210509

I have done 2 scenes!
After finishing my second scene today, I looked around and realise everyone is still behind me.
I thought to myself "I am ahead, I can afford to take a break."
So I stopped and relaxed.

I know it is the wrong thinking.
Especially when I have only less than a month to complete this project.
Buut! Its just so... overwhelming.
Then there is character design class going on at the same time.
I need to plan my time.
I haven't even made a Gannt chart.

Supposed to have done one up by last week.
Hmmm, anyway, I am quite proud of myself.
Looking at the 2 completed scenes makes me quite happy.
Well, more to come Jarrold.

All the best.

200509

Yesterday I tried doing my first scene and I did not complete it.

So, I did i today and I completed my first scene.

It was the scene of the couple sitting in front of the TV, backview.

Not too hard. No actions to animate.

Only the flickering of the television light.



Then today, I started on another scene!

Scene2!

And so far I am doing it chronologically, which is bad because Alan suggests that we jumble up the order, so our diligence is seen throughout the animation.

Hmm.

I didnt finish scene 2 today though because another class came in at 3.

This scene will be harder than the first though, as there is a little more animation.

Not the hardest scene, but the scenes will gradually get harder with the lip syncing and stuff.

I need to work harder and harder man!

ARGH!

190509

Today, I compiled my animatics with my sound effects.
I had to adjust a lot of the animatics because i realise that my voices lasted longer than expected.
So, now my animatics is extended, by a few more seconds.
Which is bad and good.
Actually, its bad.
But good thing I dont have anymore extra scenes.

Thenn, I tried doing my first scene today.
At first, I cut my frame from the animatics and tried tracing over the frame, but it didnt work.
The drawing of the animatics is too rough, and I had to draw it over again in photoshop with more details, and put it into flash.

After doing that, I managed to get a decent rough look of the scene.
Not too bad, because I can make out what is what.
I didnt finish the scene though.
About halfway through.
Just need to colour up the scene and do the television glow thing.
Good thing there is no animation for this scene.
Yay.

180509

A new day of a new block.
Well, not a new block for P3 since it has been ongoing for a bit.
Today, I recorded my VO in the Audio room (Duh).
Andrea was my voice over, and thanks to her, I think my recording precoess was easy.

At first I didnt want to be my own voice talent.
But after much contemplation and search for another voice talent other than myself,
I found none, so I decided to just be my own voice talent.

Wasnt that hard though since I knew what kind of voice I wanted.
But anyway, now I got my voice over and I am ready to complete my animatics to test out the timing of my entire animation.
I think it is alright, and I have got to start production soon because time is not on the side of the animators for project 3.
Just 15 more days of class, and we are done.
An animation piece must be out.
All the best to me!

140509

Presentation was today.
Actually no.
Alan sent an email yesterday saying we could present tomorrow.
But I wanted my Friday off tomorrow, so I presented today.

Only 8 of us presented today though.
And I started doing my animatics at 11.30am.
but it turned out well, although there was no audio to my animatics.
I had to dub on the spot as my video was playing on the screen.

my presentation was really really short.
I received quite little comments from Alan and the class.
Don't is it because mine was good, or what.

Hmm. But Alan said my pacing was good.
The only bad comment is receive is about Alan wanting to see the baby.
He talked about some Xbox video about a baby shooting out of the mother's womb and through his life, into his grave.
he asked me to watch that one.
Maybe I will get some inspiration.

hmm, Just have to add maybe another shot into my animatics and I can start animating.
YAY! However, I dont think animating will be that an easy task.
I still have to do my VO for my animation.
What a drag...

130509

Today is a fruitful day!
I managed to complete my refined storyboard.
I am thinking of celebrating, like booking a chalet, and having booze and stuff.

But on second thought, I still have animatics to do.
Its not something that I am looking forward to do, and now I am suppose to be on it, but I think I've done quite a bit today.

Tomorrow is like some presentation day where we have to show Alan what we have done.
I dont think I will have animatics by tomorrow.
I dont even have my sound effects.
Oh man.
Need to find sounds and do my VO asap.

Dont have a lot of time.
A block has passed and I have only chosen my story and finalise a storyboard.
I think maybe I'll wake up tomorrow to compile a bit of animatics.
Had such a long day.
Tomorrow will be fun I hope. Presenting our Anim2 and stuff.

120509

Another day closer to submission.
Submission is 1month and 3days away.

Today, I tried doing my storyboard.
I used the school's com and used the photoshop to draw my storyboard.

Today's attempt made me realise how much I dont know about photoshop.
I has to ask Ting Yu about brushes, and layers, and Kevin helped me with the pen pressure thing. I am sucha photoshop noob.
And another thing is, my laptop's photoshop actually works.
Because I faced the same problem when I first tried to draw in school.
Then after some help from Ting Yu, the problem was solved.
So I just need to apply that solution to my laptop, and I can photoshop at home.

Annway, I did like 2 1/2 pages of REFINED STORYBOARD today.
Not too bad.
However, I need to do some finalizing of shots for my storyboard.
Need to remove and add scenes, and also scan in the est of the storyboard so I can refine it.
Hmmm, I think I am going to use tomorrow's 3D lesson to do it.
Still got voice over to do.
Gina and Germ did theirs today.
I really need to buck up.
Well, tomorrow is a day to do so.

110509

Today was suppose to be a Vesak day holiday!
But poly students have to come back to school to have lessons.
So not fair.

Anyway, Alan's class today wa not compulsory, but he showed us a reall good animation movie.
Its called, errrr... Tekk.... something.

It was a really different style, although Japanese Illustrators, and stuff, they did not use the Anime style of drawing.
I liked the animation a lot, and the behind the scenes footage boosted the animation even more.

I think an animation movie is a really tedious and long term job, that takes commitment and many trial and errors.

The animation was really inspiring, as they used after effects or maya like thing to create a 3D environment with 2D paintings. It was really cool.

I think I might watch that animation again some time.

Anyway, once again, I have not done much during the weekend.
I so need to start on my storyboard and my gantt chart.
And its not that I haven tried.
I have, but I cant seem to work my photoshop, and gantt chart is just so.... confusing to do.
UGHHH!
Even thinking about this Project3 is stressing me out.
Alan announced today that some form of animatics is expected by Thursday.
I am so.... dead.
I havent even really started on my revised storyboard. Let alone animatics.
Well, I think I am going to go to school earlier tomorrow to do my storyboard.
Its going to be a long day tomorrow.

Sigh....

06/070509

These 2 days, I have been trying to work my photoshop at home to do up my revised storyboard.
However, my efforts fo far have amount to nothing.
I think I might not have a choice, but do my revised storyboard in school.
I dont like the idea of doing work in school though, although it sounds ironic.
But the thing is, school is the place where there is photoshop, and corel painter, and all these things I need to do my storyboard.

And I think my progress is really slow and laggy.
I think everyone's is.
Which is comforting, but I know that no matter what, the deadline is still the deadline, and I better start doing something if not I wont meet my deadline.

Well, off to try to do some work.

050509

Tuesday already.
Alan got us to sit in a circle today, and since today is group 1 and 2's consultation day,
we formed 2 circles.
We were told to discuss about gantt charts, and why they were important.
Other than that, we also had to discuss about any questions we might have regarding our P3 animation project.
We are already 2 weeks into the block and all we have are character designs and a storyboard!
Oh no.
So in our circle, we shared how we were going to embark on our project and what style we are approaching it with.

I think i am doing mine in flash, since Fairly Odd Parents has the flash feel.
Alan further told us about how Gantt charts are important in the industry because Gantt charts help us to keep track of what we are doing, and not waste money and time when we are in the industry doing projects that have strict deadlines and angry bosses.

Alan told us that none of any of the class' storyboard is finished, and all of us are to do up one before we do our animatics.
So we are expected to do a new storyboard, and create our own gantt chart.
Then Alan explained about how when we chart our work in the gantt chart, we need not do the scene in linear sequence, but rather we should do them starting with an easy scene first, then a hard scene, then maybe the last scene or so.
He reasoned that if we did it linearly, and when we dont have time, we will rush the last scenes, and that will cause our animation to end on a bad looking scene which is not what we want.

So, I think I should start doing my gantt chart and also doing up a new storyboard digitally.
I think i will use my pen tablet at home to do my storyboard. I also need to do my animatics right after that, so I can guage the length of my animation and visualise the whole animation.

Oh no.
So much work to do.
Thinking about all the work, like storyboarding, animatics, line drawing, Keyframing, In-betweening, Colouring, Finding sound effects, Find voice over casts, actually doing the voice over, compiling everything, etc. is so overwhelming.
I think this project is going to be a hectic one.

Oh, this morning I did my character profiling, and yesterday I edited my storyboard to add in the last bit with the *pop* sound and the baby crying in the background.
All I did was add 1 shot and I let the sound effects do the rest.

Earlier just now Alan talked about cheating, and that is what I am doing.
Cheating, but getting the same effect.
Alan calls it "Working smart".
I agree with him.

040509

Today, we spent most of the class taking temperature, taking attendance, and finally watching Wallace and Gromit.

We also watched some behind the scenes footage of the episode "The wrong trousers" from the stop-motion cartoon wallace and gromit.
I didnt use to like Wallace and Gromit and i thought the animation was quite boring.
But after i watch the bahind the scenes and at the same time, doing stop motion for Animation 2, I think I am able to appreciate the cartoon more.

The person that animates Wallace says that he acts a lot when he does the animation of the character.
He does the mouth movements over and over again, just to transfer the motion to the clay Wallace.
He also does the hand movements and it is reflected in the way he animates Wallace.
When Wallace talks, he moves his arms a lot, and so does the guy that animates Wallace.

Alan showed us the video to teach us how important planning and storyboarding is.
Because in stop motion, planning is very necessary as movements need to be planned before being shot.
therefore, the storyboard for this animation is very important and so, I must do my storyboard well too.
My storyboard is done, but I have to touch it up so that it can be ready for the animatics.