Monday, 7 December 2009
Oh and by the way...
In the next few weeks I will also be researching relevant thriller/horror films that that can help me to suspense and tension in a trailer, as well as expanding on my style. It's basically progression on the trailers I have already looked at. But im nosing in deeper!
Working hard
I’m in a fairly decent position to start animating in the next four to five weeks, I just need to complete my second animatic.
The next version should be up on here soon. I’ve given myself till the 1st of January (should also have this along with my design material and some more influence research)
Once I have produced my final animatic I will be able to determine whether or not more development and changes will be necessary, (camera angles, pan & Zooms, sound)
All very exciting!
The next version should be up on here soon. I’ve given myself till the 1st of January (should also have this along with my design material and some more influence research)
Once I have produced my final animatic I will be able to determine whether or not more development and changes will be necessary, (camera angles, pan & Zooms, sound)
All very exciting!
Work Schedule
Put together a work schedule for the next 4 months. Likely that it will change along the way.
Presentation done and dusted! now on with 4 months of work
Feedback from final pitching presentation
After a successful pitch of my final project for the creative media practice module I invited members of staff John Hayes and Alan Robinson, along with my peers to ask questions and give me constructive feedback. Below I have included questions and the number of observations made below.
- How would I deal with inconsistencies with rotoscoping? – Alan Robinson
From filming my own live action footage and rotoscoping over the actions, I am only taking the core outlines of the characters movement. I am using this outline to later fill in my own character details and tone when taking my selected rotoscoped footage into flash. The outline will be produced using a vector tool in paint shop pro 7 although Alan had presumed that was I using a drawing tablet. I believe by using a vector tool this will also iron out any inconsistency I may have had with a drawing tablet, as a vector outline will be far more accurate.
- Will rotoscoping take up too much time in the earlier stage of my project? John Hayes
As only 9 out of the 30 scenes of action required needs rotoscoping, I believe that this is realistically achievable as each sequence is on average 3 seconds long and at a rate of 24 frames per second this only leaves me with 216 key frames to rotoscope.
- Is there any rotoscoping software that will do all the work for you and save you the time of doing it yourself? John Hayes
From further research into rotoscoping software, the software used by Richard Linklater on ‘A Scanner Darkly’ is unavailable to the public. The process behind the software is that it uses interpolation to save time on the process. To my knowledge there is no other software that allows me to adopt this and therefore I will have to rotoscope each frame individually in paint shop pro. However, I still believe that the fluid motion created will really benefit the actions of my characters within my trailer and is achievable within the time constraints .
Being part of the audience for my other peers, Christopher Pass’ presentation on his idea of a game created in 3ds max inspired me with one technique that he was adopting. H e looked at how the game ‘Borderlands’ had used a fine black outline to give the appearance of something that had been had drawn. This is something that from his presentation was a style that I would like to incorporate into my piece. However, instead of using the fine black outline on everything, I would limit it to just the characters to bring their silhouettes out of the scene a little more and make them stand out. This is a very useful technique due to the fact that I am using such a limited palette. I had feared that the characters could blend too much into the background.
After a successful pitch of my final project for the creative media practice module I invited members of staff John Hayes and Alan Robinson, along with my peers to ask questions and give me constructive feedback. Below I have included questions and the number of observations made below.
- How would I deal with inconsistencies with rotoscoping? – Alan Robinson
From filming my own live action footage and rotoscoping over the actions, I am only taking the core outlines of the characters movement. I am using this outline to later fill in my own character details and tone when taking my selected rotoscoped footage into flash. The outline will be produced using a vector tool in paint shop pro 7 although Alan had presumed that was I using a drawing tablet. I believe by using a vector tool this will also iron out any inconsistency I may have had with a drawing tablet, as a vector outline will be far more accurate.
- Will rotoscoping take up too much time in the earlier stage of my project? John Hayes
As only 9 out of the 30 scenes of action required needs rotoscoping, I believe that this is realistically achievable as each sequence is on average 3 seconds long and at a rate of 24 frames per second this only leaves me with 216 key frames to rotoscope.
- Is there any rotoscoping software that will do all the work for you and save you the time of doing it yourself? John Hayes
From further research into rotoscoping software, the software used by Richard Linklater on ‘A Scanner Darkly’ is unavailable to the public. The process behind the software is that it uses interpolation to save time on the process. To my knowledge there is no other software that allows me to adopt this and therefore I will have to rotoscope each frame individually in paint shop pro. However, I still believe that the fluid motion created will really benefit the actions of my characters within my trailer and is achievable within the time constraints .
Being part of the audience for my other peers, Christopher Pass’ presentation on his idea of a game created in 3ds max inspired me with one technique that he was adopting. H e looked at how the game ‘Borderlands’ had used a fine black outline to give the appearance of something that had been had drawn. This is something that from his presentation was a style that I would like to incorporate into my piece. However, instead of using the fine black outline on everything, I would limit it to just the characters to bring their silhouettes out of the scene a little more and make them stand out. This is a very useful technique due to the fact that I am using such a limited palette. I had feared that the characters could blend too much into the background.
Presentation is on its way
So I've got the final pitch coming up and I just thought I would update the blog on the content that I have ready for it. This includes everything I have done so far including a rough work schedule which I will put on later.
This slide show of my concept art will also play a part:
Animatic
Below is a basic animatic - taking my storyboard and a mash up of sounds from about 10 different trailers from similar genres. The idea behind this is to see what images work with the sounds and what doesn't. It is thirty seconds shorter than what I intend
but I think it works well as a first draft.Next I what to create another animatic with more detailed shots and multiple drawings for the more complex shots. It will be 90 seconds in length so I can assess any timing issues I have with the piece.
Should be on its way soon! Back to the drawing board!
but I think it works well as a first draft.Next I what to create another animatic with more detailed shots and multiple drawings for the more complex shots. It will be 90 seconds in length so I can assess any timing issues I have with the piece.
Should be on its way soon! Back to the drawing board!
Script
Got myself a script together in final draft 7. Tried to keep it as basic as possible so I don't over complicate things. Having trouble transfering it over from pdf so its a bit jumbled. You get the basic idea though.
THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME - TRAILER SCRIPT
Darkness...
Sound of running, breaking twigs and heavy panting.
One single gun shot.
FADE IN:
Establishing shot of an island.
MAN: (O.S.)
Why don’t you tell us what
happened?
Pan of the islands shore.
FADE TO:
RAINSFORD: (O.S.)
We headed towards the island.
Boat sails through the fog.
FADE TO:
Close up of Rainsford on the ship looking in the distance.
MAN: (O.S.)
So you were heading towards the
island, what happens then?
FADE TO BLACK.
Subliminal flashing eye in terror. Barking dogs.
Stormy sea. Waves crash.
Rainsford crashes into the ocean.
FADE TO:
Rainsford washes up on shore.
RAINSFORD :
(calling out)
Hello? Anybody?
FADE TO BLACK.
Count Zaroff’s Mansion. The rain beats down.
V.0:
In one of the most remote locations
on earth, lives the worlds most
dangerous serial killer. And to
this day...he remains at large.
A hand reaches out at the front door and knocks.
Zaroff makes his way through the woods.
Rainsford crawls across the floor of the jungle in terror.
Rainsford runs through the woods.
Zaroff’s hounds run through the woods.
Close up of Rainsford leaning against a tree, exhausted and
fearful.
RAINSFORD:
Pull yourself together!
A shot from above Rainsford in the jungle looking vulnerable.
ZAROFF:
Your brain against mine. Your
woodcraft against mine. Your
strength and stamina against mine.
Outdoor chess! Tonight! We will
hunt!
Zaroff scouts the woods and turns sharply in the direction of
a sound.
TEXT: ‘THIS SUMMER’.
Zaroff’s hounds rage on.
Close up of a hound barking.
Close up on Ivan grinning.
TEXT: ‘THERE IS ONE GAME’.
A fearful Rainsford aims his gun.
TEXT: ‘EVERYONE’S DYING TO PLAY’.
COUNT ZAROFF: (O.S.)
This world’s divided into two kinds
of people: the hunter and the
hunted!
Zaroff looks through his sniper.
Scope sighting of Rainsford.
Rainsford stands over the edge of a cliff and looks down.
FADE TO BLACK.
Close up of Zaroff scanning the woods.
RAINSFORD: (O.S.)
I will find you.
COUNT ZAROFF: (O.S.)
Hahahaha.
FADE TO BLACK.
TEXT: ‘THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME’
FADE TO:
TEXT: ‘SUMMER 2010’.
THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME - TRAILER SCRIPT
Darkness...
Sound of running, breaking twigs and heavy panting.
One single gun shot.
FADE IN:
Establishing shot of an island.
MAN: (O.S.)
Why don’t you tell us what
happened?
Pan of the islands shore.
FADE TO:
RAINSFORD: (O.S.)
We headed towards the island.
Boat sails through the fog.
FADE TO:
Close up of Rainsford on the ship looking in the distance.
MAN: (O.S.)
So you were heading towards the
island, what happens then?
FADE TO BLACK.
Subliminal flashing eye in terror. Barking dogs.
Stormy sea. Waves crash.
Rainsford crashes into the ocean.
FADE TO:
Rainsford washes up on shore.
RAINSFORD :
(calling out)
Hello? Anybody?
FADE TO BLACK.
Count Zaroff’s Mansion. The rain beats down.
V.0:
In one of the most remote locations
on earth, lives the worlds most
dangerous serial killer. And to
this day...he remains at large.
A hand reaches out at the front door and knocks.
Zaroff makes his way through the woods.
Rainsford crawls across the floor of the jungle in terror.
Rainsford runs through the woods.
Zaroff’s hounds run through the woods.
Close up of Rainsford leaning against a tree, exhausted and
fearful.
RAINSFORD:
Pull yourself together!
A shot from above Rainsford in the jungle looking vulnerable.
ZAROFF:
Your brain against mine. Your
woodcraft against mine. Your
strength and stamina against mine.
Outdoor chess! Tonight! We will
hunt!
Zaroff scouts the woods and turns sharply in the direction of
a sound.
TEXT: ‘THIS SUMMER’.
Zaroff’s hounds rage on.
Close up of a hound barking.
Close up on Ivan grinning.
TEXT: ‘THERE IS ONE GAME’.
A fearful Rainsford aims his gun.
TEXT: ‘EVERYONE’S DYING TO PLAY’.
COUNT ZAROFF: (O.S.)
This world’s divided into two kinds
of people: the hunter and the
hunted!
Zaroff looks through his sniper.
Scope sighting of Rainsford.
Rainsford stands over the edge of a cliff and looks down.
FADE TO BLACK.
Close up of Zaroff scanning the woods.
RAINSFORD: (O.S.)
I will find you.
COUNT ZAROFF: (O.S.)
Hahahaha.
FADE TO BLACK.
TEXT: ‘THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME’
FADE TO:
TEXT: ‘SUMMER 2010’.
Set: more concept deas from the computer
Below is a conceptual drawing for the jungle setting again created in paint shop pro 9. This highlights the limited palette with the fine black outline. It was created using a drawing tablet to sketch the outline and then adding layer by later of different grey scale.
Bit of concept art from the computer: early stuff
Character concept for Rainsford created previous to my main concept art. It was created in Paint shop pro 9 but it is just me experimenting with a limited palette for that film noir effect.
Finally! The Main concept art has arrived!
Here it is! the moment you've all been waiting for. After weeks of brainstorming, my main concept art is starting to come together! At last!
So what we have here is the final concept for every character: Rainsford, Zaroff and Ivan. I'm just ging to focus on Rainsford with this post. It wasn’t my direct intention to create a knock-off Indiana Jones explorer type character but it’s something in the look that stays with people and although that look may seem quite cliché now I really think it works well.
So what we have here is the final concept for every character: Rainsford, Zaroff and Ivan. I'm just ging to focus on Rainsford with this post. It wasn’t my direct intention to create a knock-off Indiana Jones explorer type character but it’s something in the look that stays with people and although that look may seem quite cliché now I really think it works well.
Fonts...the boring bit
These are all fonts which I have collected as potentials to use within the trailer. BN Mansion light ad fearless both stand out as favourites as the others are perhaps more likely connotations of the horror genre rather than a thriller/action.
Animatic through stills from films:
Now its all getting very exciting. Nearing the storyboard process. Firstly I've created a still animatic.
I put this together using a wide variety of films from similar genres and placed in sequence for my storyboard. It has helped me have a clear picture of what images work and what doesn’t. Every single image has to be able to decode the narrative of the trailer without having to rely on sound. These live action images have also influence certain shots for brainstorming my own storyboard.
Enjoy spotting the films!
I put this together using a wide variety of films from similar genres and placed in sequence for my storyboard. It has helped me have a clear picture of what images work and what doesn’t. Every single image has to be able to decode the narrative of the trailer without having to rely on sound. These live action images have also influence certain shots for brainstorming my own storyboard.
Enjoy spotting the films!
Storyboard concepts
Here are a few sketches for brainstorming ideas for the positioning of a camera when working with extreme angled shots.
As part of modernising the original text, here is a sketch of Zaroff hunting with a sniper rifle rather than the bow and arrow in the original film.
Just above is the concept for the scene where Rainsford approaches Zaroff’s masion. The door knocker is taken from the opening credits on the original film.
As part of modernising the original text, here is a sketch of Zaroff hunting with a sniper rifle rather than the bow and arrow in the original film.
Just above is the concept for the scene where Rainsford approaches Zaroff’s masion. The door knocker is taken from the opening credits on the original film.
Silhouettes
This is just so notes and work created in paint shop pro on silhouettes. I've always found silhouettes interesting, how something so simple can be so eye catching and effective.
Rotoscoping
Spent a lot of time research this technique so I thought it put on my scans from my workbook. This research is on going so if I find anything new it will be straight on here.
I'm missing one of the scans at the moment so I'll bang it on later.
more to come!
I'm missing one of the scans at the moment so I'll bang it on later.
more to come!
Sheffield Gardens
Above is a selection of my personal photographs observing the wide selection of plants in Sheffield gardens. This was a perfect opportunity to capture on camera the setting I am trying to bring to life through my animation.
Setting Development
This fine line drawing of a tree from observation highlights the type of mood I am looking at setting for my background concepts. In the foreground the set will contain stronger silhouettes but as the distance furthers, trees etc. Will lose their shape, as shown here.
Action Poses!
I have been practicing drawing typical action poses for my characters:
These series of drawings have helped me practice the basic outline of the human figure to help develop a silhouette for active sequences of the trailer.
They have also helped me depict where the light focuses on a characters body when there is movement involved.
These series of drawings have helped me practice the basic outline of the human figure to help develop a silhouette for active sequences of the trailer.
They have also helped me depict where the light focuses on a characters body when there is movement involved.
Hounds
Just a scan from my work book on the hounds of Zaroff. I find drawing animals the hardest and this is something that is going to have to be developed and spend a lot of time on, but its a start:
Ivan: Concept
- huge figure
- a mute
- glum
- strange grin
- all emotion expressed through facial expressions.
One thing I did notice the other day when somebody pointed it out. How much this character looks like the wrestler and actor: The Great Khali. Perfect as a reference for the amount of resources on him.
Above is a little sketch for a potential costume. Really starting to like the fine line pen style. There's something quite gothic about it.
On another note -
Interesting content from animation books –
Page 312 (attitude of characters)
Page 327 (movement of animals)
The animators survival kit – Richard Williams
- a mute
- glum
- strange grin
- all emotion expressed through facial expressions.
One thing I did notice the other day when somebody pointed it out. How much this character looks like the wrestler and actor: The Great Khali. Perfect as a reference for the amount of resources on him.
Above is a little sketch for a potential costume. Really starting to like the fine line pen style. There's something quite gothic about it.
On another note -
Interesting content from animation books –
Page 312 (attitude of characters)
Page 327 (movement of animals)
The animators survival kit – Richard Williams
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