Hey kiddos! I've been in the middle of move out for the summer, so I've been a little behind on updates. So, first off, the animatic is coming along well. I managed to acquire one or two friends to help me plan it out over the summer (still squeeing about it). Second, I've made a Vimeo account (since that seems to be the latest fad and all).
Come check it out!
Vimeo- Black Dawn Studios
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Withdrawl and Summer
Haha, here's how I know I'm an animator- I feel like I should be animating something right now. It's like a coke addict when he doesn't get his fix- hands get shaky, palms sweaty, chapped lips, bloodshot eyes. Okay, so it's not that extreme, but hey, I'm hyperbolizing (can that be considered a verb now?)
So, to take up my time during the summer so I don't forget how to hold a pencil, I'm finally going to get around to making the animatic for a promo that's been sitting in my head for about a year now. It's a tie in to my story, Steam and Mist: Shadow Over Silestra. This one has a lot of dynamic shots in it so here goes nothing! -rolls up sleeves-
But first, I must attend screenings for my college. I say that like it's a bad thing when it really isn't. Spring is always the best because people show off their theses (thesises? thesi?) which I'll be doing next year (ho boi!~)
But for the meantime, I'm unwinding by blowing up Metal Gears and defeating Elder Gods. And I got tons of gum.
So, to take up my time during the summer so I don't forget how to hold a pencil, I'm finally going to get around to making the animatic for a promo that's been sitting in my head for about a year now. It's a tie in to my story, Steam and Mist: Shadow Over Silestra. This one has a lot of dynamic shots in it so here goes nothing! -rolls up sleeves-
But first, I must attend screenings for my college. I say that like it's a bad thing when it really isn't. Spring is always the best because people show off their theses (thesises? thesi?) which I'll be doing next year (ho boi!~)
But for the meantime, I'm unwinding by blowing up Metal Gears and defeating Elder Gods. And I got tons of gum.
Thursday, May 12, 2011
The Button is Done!
Huzzah! At 7:45 AM this morning, I completed a successful 1 quarter project, The Button. Enjoy! (Probably gonna see if I can upload it to the AniBoom channel on Youtube)
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Friday, May 6, 2011
Thesis APPROVED!
Huzzah! I went in today with the new Block story idea and it passed with only a few considerations (mostly trimming fat, being a little less on the nosey) but hey! I got two professors to laugh! -fist pump- I can tell humor! The nymph story will wait for another time but now I'm feeling fired up for this one :D
I'm already getting poster and trailer ideas for this film. I'll post up the concept sketches within the upcoming week. For now, Imagine RIT and my 1 Quarter take precedence (as well as my mum's Mother's Day gift :D)
I'm already getting poster and trailer ideas for this film. I'll post up the concept sketches within the upcoming week. For now, Imagine RIT and my 1 Quarter take precedence (as well as my mum's Mother's Day gift :D)
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Update- The Button
Hey chickadees! The Button is almost finished. So far I've blocked out a majority of the action, taken care of some facial expressions and gathered sound. Seven more days to go and I'm pumped!...Despite being sick and having my next door neighbor's apartment complex's fire alarm go off...twice ==;
Anyways! Here's the current render test! Enjoy :3
Anyways! Here's the current render test! Enjoy :3
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Update- 5.3.11
-blows off dust- Yikes! Sorry I didn't update this sooner, guys! Well, I proposed the nymph story to the committee last week and got a resounding NO. It left me at a crossroads, despite producing a new story pretty much right after I got out of the thesis review. On the one hand, I was being objective, reworking the story and reapplying my best story tactics. I can continue to remain this way (which is the best response) but then I could be subjective. I'm teetering towards the latter just out of habit and experience, but this meeting was bitter medicine and in the end, I think the committee did me a favor.
I readily admit I think big. And it's not a bad thing. The issue is that I fall, have fallen, into a common trap- because I think too big, I don't realistically plan out large projects well, and there's only so much one person can do on a large project under limited time and massive pressure. So far, I have yet to become comfortable with the animation process. I have tried to assemble teams to aid me, but in the end, they have become more of a crutch.
It was also scary (but I saw it coming) that the professors who were reviewing my thesis knew how my thought process worked. Perhaps Mark said it best "this won't be your magnum opus". It made me stop after the meeting and think.
While it will sound pretentious, the difference is I'm being honest about my thoughts here. I have focused too much on the social validation of my peers. Too often I have shot for the stars while forgetting where my feet were because I wanted to be seen as an equal. It has always been my goal in art, just as much as wanting to entertain people. My life has been a series of trials, all resulting in a want of validation that I'm not a waste of DNA, that I'm worth some fiber in this fabric of humanity. Because, honestly, had health care not been as great and as paranoid of my life in my first moments of it, I'd be dead.
Ironically, it's because of the rejection I have faced overall from my peers, regardless of environment, that I have become pretentious sometimes, that I have been seen as arrogant or disdainful (and to an extent, I know I have been) because I believed "what was the point in giving them another chance? They've already proven to me they're not interested in knowing who I am". So I hid and continue to hide, mainly because I need to get used to some forms of rejection.
The odd thing is how the thesis proposal has actually changed my perspective, if just a little. I wanted to tell a powerful story. I wanted to tell a personal story. Idealistically, I wanted it to be a film that would make my peers stop and think, to consider perhaps the other side of the story. It's that same old tale of the underdog usually vowing vengeance, saying "They'll pay! I'll show them all what they've done to me!" and through artistic expression would I get to their minds and hearts. Of course, thinking more practically, I realize my stories aren't strong and accessible enough to get to people of various emotional resistance, so in all likelihood, it would fall flat and become pretentious and melodramatic, at best.
What I have learned is that telling stories straight out through my medium aren't as strong as the emotions I put into other stories. Thinking now, AVI is a story that embodies my sorrow and loneliness best, while something like the creation of Aros (whose name is actually an acronym for Artistic Representation of Self) is more of my quirky, manic side (she really is starting to become me with every film I use her in).
Which brings me to the update, at long last! So, ironically, I decided to fall back on the original story my nymph thesis was based off of. I felt at the time it was too comic and didn't have enough substance. When I got out of the review, my mind was whirring with elements and ideas, and I managed to put together a story that's more audience accessible, and, if I can believe, actually might get a few laughs out of people. At the worst, I know it'll get a few smiles. Perhaps this is my calling- I've been so wrapped up in telling serious stories I never gave myself a chance to actually work with the medium and push its boundaries of reality.
Hopefully that'll change this Friday- I re-propose with this new idea, also titled Block. I'm feeling strong on this one, and I hope I can get at least one of the committee members smirking when they're reading/reviewing this. The goal of my film is as the process has shown me- using creative thinking and perseverance to overcome my obstacles. Wish me luck!
I readily admit I think big. And it's not a bad thing. The issue is that I fall, have fallen, into a common trap- because I think too big, I don't realistically plan out large projects well, and there's only so much one person can do on a large project under limited time and massive pressure. So far, I have yet to become comfortable with the animation process. I have tried to assemble teams to aid me, but in the end, they have become more of a crutch.
It was also scary (but I saw it coming) that the professors who were reviewing my thesis knew how my thought process worked. Perhaps Mark said it best "this won't be your magnum opus". It made me stop after the meeting and think.
While it will sound pretentious, the difference is I'm being honest about my thoughts here. I have focused too much on the social validation of my peers. Too often I have shot for the stars while forgetting where my feet were because I wanted to be seen as an equal. It has always been my goal in art, just as much as wanting to entertain people. My life has been a series of trials, all resulting in a want of validation that I'm not a waste of DNA, that I'm worth some fiber in this fabric of humanity. Because, honestly, had health care not been as great and as paranoid of my life in my first moments of it, I'd be dead.
Ironically, it's because of the rejection I have faced overall from my peers, regardless of environment, that I have become pretentious sometimes, that I have been seen as arrogant or disdainful (and to an extent, I know I have been) because I believed "what was the point in giving them another chance? They've already proven to me they're not interested in knowing who I am". So I hid and continue to hide, mainly because I need to get used to some forms of rejection.
The odd thing is how the thesis proposal has actually changed my perspective, if just a little. I wanted to tell a powerful story. I wanted to tell a personal story. Idealistically, I wanted it to be a film that would make my peers stop and think, to consider perhaps the other side of the story. It's that same old tale of the underdog usually vowing vengeance, saying "They'll pay! I'll show them all what they've done to me!" and through artistic expression would I get to their minds and hearts. Of course, thinking more practically, I realize my stories aren't strong and accessible enough to get to people of various emotional resistance, so in all likelihood, it would fall flat and become pretentious and melodramatic, at best.
What I have learned is that telling stories straight out through my medium aren't as strong as the emotions I put into other stories. Thinking now, AVI is a story that embodies my sorrow and loneliness best, while something like the creation of Aros (whose name is actually an acronym for Artistic Representation of Self) is more of my quirky, manic side (she really is starting to become me with every film I use her in).
Which brings me to the update, at long last! So, ironically, I decided to fall back on the original story my nymph thesis was based off of. I felt at the time it was too comic and didn't have enough substance. When I got out of the review, my mind was whirring with elements and ideas, and I managed to put together a story that's more audience accessible, and, if I can believe, actually might get a few laughs out of people. At the worst, I know it'll get a few smiles. Perhaps this is my calling- I've been so wrapped up in telling serious stories I never gave myself a chance to actually work with the medium and push its boundaries of reality.
Hopefully that'll change this Friday- I re-propose with this new idea, also titled Block. I'm feeling strong on this one, and I hope I can get at least one of the committee members smirking when they're reading/reviewing this. The goal of my film is as the process has shown me- using creative thinking and perseverance to overcome my obstacles. Wish me luck!
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