Reflecting on this module, I can honestly say I’ve thoroughly enjoyed making my final animation, and incorporating the new principles I’ve learned, both in class and from my research, into my work; and seeing the progress I’ve made during the semester, I’m eager to learn more.
Before completing this course, my animations admittedly felt quite flat and bland, but now I’ve the confidence and wherewithal to develop characters exuding personality, create the illusion of depth and space, and boldly use vivid colours in my work. While I’d used storyboarding before, being neurodiverse and a visual thinker who ‘sees’ ideas and workflow like polaroids in my head; animatics were a game changer for me, as instead of just using trial and error, I could ‘see’ how my work would move and flow, adjust the timing, and understand how my final animated piece would look, and feel.
However, while I’d many positive experiences, including meeting others with the same passion for animation, I found much of this module challenging. Not sketching since GCSE Art had left me rusty; meaning I couldn’t draw quickly enough during workshops, and needed to catch up at home – and if I’m honest, the quality of my drawings disappointed me, and sapped my confidence. However, with practice over the weeks, I’ve slowly begun to improve. I’ve also independently overcome many problems and used solutions such as transform masks, and animation curves to improve my submission.
However, groupwork took me well out of my comfort zone, and presented issues I’d never experienced, and which I didn’t have the knowledge to deal with. Good communication, collaboration, compromise, and the ability to work well together are essential when working in an Animation Studio. However, unfortunately, this didn’t happen within our team, with practically no contact outside of class, and frustratingly, while I was sacrificing my free time to keep up-to-date; others didn’t submit their work on time. Worryingly too, with this a group project, I’ve still no idea what the other team members’ contributions to the final piece will be, so focusing on improving group communication will be key in the future.
I also experienced how one person with a specific vision can stifle creativity, and discussion, and block progress by persisting that others conform to this. Consequently, I often saw great ideas sacrificed, and causing me significantly extra work and meaning I fell badly behind with other assignments; I felt pressurised into animating the establishing scene, and because I thought I couldn’t say ‘No,’ frequently changed work I’d already completed to prevent disagreements. This needs to change, as by December I wanted to throw in the towel. I, like others who are quiet and have difficulty verbalising their ideas, also found the change in group dynamics each time students moved, made speaking up so much more difficult, and instead of hiding I was struggling from my tutors, I should have sought help.
While obviously time management was an issue, being detail-oriented, and wanting my blog to be perfect only compounded the issue, and seeing my blog as a ‘work-in-progress’ that can later be changed, will be important in the future; as too will posting consistently throughout the semester.
However, despite these challenges, having learned so much from this module, and now this reflection, I feel positive about the future.