Exploration 7 update

I have tested a few powders, how quickly they burn and how well it shows up on the camera, as well as material to burn it on. Winchester 760 on aluminum works the best. I have also selected the audio track from Killer Tracks and made a rough version of the reel.

Exploration 7

For the final project we have to make a demo reel, displaying all of our previous work. We have to create a stop motion intro that spells our name as well as Animation Techniques. For mine I am going to spell it using gun powder then set it on fire and play it in the reverse. The spelling will be done with stop motion and the fire will be recorded using high speed shutter release on a Canon 7D.

Exploration 6 technical issues

This project has been hell from a technical aspect. From issues with a complementary color background in Cinema 4D to issues with a buggy DSM not displaying the video overlay properly. I reshot the stop motion portion, making it longer and giving the hydrogen a bit more personality. It is not quite where I would like it however it will have to do.

Exploration 6 reshoot required

For the first attempt at introducing stop motion to the After Effects and Cinema 4D composite I just had the hydrogen atom enter and cause an explosion. Morgan said that there was not enough stop motion and the hydrogen atom was the crucial part of the concept. It needed more personality and more character development to further illustrate the message. There was a technical issue with the animation as Dragon would not run the video overlay smoothly, it kept crashing and resetting the place the video was at. This is the result of the first attempt.

Exploration 6 Intro

For exploration 6 we had to create a story or a message and make an animation combining the techniques we have learned in the previous explorations.

The concept statement for mine is: Why do people strive to be average, leading average 9 to 5 lives. Human nature is the opposite of that.

I was originally going to show bullets being manufactured and at the end have one of them being different and causing problems somehow, but have it be in a positive manner. It was decided that this idea is too difficult for the short time we have to animate. So I altered the idea and am using hydrogen and oxygen atoms to show un-average. The animation will get progressively more technical, 2D paper cutout stop motion, then the transition between the elements and water will occur with a 3D clay hydrogen atom being distinctly different in its actions entering the scene. An explosion will occur and all of the reaction products will be cinema 4D composite.

Exploration 5 armatures

18 awg solid strange aluminum wire, 32 awg copper wire, 1/8" dowel and oil based clay.
A drill was used to twist the aluminum wire, layers of balsa wood were notched and glued to hold the joints, both armatures stood prior to clay application. The armatures worked surprisingly well, particularly for it being the first time I have ever attempted anything like this in such a short time.

I think carrying this project to the end of the semester would have made a huge difference in the quality. The amount of time given was simply not enough. The upper class man stated that the class was too slow paced, adding this project solved that issue, however, the next project adds too much and shortens the time frame too much. I will mention this in the course review as well.

Exploration 5 part 2

The mid project critique went reasonably well, Morgan stated that I needed to fix cropping issues as well as focal depth issues. The cropping was fixed, however, the focal depth would have required a reshoot which was not an option due the the limited amount of time in correlation with the armatures falling apart. Here is the end result submitted for the final critique:

The suggestions to improve it were, a sepia tone as well as scratches and dirt to simulate an old style film. These effects would also hide the focus problems. The final result:

The cropping was closed a bit more and the ending scenes rearranged to better communicate Scully's mishap.