Month: November 2022

Introduction

This week, we went over some weight shift animations and we were given a rig to practice that movement.

Weight Shift – Planning

First, I planned the initial position of my rig and thought of lowering the knees in order to achieve a relaxed position.

Then, I planned the foot heel and toe rotation when the foot leaves the ground while weight shifting.

Furthermore, I also sketched the contact positions of my rig and also the up and down positions.

Weight Shift – Animation Progress

First Outcome

In my first animation, it looks as if the body and the legs are moving simultaneously.

However, I should have moved first the leg and then the ball.

Second Outcome

In my second animation, I adjusted the camera to get a better overview of the weight shift.

However, the timing seems to be a little quicker than it should.

Third Outcome

In my third animation, even though the movement looks much smoother, I noticed that there is a knee pop that needs to be fixed.

Weight Shift – Final Animation

2.5 Week 5 Design for Animation

Week 5: Animated Documentary

Post author By Donatella Mikulasch
Post date 2nd November 2022
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Introduction

For this week’s assignment we have to choose an animation and elaborate on how it would or wouldn’t be classified as a documentary.

Sinking of the Lusitania (1918)

According to Honnes Roe (2013, pp. 7-8), Sinking of the Luisitania is considered to be the first commercially animated documentary and it is a clear example of how animation can reconstruct a historical event when there is no record of it. In this sense, animation can be a useful tool to portray, illustrate and clarify a non-fictional event and help the audience to witness one moment in history.

Nonetheless, on the other hand, it can be argued that ‘any animated work dealing with reality-related topics will appear intrinsically fictional in form’ (Formenti, 2022, p.13). This implies that animated documentaries are created in an artificial way, and therefore, they can be influenced by the director’s lens of reality. For this reason, it can be questioned to what extent animated documentaries represent reality in an accurate manner.

To wrap up, Sinking of the Lusitania can be considered an animated documentary insomuch as it represents a historical event that happened. However, since there does not exist any live action material, the director had to reconstruct the events and therefore his animation is influenced by his interpretation of reality and values.

Reference List

Formenti, C. (2022) The Classical Animated Documentary and Its Contemporary Evolution. Bloomsbury Academic & Professional.

Honess Roe, A. (2013) Animated Documentary. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Nichols, B. (1994) Blurred Boundaries; Questions of Meaning in Contemporary Culture. Indiana University Press.

2.4 Week 4 Design for Animation

Week 4: Interpreting Abstraction

Post author By Donatella Mikulasch
Post date 2nd November 2022
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Introduction

For this week’s assignment I had to analyze an abstract film of my choice focusing on its categorisation, form and function, process and formal elements.

Synchromy No. 4 – Escape

I decided to analyze Mary Ellen Bute’s Synchromy No. 4 – Escape, which is a 16mm color film with music developed between 1937 and 1938 (Whitney Museum of American Art, 2022).

To watch the video, please click on: https://lightcone.org/en/film-10349-synchromy-no-4

About the Artist: Mary Ellen Bute

Mary Ellen Bute (1906-1983) had a background in painting and studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia, United States. Her artistic work focused on the movement, rhythm and synesthetic form which was part of the European Avant Garde before World War II. She was also part of the visual music inventors and musicians’ community from New York in the 1920s and early 1930s (Betancourt, 2013, p. 83).

Categorisation

Synchronomy No. 4 – Escape falls into the genre of abstract film insomuch as it ‘abandons the premise of making a picture of something’ (Dickerman, 2012, p. 13). Artists no longer follow the conception that their artwork ‘should function like a view through a window’ (Dickerman, 2012, p. 29).

In this sense, abstract film makers mark a turning point in the traditional conception of art known until the nineteen-twenties and Mary Ellen Bute’s film reflects the new ideals of abstraction of the European Avant Garde insomuch as her work tries to make music and rhythm visible.

Form and Function

The film tells the story of a red triangle that at the beginning appears to be behind a grid and at the end bends the lines in order to free itself. In a way, the grid can be perceived as prision bars and the triangle as an individual who is trying to break free.

In addition, it can be argued that there exists a parallelism between what is happening in the story and the historical background due to the fact that abstract films break with the traditional artistic rules. In this sense, the triangle can also be interpreted as the abstract movement trying to defy the laws of traditional filmmaking.

Process

Synchronomy No. 4 – Escape is a 16 mm audiovisual film, with an aspect ration of 4:3, that uses Johan Sebastian Bach’s Toccata as a soundtrack.

When it comes to the musical aspect, Betancourt (2013, p. 84) suggests that ‘the organization of the visual material is provided by the music’ in that ‘it determines the development, arrangement, and in many cases, the form of the visuals accompanying it.’ In this way, the triangle, the grids and the background move according to the sound and rhythm of the music.

Furthermore, even though I have not found any information on the making of the film, we can assume that it was made by means of bipack matte filming in that the triangle, the grids and the background were separated into different layers.

Formal Elements

When it comes to the formal aspect of the film, there are three main elements during the animated secquence: the triangle, the grids and the background.

The grids play a pivotal role insomuch as they divide the space between the inside and outside, which can be interpreted as an analogy to the concept of imprisionment and freedom.

Moreover, at the beginning of the film, the grid is formed by rigid horizontal and vertical lines. In this way, the triangle appears to be trapped behind the bars.

However, they gradually start to bend following the rhythm of the music until they finally turn into a spiral. It is at this moment when the triangle finally breaks free.

Furthermore, the blue background also plays an essential role during the film. At the begenning, the background is extremely gloomy which depicts the idea of being trapped in a small place.

Nonetheless, at the end of the film and when the triangle escapes the grid, the blue background seems clean and more spacious. In this sense, the triangle has more freedom to move around the space.

When it comes to the music, Johan Sebastian Bach’s Toccata adds a dramatic tension to the visual images. The triangle follows the rhythm of the music and starts to move faster until finally escaping the bars.

Reference List

Betancourt, M. (2013) The History of Motion Graphics: from Avant—Garde to Industry in The United States. United States of America: Wildside Press
Dickerman, L. (2012) Inventing Abstraction 1910-1925. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd.
Lightcone (no date) Synchromy No. 4 – Escape. Available at: https://lightcone.org/en/film-10349-synchromy-no-4 (Accessed: 2 November 2022).
Whitney Museum of American Art (2022) Mary Ellen Bute. Available at: https://whitney.org/collection/works/39490 (Accessed: 2 November 2022).

1.4 Week 4 3D Animation Fundamentals

Week 4: Posing

Introduction

This week, apart from getting feedback on our ball with tail animation, George suggested us to start sketching some poses. We are going to need them in order to start posing our rig in Maya.