Project One: Allusion, hinting, insinuation, mystery, rhythm, camera control, cinematography, and color.
The main focus of the first project is to learn and practice the act of intimating to something in the process of building interest in your subject or style. In this 60 second animation, you will be practicing camera control, speed, minimal color, and sound to suggest and infer something, though you will not reveal that thing, until the last 5 seconds of your animation. If your audience figures out what your ending is, or sees some identifiable elements that lead to understanding, then your project will be graded lower.
The animation will follow and develop the ways of keeping your viewer interested by constantly asking questions and NOT answering thøse questions. The animation must be conceptually driven, and hopefully surprising and revealing, only in the end. Think about how the physical characteristics or form of the real object or elusive object, can give rise to the potential emotions and story that can arise from our associations to that object and how the virtual animation component, will then be associated with that physical object.
Please also provide 2 paragraphs of concise writing about that proposal and at least two hyperlinks, on your blog, to artists that inform or inspire this idea.
Practical Topics to be discussed:
In this project, I will re-introduce and review: Tools, advanced modeling techniques, camera control, compositing basics, cinematics/transitions, still image animating/importing scans/video/etc., Intermediate Lighting, Intermediate Texturing
Assignment:
The first half of this assignment is intended to set the structure/procedure for the other projects in this course. This will begin with 3 high-quality pencil sketches of your object, world or character. After these are complete you will be creating the 3D models. This should be accompanied by quality research, discussing what your inspiration is and what you want to achieve. All this research and the scans of your sketches must be uploaded to your blog for critiques. https://wordpress.com/
Through the use of compositing in programs like Adobe Premiere and Adobe After Effects, the use of advanced compositing techniques are encouraged and will be taught, including the layering of wire-frame renders, scanned images/sketches, digital photos, video, etc. to enhance and add to the 3D images/animations. Through the mixing of different media, you will be able to create a more dynamic presentation.
Project 2: 3D Modeling and Animation in Development of a Final Animation
This will be a complete polished animation from 2 to 8 minutes long based on earlier prototypes or a completely new idea.
The animation should focus on telling a compelling story with a distinct selected style of presentation and rendering with excellent cinematography and motion camera control techniques, lighting schemes and the surrounding environment, as is necessary to complete a successful moving image artwork.
You can also choose to make a projection mapping project; ie projecting onto a surface or object.
This project will also begin with at least 3 different detailed drawings showing at least 3 sketches including 1) a perspective view, top view, and side view, and a basic storyboard/outline to go with it. The sound associated with your animation will be an important component in completing this work.
These detailed sketches of project 2, are due (refer to schedule page) and posted to your blog for review by the professor and class during the critique.
Student Examples from early Animation class:
Jordan Reynolds BFA 2017
Project Two considerations this semester.
Cloud Crusher: Show them, Culture, data, surveillance, structure, environmental issues
Relevant Links:
Rick Paul
Bathsheba Grossman
The Wexner Center for the Arts
Link to Architectural Examples Page
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/scienceopticsu/powersof10/index.html
John Cage
Michael Rees
Ed Ruscha
Jenny Holzer
Matthew Goulish
Barbara Kruger
Scientific Sites about “TIME & SPACE “
http://www.einstein-online.info/en/navMeta/dictionary/s/
http://www.solarviews.com/eng/oldestlight.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_dilation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spacetime
http://micro.magnet.fsu.edu/primer/java/scienceopticsu/powersof10/index.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/elegant/
“Einstein shows that matter and energy all the “stuff” in the universe actually mold the shape of space and the flow of time. What we feel like the “force” of gravity is simply the sensation of following the shortest path we can through curved, four-dimensional space-time. It is a radical vision: space is no longer the box the universe comes in; instead, space and time, matter and energy are, as Einstein proves, locked together in the most intimate embrace.” -Unknown
Practical Topics for the continuation of the development of your project.
Advanced Camera and Lighting Techniques, Titling, Basic to intermediate Physics/Motion in Animation, Advanced Timeline techniques / F-curve manipulation, Soundtrack development.
Projection mapping pursuit
Student Examples:
Links:
Refresher on sketching techniques with shading
http://projection-mapping.org/the-history-of-projection-mapping/
http://projection-mapping.org/mattress-factory-installations-minimad/
http://projection-mapping.org/weekly-roundup-dec-20-2016/
Tony Oursler
Installations, Denmark 2012
Other Tony Oursler videos
Augmented Structures v1.0: Acoustic Formations / Istiklal Street from Refik Anadol on Vimeo.
Elona Van Gent
Aziz and Cucher
http://www.cloaca.be/http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=wim%20delvoye&spell=1&sa=N&tab=wihttp://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&q=Ionat+Zurr&btnG=Searchhttp://www.symbiotica.uwa.edu.au/http://www.raaf.org/Electronic_Works/Grower/Grower_frames.htmlhttp://lwgallery.uwa.edu.au/program/2004/BioDifferencehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chimera_%28animal%29
Large-scale works:
Objective:
Create a unique and conceptually driven architectural or natural space that expresses a sense of time and movement within it. Think about how your current work will fit in this context. Think of this as the stage setting for your current hybrid project. Your space can be a natural environment or completely constructed.
A good point of inspiration may come from architectural styles in links pages as well as the posted websites above, that show large-scale art and sculpture installation and how it is situated in particular spaces or museums. Think about the scale and magnification of elements within and outside of your space. Do you want to bring the viewer into a magnified biological world, perhaps of nanotechnology? Where and when does your space exist? Is it an inner or outer space? Does it exist within 2, 3 or more dimensions? Is it a literal or an abstract space?
Your space should be created using all animation techniques learned up to this date. Make sure to create a dynamic lighting scheme and to move through your space through the use of advanced camera techniques. Feel free to create a completely composited space consisting of 3D video and photographic imagery. The use of particle effects and dynamics/Expresso based objects is encouraged though not mandatory if it does not work with your concept.
Your space may be meditative, commentary based or specifically designed space. Think outside the box and think of alternative spaces we have not been to. Take us inside your world.
Make sure to make detailed drawings/plans/blueprints for your space to review with the class in the first stages of the project. This is also a perfect project to take advantage of multi-pass rendering for more advanced control in After Effects.
This project is required to have titles and a basic soundtrack.
Final Project: Compositing and Pulling It All Together With Your Footage
Practical Topics:
Advanced Animation Techniques, Advanced Tiling Techniques, Advanced Soundtrack Creation, Advanced Export Techniques / Compression variations, Advanced Texturing, Concept / Creative Development
This is an ongoing process of rendering and adding new scenes and moments of your current hybrid project over the course of weeks, where you will refine your work by editing and re-editing.
Requirements:
-Must apply at least 3 advanced animation techniques learned in class
-Must have a basic soundtrack
-Must use proper tiling techniques learned earlier in class
Think about alternative types of display (other than a standard video reel/tv presentation) Types of presentation may include: Sculptural/Rapid Prototyping, Video Installation/Projection, Web-based video / 3D Flash development, Art based Game Development, Movement / Performance
(MAKE SURE THAT YOUR FINAL PROJECT IS IN BOTH QUICKTIME, NTSC D1 Square Pixel in your composition settings. FORMAT, 1080P H.264 FORMAT.
We will appoint a group of 3 student volunteers that will be creating the class reels.