restrictive at first. but it is okay once you start to pick it up a bit more.
I was able to make a bouncing ball, but i had to restart 3 times cause it deleted my frames and kept blinking them, because we are animation on 2’s and I had to learn how to make the frames last 2 frames instead of 1, Without deleting any of the frames.
I hope to practice in it a bit more so I don’t get as annoyed by it, as I get easily frustrated by things that I don’t understand.
I made a walk cycle in toon boom I referenced this video
In particular the timid walk. Toon boom isn’t that bad once you use it a bit more although it is still a little weird to use and feels a little more restrictive than I’m used too.