26/09/22: Icebreaker Workshop
During college we underwent an icebreaker activity, in which were put into groups from A, B, C & D. This session was a snippet of how the course would look and getting to know the other students around me and their interests within animation. We were also told to bring in an object from home, we were then asked to make a simple stop motion film using these objects. I did this in a small group of 5, after 2 hours of filming we then presented to the rest of the class our films. The main purpose of this session was to be introduced to the course and those within in it, I learnt more about the different software’s we would be using and the style of teaching I would be undergoing for the next three years.
28/09/22: Online Induction Briefing – Production Principles
The online induction from this morning was taught by Ben Hirt who did a demonstration of the schedules we would have over the coming weeks and di a basic overview of the course. Below are the notes are made throughout the session to understand more in detail of the schedule, style of learning and course themes. What I learnt form today was the intricacy of the course and the interesting themes and subjects we would be able to study this year.
Production Principles:
- 8-Weeks of Rotations ( 2 Week per Rotation, Week 01 – 08)
- STORYBOARD (Izzy Barszcz)
● This one week project is an introduction to observational drawing for animation as well as storyboarding (storytelling) - STOP MOTION (Chris Eales)
● The Traditional animation rotation focuses on 2d Stop Motion Animation, looking at how to create movement using frame-by-frame animation. - 2D MOTION GRAPHICS (Jessica Mountfield)
- The Motion Graphics (MG) Rotation focuses on the principles of animation, as well as digital hand drawn animation, using Adobe Photoshop and Adobe After Effects.
- 3D WORLDS (Sonya Ivanova)
- Low Poly World using Autodesk Maya, focusing on modeling, texturing, lighting as well as rendering.
Schedule
- Mondays; 14.00 – 17.00 GMT in classroom
- Wednesdays; 10.00 – 13.00 GMT in classroom
- 14.00 – 17.00 GMT for 3D WORLDS
- Fridays; 14.00 – 15.30 GMT in classroom
- 15.30 – 17.00 GMT P!inkFlea
Production Principles
Out Of Your Head (6 Weeks, Week 09 – 14)
Project
- 2-3 Students per Team
- 30 Seconds Animation including Sound
- Research & Concept
- Moodboard
- Storyboard
- Animatic
- Final Animation
- Tutorials
- Research & Concept
- Moodboard
- Storyboard
- Animatic
- Drawing for Animation
- Principles of Animation
- Cinematography
- Editing
- Sound
- Narrative Structures
Schedule
- Mondays; 14.00 – 17.00 GMT in classroom
- Wednesdays; 10.00 – 13.00 GMT in classroom
- 14.00 – 17.00 GMT for 3D WORLDS
- Fridays; 14.00 – 15.30 GMT in classroom
Introduction To Animation
Looking Outside (Stuart Hilton & Jane Hankin)
Make a film in form of a Visual Essay
- To broaden your perspective by positioning Animation within contemporary cultures
- To encourage you to make connections to wider issues and contexts
- To break down assumptions and perceptions of the limitations of animation (it is limitless!)
- To provide you with an introduction to the theoretical tools and methodologies that will open up your frames of reference
- To support you in the development of research methods and written and oral communication skills
- To individually and collaboratively explore notions of authorship, developing your creative ‘voice’ and your way of seeing
- To look at ways in which creative writing can play a role in your creative work
29/09/22: Introduction to Animation Seminar
Today I had my first lecture inside the college, it was taught by both Jane Hilton and Stuart Hankin. Throughout the lecture I was shown numerous new different artists and animators, some of which I had never heard of before, they showed us their animations which was mainly made up of stop motion features. Some of these artists included: Oscar Morillo, Virginia Mori, Jan Svankmajer, Georges Schwizgebel and so many more than I want to do some research on. After the lecture I immediately did some drawing. Moreover, we talked about what being creative means and different peoples interpretations of this; I felt really motivated in the way in which we were allowed to express different answers and opinions so freely. After this we were asked to gather objects from items we had in our bags and make something move, I liked doing this as I met some new people and found other creatives. At the end of the session we were told of the upcoming deadlines, one piece of homework being to take 20 pictures of things we do not own and record them. Lastly, we were told that we would be presenting a film by December 1st, thus meaning I have to make a film in 2 months. I talked to my lecturer at the end of the session and asked when we should start, she said immediately, I liked this motivation and feel I will start gathering ideas and documenting more of the art and animation I see in the day.
02/10/22
Today wasn’t a college day however I went to a local flea market to record and take photos for the homework set, this really helped see things in the way my lecturer talked about – noticing the small details in the world around me. Later I edited these photos to my liking, differing between black and white to warm tones to highlight certain aspects of the photographs. Alongside this, during this weekend I have been looking through the reading list and have started reading ‘Identity in Animation: A Journey Into Self, Difference, Culture and the Body’ by Batkin, J. Thus far I’m really enjoying it and is helping me create ideas for the film.
03/10/22: 2D Motion Graphics Workshop
Today I was introduced more to what I will be doing this term within my course, for this term I will be with Jess Mountfield and studying 2D animation. Within today’s session I was introduced to the 12 rules of animation, making extensive notes that I will include within this post. Alongside this I was introduced to Adobe and its functions and basic workings of the software, we were asked to create an animation of a bouncing ball, one a heavy weighted ball and the other a soft, lighter ball. I felt today was much more complicated and intensive, using the software was somewhat difficult and something I need to do practise on outside of college. The homework set for this Wednesday was to finish animating the ball sequences within Adobe. Overall, today I learnt much more about the factual side of animation through understanding the 12 principles of animation, this will something I do further research on outside of college.
Notes from Workshop:
Structure of Week 1:
Monday: Learning the 12 principles and an After Effects walk-through
Tuesday: Work on your bouncing ball homework – 2x exercises
Wednesday: Hand-drawn overlapping action exercise in Photoshop
Thursday: Time to finish up all the exercises you’ve been given so far
Friday: A fun and free straight-ahead morph animation in Photoshop as a Friday treat
05/10/22: 2D Motion Graphics
During today’s workshop session we first looked at overlapping action time; to do this the teacher handed out numerous scarfs and asked us how gravity effected the scarf when it was being moved. What she wanted us to understand was that even when the scarf moved in the first instance there was also secondary movement to it that overlapped. We then were asked to open Adobe Photoshop and used the Wacoms to animate the movement of a scarf over the top of a character that was moving up and down. This was something I struggled with at first as the software was new to me when animating, however I plan to go in to college tomorrow to finish this and gain a better understanding of how to use photoshop to animate. Ultimately today I learnt more about secondary and overlapping movement in a sequence and how this effects the shot.
WEEK 2: Introduction to Animation – Picture Perfect
06/10 — Online Session
Reflection Notes:
Today was the online seminar named ‘picture perfect’ in which we discussed the homework from last week in which we were asked to take 20 photos of things that caught our eye. We were asked to critique each other’s work and why we took said images. Moreover, the brief for the 30 second film was outlined again and given in more detail. Jane gave us further artists and museums to look into that was then put into the ‘artist bank’; she then asked us for the next 2 weeks to go to a museum(s) with a group of 5 people and find objects that inspire us. Overall, today was looking into the critique of our work and exploring what will inspire us to make the final film.
Furthermore, previous to the main online seminar we had an online briefing of the online academic support sessions which gave information on who can support students when writing essays, understanding critical thinking and helping art block.
Notes:
“When the image is new, the world is new” – French philosopher – hyper questioning man, allowing himself to see the world in so many different ways
Narrative choices are framing choices
“In the place called lost strange things are found” – field guide to getting lost/men explain things to me – Rebecca Solnit
‘Every image embodies a way of seeing’ – Don McCullin (war photographer)
Questions to ask yourself:
How do images communicate ‘information’ and tell stories?
How are they shaped by the contexts in which they are made, and the materials and tools used?
What value do they have?
What power do they have?
What effects can they have on the people that consume them, on society as a whole?
How do they shape our attitudes to each other and our sense of ourselves, our identities?
What kinds of meaning do they have and what gives them meaning – the people that create them or the people that view them, appropriate them, remake and reinterpret them?
YOUR VISION – to know what your going to draw you have to begin drawing – Picasso
What are you curious about and what are certain about?
In all images, things are included, and things are excluded, and the world is presented in a particular wat. These choices are NEVER natural – Tatsuya Tanaka
Students Images:
What catches your eye? Consider: point of view, language, authority, choreography, storytelling
Is the language consistent?
Is there a clear sense of authorship? Of story?
Of something indefinable but seductive: truth/a reaching/a rawness?
A kind of ‘living’ spark that runs under the collection?
“Every time you make a choice, whether consciously or subconsciously you place a ‘value’ on the work” – Maria Gusakovich
Artists:
Christoph Niemann
Joey Guidone
WEEK 3: 2D Motion Graphics
10/10/22
Today we were given a brief in which we must make a 10 second animation that correlates to one of the four sound scapes given to us. We were asked to look at visual aesthetic principles and mood, including: composition, change (contrast), timing & anticipation, colour, mood, texture, patterns, repetition in shape language and rhythm. Out of the four sounds given I chose what felt to be the most calming and atmospheric one in which during and after the class I started to storyboard and plan out idea’s and designs for what I would create. I plan to use lighting and colour to my advantage and demonstrate numerous different actions of animation over lapping one another.
Notes from Class:
This week, you will take an emotion and create a 10 second 2D piece that demonstrates that emotion, considering the 12 principles. You can approach this however you’d like – with a character, or through a more abstract approach investigating shapes and movement.
(need to use one of the sound scape sounds given, however, can add more sounds to them).