3.27.2009

Short Film Progress v.2

Here is what I finished up with after class 5.

The short is still in rough layout mode, basically a tightened animatic.

I tell you what, class 5 was harder than I expected. I use to be a peer buddy and loved helping others out and would always comment on as many peoples work as I could. It's a great way of meeting new students, making friends and polishing your own skills as an animator.

At the beginning of class 5 I made the decision not to be one anymore and put all of my focus first into my class and then others as much as I could. And it really paid off this term, granted I didn't get around to my friends work spaces (i tried :( lol) Even though I'm personally not as far along as I would like to be, I did what I could to the best of my ability. Working 70+ hrs a week, or working 20+ hr days some weeks was killer and drained me.

If it weren't for my classmates, the Puddy Carebear Crew I wouldn't have made the short I did. So for those who are parents or raising newborns, or for some that are working crunch time on films (ice age 3) or people who have to work 3 jobs to make a living to follow your dream, it will pay off!!! And you are here doing it for the right reasons, I have much respect for those people who make that choice.

Because when it comes down to it, and you have a dream, what are you going to do to make it happen?

Sure you can complain about work, or how crappy everything in life is, or blame others, and all you do is talk about what you wish you could be doing!

People! Wake up, you realize that no one has control over creating your happiness!! No one but you has that control!! And if you are surrounded by people that control that, WHY?? Seriously why? Put your energy where you want it to really go.

"easier said then done" or "it's not that easy" is what I always hear, yeah your exactly right! But guess what the secret is... "its not easy!" No one ever tells you that part, if it were easy everyone would do it. You have to work at it. So it comes back around to what are YOU going to do that separates you from everyone else?

It's getting up off your ass, shutting TV off, and putting in 1 hr here or 30 mins there. It's coming home from the longest day at work, and making sure you put the time in; may it be h/w, your film, whatever it may be!

Remember "Energy flows where attention goes"

And I believe my awesome class knows this very well.

Puddy Story Ninjas:

Ana Cunha
Andreas Koumpis
Annette Perin
Daniel Carey
Daniel Coes
Daniele Zannone
Frank Spalteholz
Gabor Lendvai
Irina Golina Sagatelian
Ricard Castany Boix

(I will get links to everyones websites soon!)

Make sure to check out their sites!

3.04.2009

Story Time!!!

Well I'm off to see the big story wizard with the Big Grin crew! We will be attending Robert McKee's Story Seminar!!

It is going to be an intense weekend but very much worth it! We are still working furiously hard on are feature film. Zac and Danny did an awesome job pitching out a sequence they storyboarded just over the weekend. And the presentation rocked! We have some time now to tweak and polish the boards and create a nice animatic before the big meeting!

I'll post up some photos once I get back!!

Short Film

Well I'm in class 5 at Animation Mentor and I had worked my way back into class with Mark Pudleiner!!

Thanks to Richard and Eray for making that happen! When I first started at AM Mark was my mentor, and it was his very first time teaching at AM as well. So I had to have class with him again. Not only that I decided that I wanted to do my short film in 2D! And there was no one better than Mark for helping me with 2D.

I've been itching to do 2D ever since I joined AM but I need to understand 3D I'm at AM to learn animation, may it be 2D or 3D its about quality animation!

AND! I have one of the best classes I've ever had at AM - usually classes are awesome and a few students really help push others but this class, EVERYONE helped everyone. We started are own group on skype and would meet every night of the week, especially during the brainstorming weeks. And it helped all of us come out with the greatest story possible. And we were all in different countries so finding the "perfect" time was impossible.

We all stayed up late just so we could help each other out. And to me that's what collaboration is all about. Ya sure, you can go off and not give any feedback in the school and think you can do it all by yourself, but honestly you are missing out on the biggest advantage the school offers. Building relationships with super amazingly talented people from all over the world!!!

I wanted to share some early rough sketches for my short film from back in January, now these are just exploration and my buddy Zac told me about this awesome comic book called Hero Bear! The style in it is AMAZING! Very inspiring.

"Way UP High"

Layout ideas:



Picture ideas:



Boy Sketches:


Early Rough Storyboards:


Best advice for working on a short film is go get fresh eyes on it! Find or ask those certain people you can count on. Also, either working 2D, 3D- whatever always do a rough layout from a birds eye view so you (the director) know where everything will take place. It makes things much easier on you. Always storyboard even if you can't draw, make stick figures, start reading books about compositions.

Study your favorite movies and start analyzing them, study how the shots flow into one another, the use of color and how that is applying to the mood and tone of the film. Look at the editing, how many frames they stayed on an insert shot, or panned the camera a certain way, how did they do that transition you have never noticed before.

Become a student of the art.

More to come on my short film!! :D