The Task at Hand
The project we were assigned to do was to create a music video for a song. In the creation process of our music video we were set out to find already existing music videos to gain inspiration from. We had chosen the song "Talia" by King Princess to create a music video. The idea we had for the video was that we would have one set of scenes take place in a darker color scheme and the other set take place in a lighter color scheme. I had already had a pretty good idea of what the lighter scenes were going to look like but I need a visual video to show how the darker scenes were going to look like. On my search I found the music video for The Weekends song "Call Out My Name". This video was exactly what I was looking for: the color scheme matched, the shots used, and the camera movement were what I was imagining but couldn't quiet explain in words. While I didn't exactly like the whole video, the parts I did like stuck with me enough to remember and use the video for a large part of my inspiration. (The Weekend. "The Weekend-Call Out My Name (Official Video)". Online video. Youtube. Youtube, 12 April 2018. Web. 24 September 2018).
Call Out My Name
The story of "Call Out My Name" centers around a break up and someone trying to get over it but is having a hard time. They portray this by having dark colors and never really bringing in any light shades. The camera movements also adds to the story because them not being stationary allows the viewer to feel the turmoil and energy that the person is feeling. There are also visuals and effects that are supposed to help depict the loneliness the person is going through and how they feel inside. Through the use of camera movements, colors, and effects, the "Call Out My Name"video is able to tell the story of someone not over a break up and is longing for the other person.
My Viewing Experience
Overall, I throughly enjoyed the music video and was able to draw several pieces of inspiration from it. One of the biggest parts I pulled from this video, or at least tried to emulate, was the lower camera angle and the type of movement the camera had. This was one of the biggest ideas I had for the darker colored scheme part due to the mood and emotion it gave across. One thing that I saw in the video that I have already learned how to do is the coloring in the video not only in lights but also in post-production. One item that the video did was really well was using color and cinematography to capture and translate the mood that song and singer are conveying. The colors show the darker, sadder mood of the song while the camera movements shows all the twisted, confusing emotions and thoughts the person is having as well making the audience feel a little of it as well. However, I think it could be improved on toning down some of the effects because they got confusing and distracting at times.
This video really gave me some good ideas for my music videos and helped solidify some ideas that weren't fully put together.
My group and I decided to create a commercial advertising Apple iPhone. We chose this product because we though we could make a really cool video and come with an interesting concept. Once we had a product picked out, we started brainstorming ideas for the videos. After we went through a few ideas we decided to have three students in our video and follow them around during their school day, showing all the features in the iPhone and how they can be used for school purposes. At the very end of the video it would be revealed that all the students now each other, using the airdrop feature to share a picture and bring the students together. The feature showcased in the video were StudentVUE with Touch ID, Apple Music, Notes, Calculator, the camera, water resistance, as well as the previously mentioned airdrop. Each of the students was assigned two features and would use them in the video. Overall, the concept of the video was to show how iPhones could be useful to students.
Growing the Apple
One of the first things we did as a part of Pre-Production was decide who would take on what roles, I was editor. Once we had decided our roles we started to plan out and talk about how we wanted the video to look with our concept. We though of shots we wanted, the order the features would go in, how many people we would need, props, and so on. After a little bit of discussion we started to work on the script and story board to put our image down on on paper, I worked on the script with the help of Cas and Josh as Cas worked on the storyboard next to me. As work on the script and storyboard we were thinking of the people that would be in it and who we would ask. Since there was three of in the group and we needed three actors we were all supposed to bring in one person. Once we finished writing the script, storyboard, and had our actors we filmed. Filming took about an hour or two for about three days for all of the video. We used classrooms, outside of school, and our school lunch room to film since the video took place a school. When editing came around we had to cut a lot of the shots we had out and rearrange the story a little bit due to the commercial time constraint and due to the quality of some shots. I was able to find some really good shots and was still able to bring the story together how we originally wanted. After I cut the shots to the right length and arranged them in the best order I could figure out I started correcting the lighting and sharpening up some of the shots to make them less blurry. At the end of the video we put a video of the Apple logo that we found on YouTube because we didn't have time to create our own. With that logo came music and it was decided to use that play throughout the whole video instead of the music we had originally used. Adding the music was the last piece that had to be added and once that was done we exported.
Helping the Apple Grow
My production role was editor of the video. Along the way I learned how sometimes you have to cut some clips in order to make the story make sense and that you won't be able to use some due to something be wrong with it. I also learned how to stabilize shots, correct lighting, and increase the sharpness of shots. One of the big things I learned was how to do split screens with three different clips.
Meeting Standards
I personally think this whole project was a mess. In reality, I think our technical skills were poor. Some of the shots could have had more light by opening up the iris or could've been more in focus. This affected the overall look of the commercial and didn't make it as clean because you can fix some of it in post but it won't look as good. However, we did have some really good clips that I'm proud of and look very good. Our communication could've been better as well. In Pre-Production it was really good, we were listening to each others ideas and trying to find ways to incorporate most of them and if we didn't like an idea we were nice about it. On the other hand during Production and in Post communication was not as good as it could've been. When it came to shooting we didn't communicate about what we thought of some shots and didn't clearly express how they could've been made better. Then in Post, if I didn't like an idea I wasn't good at communicating that but instead just went along with it. The same kind of goes for collaboration, it was really good in the beginning and stayed good throughout the whole process it just declined a little. Leadership was also kind of a mess. Our director did a really good at making sure we were all on track, making sure things were getting done, and helping where help was needed. I fell bad, however, because I felt like I was taking a leadership role as well and overshadowing the actual director and I feel bad about that but I seem to do it in all group projects. Overall, I think leadership was good I just feel bad for overshadowing at points. I think project management went well, we got the project done.
For Next Time
If I had to do this project again I would probably want to be either cinematographer and editor, director and editor, or just be more out spoken about my thoughts to ensure that our video was to the best quality it could be. I would also want a better filming schedule because ours for this video was kind of chaotic. However, there are thing I would keep the same. Somethings I would keep the same is the product and the concept because I think that they were really cool and could have been sleek and appealing to watch.
Having All The Ingredients
As a whole I think our commercial met most of the objectives of a commercial. I think we met the emotional connection with it being students allowing other students to be able to relate to how it feels to be in school as well as having something available that makes it easier. Even though we should the phone and its functions throughout the commercial we kept the information limited by not having a voice over talking about the phone. Our call to action would be the animated Apple logo at the end; even though this isn't like the old fashioned call to actions the logo still has the same purpose. Our commercial also has positive association and trust building by showing the phone in multiple situations and by people who look trustworthy. I think our key principles of film making could've been better. The writing, audio, and editing were pretty strong but I think the directing, lighting, and cinematography could've been better.
Overall
Overall I think this commercial could've been better and I'm not that proud of it.
Requirements
The task at hand for our first entertainment project was to find a, school appropriate, music video and recreate it. This included having to do a beat sheet, a type of outline special for music videos, a mood board, and a story board for all of out frames. Our music video had to be shot with all the technical aspects we have learned about as well as tell a story. My group and I had agreed on doing the music video for Lana Del Rey's song Love. Once we picked out our song it was to get to work.
Putting at the Gears in Motion
The first thing we had to do was assign jobs. My job was editor which means I'm responsible for editing the final video but I still took part in pre-production and production. Once we had that done we started to watch the music video for Love to get ideas for ours. After watching it a few times through we started to work on our beat sheet and story board. On our beat sheet we wrote all the information of the song like producer, singer and company, other music videos to inspire ours, etc. Then we started to draw out the frames for our music video on our story board. During this step, we kept coming up with so many ideas that it was hard to get them all down. Eventually we had a really good illustration of the frames of our video. Now that we knew what our video was going to look like, how we were going to do it, where we were going to do it, we needed to figure out who was going to be in it. We had thought up a list of people, mostly our friends, and started asking them, my group and I now had our people. Now we filmed. This part was pretty easy and take very long since we had a specific and detailed vision of what we wanted everything to look like. After we had everything filmed we started editing. Like filming editing didn't take very long since we had a pretty detailed idea of what everything was to look like but we did run into some changes and discussions. The hardest part of editing was getting the person who was lip syncing lips to line up with the words, but once they did it felt really good. The final part of editing was adding some cooler filters and then were done.
Learning Through Experience
Throughout this project I learned how to work and communicate with people who were going to be in the video and not just my group members. This was different because they had no idea what we had planned so we had to be very clear in explaining what we wanted them to do as well as when and where we would be filming. As the project went on, however, I became better at this and it was easier to communicate what was needed of them. On the technical aspect, I learned how to use color filters and how to scale a video to a certain size. I can use these skills later in my film career if a shot isn't looking quiet right or if I need the clips to look a certain way. These skills will, overall, make me a better film maker.
Change it or Leave it
Overall I felt this project went really well especially since it's my first entertainment assignment and I wouldn't change a lot. The only few things I would have changed is making some shots not as out focus so they didn't look messy. This also goes with stabilizing some shots to make them less shaky because it can look sloppy and make people sick. While I would only apply this to some shots I would like to make those changes. Another change I would make is picking the people more carefully. Our coffee shop couple was the only couple that wasn't dating in real life and the whole thing came off as awkward in the video. It's not a big deal but I think fixing this problem would make the video even better. I can apply these lessons to my next project by paying a better attention to the really small details.
This was my final 2D animation where I had to include everything I had learned so far this year. Throughout this project I learned that sometime simplicity is key. At the beginning I started off with a story that was to complicated and cut it back or else I wouldn't finish. The original one would have had to many elements that would have to be created and animated and I just didn't have time for it, so I took parts out. In the end I'm really proud of this project and want more people to see it since I put a lot of effort in it and looks half decent. One of my greatest strengths in this project was probably creating everything in Photoshop before actually animating it. I was pretty good with the pin point tool. One of my weaknesses, however, was the walk cycle. I was able to improve, although, by adding pin points in the knees but I still need a lot of practice and work on it. One aspect about this project I would change is the walk cycle and how my clouds look. I feel like I could've done the walk cycle more smooth but just didn't have time. I'm going to use what I learned from this project to better my future projects and know what I need to work on.
I'm Somewhat Proud Of This
By creating this project, I was able to learn how to do a walk cycle for a two legged creature. I learned this skill by paying attention in class as well trial and error. Additionally, I also learned how to scan something I drew on paper into the computer. I forgot how to do a portion of the scanning so I had to have help for a classmate. I picked this project because I had some struggles with it in the beginning and couldn't get my robot looking how I wanted, I couldn't figure out the walk cycle, etc., but through my trial and error I was able to produce an animation that I think is decent and proud of. One of my greatest strengths for this project was creativity with making my character a robot and not a human, as well as making the head spin at the end. My greatest weakness was the walk cycle because I did it backwards so I have to make my robot walk backwards. I was to improve, however, by working and focusing on making my walk cycle the best it can be. If I could change anything, I would change how my robot looks because he looks really spotty and messy and I want him to look nicer. Overall, I will use what I learned in this project whenever I'm animating something that needs to walk or move in a similar way.
This Doesn't Completely Look Bad
By doing this project I learned so much about the animating software, Maya, and several skills as well. I learned how to create dips/a bowl shape out of cylinders, how to combine shapes, add textures using pictures, and what tool to use to align shapes. I learned these things by having to create the towers for my castle, needing to add a stone texture to walls, and making sure everything was even and neat. I picked this project because I'm really proud of how it turned out especially since I was gone when the instructions were given. My greatest strength is probably the textures even though I had some getting them to show up my first time. Once I found out what I was doing, however, it was easy from then one. One the other hand, my greatest weakness was probably creating the towers and beveling. It took me forever to figure out how to get it to work, but eventually I got it down and was able to do it pretty easily since. I'm going to use what I learned when needing add textures an surface and when I'm creating a building. One thing I would change is the size of my towers, the look really big and I don't like them. Overall this project was really fun to make.
My Favorite 3D Project
Animating this project let me learn how to create holes in a polygon. You did this by putting cylinders through it and then taking out the spaces where they touched, creating hole. I also learned how to light an object from doing a worksheet and watching a Youtube video. I picked this project because it turned out super good and I'm proud of how well I did on it. My greatest strength in this project was lighting the object. I was able to understand the lighting really easily and caught on to it pretty fast. My weakness, however, was getting the holes to appear properly. My first few tries resulted in all . my shapes disappearing but I was eventually able to make it work. I improved on this skill by figuring out what angle for clicking worked the best. I'm going to use what I learned to light the rest of my projects in a professional, appropriate manor. I wouldn't really change anything about this project except make the plane lighter, its to dark. Overall, I'm really proud of this project and think its's one of my best.
In this blog post I will be teaching you to make a 3D sphere in the animation program called Maya. The person who would nee this tutorial is on that has never used Maya perform and needs to learn the basics, but this skill be used by anybody that has Maya on their computer. This skill is important to learn so you are able to begin animating and creating projects. All the other polygons in Maya can be made in a similar fashion, so once you learn how to create a sphere you can create any other shape you want.
1. The first step is open Maya to where it looks like this.
2. Then we have to create a new project. Go to file and then click on Project Window.
3. Once you click on it, a window like the one below should appear. Click the "New" button in the top right hand corner. Name the file whatever you would like and then press "Accept to begin animating.
4. Once the file is created, click on the tab named "Poly Modeling" so the banner looks like the below.
5. Click on the orange sphere, which is the shape farthest to the left, in the banner to create on your plan.
6. Click on the plane and drag to make your sphere the desired size you would like it at.
7. Once you have created your sphere you press "Save" or "Save As" under File. You do not need to repeat step 2 and 3 when working on this project again, simply just reopen this file.
Additional Resources
This tutorial will take you more in depth in the modeling process as well as teach you about texturing. I hope this will help you further your animations and help you in the future.
The short filmed I watched was called "First Date Short Film" by First Date Team. This film was about two people who met for a first date and as the date goes on incidence happen that reveal who they really are. At first you thought the girl was going to be cooler than the guy because he a nerd. However, we find out that the girl altered her appearance with makeup and implants. Even though she wasn't completely honest the guy still likes her and, instead of leaving, takes off his wig to revel a bald head. At the end they both skip off and live happily ever after. I really enjoyed this film because it was light hearted and sweet.
I Become A Film Critic
The animation was really good. All the characters had their own distinct quirks that made them them and were really fun to watch. These quirks also fit with the overall cartoonish feel of the film. The man on the date had a very exaggerated walk, bringing his knees up higher than the normal person. On the other hand the waiter took little steps that made him appear as if he were simply bouncing up and down rather than walking. The movements of the characters were very smooth, even when they grabbed something, there was nothing off, no spaces that wouldn't naturally be there, and, while it was cartoonish, it still had an element of realism. One thing they could do to improve the film is add more texture, everything was really flat. Adding texture would make it more entertaining and add more dimension. Overall, the production of the film was very good and smooth.
I Can Kind Of Do That
Watching an animated short while taking animation is cool because I can look and see what skills I can apply to my projects and what ones I already know. One of the skills I can learn to apply to my work is making peoples mouths move to talk. I think that would be really interesting to learn how to do because then I could make my own short film. Even though I can learn a lot of skills used in this project, I already know how to do some as well. One skill I already know how to use is the pin point tool/moving elbows and knees.
CGMeetUp. “CGI Animated Short Film "First Date Short Film" by First Date Team.” YouTube, YouTube, 18 Nov. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGoFcDR7Ia8. 18 Dec. 2017
China is know for producing most things we use here in the United States except cartoons. However the masterminds and animators apart of Up Studios in China are about to change that with their new cartoon. Trevor Lai, founder and leader of Up Studios, has been able to create a show called Super BOOMi that's the potential to go worldwide instead of just national in China. https://www.awn.com/animationworld/trevor-lai-and-super-boomi-taking-china-storm
Sketching Out The Plans
Throughout the article, the author shows how many Chinese animations and characters don't make it out of China. He shows us how Super BOOMi is different by how it focuses on universal themes and elements instead of having it focus specifically on Chinese culture and traditions like most animations Super BOOMi is different from other shows and why this one is spreading and the others aren't. Overall, throughout the article the points are supported.
do. The author does a really good job by doing this with his own commentary but also getting direct information and quotes from the creator himself, Trevor Lai. He also brings in evidence outside if the animation and tv realm by showing the character of the showing being placed in hotels, spreading the popularity of the show further. One weakness, however, is that the author doesn't really elaborate how
Getting To The Point
The authors main conclusions for this article are that the show Super BOOMi will soon reach audiences outside of China. He also sees a very bright future for Up Studios with them producing another show based off the book called Tomo. This show will also deal with universal themes hence the prediction for global success. As a whole I thought that the article was very well put together and all points helped support the idea that Up Studios as a whole would soon have global animations with Super BOOMi being the first of those animations. All the evidence added to the argument and had a purpose.
Final Thoughts
This article taught me how to make products that appeal to a wider audience. I can use this skill in the future when I start working in a creative field to help know how to make the most money off of what I'm creating. In order to make something appeal to a global audience it had to deal with themes that everyone can understand and relate to, instead of ones that are specific to one culture or country. I was able to understand the article pretty well because it didn't have to much tricky vocabulary. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this article and might do it more.
Citation: “Trevor Lai and 'Super BOOMi' Taking China by Storm.” Animation World Network, 12 Dec. 2017, www.awn.com/animationworld/trevor-lai-and-super-boomi-taking-china-storm. 18 Dec. 2017
