Class evaluation

1. Why did you take this class?

Ever since I could hold a pencil I have been creating characters and stories. I love bringing life to a character by giving them relatable and lifelike traits. Though I could make a character sound lifelike I really wanted to take that extra step to bring even more life to my art. And honestly if I can make a career out of that I could die happy.

2. In general, what did you like most about this class?

I enjoyed the fact that it never really felt like a class. Yes, I learned a lot but I enjoyed what I was doing (most of the time) so much that it hardly felt like work. I loved that it never felt like an actual part of school.

3. In general, what did you like least about this class?

Even with the ability to work at home I constantly felt constrained for time. The blogs were of course tedious but that is of less concern. I disliked the 3d portion the most simply because if you wanted to be proficient at all in the class projects you would have to study the program yourself outside of class, due to the fact that what is taught seems like it lacks anything other than a foundation for the basic fundamentals of  Maya.

4. What was your most favorite project and why?

I really loved the presentation project because it gave me the ability to really share my passions and inspirations with everyone. But as far as the animation portion goes, my favorite was the final project. That was the first project I was really content with this year and I never felt overburdened or constricted despite the provided script.

5. What was your least favorite project and why?

My least favorite project was definitely the 3d short. As previously mentioned I never really had a good grasp on Maya's capabilities. The work we did in Maya seemed very mechanical and the projects made to help us understand it were less informative than one would think. It almost seems as if 3d and 2d animation should be two separate coarses rather than one.

6. Discuss the overall effectiveness of the instructor (for example: preparation, availability, interest, content knowledge, expectations, etc.).

Helpful when needed, out of the way when not. Irrefutably the absolute ruler of the room with an occasional comical understanding. Basically a common house cat.

7. What are the most valuable things you learned in the class?

Organizational skills, as well as college and career readiness.

8. Do you feel that this class will help you achieve your future academic or career goals? How or why (or why not)?

Yes, It gave me an edge over the other students and possible employees of whatever college or employment facility I will ever apply to in the future.

9. How could this class be improved?

Establish a more concrete method for time efficiency while working, and prevent excessive talking.

10. Additional comments:

This class taught me a lot about myself, and those that I worked with over this year. I think the best things I will walk away understanding are:
1. I'm not always going to be the best or the top, and thats ok.

2.I should never be embarrassed of something I put hard work and effort into regardless of how I feel about it.

3. Criticisms are not ment to be hostile, rather constructive in nature.

4. A little extra effort can go a long way.

4 (a). ~Insert final speech from "The Breakfast Club" here~

Analysis and reflection

   Unfortunately for me the script seemed like a limiting factor, at least at first. I felt that there were very few possible interpretations of the script that would be used throughout the class. I was thankfully proven wrong, while several of my preliminary ideas were taken by various other students, my main idea remained original. I really wanted to think outside of the box for this one as I have attempted to do with the other projects without bitting off more than I can chew. After some consideration and several scrapped ideas I thought of character interaction with the 4th wall, or acknowledging the camera/audience.This was inspired by two pre-existing characters; Hasbro's Pinkamina Diane Pie and Marvel's Deadpool. These characters goofy antics generally result in interaction directly with the viewing audience by acknowledging the existence of either their own fantasy world or ours. This interaction always proved to be entertaining for me personally so I attempted to re-create that feeling.
   Throughout the animation I used several animation principals to help bring the characters to life. Squash and stretch was, however, the most prominent with the rotation of the screen and characters. There are also several instances in which the characters anticipate an action, such as just before the bunny character interacts with the camera. Secondary action and symmetry also emanate a minor presence throughout the animation during several scenes where the characters are talking.
  The first few frames of the animation feel a little stiff to me. Accounting for my displeasure I changed styles a scene or so in, using thicker more smooth lines to define the characters shapes. At the start of the year I didn't really have a well developed style but I was very happy with the outcome of several of the scenes in this animation. While style is very important I believe that my coloring ability has grown the most over the year. I have always been a black and white artist and find that coloring is both tedious and a good time waster, it does however help the audience to identify and resonate more with the characters. This skill will definitely come in handy later in life.
  I was a bit iffy on the blur heavy scenes where the camera was spinning out of control, but after the effect was applied to the right degree I was happy with the outcome. The faster movements worked out better than I had intended which was a pleasant surprise. On that note, there were also several notable downsides to this animation. Once the pressure to hand the project in on time became apparent I started to rush and make rookie mistakes. There are many scenes with faulty lip sync and poor or reused movements. The most deplorable part though would have to be the female character messing around with the camera. Her giant key framed hands fondle the screen even with the absence of arms, coherent lip sync, and her bunny counterpart. This was the result of a very rushed scene, and definitely not my proudest moment. In the future I will focus my efforts on quality over quantity and will prevent something like that from even being in scenes of my creation, regardless of time constraints.
  Inevitably I learned a lot about myself and my process through this project. My means of doing things has been giving me trouble all year, thinking way to big for the time given. Its not that the ideas are bad just that I don't have the time, or experience rather, to complete such a task so quickly. I am happy with this project though, even with its many faults. Two steps forward and all that. I am definitely coming closer to a system that effectively allows me to make a well made animation in the time given, hopefully I will be better prepared in the future for a project of similar intensity.

Final project references

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2011/241/4/9/step_by_step__anime_eyes_by_sukieyo-d489uv7.jpg

-This helped me with the design and coloring of the anime character's eyes. The placement of the lines and pupil were especially handy.

 http://www.cartoonsolutions.com/store/files/images/detailed/AS_male4finger_detail.jpg

- I wanted an idea of a good mix between cartoon and anime style mouths for lip syncing. I created my own version of this chart and attached it to my storyboard for easy access.

http://flash-animated.com/sites/default/files/images/Lipsync/812af1a684bd41fc614d8366c14291e7.png

-I have always had issues with hands and positioning of fingers, I used this chart for when the characters were being thrown about the screen.

https://youtu.be/KdPd4iGzGEs?t=152 ~WARNING JUMPSCARE~

-I used this clip from paranormal activity 1, to help determine how the camera should move when severely interacted with. -Bad movie, decent reference...

http://www.lightfootltd.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/product_full/survivalkitbook2_0.jpg

-When I worked at home I would reference this book to help me with timing, and some of the movements. Unfortunately it is a moderately heavy book and I could not bring it to school because my bag is already around 40+ lbs.

weekly

Testing is approaching at blinding speed and im not to confident for trig, regardless I will hold my head high and attempt to fail with grace! I really enjoyed this week though, with my private tutoring sessions for the SAT in June and parades coming up on the 23+24th (which I will be in) I have had a pretty decent week. I only wished the end of the year would stop creeping up on me so fast! Im starting to wish we had learned some premier skills earlier in the year, it certainly would have helped. But I digress, here is my link for the week enjoy! (to be honest I only partially watched it) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWp0oZuDMEQ I hope there is something to take away from it....

Portfolios and you

Well that time of the year is coming where we as artists and animators are looking to put together our best work in the hopes of getting a job. (or at least to college) Regardless this article goes over the usual stuff covered in many of its eerily similar counterparts.
-Best stuff in the beginning and at the end
-Don't make it to long
etc,
Though it never hurts to refresh your memory of these topics to help keep on track. I always have mixed emotions about these repeated articles, they are useful of course but it is almost tedious to re-read what I feel I have already read a dozen times over. Like I said though it never hurts to refresh ones memory.

The art and anxiety behind filmmaking

Many a famous directors have found themselves in a tough spot whilst directing, a good director will get around the problem, but a great director will overcome the problem. However before even getting to worry about those kinds of issues several directors find that there are many other problems that may arise. the article provided (or video rather) describes workplace issues that directors have to deal with from their personal viewpoints, from stubborn actors to mother nature everything is unpredictable. Sometimes even personal issues get in the way such as parents and other family members/friends.
However if I take anything away from this its that through hard work, focus, and the right mindset any problem may be overcome, and every goal may be achieved.

11:30 P.M Weekly comment

Holy SCHEZIA this week went fast. Its almost scary how quickly testing and regents is coming up. But to my fellow juniors it is also a very exciting time. Our adult lives essentially begin this summer, weather its exploring colleges or getting a job, most of us will accomplish something. Hopefully that something gets you a step closer to your goals in the future. I feel like garbage knowing we only have a week-ish left to work on the final, but Im still looking forward to seeing my own end product. Im happy with what I have so far but its to time consuming. I really need to re-think my process so that I can be both time and work efficient. Anyhow the dragon topic got me a bit fired up so heres a little light reading on dragons! Enjoy!     http://www.theguardian.com/science/brain-flapping/2014/apr/24/here-be-dragons-science-flying-reptiles

Ze Dragons

This article contained a wealth of information on a subject matter I have immense difficulty with, 3d animating. Unfortunately it also contains a subject I love very much..Dragons, I have studied dragons from several different perspectives since I was very young. From scientific, to artistic I love dragons in any form...The article gave a mixture of surprising and useful advice. The most prominent of which that I noticed was the title "Sometimes the best way to deal with a problem is to hide it". The issue at hand is that a fully grown male dragon has a massive muscular chest and long arms, but short legs. So in order to prevent the walking from looking awkward the animators literally hid the legs in most if not all of the scenes. This new information makes me feel a bit better about the possibilities in 3d, who knows I may even attempt to refine my skills over the summer.

Le Science

   While some questions are better left unanswered, the science behind the Avengers leaves some enigmas to be solved very promptly by scientists and super-nerds alike.
  As you may have gathered the article this week provided some scientific insight into the superhuman powers of the late and great avengers based on both the first and second movies. Using movie magic effects to generate hypothesis and just best guessing it, scientists and marvel fans managed to come up with some pretty interesting takes. The fact that they go into such depth on a subject like this always interests me personally, for example; the idea of captain america's shield converting vibration energy into light energy opens all new gateways for conversation regarding the subject. I absolutely love scientific perspectives on topics like this and hope to see more in the future!

Weekly

This was a miserable weekend for me for several reasons, but regardless with the new week comes new opportunity. I was very upset with my father this weekend, he was hospitalized with a concussion and guilt tripped me the whole time for not helping him when I have to many more pressing obligations. i.e. I found out he was lying directly to my face and doesn't trust me. Any how on a better note Im up for a promotion in the marine cadet unit, on top of the fact that Im now on the color guard. Im excited to see how my final will turn out and Im starting to look forward to what we will be learning next year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XH7PijZF3HI

Being cynical?

I felt this article was a little harsh from the perspective of an artist and an animator.The author constantly goes over the various form of media containing forgettable animations and poor quality
animations, but this must be a conclusion that he came to on a small scale if not for his own opinion. As an example the article mentions "Formulaic, repetitive shows ruled, and although they retain a degree of cult status, they are not exactly considered true classics." This seems like an unfair judgement due to the fact that something forgettable to him may be a very influential force in someone elses life. One of the classics, is just a status given by the majority of society to a movie or short with heavy influence on its audience. In the end Something may only be as disposable or a "bad" as its beholder determines it to be. It has been said Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

3d printing and animation

3d printing has been a hot button topic for the last several months due to its multiplicative nature 3d printing made its way to the animation field. This created many different job opportunities and stop motion animators are practically giddy over the possible uses.

  As described in the article 3d printing can help with the diversifying of the characters, facial features in particular may take on more complex shapes situation depending. This will allow animators to focus on smaller details such as clothing and costumes in general. This will be great in future animations because it opens up opportunities  for clothing and costume designers as well.

 All and all 3d printing continues to diversify itself and prove more and more useful.