George went over the work we will be doing with him this term, including how it can be incorporated in our FMP and with Serra’s side of the Adv&Exp unit.
We will be doing two animations with George, an advanced body mechanics shot and an acting shot. For the advanced body mechanics, we will be also covering some acting on top.
What is pantomime?
Dramatic or dancing performances with expressive body or face movements to convey the story.
Acting with the body: Creating clear, full body expressions. To fully convey this, staging needs to be set up first for the shot which includes:
Elements: Characters/Props/Sets
Camera: Placement/Angles
Action: What is happening in this shot?
Idea: Keep it to one idea at a time to not overwhelm the viewer
Point of the shot: What purpose does this shot have? Why include it? Make sure that is clear
Workflow Checklists:
George showed us some workflow checklist examples, aka ways to approach working on an animated shot. Workflow checklists are especially useful when starting out, later they become second nature but shouldn’t be forgotten. These checklists should include:
Additionally, it is important to consider the order of working with different parts of the character’s body. The example given to us was: hips > spine > head > arms > fingers > legs > feet
You don’t want to do clean up work on the arms and legs only to then change the hip placement and have to go back again to adjust the arms and legs. Work on the core first, then work outwards. This will change slightly if you have a specific shot where a different part of the body is leading everything else in place of the hips, so adjust accordingly.
This week’s assignment:
Rough planning drawing
Reference (video/filmed reference)
Shot thumbnails
Maya layout would be good, but not a requirement
Keep the shot to 5-10 seconds AT MOST (aim for 5 second range though, George would rather us have a nicer, more polished shot that is shorter than an unfinished longer shot)
Same as last week, mostly small fixes. I did swap out the tall guy with the main character in Shot 0110/0120/0125, and adjusted the animation accordingly. While there’s a lot of things I want to fix/improve on/add to my previs, I did really enjoy this project and it feels good to already have a good visual plan for my FMP. I do wish I had delved more into previsualising transitions between shots and such, but I’m planning to do this once I am able to come back to the development of the previs along with adding additional shots I didn’t have time for.
Previs Feedback:
In opening shots, the main character’s pose is too visually boring. Have hips and shoulders angled, head tilted, elbow more out, etc
Consider cutting Shot 0060, and have previous and next shot meld together instead (camera just getting closer). Something to play around with
Lots of character in Shot 0120. If buff guy was more stoic it would feel like a power struggle between him and the main character, with hyper kid just on the side doing his own thing. Instead there’s a nice contrast between stoic main character and hyper kid, with the buff guy acting as the big friendly giant trope bringing everyone together. These character’s feel like a team
This week was mainly small adjustments and fixes, with the bulk of the work going into adding another character to Shot 0120 and replacing the wolf with the wolfdog in Shot 0130. I do like how the previs is coming together, but I would have liked a few more shots in there. I don’t think I’ll have time to add the additional shots for this submission next week, but hopefully I will be able to do so next term. If not, I can always add them at the beginning of summer before I start doing full animation work.
Previs Feedback:
With Shot 0020/0040/0060, instead of changing the camera angle try instead having the camera zoom in more and more on the wolf with each shot, mirroring the zoom in on the main character. Could even add a reflection of the main character in the eye of the wolf, and have Shot 0060 be a super close up on the eye
The main character’s body and head should be turned a lot more towards the camera in Shot 0070
In Shot 0120, the main character (smaller female rig) should be in the middle. This might make the tall guy coming out from behind her a little difficult due to his height, but try it anyway and see if there’s a way around that issue
In the following shot (0125) have the characters spaced out in a more visually appealing way
For Shot 0130, don’t have the camera go quite completely side on, have a big of an angle on the wolf instead
Have the wolf pounce at the camera just before the cut in Shot 0170
Add more personality to the slouched guy front left and the muscly guy back right in Shot 0090 (table scene, now towards end). Can have the slouched guy’s head leaning back more as if he’s bored/tired. Muscly guy can be curled over eating, less focused on surroundings (if for example I want him to be the foodie guy, can be something else, just add more to his vibe)
Instead of barking, could try having the wolf tilt head back and howl in Shot 0200
While working on my previs this week, I was considering what sort of things I could fill the empty space with in the opening shots of the main character (Shot 0010/0030/0050/0070), and I remembered the striking visuals in the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners opening. I wanted to attempt recreating this in 3D to see if I could potentially develop my own version of it later for my FMP.
I started by roughly copying the pose of the main character, David, from the Edgerunners opening using the Minerva rig by Ramon Arango. I then used toon shaders and toon outlines to essentially create masks I could later use for the photography montages. If I do develop this technique for my FMP, it would be much simpler to use Nuke, but for this experiment I wanted to use the tools I already had access to for a quick test.
Next, I took a playblast PNG and brought that into DaVinci Resolve, where I used the separate colours as masks combined with various photo montages (with each image at 2 frames, again to match the Edgerunners opening as closely as possible for now).
For the photos themselves, I used stock images that I then took into Photoshop and edited to have the same posterised, comic look to them, along with the same colour scheme. I chose nature photos to go within the character, signifying her home and her culture, and then city photos for the background to represent the city she is in during the show and how much this contrasts against her core values.
I wanted to add in some of the bold yellow seen in the original opening, so I used a Paper Effect keyed to expand outwards as a replacement for this.
I really like the results, and I’m looking forward to developing the technique to be more personalised for my FMP. I also made sure throughout the process that everything I was doing would be the same if the character was animated, so if I have time in the coming weeks I would like to try the same technique on an animated character. While the character isn’t animated, I still used an image sequence playblast to ensure I was testing that it would work the same.
As for the main previs itself, the updates were mostly to Shot 0020, 0060, and 0180. I added backgrounds to Shot 0020 and 0060, and also adjusted the pose for Shot 0060. I really like the idea of the wolf slowly pacing through a city, with the city being miniature compared to the wolf. I would want to make sure there are enough visual elements to avoid the city looking like a miniature set with a normal sized wolf verses a to scale city with a giant wolf. I also adjusted the poses on shot 0180 and added in the viewport FX slash to the weapon. I think the arm should be lagging behind even more than it already is, so I want to push that more next time.
While I struggled a bit to get all of the remaining shots blocked out in 3D, I managed to do so and I was also able to get 2 shots to blocked animation, which I’m happy with. With Shot 0120, I like how much personality the smaller male character has, but it does mean the lack of which in the middle character is more distracting. I really like how Shot 0180 came out, but I do want to improve on the posing and pacing a lot more when it comes to fully animating that shot.
Previs Feedback:
For Shot 0020, the background needs to be more populated, even if its just boxes for now
Shot 0010/0030/0050/0070 have the same problem where the background is too plain. Something needs to be going on around the character, otherwise it feels too dull (especially with the earlier shots where the camera is so far back most of the screen is empty space)
These Shots also should be of the main character stand in rig (the smaller female one)
In Shot 0120, add in the main character or someone else walking on other side of sword guy. Have their movement/personality contrast with hyperactive guy on the right
For the same shot and for the following shot [this isn’t in the storyboard, but file for this shot names it as Shot 0125] have the middle guy turn his head and react to the hyperactive guy coming into his view, as currently its weird that he doesn’t react at all
As the hammer impacts with the ground in Shot 0130, have the camera shake and pan downwards a little bit as if the viewer is feeling the impact. This will also allow for nicer framing at the wolf runs out of the smoke
For Shot 0170, have the wolf do much more of a dramatic turn as it enters, as if it can barely control itself with how fast it is moving. Follow this with more of a body swing as it impacts the wall rather than all of the body hitting at once
Work on the posing in Shot 0180. The body should be a lot more tilted back before the character swings her weapon, and the arm should lag behind more as her body twists into the swinging motion. Again, try experimenting with the Maya viewport FX pack to add some nice motion lines to the weapon swing
In Shot 0200, have the wolf’s head/body turned a little so it isn’t completely side on. It will feel more dynamic
I wasn’t in classes this week, but George still gave me some feedback through syncsketch which was super helpful. I also made extra use of something I try to do a bit usually, where I write my own feedback after not looking at the work for a day or two so I have a fresher take on it. This also proved helpful, since even though I will think these things to myself having them written down allows me to remember and consider my own reflections more.
Some of my own feedback I noted down:
I tried moving table scene (Shot 0090 and 0100) right the the end, but feels a bit too slice of life-ish compared to the gritty/janky/punk vibe I was going for. Character animation could help with this though. For now I have instead placed it just before Shot 0190, as I feel this retains the fast paced janky vibe I prefer.
Shot 0120 feels a bit dull, so I would like to add something more to that.
I also decided that I’ll remove Shot 0150 + 0160 as these shots feel out of place and for me they break the immersion due to that.
For Shot 0180, the punch action feels a bit dull also, but I would still like a hype action shot in its place. I’m considering a shot of the main character swinging their weapon (a Falx, a traditional Dacian weapon) towards the camera instead.
Finally, the dance at the end feels too slow compared to the fast paced, hype vibe to the rest of the opening, so I would like to change the dance at some point. The shot still works for timing and transition concept purposes, so changing the dance is something I’m considering lower priority for now.
Previs Feedback:
For Shot 0120, maybe instead of just walking his friends run past him and then he starts running?
Currently, the camera in Shot 0130 rotates as the wolf runs out of the smoke to be above the wolf, then it rotates again to be a side shot of the wolf. The amount of rotation in one shot feels weird, so try going straight from the first camera angle into the side shot instead
For Shot 0180, it could be good to experiment with some Maya viewport FX to make the shot more interesting
All shots should be at least blocked out in 3D by now, so have that done for next week
Still behind schedule this week with a just under half the shots still being storyboard panels, and I think I focused too much on individual shots rather than having everything at least in 3D stills, but I am happy that I managed to get one of the longer shots (Shot 0130) roughly animated. I did unfortunately have some issues cycling the run animation for the wolf, I want to go back and see if I can fix the cycling with some graph cleanup and tweaking. George did also recommend me a different, simpler rig to use though, so unless fixing the current wolf is reasonably quick I might just use the other rig instead.
I’m still finding it a little difficult to get the camera angles I had in mind working in 3D, so once I’m done blocking all of the shots I want to go back and tweak a few of those.
I wanted to add a fast paced punky song to the previs as this is the kind of music I would like to use for the FMP, so I chose “Worms On Tarmac” by Soft Play (latest fav band). I am also planning to find the email address for their manager to give a shot at asking if I can use the song. I have other songs in mind from smaller artists that I could use, but while studying my BA I was able to get permission to use a Porter Robinson song at no cost (despite offering) and he was a much bigger artist than Soft Play at the time of my enquiry, so I think it’s worth asking. I would like to have some kind of style concept/work to send with the email before I ask though, so I’m planning on waiting until around the start of Term 3.
Previs Feedback
George recommended this Wolfdog rig as an alternative to the one I’m currently using (since I had some issues with it in Shot 0130)
For Shot 0170, try animating the camera slightly following the wolf’s movement with some lag as if a real person is filming it
For the transition between shot 0190 and 0200, could try something like the transition here
Week 3 Assignment Work: Character Sheets + Continued Shot Blocking
This week we were supposed to have all of our shots roughly blocked out and combined into a previs draft video, but I unfortunately fell behind schedule due to other projects so I only managed to update 3 of the shot blocks from last weeks feedback in that regard. I did manage to write up character sheets for my main character and the wolf character, as well as do some visual inspiration research for each.
Additionally, as I mentioned last week I didn’t think to include the updated storyboards for Idea 1 and Idea 3 for last week’s review, so I also showed those to George this week to show I applied his feedback.
Idea 1 Storyboard Updated:
While I found applying George’s feedback for this idea did improve the idea a lot, I still struggled to refine the storyboard to a point where I felt satisfied with it. The idea still feels weak to me, probably due to a lack of clear, strong, emotional beats. I do think that if I had chosen/in the future chose this idea to develop that those emotional beats could be added and refined to strengthen this idea further.
Idea 3 Storyboard Update:
I didn’t end up updating this storyboard since George said it was already solid, while quite short with not much depth, so there wasn’t a lot to comment on. Thinking more about this feedback though, I thought that rather than focus on multiple children witnessing these animals, it could be one child we follow through the advert to allow for more personal connection to the child character and the experience they are having.
Character Sheets:
I enjoyed making these character sheets, and reflecting on last weeks lessons helped me realise how useful these sheets will be when planning and animating these characters. I would like to also make similar character sheets for the secondary/background characters for this reason. While making them, I was also considering more how the fictional world of this fake show works, and what it is like for these characters to live in this world. I would also like to put more time into the world building and set design to build upon these initial ideas, so that the opening achieves what show openings should and fully sets the tone of the world, characters, and story.
Continued Shot Blocking:
before / after
Shot 0090
Shot 0100
Shot 0180
I would have liked to have done more shot blocking, but I am happy with the improvements I made to these shots. I do think the wolf in Shot 0180 could be even bigger, but the current increase in size already helps a lot. I have also realised now that when capturing the newer version of Shot 0090 I used the wrong keyframed poses (which are from Shot 0100) so I need to change that as I liked the ones in the older version.
Continued Shot Blocking Feedback
Shot 0090
Much better, try to have less of the previous empty space in other shots
Shot 0100
George liked the difference in how everyone is posed, as it gives each character different personalities
Some of the silhouettes could be clearer
Shot 0180
Make wolf even bigger
Maybe also shrink dumpster more to make wolf feel bigger
George recommended I look at the wolf animation in Thor: Ragnarok, as this wolf is huge and the animation + camera angles really sell that even in shots without immediately clear size references
As well as making the dumpster smaller, I think it would help if when I am modeling/building the environment for this shot, I add in lots more items for scale reference (such as cardboard boxes, litter, bottles, etc)
Went over class content for both week 3 and week 4 this week, so that we can have more taught content to work with and implement sooner
Telling Stories Through the Camera: Establishing Shots
Establishing shot (how this immediately tell the viewer what is happening and where the story is at before going into the story itself. For example, The Simpsons often shows a shot of the family’s house with sitcom music playing to set where the story is taking place and (with the type of music used) the tone of the setting.
We were given some links to examples and analysis of establishing shots, and basic stablishing shots in Maya
During this part of the lesson, I was considering how my second idea, the one I’m currently planning to focus on developing, is basically all establishing shots due to the nature of how show opening’s work. Every shot in an opening is setting the mood and giving context to the show it is leading to.
180 Rule:
The 180-degree rule is a cinematography guideline that helps filmmakers establish the spatial relationships between characters in a scene. It’s also known as the 180 rule.
How it works
Imagine a straight line drawn between the heads of two characters.
Keep the camera on one side of the line for the entire scene.
The characters should maintain their relative positions to each other.
Why it’s important
The 180-degree rule helps the audience understand the scene’s geography and the characters’ relationships.
It helps maintain visual consistency throughout a film.
It helps create dialogue scenes that feel consistent.
Breaking the rule
Intentionally breaking the 180-degree rule can be used as a technique to further the story.
For example, a director might break the rule to symbolize shock or to disorient the audience.
Though a bit loosely connected, the 180 rule reminded me of this video I watched a while ago analysing the introduction of Bumi, a character from Legend of Korra. The video focuses on how much context was packed into the 5 second character introduction, how well it was done, and touches on how the rest of the series often fails to carry this success forward.
Telling Stories Through the Camera: Characters
Establishing characters by:
drawing up designs (even if we plan to use premade rigs)
creating a short bio describing who the character is and where they are in the story
listing characteristics that demonstrate character’s motivations and why they are who they are (don’t just say a character is ‘quirky’, why are they quirky? how are they quirky?)
What makes a compelling character:
Sympathetic (different from likeable)
Nuanced (they have layers)
Flawed (they’re not perfect)
Active (they go after what they want)
Important to really think how we want our characters to be introduced
Show not tell: in the context of character’s, show the viewer the character’s personality through the character’s actions
This week’s assignment:
1. Shot blocking: Continue to flesh out/develop our chosen idea. Continue creating layout/previs shots, and combine them into a video to create a first previs draft.
2. Character Biographies: Write some backstory, characteristics/traits for our characters. These things should drive how we visualise them.
I didn’t think to include the storyboards updated from last week’s feedback in this review, so George asked that I include them for next week for him to see and give further feedback on.
Idea 1 Moodboard:
I wanted this idea to be set in a world and time similar to medieval Europe. Within this world there is a magic system, and the greater population fears and hunts down those capable of using magic. I wanted the main character to be a blood mage who harnesses his power from his own and other’s blood, similar to a demon character from the anime Frieren. For the shots of the mage demonstrating his power, I have been imagining visuals similar to those shown in the season 1 episode 2 opening scene of Arcane, and the Atlantis scene of Kida sacrificing herself.
I found it a bit tricky to find visual reference for blood magic as I was picturing it, but I would also consider the blood bending scenes from both Avatar the Last Airbender and Legend of Korra as reference. Though these (from what I remember), don’t show blood being manipulated outside of the body, these scenes could be used as character animation reference.
Idea 2 Moodboard:
The first moodboard is more for visual style, where the second is for setting and vibe. I do feel I should have utilised more of the taught content from last week for these boards, as I don’t think they show enough for worldbuilding. Because this idea is an opening, I initially thought I wouldn’t be focusing much on world building, but as I mentioned above I now realise that the world building is even more important for an opening as an opening should show the context and tone for this.
Wanted bright colours, interesting visual styles, visual metaphors, etc.
Want a mix of folklore/ancient mythology and cyberpunk vibes
This week has helped me decide I want to have at least a rough plot and setting planned out for the fake show this opening would be for, as that will drive the majority of what I do for the opening.
Idea 3:
I again didn’t focus enough here on the worldbuilding for this idea as I could have. I struggled to do this as this idea is pretty basic in this regard from my viewpoint, as it is set in real world, modern day London, and the animals are just a fantasy added on top.
While looking for visual research, I did remember the animals conjured by Sandy in Rise of the Guardians, which I would like to draw from as photorealistic creatures by themselves don’t feel as fantastical and eye-catching. I did consider these things when creating the storyboard for this idea, but I hadn’t yet found a visual inspiration for this.
Initial Shot Blocking:
Storyboard Panel / Maya Shot Blocking:
Shot 0010
Shot 0020
Shot 0030
Shot 0040
Shot 0090
Shot 0100
Shot 0110
Shot 0180
I struggled a bit to replicate the camera angles and poses from my storyboard, but I do also prefer the last three shots to the storyboard panels as the perspectives and framings feel more correct and appealing.
Moodboards + Initial Shot Blocking Feedback:
Moodboard Feedback from George:
Chosen Idea (Idea 2) Moodboard:
Make sure to keep these bright colours throughout the film
Tie down the vibe of the opening since there’s conflicting vibes from the openings shown. It is serious like Arcane? Silly/funny like Dandadan? A good mix like Chainsaw Man?
I think I would like my opening to be a good mix with a leaning towards silly/funny, so I need to have this in mind when developing this idea in the coming weeks.
Shot Blocking Feedback from George:
Shot 0010:
Could zoom in more, or at least add something to the background to make it more interesting
I have a couple things I would like to try out for this shot for the background, including light projection like in the Arcane season 2 opening, and a photography/graphic montage like in the Edgerunners opening.
Shot 0030:
Character could have turned more at this point
Character could also be stood a bit to the side so he’s less centred for a more interesting/appealing shot
I want to block out the poses for all the opening shots before adjusting how much the character turns further, as the opening shots are zooming in one after another as the character turns. I would like to have the final pose of the turn blocked before adjusting the ones in the middle.
Shot 0090:
Zoom camera into table more. Storyboard panel felt much nicer and intimate, the space around the Maya blocking feels weird
Shot 0100:
Have all the characters looking towards the main character (who is sat at the end of the table closest to the camera
Could potentially cut to each character between Shot 0090 and this one, with a quick little intro for each, before we see them all together here
I liked the idea of cutting to each character with a mini character intro for each, so I want to look into examples of this being done for inspiration on how I could implement this.
Shot 0110:
Could maybe tighten up shot to show character from knees/waist up instead of full body
My original plan for this shot was for the camera to be animated doing a slight rotation around the character as he walks forward, keeping the frame of the buildings around his upper body throughout the shot. I would like to try this first to see if it helps make the shot more appealing, and depending on how it looks I will also/instead try George’s suggestion.
Shot 0180:
Make wolf bigger, doesn’t feel very intimidating/interesting being so small on screen
Add in buildings at the back of the shot (where the alley ends) with silhouette
As shown in my Idea 2 Moodboard, I did actually think of Moro (the white wolf) from Princess Mononoke as visual inspiration for the wolf in this idea, so I agree that it should be a lot bigger in this shot to have the same mythical and intimidating vibe.
I really enjoyed the animation assignments this semester. Even though I learnt most of the equivalent material while studying for a year on 2D Animation on my BA, I skipped over a lot of them when learning 3D animation because, at the time, I didn’t think I would need to relearn the fundamentals. Yet now I can look back at my animation work before coming to UAL and see where not having relearnt them held me back a lot. At the time, I might have had the knowledge from my time on 2D, but I wasn’t always applying it to my 3D work.
The feedback sessions were super helpful, both for getting feedback on my own work and seeing the work of my classmates.
I would like to do more of these exercises (such as the previously mentioned ball bounces with different weights), so I plan to do this in my own time as personal work.
