Shane Acker Visit and lecture Wed 11th 5:45pm 119 McAdams

Presentations for Dream Works and Shane Acker

Next week Dream Works is visiting and the week starting tuesday nov 1oth and thursday nov 12th Shane Acker is going to attend our critiques.  You are going to have the exclusive opportunity to showcase your project to these key industry officials.  This is a rare moment to make a huge impression and open a door for future contact and possibly employment.  To make sure this goes smoothly, we want you to organize your presentation in a concise, clear and well edited presentation.  That means doing a power point presentation that show cases the design, story and technical development.

This is how the projects should be presented…

1) a synopsis that distinctly describes the film in one sentence. Then proceed to describe what you are going to show them…Story Reel, Design Package and Technical Research.

2) story reel movie (fully boarded no play blasts) Editing should be tight and competent sound effects and soundtrack  should be implemented.

3) Design Package Power point presentation that illustrates the character designs, layout and color designs and additional photo reference. (see deliverables post)

4) Technical Research Power point presentation that show cases the effects and technical development.

This is the order to present and you can allow the viewer to interact and ask questions after each segment or give them the option to question after the entire presentation.

The overall presentation shouldn’t last more than 10 minutes.  Shane’s visit will be the big one so we will have time to iron out bugs or wrinkles in your presentation.  Be sure to practice and project your voice in a clear and audible manner so everyone can hear and understand.

This is a critical skill and will serve you in future interviews as well as work related pitches that will be required of you in the studio environment.

GOOD LUCK!

Design Examples

In order to produce a film, solid design must guide the technology.

Here are some examples you should follow to see how you should develop your design, character, environment and color.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/05/17/movies/20090517_UP_FEATURE.html

http://features.cgsociety.org/story_custom.php?story_id=4144

Fall Semester Deliverables…

Deliverables:
Design Package:20%
Story Reel:40%
Play Blast (Final Animation):40%

Resume:
PLEASE REFER TO THE PRODUCTION CALENDAR FOR DATES!

DESIGN PACKAGE: This is the visual template that will define the look of your film.  It must contain:

Conceptual art that details lighting, color, and mood of your film. 4 environment layout paintings. 8.5 by 11 72 dpi.

Character Design: sketches of poses and expressions of character in situations. Final Character Design. Full body front, profile and 3/4 view.  Facial expressions (5 to 6).  Full Character poses (5 to 6) Head rotation:Front, Side, 3/4 View.  8.5 x 11 72 dpi

Have your design package either in PDF, Powerpoint, or  a slide presentation that faculty can click pages back and forth.

STORY REEL: The story reel is the template for all production.  Once finalized, it CANNOT be compromised in any way without the expressed written permission of DPA faculty.  The Story reel must possess the highest quality in screen direction(Staging), timing, and character and story development.  It is subject to revision and editing according to the DPA faculty discretion.  Failure to adhere to the finalized story reel will result in penalty of grade and reassignment to an alternative project.

FINAL ANIMATION (Play Blast):  Animation will have several layers of development: Blocking/Layout, Rough Pose, and Final Animation.  Once final animation is approved by DPA faculty it will proceed to final render.  Through out the process, scenes will be implemented into the story reel to give the film a progression of completion.  It is up to the story lead to make sure scenes and shots are continuously updated into the reel.

SCORE AND FOLEY: The story reel should have audio and dialog (if necessary) to enhance and aid in the timing of the film.  Scratch recordings and CD samples are permitted.

At the beginning of the semester the Design packages will be presented for approval and green lighted for production.

At the end of the semester the story reel will be screened on campus to an audience of faculty, students, professionals, and public throughout the university and the outside world.  This will offer critical feedback and a focus test to help guide the team in the next production semester.

RESUME: At the end of each production semester each team member must produce a resume detailing his or her achievements in this production.  Therefore it is important that you keep a log of all your efforts and contributions in order that you have a detailed resume with specific dates and duties to such a production.  This will not only hold you accountable to a group production, but also aid in your final resume for the professional world outside of Clemson.

Pixar Production Process

http://www.animationartconservation.com/making_ratatouille.html

Who is John Lasseter and what is his philosophy about animation?

What narrative works where inspiration for Ratatouille? What narrative works are you incorporating into your project?

What Films did Pixar look to for inspiration for Ratatouille?  What films are you inspired by?

What is a color script and who is in charge in implementing it?  Who is that person on Ratatouille?

Production Pipeline Chart

Great Interview with Pixar’s Pete Doctor

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kuer/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1492250

Art Direction

I can appreciate what Vue can do, but without proper art direction you can get lost in all the attributes and parameters it gives you.  I think Vue is great for live action, but you are going to lose something when  you have a 3D character that isn’t 100% realistic.  We have limitations with our ability to create hyper realism, so it’s best to solve your dilemma with art direction and proper research.

Here are some good paintings to get inspired and use as a pallete and possible

Joe Waano-Gano (Native American, 20th century), “Southwestern Landscape”, c. 1940; oil/canvas, 22” x 28”, signed. Los Angeles painter. Waano-Gano was a Cherokee Indian, and his specialty was western landscapes and scenes of Indian life. styles…

Albert_Bierstadt

more bierstadt

Disney Posting for TD

This was posted by Disney this past week and I want to stress how important it is to develop your skills accordingly…

Job Description

Walt Disney Animation Studios combines the best in artistry and storytelling with cutting-edge technology to bring wonderful new characters and adventures to the big screen for audiences around the world. Constantly challenged to create innovative new technologies for animated features, theme park productions and special projects for the Walt Disney Company, Disney Animation is home to some of the most talented artists working in the film industry today.

Our teams are hard at work on our next films, “The Princess and the Frog,” directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, “Rapunzel,” directed by Nathan Greno and Byron Howard, and King of the Elves, directed by Bob Walker and Aaron Blaise. Our latest, “Bolt,” is in theaters now!

We are currently have an exciting opportunities for Character Technical Directors to join the team at our Burbank, CA studios.

Responsiblities:

• Work directly with the character animators and modelers to define and create the controls that will allow the animator the creative freedom to pursue the ultimate in digital acting and performance

• Responsible for constructing 3D character rigs and animation interfaces, and establishing muscle and skin behaviors which range from broad squash and stretch to more realistic

• Responsible for character setup, creating skeletons, IK’s and deformers

• Assist the animators on software/UNIX/Maya issues as well as the use of implemented character animation controls and systems

Requirements:

• Previous production experience or exceptional artistic skills/abilities in CGI/traditional artwork

• Familiarity with skeletons and all kinds of deformers including soft bodies required

• Solid understanding of the principles of animation

• Extensive knowledge of anatomy, kinematics and physical behaviors

• Strong problem solving ability

• Good artistic eye

• A solid understanding of each of the following: the Unix/Linux environment; Python and/or Mel scripting; file management systems; render queues

• Must be able to work in a collaborative environment, taking direction from the Lead Character TD, Model Dev Lead and CG Supervisor as necessary

• Bachelors degree in Art, Illustration, Computer Graphics, Engineering, related field or equivalent experience desired

Preferred Skills:

• Experience in Modeling

• Experience in Hair/Cloth simulation

• Traditional drawing, design and sculpture abilities

Production Schedule for Winter

Week 1 (Jan 9th)    Recap
Week 2 (Jan 14th)   Animation Refinement/20% Render 1st pass/3D Modeling props, character, texturing
Week 3 (Jan 20th)   All Animation Finished/Production Reel Cuts/40% Render 1st pass/3D Modeling props, character, texturing
Week 4 (Jan 27th)  100% Render 1st pass/20% Render 2nd pass/3D Modeling props, character, texturing
Week 5  (Feb 3rd)  40% Render 2nd pass/3D Modeling props, character, texturing/Foley 1st pass
Week 6  (Feb 10th)  60% Render 2nd pass/3D Modeling props, character, texturing/Foley 2nd pass
Week 7 (Feb 17th)  Dress Rehearsal: All scenes Rendered 2nd pass/90% Scenes Textured, Lighted, and Modeled/Film fully edited and foley and score mixed)
Week 8  (Feb 26th)  FINAL RENDERED and EDITED FILM DUE
Week 9  (Mar 3rd)  Post Mortem/ PRESS PACKETS DUE
Week 10 (Mar 10th)   TBD
Week 11 (Mar 16th-20th)   SPRING BREAK
Week 12 (Mar 24th)   TBD
Week 13 (Mar 31st)   TBD
Week 14 (Apr 7th)    TBD
Week 15 (Apr 14th)   TBD
Week 16 (Apr 21st) TBD