LAUAN404 Weekly Blog

In the past week I have been working on my final animation. So far I have managed to animate parts of the first scene of my animation.

I have made some changes from the storyboard as well as the animatic because I believe that it would be easier to complete and the final outcome would look a lot better. Some panels that I've removed from the animatic include the following -

This walking scene has been scrapped due to time constraints and due to the fact that it looks a whole lot better without this walk cycle, as the scene before establishes the character perfectly well. It'll also help manage the time of the animation to 40 seconds.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog

For study task 5 we were instructed to make a presentation based on Mind Maps. During this research and listening to the presentations of other ways of thinking, I discovered different ways of approaching ideas creatively. For example, I found that it could be interesting to combine 'Six Thinking Hats' and 'Mind Maps' when creating different characters. It would also be interesting to explore lateral thinking and random words. In my visual journal, I have drawn out a mind map on the subject of Inclusive Storytelling to see what I could explore with it.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog

In this week I have gathered up all of my sources and research, as well as drawings on my visual journal to finalise my essay. I have learnt from the mistakes of my original essay and I am now improving upon it in my second. I am also adding more first hand sources from my visual journal to visualise the arguments and points that I will make.

In my visual journal I have created two original characters - Jennifer Anderson and Lily. I have designed both to be very different in appearance and in character to illustrate how female characters don't need to necessarily be powerful or physically strong to be a strong female character.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog

In my research I have decided to comment on different tropes and subjects that are common in male and female representation in media.

Damsel In Distress - The Damsel in Distress trope is a common trope used in early media, where a female character is put in a distressing situation that the hero is meant to save them from. There is a male alternative named 'Dude in Distress', which follows the same concept.

Sexualization - Sexualization is creating characters or putting characters into sexually appealing situations, clothing, poses etc. It is commonly used as fan service in many films and series, as well as comics and manga. Both males and females are sexualized commonly, whether it makes sense or not.

Strong Female Characters - A strong female character has many interpretations behind it. Some see it as a female character who is physically strong and independent, while others see it as a female character that is strongly written and has depth.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog.

I had recently watched Dragon Ball Super: Broly, and noticed various differences in the character of Broly from the original three films he appeared in. Mainly, I had picked out how Broly's origins and personality make him more of a sympathetic victim to abuse and a rabid animal rather than a cold, murderous psychopath. I decided to keep this in mind when writing my essay, as I wanted to compare his original appearance to his newer one.

LAUAN404 Study Task 5

In this study task we were instructed to create 2 models in Maya to improve our modelling skills:

One model that we needed to create was a wooden truck, which needed to be modelled and textured. The final result can be seen below.


Reference:

Final Product:















The second model I made was a black Wacom Tablet, which I used the universities' tablet reference.



Reference:

Model:

Final Product:

What went well:

• Good understanding of modelling processes in Maya
• Improved learning on the software itself.
• Decently Textured Modelling.

What I could Improve on:

• Model in more detail.
• Add more texture effects like glow and reflections.
• Practice more on the Maya Software.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog

I decided that I will be focusing on gender presentation and representation in animation, and how people view certain things as bad representation, and some as good representation. I believe this will encourage me to discuss more within my essay, as to some it is highly subjective as to what good representation is. I have analysed different characters and compared them to one another.

Nintendo:

Princes Peach - Princess Peach's first appearance was in Super Mario Bros. on the NES. She was presented as being a typical 'Damsel In Distress', in which she is rescued by the player without much depth to her character.

Samus Aran - Samus' first appearance was in Metroid on the NES. At first, not many knew she was a female, and was discovered after completing the game. She was the protagonist of Metroid, giving her a very active role within the game.

There are clear differences between the two. Princess Peach had a far less active role in her debut, rather she was a goal for the player to achieve. On the other hand, the player played as Samus Aran as the protagonist, making her a lot more active in the game's story. She also appears to be more independent of any one else. This shows clear differences between two female characters in early video games and animation.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog

In my research I have looked at different characters that may be relevant to my question and topic in which I will be discussing in my essay. I have looked at different animation studios and genres to pick out what characters I can discuss. I have looked at:

Princess Peach - Super Mario Bros.
Samus - Metroid
Son Goku - Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Super.
Prince Florian - Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.
Jessica Rabbit - Who Censored Roger Rabbit, Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

These characters that I have picked out so far will be researched and compared to one another in my essay via triangulation and analysis.

LAUAN401 Weekly Blog

In my first days of researching I spent a lot of time trying to find as many sources as I could to compare both Inclusive Storytelling and Nostalgia. I found that they sometimes crossed over quite a bit, as some nostalgic art forms such as specific video games, movies etc had evolved to become more inclusive to both genders and different races. I also found that older movies such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs were nostalgic because of its time, and also had women for the protagonist AND antagonist, showing that both can co-exist in the same format. However, I also found differences, such as how nostalgia is very much subjective, while inclusive storytelling reaches into a more objective viewpoint.

LAUAN404 - Study Task 9 - Animatics and Soundscapes

For this study task we were instructed to create an animatic with a soundscape for our upcoming animation. This was to help us with timing our animation and sound effects to make it easier creating it. I have understood that animatics are quite essential in the creation of animated films and short films, and I have grasped the idea of taking still images and adding them to a timeline in order to create a sense of timing. My animatic can be seen below.






What went well:

• Timing is somewhat decent.
• Good sync of soundscape and animatic.
• Decent camera pans.

What to improve on:

• Create more dynamic scenes.
• Improve on sound effects.
• Add more ambience.
• Improve on current scenes.

LAUAN404 - Study Task 8 - It's time to move it, move it!

For this study task we were instructed to create a walk cycle both 2D and 3D. This included using our Plasticine models to make them move into a walk cycle.

3D Walk Cycle

I found the 3D walk cycle to be far more challenging as it involved manually posing the character with my hands and using the camera to get the right angle. It was also more difficult to redo mistakes that I'd made.

2D Walk Cycle (1st Attempt)

I found that my first attempt of a walk cycle was quite static and mechanical, and so I decided to try again to improve on what I had.

2D Walk Cycle (Final)

I improved on the walk cycle by giving the character more movement in the legs and snappier movements over all. 

What went well:

• Good walking loop.
• Decent timing in leg movements and arms.
• Dynamic posing.

What I could improve on:

• Tidier line work.
• Colour in the character.
• More work needed on the arms.

LAUAN404 Weekly Blog

In the past week I have been working on improving upon my walk cycle by doing sketches of different key positions that might help it become less mechanical and more natural. I have also been working on creating extra panels for my animatic to help make it flow better.

A few examples can be seen below.

These extra panels will help make my eventual final animation easier to animate and time correctly.

LAUAN401 - STUDY TASK 5

For this study task we were instructed to create a presentation within a group of 5 about Mind Mapping. All five of us researched different areas of the subject.

What went well:

• Good communication 
• Expanded our knowledge 
• Spoke and presented our research clearly

Things to Improve:

• Improve reference list.
• Make presentation more visual based than text based.

Weekly Blog

In the past week I have been working on a walk cycle that I will include in my final animation. So far, I have only completed a basic sketch of the movements, however I will begin to improve upon it in the following days.

8 Frame Animation





24 Frame Animation