Film Making

BBC Horizon - Extreme Dinosaurs

2008-08-12T11:30:00.000-07:00

BBC Horizon - Extreme Dinosaurs - The Science Of Giants
English | 640×352 | 700MB

Information

Amazing new discoveries in South America are revolutionising what we thought we knew about the dinosaur world. It now seems that South America was home to both the largest meat-eater - so new it’s still without a name - and the largest herbivore - the enormous long-necked Argentinasaurus. And what’s more, these dinosaurs lived at the same time in the same place. So it’s possible that like in a science fiction movie, in this prehistoric world these two giants of their kind fought each other in a spectacular clash of the Titans.

Horizon follows the scientists to Argentina as they unearth one of these giants - a brand new species of dinosaur; the biggest carnivore ever discovered. Not yet named, this new creature is even bigger than T. rex, the so-called ‘king’ of the carnivores. The new giant South American predator had a skull bigger than a man that was full of serrated, knife-like teeth and long powerful jaw muscles. They could dissect their prey with almost surgical precision.

But even this formidable killing machine couldn’t alone have taken on the massive long-neck, Argentinasaurus, which was the height of a five-storey building. It must have hunted in a pack. The problem is, the mega-meat-eaters have always been assumed to have been solitary creatures. The evidence shows that they lived and hunted alone. If they weren’t pack hunters, then they would never have attacked Argentinasaurus. So it looked like the idea of a mighty battle between these two giants was simply science fiction. But extraordinary new clues are proving otherwise.

I Can't Get Over You - The Queers

2008-08-10T03:59:00.001-07:00

James Baxter

2008-08-10T03:45:00.000-07:00

At sixteen, James Baxter was involved with animation, moving cutouts before a super-8mm camera. During his summer vacation, he heard that Who Framed Roger Rabbit was starting production in London. He submitted a videotape of his work, and was hired as an in-betweener. Upon moving to California, he was assigned to The Little Mermaid and he later worked on The Rescuers Down Under.

Supervising Animator:

Joanna (The Rescuers Down Under)
Belle (Beauty and the Beast)
Rafiki (The Lion King)
Quasimodo (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)
Tulio (The Road To El Dorado)
Spirit (Spirit)

Animator:

Old Moses (The Prince of Egypt)

Assistant Animator:

Roger Rabbit, The Weasels (Who Framed Roger Rabbit)
Ariel, Triton (The Little Mermaid)

James Baxter Pencil Test

Eric lerner

2008-08-07T23:13:00.000-07:00

Watch his awesome music video, hey don't forget to check his site Eric Lerner

Quentin Blake

2008-08-05T22:22:00.000-07:00

Celia Calle

2008-07-24T23:48:00.000-07:00

Celia Calle

Michel Gagne

2008-07-24T23:19:00.000-07:00

Michel Gagne

RATATOUILLE

In the Fall of 2006, I was contacted by Brad Bird to create a series of animated vignettes for his movie Ratatouille. The concept was to design and animate abstract representations of what the character was tasting.

After discussing ideas and concepts with Brad Bird, I created a series of images to illustrate potential ideas of how the taste could be visualized in an abstract way. These were reviewed by Brad and shown to the music composer as inspiration

Conceptual Artwork | Remy's Visualization | Drawings | Compositing and Digital Enhancements | Final Compositing

Taste Visualization for Pixar's Ratatouille

OSMOSIS JONES

During production, I came up with an idea to do the opening titles and setting them up in a microscopic world.

I pitched the idea to the directors and producer but was told that most likely the Farelly brothers' team would be handling that part of the movie. Undeterred, I decided to go ahead on my own time and produce the sequence without permission.

I storyboarded and created all the animation on paper. Then, I recruited Ryan Woodward to digitally composite the elements, add the camera moves and apply the various filters to produce the final look of the piece.

Needless to say, it didn't take long for the folks at Warners to warm up to my idea and the sequence was quickly integrated in the film. When you watch the clip, look closely at all the different organisms. Each one has a unique way to move, swim and walk about.

Osmosis Jones FX Animation & Designs

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2008-07-10T00:50:00.000-07:00

If you guys want anything.. Comment below, and we need your support to grow this link

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Dilbert Comic Strips

2008-07-02T13:05:00.000-07:00

Guard Dog

2008-06-30T11:16:00.000-07:00

How To Make Love To A Woman

2008-06-30T11:12:00.000-07:00

25 Ways To Quit Smoking

2008-06-30T11:04:00.000-07:00

Focus Multimedia - Job Interview Skills

2008-06-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

Focus Multimedia - Job Interview Skills

Training CD + Bonus Book | 479 MB | English | win RAR

Have you ever been in a job interview and been asked questions that have made your mind go blank? Questions like “what are your strengths?”, or even worse – “what are your weaknesses?”

“what are your strengths?”, or even worse – “what are your weaknesses?”

Whether you’re new to the job market, out of work or looking for a new challenge, Teaching-you Job Interview Skills

helps you gauge the best answers to even the toughestquestions that an interviewer can fire at you.

No two job interviews are the same and the key to success lies in thorough preparation and practice. Teaching-you Job

Interview Skills provides everything you need to make a good impression and supply the interviewer with the answers

they’re looking for.

Designed to eliminate stress and nerves, Teaching-you Job Interview Skills will boost your confidence and prepare you

for anything the interviewer decides to throw at you. With random interviewer selection and random question choice, the

interview practice is reflective of a real interview situation. Practice answering over 500 video interview questions, with the

added advantage of a useful hints section which explains the nature of the question and provides examples of what you

should - and shouldn’t - say. Teaching-you Job Interview Skills gives you the confidence and interview know-how to go

out there and secure the job of your dreams.

Foundation ActionScript Animation: Making Things Move!

2008-06-21T01:51:00.000-07:00

Foundation ActionScript Animation: Making Things Move!
PDF | 488 pages | 9 MB

Sure you can animate using motion tweens, in fact we'll help you do that with our Flash Cartoon Animation book, but isn't there something extra special in making things move with just a few lines of code?

In this book Keith Peters guides us through some basic animation theory and then demystifies the math and physics behind creating realistic animation, looking at trigonometry, velocity and acceleration, and bouncing & friction.

This book will teach you how to use Flash ActionScript to move the objects in your movies, rather than letting Flash's tween engine do it for you. The benefit of this is smaller, more realistic, more dynamic interactive movies that seem to come alive on your screen. Almost all of the code featured in this book will work fine in either Flash MX 2004 or Flash 8, and with a few minor adjustments, most of it can even be applied to Flash MX.

Although the text covers many advanced math and physics concepts, making for very realistic motion, there's no need to worry, even if you're a relative newcomer to programming and the last math class you took was in high school (and even if you barely remember that!).

This book first covers everything you need to know to get started: the principles of animation, and the basics of ActionScript, trigonometry, and Flash rendering methods. You'll work your way slowly from using code to move a single object across the screen to creating complex systems that really push Flash's capabilities with topics covered including collision detection, particle attraction, and kinematics. The book concludes with looking at 3D animation techniques, including building a basic 3D engine, 3D lines, fills and solids, and matrix math.

Download

| Foundation ActionScript Animation |

Foundation Flash Cartoon Animation

2008-06-20T23:08:00.000-07:00

"Foundation Flash Cartoon Animation"
PDF | 350 pages | 8.3 MB

Whether you are an experienced Flash designer or developer looking for a guide to doing animation in Flash, or a novice to Flash who is looking for an effective way to create and distribute animations, this book will prove invaluable to you.

Covering every aspect of Flash animation, the book is a fast-paced yet thorough review of the Flash animation process. Written by the Emmy-Award winning team at ANIMAX, this book not only reveals the step-by-step process followed by one of today's leading Flash animation studios, it gives you valuable tips and tricks to take your Flash animation to the next level.

Divided into three phases of production (pre-production, animation, post-production) this book breaks the Flash animation process into smaller, more manageable steps. And because the authors approach the animation process from various perspectives (such as producer, animator, and editor) the book balances many of the real-world issues facing today's Flash animators, from artistic to technical to financial.

The book starts off by looking at planning and designing an animation project, including working out your goals, and putting together character libraries and storyboards. Next up we look at the production phase, which includes using plug-ins to make your work more efficient, implementing your animation, and adding special effects. Finally, we look at post-production work, including how After Effects can be used effectively alongside Flash for tasks such as camera mechanics, how to make Flash not look like Flash, and tips and tricks from the experts.

Whatever the reason, like millions of others around the world you've become interested in Flash animation. And you've come to the right place to learn more. This book is compatible with pretty much any fairly recent version of Flash.

Covers the full process of Flash animation, through preproduction, production, and post production
Covers many practical techniques, including creating character libraries, using plugins, and camera mechanics with After Effects.
Written by the Emmy award winning ANIMAX studios team

What you'll learn

How to effectively plan an animation project
How to put together storyboards
How to create elegant character libraries
How to set up your .fla file, ready for animation to commence
How to make more efficient use of your time with plugins, where to find good plugins, and how to create your own
How to animate, frame by frame, or using tweens
Why After Effects can be better than Flash for some tasks.
Effective After Effects Techniques, such as camera mechanics
How to make Flash not look like Flash

Summary of Contents

Chapter 1 - The Project Plan
Chapter 2 - Character Libraries
Chapter 3 - Storyboards and Animatics
Chapter 4 - Setting Up Your FLA
Chapter 5 - Plug-ins and Extensions
Chapter 6 - Frame by Frame Animation
Chapter 7 - Animating With Tweens
Chapter 8 - Animation Special Effects
Chapter 9 - Why Use After Effects?
Chapter 10 - After Effects and Camera Mechanics
Chapter 11 - Making Flash Not Look Like Flash
Chapter 12 - Tips and Tricks

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| Foundation Flash Cartoon Animation|

Blade Runner: Pan - Scan vs. Widescreen

2008-05-20T12:15:00.000-07:00

Blade Runner: Pan & Scan vs. Widescreen

Aspect Ratio Video

2008-05-20T12:04:00.000-07:00

Aspect Ratio Video

Kev's Guide To Widescreen TV

2008-05-20T11:53:00.000-07:00

Kev's Guide To Widescreen TV

DJTV TechKnow Episode 104: Widescreen TV

2008-05-20T11:43:00.000-07:00

DJTV TechKnow Episode 104: Widescreen TV

9/11 Mysteries & Demolitions

2008-05-07T23:13:00.000-07:00

9/11 Mysteries & Demolitions

Bombs were set on twin towers to destroy them, that is what this documentary says.

90 minutes of pure demolition evidence and analysis, laced with eye-opening witness testimonials. Moving from "the myth" through "the analysis" and into "the players," careful deconstruction of the official story set right alongside clean, clear science. The 9/11 picture is not one of politics or nationalism or loyalty, but one of strict and simple physics. How do you get a 10-second 110-story pancake collapse?

A movie that might actually reach our complacent mainstream. No agenda. No finger-pointing. Just the facts and the "mysteries." Look at that. Think about this. A story of people: Willie Rodriguez's strange recollection of noises on the 34th floor. Who was up there, bumping around? Scott Forbes' similar story, weeks before the towers fell. A story of blasting itself. Here's how shaped charges slice through steel beams to control the way they fall.

"Excellent. The best of the 9/11 movies." --David Ray Griffin, author of The New Pearl Harbor

"WOW! is my reaction to this movie. Great insight into demolitions and what really happened on 9/11/2001." --Steven E. Jones, physics professor, Brigham Young University

"An outstanding contribution to understanding 9/11. Simply superb." --James H. Fetzer, founder, Scholars for 911 Truth

"A superb work and asset to the patriot community and America itself." --Aaron Russo, producer/director, America: From Freedom to Fascism.

Download

Ice Age 3 - Scrat Collection + Bonus

2008-05-05T21:26:00.000-07:00

Ice Age 3 : Dawn of the Dinosaurs
Scrat Collection + Bonus
AVI | 640x480 | 00:30:02 | 375 Mb

The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

2008-05-05T04:45:00.000-07:00

Walt Disney Treasures:
The Adventures of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

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| Trolley_Troubles - 1927 |
A cow, a widely varying track, a goat, and hills all pose problems for Oswald and the trolley full of young passengers that he conducts.

| Oh_Teacher - 1927 |
This short depicts Oswald's bicycle ride to school and his recess time plot to win over a female classmate by getting revenge on a rival.

| Great_Guns - 1927 |
After enlisting and kissing his lover goodbye, Oswald finds himself in the midst of trench warfare. There, he does battle with a defenseless little mouse and a disapproving big bear.

| The_Mechanical_Cow - 1927 |
Oswald wakes up a mechanical cow and the two work together to serve milk to young animals. The cow becomes a rescue means when Oswald's lady friend is abducted by monstrous trigger-happy gangsters.

| The_Ocean_Hop - 1927 |
Oswald competes in an airplane race against the unscrupulous Pegleg Pete, who's not above dirty (or sticky) tricks.

| All_Wet - 1927 |
After a day of selling most unusual hot dogs, Oswald bribes his way into a lifeguard position. Just then, his gal pal needs rescuing.

| Rival_Romeos - 1928 |
Oswald rushes to get to his feline love interest before another animal suitor (a bear?). While there, Oswald's efforts to serenade the cat are thwarted by a hungry goat.

| Bright_Lights - 1928 |
Lacking the 50 cents needed for admission, Oswald sneaks into a shimmy dance show, resulting in quite the wild mayhem to eject him from the theater.

| Ozzie_of_the_Mounted - 1928 |
As a member of the mounted police, Oswald tries to catch wanted criminal pegleg pete, taking chase on a mechanical horse.

| Oh_What_a_Knight - 1928 |
Oswald's efforts to woo a lady in a tower lead to him having to duel with her armored protective father for her hand.

| Sky_Scrappers__1928 |
On a day of construction work, Oswald buys a box lunch from his love interest and then must defend her honor by standing up to a much larger co-worker.

| The_Fox_Chase - 1928 |
Oswald has some troubles as one of many participants in a bumpy fox hunt.

| Tall_Timber - 1928 |
Misadventures abound as Oswald's day of outdoor activities like canoeing and hunting is intruded upon by a bird, a bear, and some boulders.

| Alice_Gets_Stung - 1925 |
This short eventually lives up to its title, but not until young human girl Alice gets caught up in animal antics including Julius the cat chasing a rabbit and bottom-swapping bears.

| Alice_in_the_Wooly_West - 1926 |
Alice is primarily a spectator as cats and bears play rodeo and cowboy bandits.

| Alice_s_Balloon_Race - 1926 |
Alice participates in a hot air balloon race, as does Julius the cat who has all sorts of wacky ideas, most involving other animals, to overcome various obstacles.

| Plane_Crazy - 1928 |
As pilot of a small newly-built airplane, Mickey Mouse runs into some takeoff trouble (and Clarabelle Cow, then called Carolyn). Good thing Minnie is there to help steer him right!

| Steamboat_Willie - 1928 |
You're not a serious fan of Disney animation if the iconic image of Mickey Mouse whistling and steering a boat isn't already burnt into your consciousness. The rest of this milestone short isn't as apt to turn up in company retrospectives: Mickey helps a tardy Minnie board the ship, has some run-ins with bully boss Pete, and uses a variety of objects and animals to play "Turkey in the Straw."

The Art of Monster Inc.

2008-05-04T06:13:00.000-07:00

The Art of Monster Inc.
English | 144 pages | PDF | 220 MB

Download Part 1-5

Download Part 2-5

Download Part 3-5

Download Part 4-5

Download Part 5-5

The Art of Car

2008-05-04T06:08:00.000-07:00

The Art of Car
English | 160 pages | PDF | 320MB

Download Part 1-4

Download Part 2-4

Download Part 3-4

Download Part 4-4

Advent Children Reunion Character Files

2008-05-04T06:02:00.000-07:00

Advent Children Reunion Character Files

English - Japanese | 122 pages | CBR | 70MB

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Cloverfield Has a Monster Opening

2008-05-03T02:44:00.000-07:00

Cloverfield Has a Monster Opening

Paramount's CLOVERFIELD (with vfx from Double Negative and Tippett Studio) devoured the box office competition for the first three days of the MLK holiday weekend (Jan. 20), boasting the best January opening ever with an estimated $40M. Meanwhile, Fox's 27 DRESSES debuted in second place with $22.7M. Last week's winner, THE BUCKET LIST, followed in third for Warner Bros. with $14M for a cume of $41.5M. Fox Searchlight's Oscar-contending JUNO settled for fourth with $9.9M and an impressive tally of $85M. Fifth place belonged to Screen Gems' FIRST SUNDAY with $7.8M and a cume of $28.4M. The sixth place finisher was NATIONAL TREASURE: BOOK OF SECRETS (with vfx from Asylum and Fusion CI Studios), which dug up another $7.609M for Buena Vista, raising its total to $197.4M. Overture's MAD MONEY debuted in seventh with $7.6M. Fox's ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS (with vfx from Rhythm & Hues) slipped to eighth with $6.9M to bring its terrific tally to $196.2M. Warner Bros.' I AM LEGEND (with vfx from Sony Pictures Imageworks) staked the ninth spot with $4.8M for a lively cume of $247.4M. And holding 10th again was Golden Globe winner ATONEMENT from Focus Features with $4.7M for a cume of $31.8M.

On the animation front, Universal's VeggieTales movie, THE PIRATES WHO DON'T DO ANYTHING, managed only $2.8M in its second week for a tally of $7.7M, while Sony Pictures Classics' Oscar-contending PERSEPOLIS added $281,000, raising its total to $910,000. Box office information obtained from boxofficemojo.com.

Rocket Science Studios creates animated ad film for Force Motors

2008-05-03T02:38:00.000-07:00

Rocket Science Studios creates animated ad film for Force Motors

Use of animation in advertising campaigns is growing trend today and the newest company to animate their advert is Force Motors.

Their new 20 second ad, sports 3D animation which is the result of a great deal of effort put in by Rocket Science Studios. The film was executed for Purav Sood an Independent Film Maker in collaboration with Triton Communication.

The ad has an architectural plot which beautifully displays the assembling of each part of the machine and finally presents the redesigned vehicle, so as to show the high-tech engineering used. This ad has been created to showcase Force Motors in a new light. The company has reinvented the design of their vehicle to be more contemporary and comfortable.

Throwing light on other important aspects, Evon Reddy, one of the founders of Rocket Science Studios said, “It took us two weeks, including conceptualization, for making the ad film. Each aspect of the execution was pre-calculated before assigning manpower and systems to the project, making it a procedural pipeline. I am happy that we were able to deliver creative and beautiful visual solutions to the complex shots and worked efficiently under very demanding circumstances.”

Akash Reddy, the Creative Director of the project headed a team of 20 professionals. When asked about the challenges faced, Akash Reddy told AnimationXpress.com, “The concept envisioned called for a photorealistic rendering. The main challenge was modeling hundreds of pieces, then animating the broken pieces and having them blend-in seamlessly.”

Evon Reddy explained, “It was a challenging commercial as it needed spirited team work to complete it on-schedule, as per the visualization. Our primary focus was on communicating the revolutionary model of Force Motors with new age technology and design”. Considering the responses so far he added, “Our client audience expects us to maintain and better the standards. Each of our varied experiences has taught us to think strategically, understand the story structure & balance both the creative & business ends of the process.”

A highly enthusiastic Reddy concluded by saying, “It’s immensely satisfying to execute such challenging projects and move a step ahead.”

hemaroo's Ghatothkach at Cannes

2008-05-03T02:33:00.000-07:00

Ghatothkach - Master of Magic, the 90-minute 2D animated film by Mumbai based Shemaroo Entertainment and Hyderabad based Sun Animatics, is all set to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival 2008.

"The film was previously promoted at the Cannes Film Festival 2007. After the phenomenal response that we got last year, the film is now being screened at Cannes to give international exposure," shared Smita Maroo, Head of Animation at Shemaroo.

"Through this, we hope to make people believe that good content can be produced in India. It is also for promoting the film and making people all over the world aware about the character," she added.

The film is directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao, who has more than 50 years of experience in the Indian and South Indian film industries. He has 60 films to his credits including films like Pushpak, Appuraja and Son of Aladdin, a 3D animated film which has been appreciated round the world.

Budgeted at Rs 150 million, the 100-minute long film is targeted at children in the age group of four to 10 years. The film is slated for a May 23 worldwide release and has been dubbed in seven different languages namely English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Bengali with English subtitles for USA and Canada.

The film is the journey of a prince and his elephant friend - it is full of magic. When challenged by evil forces that are out to destroy him and to stop him from fulfilling his destiny, Ghattu and Gajju form an invincible team to fight them. Together they unite two soul-mates against all odds.

Ghatothkach, lovingly called Ghattu is the prince of the forest and is blessed with extra-ordinary powers. He has loads of fun with his magical powers, but also uses them to protect everyone around him. As a five year old, he rescues Gajju, a baby elephant which leads to a lifelong friendship.

Many big names from the Indian film industry have worked on it on different fronts. Lyrics for this movie are by Sameer and the songs have been sung by Shravan (Hanuman Fame), Shaan, Shreya Ghosal, Sunidhi Chauhan, Sudeesh Bhosle, Mahalaxmi Iyer and Daler Mehandi.

Owell Mina has worked as the Animation Director for the film. He has 20 years of experience in animation industry with world class series shows like Legend of Dragon and Little Amadeus to his credit.

The music is composed by Pravin Mani, associate of Indian Prodigy AR Rehman. 48 Camera Motion Capture Technology has been used for the film.

Ward Kimball On MySpace

2008-05-03T02:24:00.001-07:00

Ward Kimball On MySpace

One of nine old men in Disney..

http://myspace.com/wardkimball

Skunk Fu - Official website

2008-05-03T02:16:00.000-07:00

-Official Website-

Animation August 2007

2008-05-03T02:10:00.000-07:00

Animation August 2007
PDF | English | 7,7 MB

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Animation October 2008

2008-05-03T02:06:00.000-07:00

Animation October 2007

PDF | English | 6,8 MB

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Animation April 2008

2008-05-03T01:59:00.000-07:00

Animation April 2008
PDF | English | 3,8 MB

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Animation December 2007

2008-05-03T01:45:00.000-07:00

Animation December 2007
PDF |English | 7.35 MB

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Animation January 2008

2008-05-03T01:42:00.000-07:00

Animation January 2008

PDF |English | 11.3 MB

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Animation February 2008

2008-05-03T01:38:00.000-07:00

Animation February 2008
PDF |English | 7.3 MB

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Animation March 2008

2008-05-03T01:31:00.000-07:00

Animation March 2008
PDF |English | 5.4 MB

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Animation May 2008

2008-05-03T01:25:00.000-07:00

Animation May 2008
PDF | English | 7 MB

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Better Software Magazine, May 2008

2008-05-03T01:14:00.000-07:00

Better Software Magazine, May 2008
English
48 pages
EXE
16.6 Mb

The only magazine that provides insight and techniques to improve results throughout software development. Better Software is the magazine for software professionals who care about quality. Each issue brings you relevant, timely information to help you build better software. Continuing to deliver in-depth articles on testing, tools, defect tracking, metrics, and management, it's the only commercial magazine exclusively dedicated to software professionals.

Better Software is the magazine for software professionals who care about quality. Each issue brings you relevant, timely information to help you build better software. Continuing to deliver in-depth articles on testing, tools, defect tracking, metrics, and management, it's the only commercial magazine exclusively dedicated to software professionals.

Within the pages of each issue you'll find heavy hitting articles about solutions to common management problems, coverage on emerging technologies, and more. You'll benefit from expert analysis and real-world case studies in the areas of Testing & Analysis, Managing People & Teams, and Tools & Techniques.

Download PDF 16Mb

300 - best trailor

2008-04-01T10:26:00.000-07:00

Must Watch.. Awesome Trailor

Men In Black - Experiment Comic style animation

2008-04-01T09:59:00.000-07:00

Men In Black

Flickermood - Typography

2008-03-24T22:46:00.000-07:00

FlickerMood

Marcellus Wallace - Typography

2008-03-24T22:42:00.000-07:00

Motion Graphics..

Marcellus Wallace

The Art of Glen Keane

2008-03-24T21:47:00.000-07:00

The Art of Glen Keane

Vaibhav Kumaresh - Vaibhav Studios

2008-03-23T22:27:00.000-07:00

Endearing characters roll off his fingers

Vaibhav Kumaresh is playing God - in less than a week, he'll be breathing life into characters he is moulding for an ad shoot, for Cartoon Network. Like any other kid, Vaibhav doodled his way through school and only realised much later, that he could turn it into a profession thanks to a Visual Communication and Animation Design course at the National Institute of Design, NID, at Ahmedabad.

Today, Kumaresh has an impressive body of work. After Poga of MTV which won gold for the best animation at the Promax Asia Awards 2003, he went on to set up his own studio and more awards came his way. Since then, he's done the Amaron claymation commercials and created that lovable Sardar teacher, Simpu on Channel V.

Today, this gifted animator is busy with a new project, every month or so. He takes up only one project a month, so he can give it his complete attention. He confesses to being very happy doing all kinds of animation because it allows him to work with different mediums.

But he also feels that comparisons between the Indian animation industry with Europe or the US is unfair because abroad, "animation is much older. Audiences have been exposed to it for a much longer time. People have been making films, learning from their mistakes, basically the process (abroad) is atleast 18 years old. And, its been around 15 years since animation has picked up as a profession in India. So, I think there is still a long way to go before we are as experienced in the medium as the West."

But is the quality of the animation coming out of India today, matching up to international standards, or are we putting out slipshod stuff? He says, "We haven't applied ourselves enought to long format storytelling and we haven't done it sincerely or consistently enough. So, it works both ways, we need to put in better effort and the infrastructure has got to improve."

Keeping this in mind, what kind of work is being outsourced by Italian and French studios to India? He explains, "There are different structures of studios operating in India. Currently, the more lucrative kind is the type that is totally running on outsourced work."

After the awards and the recognition, he set up his own studio and he calls it the most happy moment in his life, well, possibly after his marriage though! He says, "It's definitely better, it's more independent. You are handling your own money and not someone else's money. In all aspects, creatively and financially, you get to work with the best people. Your planning projects that you really want to do and like to do."

The most important factor in any man's success is support from his family. His father pointed him in the right direction by telling him about the course at NID and even enrolling him in. Also, Kumaresh readily acknowledges his wife, Suranjana's role in giving him the space and the encouragement. She is also an NID alumni and she doubles up as partner and co-director in her husband's studio.

When they aren't working, the two attempt to cook a meal together, though Kumaresh might just find animation that much easier! Animated movies are something else he likes to unwind with, and his favourite is ofcourse, the adorable 'Lion King'. He says this movie has got all the ingredients - style, characters and storytelling - just perfect.

Manali Rohinesh

Source: Money Control

the 11 second club

2008-03-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

Rigs for Character Animators

the 11 second club

Animation Fields and Field Sizes

2008-03-15T01:57:00.000-07:00

Animation Fields and Field Sizes

In 2D animation, centimetres and inches are used to specify distances and lengths, but there is another measurement system used unique to animation: fields.

A field is a measurement of area rather than length; think of a field as being the shape of a TV screen. A drawing that is 1 field in size will be a small rectangle that is one inch across and about .75 inches high. A 6 field drawing will be 6 inches across, and so on.

Let's start by looking at how the size and framing of animation drawings are specified. It is important that everyone working on an animated production knows this. There are standard ways of achieving this very easily.

To create 2D drawn animation, you use punched paper which sits on a pegbar for registration.

In the UK, “Acme” pegs are used – these are the familiar two slot shaped holes and one round hole as shown in the illustration below. In the examples to follow, the peg holes are at the bottom of the paper so are called "bottom pegged”.

Let us suppose that you are ready to animate. You have a pile of punched paper and a lightbox on which to work complete with a pegbar.

Each sheet of paper will look something like this:

Where is the actual drawing area? The animation paper is blank, so there is no initial clue as to where the edges of the drawing should be.

[For the time being, assume you are going to produce animation in the normal TV screen shape and not the letterbox (widescreen) shape.This will be dealt with later].

Below, the illustration indicates a normal drawing area together with some dimensions in inches.

There are three things you need in order to accurately describe the size and position of an animation drawing:

its shape
its size
the location of its centre

The shape of the example shown above is 4 x 3 which means it is 4 units across by 3 high. (4 x 3 = four by three).

Size: animation drawings are made to certain fixed field sizes, usually between 3 and 12 inches.
The size of the drawing above is 12 field (written as 12F) – this means it is 12 inches wide and roughly 8.85 inches high (roughly 4 x 3). A 6Fdrawing would be 6 inches across, and so on.

The actual size you make your drawings when you animate is a matter of personal choice. The 12F size is commonly used in the UK for TV production so is a sort of default size; you may feel more comfortable working at, say an 8F instead. There are also larger standard field sizes in animation, mostly used for cinema work where greater accuracy of drawing is needed. The largest commonly used field size is probably 16F, (mostly used in the USA). The shape, on the other hand is entirely dependent on the final means of transmission; if it's a piece of animation for the Internet, the shape is arbitary, but for television or cinema use, you must work to the shape of the screen that the animation will be seen on.

Its centre is located 5.75 inches immediately above the centre of the round peg hole.
In the illustration below, the cross marks the centre of the drawing area - and that is the same as the centre of the animation when it is seen by the viewer.
You can also think of the cross as representing the middle point of the viewfinder of the camera that will be used to film your animation. Nowadays, of course, a real camera may never be used to film the animation, but you will find that almost all professional animation programs will continue to use the term "camera" as it makes life a lot easier.

The cross is the centre of your drawing area and it is also the centre of the camera's viewfinder. It is therefore the centre of the final image as it will appear when it is broadcast or projected.

ALWAYS specify the centre of all artwork, preferably with a drawing, unless it is at the default centre as seen above; in this instance you can specify it by writing on the dopesheet that the size is :

This stands for "12 field centre", the crossed "C" signifying the Academy centre. (The crossed C can be used with any field size, not just 12, of course).

The easiest way to produce your work at a standard size (and of knowing where the centre is) is by getting your hands on an animation graticule (also called a field chart). Normally these show all the field sizes from 1F to 12F

A typical 12F Academy Field Chart:

Hopefully, the above should now be obvious as to its design and use. Field charts printed on acetate are available from animation supply companies.

There are also field charts available for larger field sizes. Unfortunately, if you are working in 4 x 3 shape, the centre cannot stay the same for larger field sizes as you would find that the pegbar would have to be placed within the artwork area. There are therefore different standard centres for larger field sizes.

An added complication nowadays is the need to produce animation for widescreen (also called "letterbox") shape. In fact, if you work on a 15F widescreen, you can keep to the standard 12F centre.

The simplest way to avoid all possible confusion is: draw a camera guide!

The basic widescreen shape is 16 x 9 and when you animate for that shape, you should act as though your field chart is the shape below:

I am not aware of these being available commercially; however, if you have a look at the notes on this site about designing for widescreen, it should be obvious how to deal with the matter. The real problem is in making sure that animation will work in 4 x 3 shape and 16 x 9 shape and sometimes also the compromise 14 x 9 shape and these notes will explain how to cope.

Note: whether you are working in 16 x 9 shape or 4 x 3, if the distance between the chart centre to the pegs is the standard distance 5.75 inches, you can use the crossed C to indicate it is centred; if you place the centre anywhere else, specify where the centre is with a drawing (a camera guide) and do not use the crossed C symbol

A basic camera guide should look something like this:

Sanjay Patel - Animator

2008-03-13T23:23:00.000-07:00

Sanjay Patel is an animator and storyboard artist at Pixar Animation Studios. He spends a lot of time looking for taquerias that will serve him french fries along with his burritos. He was born in England and raised in L.S. but has never been to India.

Website

Sanjay Patel

Film Directing SHOTS

2008-03-13T22:38:00.000-07:00

One of the most over used cliches in film is "The Shots are all you have." Film Directing SHOTS: The following are what you need to think about practically so you can think creatively and device the best shot list you possibly can:

QUESTIONS TO ASK?
-What is the best viewpoint for filming this position of the event?
-How much area should be included in this shot?

SCENE - Defines the place or setting where the action is laid
SHOT - Defines a continuous view filmed by one camera without interuption
SEQUENCE - A series of scenes or shot complete in itself

TYPES OF CAMERA ANGLES
OBJECTIVE - The audience point of view
SUBJECTIVE - The camera acts as the viewers eyes-movement
POINT OF VIEW - What the character is seeing

SIX BASIC SHOTS

1) Extreme Long Shot
Taken at a great distance. Almost always an exterior shot and shows much of the locale. Used a lot in Establishing shots

2) Long Shot
The distance between the audience and the stage in the live theatre

3) Full Shot
Barely including the whole body

4) Medium Shot
Knees to waste up. Useful for exposition scenes, carrying movement and for dialogue

5) Close Up
Concentrates on a relatively small object. HUMAN FACE

6) Extreme Close-Up
Might just show eyes or mouth

CAMERA ANGLES

Are the most important factor in producing illusion of scenic depth.Which angle the object is photographed.

FIVE BASIC ANGLES

EYE LEVEL SHOTS- Provide frames of reference. Audience sees the event as if the scene happening right in front of them. Most scenes in movies are photographed from eye level. 5 to 6 feet off the ground. Capturing the clearest view of an object
-Used to treat your characters as equals. Discourages viewers at judging them. Permits audience to make up their own mind.

BIRDS EYE VIEW- Photographing a scene from DIRECTLY OVERHEAD. Hovers from ABOVE like all powerful gods. IDEA OF FATE

HIGH ANGLED SHOTS- Camera is tilted downward. Besides the obvious power shot, movement is slowed down during fast moving action. Ground is in the background. A person seems harmless and insignificant is photographed from above.
-The higher the angle, the more it tends to imply fatality

LOW ANGLES SHOTS- Camera it titled upwards. Use to inspire awe or excitement. Motion in speeded up. Environment is usually minimized. Sky or ceiling is background.
-Heightens the importance of a subject. Scenes depicting heroism

OBLIQUE ANGLE- Lateral tilt of the camera. As though the object is about to fall to one side. Point of view shots. Suggests tension, transitions, impending movement
-Image that slants to the right – Acting Forceful
-Image that slants to the left – Weak, Static

ASK YOURSELF

-How much should be included in this shot?
-Where should the camera be positioned to view this particular part of the action?

A SHOT SHOULD BE HELD NO LONGER THAN REQUIRED TO MAKE ITS POINT

Approach each sequence with a fresh attitude and strive to treat the action in an individual matter.

A definite change in camera angles will assure a smother flow of images

CLOSE-UPS

-Among the most powerful storytelling devices available to the filmmaker
-Allows removal of tedious or repetitious action
-Can be used to provide a time laspe
-Brings that dramatic punch

FRAMES-Area near the top of the frame can suggest ideas dealing with power, authority and apiration
-Left and right edges of the frame can suggest insignificance
-Dominant Contrast - Area the immediately attracts our attention because of a conspicuous and compelling contrast
-Subsidiary Contrast - Structured image so that specific images are followed in sequence

THE HUMAN EYE SCANS PICTURES FROM LEFT TO RIGHT

HORIZONTAL LINES - MOVE FROM LEFT TO RIGHT
VERTICAL LINES - MOVE FROM TOP TO BOTTOM

DIAGONAL OR OBLIQUE LINES tend to sweep upward

TERRITORIAL SPACE - Movie images must tell a story in time, a story that involves human beings and their problems

THREE VISUAL PLACES

-Midground
-Foreground
-Background

CRUCIAL DECISION - How much detail should be included within the frame?

HOW CLOSE SHOULD WE GET TO THE SUBJECT?
-How much space is just right for the shot?
-What’s too much or too little

AN ACTOR CAN BE PHOTOGRAPHED IN FIVE BASIC POSITION

1) Full Front - Facing the camera
-Most intimate, vulnerabilities exposed
-Audience agrees to become his chosen confidante

2) Quarter Turn
-Involves a high degree of intimacy but with less emotional involvement

3) PROFILE - Looking off frame, left to right
-Character lost in their own thoughts

4) Three Quarter Turn
-More anonymous. Rejecting audiences

5) Back to Camera-Characters alienation from the world. Sense of concealment, mystery

Tightly framed shots - CONFINED

Loosely framed shots - FREEDOM

USING SPACE IN FOUR WAYS

1)INTIMATE
Eighteen inches away. Distance of LOVE, COMFORT, TENDERNESS between individuals

2)PERSONAL
-Eighteen inches to about four feet away. Reserved for friends and acquaintances

3)SOCIAL
-Four feet to about twelve feet away. Business and casual social gatherings

4)PUBLIC
-Twelve to about twenty feet away

Storyboards - Movie Storyboard and What is a Storyboard Artist

2008-03-13T21:04:00.000-07:00

STORYBOARDS AND WHAT IS A STORYBOARD ARTIST

By Matthew Taylor

(Matthew Taylor is an independent film director, screenwriter and professional storyboard artist currently living in Toronto, Canada.)

“History of Storyboards”

During the filming of his legendary movie “Hell’s Angels”, producer, director, and aviator Howard Hughes was faced with addressing the first multi-million dollar budget in film history, the advent of sound in film, the use of multicolor, and most importantly to his mind, how to shoot one of the most dynamic and outrageously dangerous scenes in cinematic history. Scenes involving the recreation of the glorious air battles that were fought over the skies of WWI Europe. Hughes, if anything was the master of the long-term plan and in order to succeed with bringing this, and his vision to the screen, he needed to lay his master plan out clearly; as much for himself, for his own clarity and hierarchy of needs, as for his entire production crew. This is arguably where the first sequential storyboards were used in motion pictures.

Of course, up until this time, singular artistic impressions, sketches, production designs and illustrations for film were in full use but none so far had been developed into framed continuous order, a blue print for the film before-it-was-filmed. And Hugh’s Hell’s Angels was a unique situation that demanded its precise arrangement and balance between story, action, effects, screen direction, cost concerns, teamwork and safety to be clearly stated (safety fell tragically short of the mark as three stunt pilots died and Hughes himself flew the final sequences when others refused). But from this point on the storyboard was to become an integral part of a great many film director’s vernacular and process. As an example, years later, renowned for his precise directorial style, Alfred Hitchcock would also pick up the pencil and use the storyboarding process to solidify his vision for most if not all of his feature films. Having studied art and illustration, and beginning his film career working as an Art Director, Hitchcock had become a sharp draftsman and visualist, thus allowing him to draw many of his own storyboards to a high degree of refinement. Some might say the boards themselves were works of art. This was the perfect synthesis between the director as storyteller, the script, and the final film.

Others too, had similar backgrounds and found the process a natural one. Ridley Scott: art school, illustration, art director, then director. His storyboards were to become so synonymous with his filmmaking that they would affectionately be known and referred to by his crew as the “Ridley-O-Grams”. Terry Gilliam was also an illustrator and animator and his storyboards can be found attached to almost all of the DVDs of his films today, as part of “the making of” or extras features. His drawing style uses a loose, comical technique, perfect to convey his whimsical, mad aesthetic, which informs much of the images and angles found in all of his films, not least of which, the film Brazil.

In the arena of animation, Director Brad Bird, perhaps illustrates the full circle of storyboarding and the degree to which the process can be taken. After years of training as a storyboard artist at Disney, schooled through the Disney process of storytelling through character, Bird’s feature film debut as writer-director was The Iron Giant and later the hit film The Incredibles, both highly creative and successful films. The process of storyboarding for the latter actually became the writing process whereby the story meetings and pitch sessions were used to find the film through drawing it as they went, allowing the story to evolve before them.

As some screenwriters say, “writing is re-writing”, Brad Bird echoes that sentiment within his own variation, “Storyboarding is re-storyboarding”. And for the live action film director—the context of this article—re-storyboarding, can save much gnashing of teeth and heartache (i.e.: money and time) by avoiding…re-shooting. Or worse, not achieving the shot, scene, sequence or film you originally envisioned.

On a final note to this brief history of storyboarding: To my mind, the truly first storyboard artist where working away in the caves of Lascaux, France during the Upper Paleolithic Period. Painting their story in graphic terms on the rock walls in a sequence of events, around characters, the hunt, the change of day, migration, all in order to visualize things as they where or things as they where to be. It gets better. Most recently, and quite amazingly, science made an additional discovery: the actual locations of the paintings themselves were all at points of highest acoustical effect within he cave system suggesting, therefore, they were either chanting or singing while drawing or perhaps even while viewing the cave art. Seems like a soundtrack to me!
When Pablo Picasso first laid eyes on these cave walls and their drawings he said, “we have invented nothing!”

“They Could Draw, But I Can’t!”

I’ve talked about some heavy hitters and big films no doubt. But since this is an article written for the independent filmmaker/director I will make the assumption that there is little to no budget with which to hire a professional storyboard artist. And they can be expensive! Therefore you’ll be relying on your own skills and many might feel that in order to storyboard you have to maintain a comic book artist or illustrator’s skills in order to do it effectively. This can’t be further from the truth in my estimation.

Where it is true that a little graphic hand-eye skill can be helpful, it really relates to time. It takes time to draw highly refined, detailed boards regardless of your skill level and that is not cost effective unless you have money with which to buy the time you need. When you storyboard, or hire a storyboard artist, you are manipulating time by condensing the communication process to a pictorial simplification of a multitude of complicated factors. This can be achieved, in many cases, as simply as….a cave drawing. But in an aspect ratio.
For example, Martin Scorsese drew his own boards for Taxi Driver. That was a manic production schedule. His (storyboards) were stick figures. Literally. But, the films Cinematography, Michael Chapman (who equally needs little introduction) was quoted as saying that they were the best boards with which to work. Simple, to the point. They told the story and got out of the way.

There is also this to discuss. I worked as a camera assistant myself for a number of years and once, speaking to a now-A-list camera operator, we were discussing storyboards. He had worked with incredibly well drawn comic book-like storyboards before and wasn’t sold by their wow factor. He said this, “I’m an filmmaker too. What I do. When the boards are picture-perfect, where does my interpretation fit in?” I thought he made quite a valid point. Just enough and not too much, leaves room for the other collaborators to feel free to have their own feelings, ideas and thoughts about the film you’re making. And this can only make the film better.

If you’re still not convinced (there must be some ‘auteurs’ out there) I would suggest taking a life drawing course. My life-drawing instructor said to me, “the human body has every form in nature that you can draw”. He meant the circle, the S-curve and the perceived straight line. He continued, “If you can draw the human form, you can draw anything”. I would also suggest find a place that offers quick-sketching life drawing (short poses 1 to five minute posses) to develop speed and intuition. And the very basic of perspective drawing: One, two and three-point perspective.

The Disney life-drawing instructor, Glenn Vilppu, has a stellar series of books and DVDs online. I think his method and materials are an excellent starting point.

“What Can I Achieve With Storyboards”

Cost effective, accurate planning
Perceive possible continuity problems before they happen
Communication between departments
By having a plan, you can take advantage of “happy accidents” during filming and stay within the necessities of the scene.
Show by doing: convince yourself and others of the soundness of your concepts and ideas. If that doesn’t work, get new ones.
Storyboards can be a way for Directors to “rehearse” themselves. Or “doing the homework.”
Artistic and aesthetic vision remains consistent. Or inconsistent, but by design.
Screen direction (a very little talked about or acknowledge subject)
Stunts and special equipment planning
Special effects, CGI, etc
Develop a style by “in camera” edits as opposed to adhering to standard coverage.
Sales tool for funding.
Simple inspiration. The ‘what if’ factor for all creative heads.
The freedom to experiment without causing the producer to stroke-out

“A Thought For The Storyboard Artists”

Those 14 advantages above are just a few off the top of my head. But I would say, in a word directly to potential storyboard artists, beyond the obvious technical advantages that a storyboard artist brings to a production there are also the intangible factors. In my experience as a storyboard artist I have, at times, forged strong bonds with directors. A storyboard artist works very closely with a director and during periods of great pressure, most especially on tighter budgeted films. The good storyboard artist is not the person who comes out of their basement, a brilliant but strange, reclusive artist, imposing their habits, nuances and maybe film knowledge. Rather, it is about being malleable, receptive and a medium for someone else’s expression of creativity and vision. It’s a very supportive and therefore privileged place to be in film. Only then can you say you’ve “collaborated” on a film as a board artist and I would suggest that the boards themselves—regardless of draftsmanship—should reflect that successfully.

The other suggestion would be to find a way to work for a while on set. You will discover the language of production and be able to infuse your work with the controlling factors of filmmaking. From the floor up. Furthermore, Producers will also feel more inclined to hire you given that your boards won’t be flights of fancy but will reflect the concerns for which, in the end, they are responsible.

Even if your boards don’t improve from this artistically, your communication with directors certainly will, and you can get to drawing faster and that builds skill. In the end, Storyboards are just one step in many that bring the necessary cohesion of like-minds to focus on a picture.

“Let The Games Begin”

Almost every director, at some point, draws a film frame to illustrate an idea. The storyboard happens with the last frame, the one finishing their idea, is drawn. The in between is the telling. This is all you need to get started. But to develop shooting boards, ones that you can take to the floor and film, you need to have lined up certain basic elements.

Location. Either with digital photos, sketches or overhead plan-view, have your location and sets at the ready.
Develop an overhead view (like an architects diagram) of your blocking and staging. Use symbols for camera, character and elements.
By understanding the geographic and architectural constraints you’ll be establishing your boards within a dramatic context and you wouldn’t have to resort to a series of talking heads.
By combining both storyboards and over-head plans of camera movement etc—on the same page—you will be able to fill out in broad terms a clear series of images that will help to explain your intentions. Each can explain the other, should clarity wane.
Before you draw a single frame, let your mind wander over the pictures you have, the diagrams and drawings. This is rehearsal.
Draw this as though watching an ant colony.
Draw your camera angles.
Then you can begin by drawing rough sketches (later to finish) or draw the frames of what you have seen your cameras capture.
Add footnotes to help explain either of these two elements. You now have three elements with which to explain your ideas: Frames, Plan view, Notes
Find inspiration from all around you. Art, Photography, magazines, comics, whatever it takes to create a series of frames that expresses your story but also your dramatic intent.

This is just the start, there are dozens of other approaches, a wide variety of tricks -of-the-trades (blue penciling, photocopying, duplicating etc), which are time savers and other approaches, but the fundamentals are really quite basic. You simply draw, as directors, the story you see as the script takes it affect. The effectiveness of your storyboards occurs when others see the same story. To dive further into the process there are dozens of trade books and DVD extra features to watch. But like anything, you learning by doing.

The Following storyboards are from various productions on which I’ve worked. I’m going to show you the bumps and bruises in order show process as well and try and illustrate some of the ideas and points I’ve been writing about. To end, I’d like to paraphrase Alfred Hitchcock: You have a frame. Close your eyes and fill it.

The Following is a Set of Storyboards drawn for a Car Crash on a Film

Don Bluth's - Storyboard Notes

2008-03-13T20:34:00.000-07:00

Don Bluth's Animation Academy

How we Storyboard
Building the storyboard is an integral part of putting together an animated feature. The process provides not only a visual interpretation of the script, it also allows designers in each department to get a feel for what is being presented on screen.

Creating the visual story composed of consecutive storysketch panels that depict the action and staging of the film's script is the first step in the animation production process. The concepts and timing intiated here will be built upon by twenty or more departments, converting them into a final full color film. The storyboard is the basic game plan, the vision of continuity that will drive the entire production.
Storyboarding involves working from a film script to set a story down in picture or illustration form; rather like a comic book. The storyboard functions as the blueprint of an animated picture. The following is a breakdown of the story-sketch artist's set up, and the thought and drawing processes involved.

EQUIPMENT

PENCILS

Whatever the individual feels comfortable with. Anything from an HB to a 6B depending on the quality of the line and darkness of shadow required

PAPER

8.5 x 11, standard white

FIELD GUIDE

Story sketches are drawn to a standard 8 field size (5.5 x 10.25). This is traced down on the paper and represents the screen edge all around. Significant details will occasionally be drawn outside this cutoff since all production artwork is finished out to the edge of the paper. Wide screen projects will have altered field sizes and measurements.

XEROX™ MACHINE WITH VARIABLE SIZE CAPABILITY

It is frequently necessary to enlarge or reduce artwork to specific sizes, both to save time and for cutting purposes. Final approved boards are then enlarged or reduced to proper production size.

CHAIR

DESK

Any comfortable desk will suffice. An animation disk is not necessary, though backlight is sometimes useful.

OVERHEAD LIGHT

PENCIL SHARPENER

PIN-UP BOARDS

For displaying sketches in continuity.

PUSH PINS

To pin up sketches

X-ACTO™ BLADE

For cutting xerox copies before revising.

ERASERS

Plastic or kneaded soft eraser: the plastic for getting rid of drawings completely, the soft for lightening lines.

MODEL SHEETS AND REFERENCE

as needed.

It is also important to keep your work area neat and easily accessible. Keep the desk functional and as uncluttered as possible. Reference material should be pinned up or displayed for use as you draw.

THOUGHT PROCESSES

There is also a method for the thought process when creating boards. Consult your Director to find out as much as you can regarding your sequence. Story sketch, if done properly, looks easy, but the thinking involved is complex.

THINGS TO BE AWARE OF:

PLOT POINTS: Learn the script and how to differentiate between significant pivital action on which the plot hinges and entertaining business. When in doubt - CONSULT YOUR DIRECTOR.
ENTERTAINMENT: Does the scene possess entertainment value...drama, humor, shock, fear, endearment, etc?
SETTING: Where does the action take place? Desert or forest or ocean...etc.what time is it? Again, when in doubt, consult your Director - and your script.
STAGING: Where are the characters in relation to one another? What is the action and how can it be conveyed in the simplest, most direct way possible? When in doubt, consult your Director.
CUTTING: This can be very elusive. It involves some of the elements of staging, that is, awareness of action and character placement, but it also involves the pacing and how various effects are achieved.

For example:

These scenes all relate to one another, being various distances from the same object, but they affect us differently depending on their order. Trainees should study film techniques closely from books and films. Again, when in doubt, consult your Director.

NECESSARY DRAWING SKILLS

CHARACTER DRAWING

In order to get the film's characters to act and behave as you wish, a thorough understanding of their construction and proportions is necessary. Also, since we film everything from mice to humans, it is necessary to understand character size relationships, both to one another and to the setting.

PERSPECTIVES

A thorough understanding of perspective is important for creating the illusion of three dimension in a sketch. Without it, scale is impossible to convey. A close study of books and layout drawings is critical here.

DESIGN

A knowledge of design principles is just as important as a grasp of character drawing and perspective. It makes all the difference between excellent and mediocre storysketching. You will be drilled regularly in all of these aspects of drawing. Skills will vary from one trainee to another, as will difficulty of assignments. The same as with all other matters of great import, when in doubt, CONSULT YOUR DIRECTOR (and even when not in doubt).

This is the standard form most story sketches will take. This will differ slightly from vertical and horizontal pan moves, diagonal moves and camera trucks.

PLEASE NOTE: These last four examples involve special camera moves. These should be written on the sketch wherever they will not interfere with the drawing, i.e. outside the field guide.
Any special instructions involving characters, special effects animation or the set should be written inside the field guide, but judiciously, so as to avoid obscuring the drawing.

This is a rough outline of the craft of story sketch. Be patient with yourself. It takes time to master all aspects of this job and develop the judgment necessary to excel.

METHOD ANALYSIS - STORY SKETCH

Report to your Director.
Discuss the sequence of script you will be working on, to iron out any problems and get a firm picture of what the Director wants to achieve.
If requested by the Director, plan the sequence as small thumbnail sketches (no larger than 4 x 5) to work out staging and cutting. This may sometimes be necessary. If so, return to Director before going ahead.
Return to Desk.
Using all reference, including script and thumbnail sketches, work on full-size sketches, utilizing format described in the introduction section. These should be left in a rough state until the Director makes his judgement as to whether they are working. However, sketches should be complete enough that all different characters and important background details are distinguishable. Notes should also be written and properly placed.
Sequence is now completed in rough state and should be presented to the Director and any instruction changes he deems necessary should be in notes.
Return to desk and make necessary changes. Be patient because this stage may be repeated as many times as necessary to please the director.
When the Director has approved final changes, sketches should be brought to completed stage. Bear in mind your drawings must hold up under repeated xeroxing, including enlargement to production size, and reduction to storyboard size. All writing and drawing must read, so lines must be crisp.
Boards are now ready to be timed. Here again, the Director has ideas in mind which the story-sketch artist must grasp thoroughly to complete the job.
Footage for all sketches is noted on a round sticker at the top right corner of the story sketch, just inside the field cutoff.
After all notes and final touches are completed, the board should be presented to the Continuity Department for duplication and work preparation.
Note total footage of sequence for entry on your weekly report. This will be credited to you once final approval is official and your sketches have been reduced and pasted up as a finished storyboard.
Clear your desk of all extraneous matter, including discarded drawings and scraps, except for necessary reference materials and tools.
Report to your Director for new assignment.

KEY POINTS

A SEQUENCE consists of a series of SCENES which follow a particular event from beginning to conclusion. In live action, a sequence is generally termed a scene, while what we call a scene is a shot.
Be patient and consult the Director frequently. Story sketch is a refining process and bull sessions will improve your work.
One foot of film equals 16 frames or two-thirds of a second (the amount of time it takes for 16 frames to travel through to projector). The footage numbers are noted in base 16, with the remainder noted to the right. Thus:

one foot = 1-00 or 16 frames

two feet = 2-00 or 32 frames

one and one-half feet = 1-08 or 24 frames (1 second)

PLEASE NOTE: The story is constantly being amended. Changes will continue to be made as necessary to the benefit of the picture. No storyboard is truly completed until the sequence is in final color, and even then there are occasional alterations.

Spirit-Stallion of the Cimarron - Storyboards

2008-03-11T04:30:00.000-07:00

Over the Hedge - Storyboard

2008-03-11T04:13:00.000-07:00

Flushed Away - Storyboards

2008-03-11T04:07:00.000-07:00

Storyboard by Nassos Vakalis - Official Site

Sinbad - Modelsheet

2008-03-11T03:21:00.000-07:00

Brad Bird Composition Note - 2

2008-03-10T22:43:00.000-07:00

Brad Bird on Composition Part-2 PDF

KING KONG - Commentary

2008-03-10T21:44:00.000-07:00

English Composition
Washington State University
Delahoyde

KING KONG

Commentary

[Immediately after viewing the film, composition students in English 101, knowing that they would eventually have to write a formal interpretive analysis, were asked to offer some initial, ideally valuable, commentary. Their comments appear below in excerpted and italicized form. My own commentary on their commentary follows.]

kind of dumb because of the way characters are acting

[A vague and worthless observation, unless we ask and answer some questions: characters acting dumb how? Their overdramatic, self-important chatter?: "Yeah, that's a track alright!" "It's Kong alright!" "Just listen to those birds -- it's dawn alright!" "Keep quiet so he doesn't see us!" "Say, just look at the size of that brute!" "Boy, one swipe of that!" Dumb? Yes. But here was another way of expressing it:]

If the men are tracking, shouldn't they be quiet?

[Exactly! Why don't they? Obviously the director wanted to increase the sense of chaos with such noise; but consider further. Do all people in the film yammer endlessly like this? The natives have exciting rituals, but also keep a reverent silence when waiting for Kong. So look also at the result. In the world of the film, the white explorers seem unable to stop themselves -- they have to comment, usually about the size of everything they see, or about the damage it could do. We can add to this.]

How did Kong end up with dinosaurs?

[On the surface, of course, this is just the fantasy of the film -- big things that can kill you on an uncharted island. But the question does point out how Kong is different, and this is useful. How is he different from other monsters here? Other observations offer examples:]

Kong is a mammal instead of a reptile.
He comes to the sound of the gong.
King Kong must protect his woman.

[In some ways, this goes beyond animal instinct. Indeed, Kong seems more and more human as the film proceeds, which raises some ethical questions: The natives do kidnap Ann; but their relationship with Kong is what? They consider him as what? Is there a problem with this relationship? White society considers Kong what? How do they justify this to themselves? We're on the verge.]

If Kong is a giant gorilla, why the enormous fangs?
Why does a brontosaurus (a vegetarian species) attack and eat humans?

[The easy cheese-out here is to dismiss these as "dumb" mistakes, or as "totally unrealistic" (what exactly is a "realistic" dinosaur scene?). But the "errors" at least reflect (in the film) a way of seeing the world. So these reflect what view of the natural order? Once we're past the village wall, every living creature seems intent upon eating the white humans (and note how the natives and Kong innately value the white woman). So, on these grounds, what is the final perspective of the film?! How aware does the film finally seem about this?]

KING KONG

QUESTIONS FOR PRE-WRITING

Why "King Kong" and not just "Kong"?

Status and power? Bull; to the natives he is a god. King = white male power-politics version of god, or god politicized so that we can manipulate it. [Cp. "Tyrannosaurus Rex."]

What is the final moral of the film?

At the opening of the film we read this proverb: "And lo, the beast looked upon the face of beauty and from that time he stayed his hand from killing and was as one dead." Aboard ship, Denham harps on this beauty/beast theme (in development for movie, probably), regarding, as a joke first, Ann and the small monkey chained up, and then concerning Jack losing his edge (going "soft"). "I'm goin' right into a theme song here," he admits, concerning the beast who "could lick the world," but who "forgot his wisdom and the little fellahs licked 'im." [Wisdom?] At the show, the press stumbles into his set-up: "Beauty and the Beast, huh?" "That's it! Play up that angle! Beauty and the Beast. . . . That's your story, boys." Finally, the last words of the film are those of Denham saying, "It was Beauty killed the Beast."

So what is the final perspective of the film?
("Perhaps if you didn't see it, you could scream.")

Despite all the heavyhanded and sanctimonious moralizing inside the film (almost exclusively by the reprehensible Carl Denham) which has more or less been accepted at face value ever since the making of this film, King Kong is a movie about P.R. The film depicts the white male's cultural blindness to all else, even to "gods," which is what "King" Kong represents to the reverent natives (who are no goofier than the white explorers). Denham and the audience are blind to the crucifixion of this god, symbolically represented by Kong manacled to a wooden structure--so blind that the cheesy moral can pass unquestioned finally, which is the true horror, the real monstrosity.

Brad Bird Composition Notes - 1

2008-03-10T21:16:00.000-07:00

Brad Bird on Composition Part-1 PDF

Animation Notes From Ollie Johnston - by John Lasseter, Pixar

2008-03-06T23:36:00.000-08:00

"When I was an animator at the Disney Studios, I had a xeroxed list of simple notes from one of the great Disney animators, Ollie Johnston, pinned to my drawing table. The list was originally written down by another great Disney animator, Glen Keane, after working as Ollie’s assistant for a few years."

"These notes have been an inspiration to me for years. Even though they were meant for hand-drawn animation, I believe that they still apply to computer animation."

Don’t illustrate words or mechanical movements. Illustrate ideas or thoughts, with the attitudes and actions.
Squash and stretch entire body for attitudes.
If possible, make definite changes from one attitude to another in timing and expression.
What is the character thinking?
It is the thought and circumstances behind the action that will make the action interesting.

Example: A man walks up to a mailbox, drops in his letter and walks away.

A man desperately in love with a girl far away carefully mails a letter in which he has poured his heart out.

When drawing dialogue, go for phrasing. (Simplify the dialogue into pictures of the dominating vowel and consonant sounds, especially in fast dialogue.
Lift the body attitude 4 frames before dialogue modulation (but use identical timing on mouth as on X sheet).
Change of expression and major dialogue sounds are a point of interest. Do them, if at all possible, within a pose. If the head moves too much you won’t see the changes.
Don’t move anything unless it’s for a purpose.
Concentrate on drawing clear, not clean.
Don’t be careless.
Everything has a function. Don’t draw without knowing why.
Let the body attitude echo the facial.
Get the best picture in your drawing by thumbnails and exploring all avenues.
Analyze a character in a specific pose for the best areas to show stretch and squash. Keep these areas simple.
Picture in your head what it is you’re drawing.
Think in terms of drawing the whole character, not just the head or eyes, etc. Keep a balanced relation of one part of the drawing to the other.
Stage for most effective drawing.
Draw a profile of the drawing you’re working on every once in a while. A profile is easier on which to show the proper proportions of the face.
Usually the break in the eyebrow relates to the highpoint of the eye.
The eye is pulled by the eyebrow muscles.
Get a plastic quality in face — cheeks, mouth and eyes.
Attain a flow thru the body rhythm in your drawing.
Simple animated shapes.
The audience has a difficult time reading the first 6-8 frames in a scene.
Does the added action in a scene contribute to the main idea in that scene? Will it help sell it or confuse it?
Don’t animate for the sake of animation but think what the character is thinking and what the scene needs to fit into the sequence.
Actions can be eliminated and staging "cheated" if it simplifies the picture you are trying to show and is not disturbing to the audience.
Spend half your time planning your scene and the other half animating.
How to animate a scene of a four-legged character acting and walking: Work out the acting patterns first with the stretch and squash in the body, neck and head; then go back in and animate the legs. Finally, adjust the up and down motion on the body according to the legs.

Principles of Physical Animation

2008-03-06T23:16:00.000-08:00

Principles of Physical Animation

THE 12 BASIC PRINCIPLES OF ANIMATION Paraphrased by Nataha Lightfoot from the "Illusion Of Life" by Frank Thomas & Ollie Johnston.(pp.47-69) Look these up and read the original version for a complete understanding.

Squash and stretch
Anticipation
Staging
Straight Ahead Action and Pose to Pose
Follow Through and Overlapping Action
Slow In and Slow Out
Arcs
Secondary Action
Timing
Exaggeration
Solid Drawing (same or different as Weight)
Appeal

#1 SQUASH AND STRETCH

This action gives the illusion of weight and volume to a character as it moves. Also squash and stretch is useful in animating dialogue and doing facial expressions. How extreme the use of squash and stretch is, depends on what is required in animating the scene. Usually it's broader in a short style of picture and subtler in a feature. It is used in all forms of character animation from a bouncing ball to the body weight of a person walking. This is the most important element you will be required to master and will be used often.

#2 ANTICIPATION

This movement prepares the audience for a major action the character is about to perform, such as, starting to run, jump or change expression. A dancer does not just leap off the floor. A backwards motion occurs before the forward action is executed. The backward motion is the anticipation. A comic effect can be done by not using anticipation after a series of gags that used anticipation. Almost all real action has major or minor anticipation such as a pitcher's wind-up or a golfers' back swing. Feature animation is often less broad than short animation unless a scene requires it to develop a characters personality.

#3 STAGING

A pose or action should clearly communicate to the audience the attitude, mood, reaction or idea of the character as it relates to the story and continuity of the story line. The effective use of long, medium, or close up shots, as well as camera angles also helps in telling the story. There is a limited amount of time in a film, so each sequence, scene and frame of film must relate to the overall story. Do not confuse the audience with too many actions at once. Use one action clearly stated to get the idea across, unless you are animating a scene that is to depict clutter and confusion. Staging directs the audience's attention to the story or idea being told. Care must be taken in background design so it isn't obscuring the animation or competing with it due to excess detail behind the animation. Background and animation should work together as a pictorial unit in a scene.

#4 STRAIGHT AHEAD AND POSE TO POSE ANIMATION

Straight ahead animation starts at the first drawing and works drawing to drawing to the end of a scene. You can lose size, volume, and proportions with this method, but it does have spontaneity and freshness. Fast, wild action scenes are done this way. Pose to Pose is more planned out and charted with key drawings done at intervals throughout the scene. Size, volumes, and proportions are controlled better this way, as is the action. The lead animator will turn charting and keys over to his assistant. An assistant can be better used with this method so that the animator doesn't have to draw every drawing in a scene. An animator can do more scenes this way and concentrate on the planning of the animation. Many scenes use a bit of both methods of animation.

#5 FOLLOW THROUGH AND OVERLAPPING ACTION

When the main body of the character stops all other parts continue to catch up to the main mass of the character, such as arms, long hair, clothing, coat tails or a dress, floppy ears or a long tail (these follow the path of action). Nothing stops all at once. This is follow through. Overlapping action is when the character changes direction while his clothes or hair continues forward. The character is going in a new direction, to be followed, a number of frames later, by his clothes in the new direction. "DRAG," in animation, for example, would be when Goofy starts to run, but his head, ears, upper body, and clothes do not keep up with his legs. In features, this type of action is done more subtly. Example: When Snow White starts to dance, her dress does not begin to move with her immediately but catches up a few frames later. Long hair and animal tail will also be handled in the same manner. Timing becomes critical to the effectiveness of drag and the overlapping action.

#6 SLOW-OUT AND SLOW-IN

As action starts, we have more drawings near the starting pose, one or two in the middle, and more drawings near the next pose. Fewer drawings make the action faster and more drawings make the action slower. Slow-ins and slow-outs soften the action, making it more life-like. For a gag action, we may omit some slow-out or slow-ins for shock appeal or the surprise element. This will give more snap to the scene.

#7 ARCS

All actions, with few exceptions (such as the animation of a mechanical device), follow an arc or slightly circular path. This is especially true of the human figure and the action of animals. Arcs give animation a more natural action and better flow. Think of natural movements in the terms of a pendulum swinging. All arm movement, head turns and even eye movements are executed on an arcs.

#8 SECONDARY ACTION

This action adds to and enriches the main action and adds more dimension to the character animation, supplementing and/or re-enforcing the main action. Example: A character is angrily walking toward another character. The walk is forceful, aggressive, and forward leaning. The leg action is just short of a stomping walk. The secondary action is a few strong gestures of the arms working with the walk. Also, the possibility of dialogue being delivered at the same time with tilts and turns of the head to accentuate the walk and dialogue, but not so much as to distract from the walk action. All of these actions should work together in support of one another. Think of the walk as the primary action and arm swings, head bounce and all other actions of the body as secondary or supporting action.

#9 TIMING

Expertise in timing comes best with experience and personal experimentation, using the trial and error method in refining technique. The basics are: more drawings between poses slow and smooth the action. Fewer drawings make the action faster and crisper. A variety of slow and fast timing within a scene adds texture and interest to the movement. Most animation is done on twos (one drawing photographed on two frames of film) or on ones (one drawing photographed on each frame of film). Twos are used most of the time, and ones are used during camera moves such as trucks, pans and occasionally for subtle and quick dialogue animation. Also, there is timing in the acting of a character to establish mood, emotion, and reaction to another character or to a situation. Studying movement of actors and performers on stage and in films is useful when animating human or animal characters. This frame by frame examination of film footage will aid you in understanding timing for animation. This is a great way to learn from the others.

#10 EXAGGERATION

Exaggeration is not extreme distortion of a drawing or extremely broad, violent action all the time. It¹s like a caricature of facial features, expressions, poses, attitudes and actions. Action traced from live action film can be accurate, but stiff and mechanical. In feature animation, a character must move more broadly to look natural. The same is true of facial expressions, but the action should not be as broad as in a short cartoon style. Exaggeration in a walk or an eye movement or even a head turn will give your film more appeal. Use good taste and common sense to keep from becoming too theatrical and excessively animated

#11 SOLID DRAWING

The basic principles of drawing form, weight, volume solidity and the illusion of three dimension apply to animation as it does to academic drawing. The way you draw cartoons, you draw in the classical sense, using pencil sketches and drawings for reproduction of life. You transform these into color and movement giving the characters the illusion of three-and four-dimensional life. Three dimensional is movement in space. The fourth dimension is movement in time.

#12 APPEAL

A live performer has charisma. An animated character has appeal. Appealing animation does not mean just being cute and cuddly. All characters have to have appeal whether they are heroic, villainous, comic or cute. Appeal, as you will use it, includes an easy to read design, clear drawing, and personality development that will capture and involve the audience¹s interest. Early cartoons were basically a series of gags strung together on a main theme. Over the years, the artists have learned that to produce a feature there was a need for story continuity, character development and a higher quality of artwork throughout the entire production. Like all forms of story telling, the feature has to appeal to the mind as well as to the eye.

Eye Direction and Lying

2008-03-06T22:13:00.000-08:00

Eye Movement and Direction and How it Can Reveal the Truth or a Lie

This is a continuation of our previous article " Detecting Lies". Many comments by our visitors have asked about how eye direction can indicate the presence of a lie.

So can the direction a person's eyes reveal whether or not they are making a truthful statement? Short answer: sort of. But, it isn't as simple as some recent television shows or movies make it seem. In these shows a detective will deduce a person is being untruthful simply because they looked to the left or right while making a statement.

In reality, it would be foolish to make such a snap judgment without further investigation... but the technique does have some merit. So, here it is... read, ponder and test it on your friends and family to see how reliable it is for yourself.

Visual Accessing Cues

The first time "Visual Accessing Cues" were discussed (at least to my knowledge), was by Richard Bandler and John Grinder in their book "Frogs into Princes: Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) " From their experiments this is what they found:

When asked a question a "normally organized" right-handed person looks (from your viewpoint, looking at them):

Up and to the Left
Indicates: Visually Constructed Images (Vc)
If you asked someone to "Imagine a purple buffalo", this would be the direction their eyes moved in while thinking about the question as they "Visually Constructed" a purple buffalo in their mind.

Up and to the Right
Indicates: Visually Remembered Images (Vr)
If you asked someone to "What color was the first house you lived in?", this would be the direction their eyes moved in while thinking about the question as they "Visually Remembered" the color of their childhood home.

To the Left
Indicates: Auditory Constructed (Ac)
If you asked someone to "Try and create the highest the sound of the pitch possible in your head", this would be the direction their eyes moved in while thinking about the question as they "Auditorily Constructed" this this sound that they have never heard of.

To the Right
Indicates: Auditory Remembered (Ar)
If you asked someone to "Remember what their mother's voice sounds like ", this would be the direction their eyes moved in while thinking about the question as they "Auditorily Remembered " this sound.

Down and to the Left
Indicates: Feeling / Kinesthetic (F)
If you asked someone to "Can you remember the smell of a campfire? ", this would be the direction their eyes moved in while thinking about the question as they used recalled a smell, feeling, or taste.

Down and To the Right
Indicates: Internal Dialog (Ai)
This is the direction of someone eyes as they "talk to themselves".

The Gist of it...

How this information is used to detect lies:

Example: Let's say your child ask's you for a cookie, and you ask them "well, what did your mother say?" As they reply "Mom said... yes." they look to the left. This would indicate a made up answer as their eyes are showing a "constructed image or sound. Looking to the right would indicated a "remembered" voice or image, and thus would be telling the truth.

Animating two characters - Shawn Kelly (ILM Animator)

2008-03-06T21:40:00.000-08:00

Animating two characters

"I think my biggest tips would be:

1) film reference with a friend(s). Don't try to do reference of 2 characters acting with each other by yourself by filming one and then the other. You'll miss out on many opportunites to subtly interact that you would discover by filming reference with another person physically in the scene with you. Even if the characters never actually touch, this is a really important step.

2) Be very careful about leading the eye of the audience. It's better to have one character bordering on "dead" than having the audience not knowing where to look. Most importantly, make sure it's very clear which character is talking when. Overacting can wreck a scene, but it can doubly wreck a multiple character scene because you can't tell who is talking or who the animator wants you to be looking at.... Anticipation can help you direct the eye of the audience, as can staging/composition, etc.

Anticipation is one of the big ways though. It's like your secret line of communication with the audience. "hey - look over here because something funny is about to happen!" or maybe subtly moving a character's left hand just before he waves with his right gets the audience to switch over to look at that character and not miss the wave... "

Moving Hold - Bobby Beck (Pixar Animator)

2008-03-06T21:24:00.000-08:00

Bobby 'BOOM' Beck (Animator Pixar Studios)

Moving holds, thoughts on the character to be animated, making subtle animation interesting, blocking, rhythm of dialogue:

" 1. Moving holds? advance techiques. In all the pixar stuff the moving hold are excellent what advance techiques do you use? do you have some sort of noise on the bones?

First off, Animation is observation. If you are doing a shot where you really want to drive home a single idea we sometimes push that moment into a "POSE." that pose then needs to stay alive and we call this a moving hold. A moving hold is just as hard as any other part of your animation, if not more!

Before actually getting into the computer and posing things out I have a 90% clear idea of what I want to do already. I do this by "PLANNING" in depth most EVERY scene I tackle. Why do I do this? It saves me tons of time and sometimes at work we dont' have a lot of time and we need to be clear, communitcate the main story points, and get it done in a timly manner. Planning is the backbone of animation (for me).

The Reason I say this is that when I get to a point where I'm blocking my scene out I will already know which parts of the body will "land" first and possibly overshoot and settle. What's happening in the eyes? They eyes are key in any medium to close up shot. Especially for keeping your character alive.

So for moving holds I'd say, in my planning a lot of that stuff becomes clear to me via video reference (What am I doing in this moment? A subtle head move? What are my eyes doing, what are my hips doing???) all these questions become clear with observation and study.

2. What is your thought process before you animate your character? I.e What set of questions do you ask your self before you start on a acting piece?

#1 is "WHO IS THIS CHARACTER?" You have to know who your charcter is. That's not just to say it and dismiss it. If you are trying to convince people that your character has ANY kind of personality you have to BELIEVE that this character exists. You create a back story. You give your character an Age, a history.

When I was developing Nemo's character I made a little web page for him and in one of those areas I had a "character description" section that went over how old Nemo was, what he thought about his father and himself, what is struggles were internally and how he would approach certain situations. This stuff is key for animators. You have to imagine your character as truly being.

In "Finding Nemo" I had a HUGE BOOOM revelation and I called this "Animating from the INSIDE out." My character is not just some spans of geometry. My character has a heart, has flesh, has a brain, thinks on their own, etc. AfterI would put my blocking in there shortly thereafter I would think, okay, this character has ALWAYS done this, they have always moved in this way, They are living this moment of their life RIGHT NOW. I think this kind of thinking has happened over many years of thinking and animating. But the sooner anyone can start thinking about Animation like this the sooner their animation willl become "ALIVE" and not just a series of movements.

3. How do you make Subtle animation Intesting?

You Observe. Subtle animation is VERY interesting. Most interesting in the study of the movement. I think the final result is largely subliminal (things like subtext, etc.) but it is in the study and the Intent behind the characters thoughts that bring about this "subtle acting."

4. Blocking? you block out in stepped right but how far do you let it go untill you start to convert the to smoothed curves? do you block out facial animation also? can you show us a good example of one of your block outs?

I keep things stepped for a long time. One animator put it really well (Quote of Mike Venturini)."As soon as I put things on smooth I'm letting the computer do things for me and I want to make sure I'm winning the battle." This is put super well. A lot of times I won't convert to smooth at all, I convert it to linear because I have a key on every frame. But as soona s I feel that all I need is a straight inbetween I will then convert that section to spline or linear. But sometimes due to time constraints I convert it too soon into spline because I have to get the shot out.

Facial animation I block out with Poses. I get the key poses in there and then I usually work that area more "Straight Ahead."

As for an example I am currently working on a web site that should have some good examples of this in my work.

5. In your dialougue acting pieces what techiques do you use to break down the audio into different beats? and as Keith reffers to as thematic moments?

Shawn Kelly is the master of this. There are so many ways to break down an audio track. But you must first ask yourself "Why does this shot exist?" "What is the point of this shot?" Once you know that it is key to listen to the track about 500 BILLION times and listen for key beats. Sometimes those beats are in the quiet moments. Those quiet moments can actually be the BREAD AND BUTTER of the whole scene. But it takes a kean ear to listen for those beats. Then, in the end it's all about the choices you make (Acting choices, posing choices, timing choices etc) Freaking Booom O matic!

Sure there are natural Peaks in the audio track. Those tend to be the places where we choose to put a "Drawing" or Image/Pose whatever. I call these Drawings. It is key to SIMPLIFY what you are hearing make it clear and easy to read. If you hit EVERY beat in a line you will kill the audience with too much information. This is a common tendency with new animators. Too much too complicated. Just keep it simple and clear and the audience will thank you for it! "

Persepolis - 2007

2008-03-06T03:18:00.000-08:00

01:30:53
Video Bitrate: 955 kb/s
Framerate: 25
576x304
mp3, 126 kbit/s
700 MB

"Persepolis" is the poignant story of a young girl coming-of-age in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. It is through the eyes of precocious and outspoken nine-year-old Marjane that we see a people's hopes dashed as fundamentalists take power - forcing the veil on women and imprisoning thousands. Clever and fearless, she outsmarts the "social guardians" and discovers punk, ABBA and Iron Maiden.Yet when her uncle is senselessly executed and as bombs fall around Tehran in the Iran/Iraq war the daily fear that permeates life in Iran is palpable.

File Size: 700 Mb

Part-1 Part-2 Part-3 Part-4 Part-5 Part-6 Part-7 Part-8

Final Draft v7.1.2.34

2008-03-06T02:24:00.000-08:00

Use your creative energy to focus on the content; let Final Draft take care of the style. Final Draft is the number-one selling word processor specifically designed for writing movie scripts, television episodics and stage plays. It combines powerful word processing with professional script formatting in one self-contained, easy-to-use package. There is no need to learn about script formatting rules - Final Draft automatically paginates and formats your script to industry standards as you write.

File Size: 29,54 Mb
Password: www.AvaxHome.ru

Solar - Shor Animated Film

2008-03-05T20:51:00.000-08:00

Solar is a short animated film by graduate creatives Ian Wharton & Edward Shires. A tale of the sun, moon and two characters who inhabit a world that relies on day and night perhaps more than it would seem.

Solar

Solar - Making Of

Making-Of Coca-Cola Happiness Factory

2008-03-05T20:32:00.000-08:00

Credits
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, Amsterdam

Exec Creative Director: Al Moseley, John Norman

Creative Directors: Rick Condos & Hunter Hindman

Art Director: Barney Hobson

Copywriter: Rick Chant

Executive Producer: Tom Dunlap

Producer: Sandy Reay

Production company: Psyop, New York

Directors: Todd Mueller and Kylie Matulick

Audio Interview Directors: Todd Mueller, Psyop & Wayne Waterson, Dab Hand Media

Executive Producers: Justin Booth-Clibborn and Boo Wong

Audio Interview Producers: Paul Middlemiss, Psyop & Luke Beauchamp, Dab Hand Media

Live Action Producer: Paul Middlemiss

Producer: Mariya Shikher

Coordinator: Tarun Charaipotra

Editors: Brett Nicoletti, Cass Vanini, and Brett Goldberg

Storyboard Artist: Ben Chan

Animation Director: Nicholas Weigel

Lead TD: David Chontos Animators: Pat Porter, Jeff Lopez, Aja Bogdanoff, Henning Koscy, Michael Taylor, Gordana Fersini, Chris Cauffield, Dovi Anderson, Simon Allen, Aaron Koressel, Raquel Coelho, Ryan Gong Rigging: Tony Barbieri and Gooshun Wang

Modeling/Texturing: Anthony Patti, Stanley Ilin, Yaron Canetti, Sheng-Fang Chen

Lighting: Saira Matthew, Brian Drucker, Michael Marsek,

FX: Reeves Blakeslee, Clay Budin, Damon Ciarelli, Dylan Maxwell, Pete Hamilton, Jed Mitchell

Compositing: Theo Maniatis, Jason Conradt, Molly Schwartz, Matt St. Leger, Stefania Gallico

Ren and Stimpy in Life Sucks Animatic

2008-03-05T20:01:00.000-08:00

Life Sucks explores the difference between Ren and Stimpy's outlook on life. They each look at the world and see the same evidence yet judge it in opposite ways. Stimpy is an optimist and Ren is a pessimist. In Life Sucks, Ren realizes it's his duty to cure Stimpy of his naivety and he takes him on a journey through biology, religion, history and evolution in an attempt to make him wake up and smell the coffee.

This is just one sequence from the cartoon. Ren tells Stimpy a story from the history of his religion, a story of people's devotion to the divine Cat-Jesus. Richard Pursel and I concocted this warm little Ren and Stimpy scene.

This is a storyboard reel (animatic) from an epic Ren and Stimpy story called "Life Sucks". Many of the folks who worked on it figured it was the best R and S story we had ever written. Unfortunately it was never produced.

LS2

The Making Of The Road To El Dorado - Part 1 of 3

2008-03-05T11:24:00.000-08:00

The Making Of The Road To El Dorado - Part 2 of 3

2008-03-05T11:23:00.000-08:00

The Making Of The Road To El Dorado - Part 3 of 3

2008-03-05T11:22:00.001-08:00

The Making Of Treasure Planet - Part 1 of 4

2008-03-05T11:20:00.000-08:00

The Making Of Treasure Planet - Part 2 of 4

2008-03-05T11:19:00.002-08:00

The Making Of Treasure Planet - Part 3 of 4

2008-03-05T11:19:00.001-08:00

The Making Of Treasure Planet - Part 4 of 4

2008-03-05T11:17:00.000-08:00

The Making Of Tarzan - Part 1 of 3

2008-03-05T11:16:00.000-08:00

The Making Of Tarzan - Part 2 of 3

2008-03-05T11:13:00.000-08:00

The Making Of Tarzan - Part 3 of 3

2008-03-05T11:12:00.000-08:00

Careers in Filmmaking: Segment One of Five

2008-03-05T11:09:00.000-08:00

Careers In Filmmaking: Segment Two of Five

2008-03-05T11:08:00.001-08:00

Careers In Filmmaking: Segment Three of Five

2008-03-05T11:07:00.002-08:00

Careers In Filmmaking: Segment Four of Five

2008-03-05T11:07:00.001-08:00

Careers in Filmmaking: Segment Five of Five

2008-03-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

Zero Budget Storyboarding

2008-03-05T10:31:00.000-08:00

Writing a Script - 4 Minute Film School

2008-03-05T10:26:00.000-08:00

Casting - 4 Minute Film School

2008-03-05T10:22:00.000-08:00

Storyboarding - 4 Minute Film School

2008-03-05T10:16:00.000-08:00