Experimental Design Week 1

First week back we were introduced to the module Experimental Design and what we would be doing this semester. We meet other students from another university in China where they presented themselves and showed their beautiful work and showed them ours and what we have done the past few years. We were given the task to find Irish Mythology here in Ireland preferably one myth/legend to showcase in pairs to the new students for the live session where they will share their Chinese Mythology with us. In pairs we had to pick our Irish Mythology which my teammate Abdul and I narrowed our choices and came to the conclusion on covering the myth of the ‘Morrigan Goddess’ for the PowerPoint presentation. 

While we discussing about our choices, we had to also think about the assignment on what we wanted to do or what techniques we wanted to learn this semester. Each of us were also given tasks on picking an art style or animation style/technique that currently interest me whether it was a movie, show or game to talk about for next week.  It was a difficult to choose from what to talk about as there was hybrid animation or 2D animation shows so I went for my strongest suite which was 2D animation with 

Horror and cute whimsical elements combined have always interested me over the years. Growing up with Tim Burton and Laika studios Coraline/Paranorman started this inspiration for me as the animation direction wasn’t too shy from showing weirdness and the abnormality in it’s setting and interesting art styles. I gathered inspirations from my childhood which collaborated with horror elements and the more modern in the present. 

A few examples of a specific art style would come from Dana Terraces work Owl House and Knights of Guinevere. I chose these two first as characters themselves have basic shapes with character design, bright and dark colours in contrast, creative backgrounds and a captivating storytelling to enhance it’s characters. Same with the Knights of Guinevere pilot which blends beautiful detailed backgrounds, has a dynamic art style, excellent character animation conveying emotion through body language, and strategic use of colour to enhance atmosphere and tension creating a unique and immersive viewing experience.

I then remembered the shows I watched back in the early 2010’s and how became more memorable than the other shows I watched and how each one balanced colour, detailed backgrounds a range of character designs they have explored in contrast with personality and in depth with it’s unique storytelling involved with the main cast and secondary characters, builds up tensions and exaggerated expressions. This popular art style is known as the Cal-arts which some like but others don’t, especially how some designs share the same mouth ‘bean mouth when the characters smile. Which is something I won’t use for my art style.