Saturday, January 31, 2009

Script

This is very liable to change. I just figured I'd post the earliest version of it now, to check off another point of the list our class needs to finish before I can start animating. Actually, this isn't really much of a script...the formatted table required would not transfer to blogger for some reason.


The Wedding Toppers

A Short Film By:
Chrystin Adia Garland

1. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Wedding Bells
ACTION: Shot of bottom of wedding cake. Title Credits.

2. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Oldie, but Goodie Love Song
ACTION: Camera pans vertically up, revealing the different topsy turvy tiers with different colors and patterns. Bride and Groom are ultimately revealed at the very top, holding hands in the “traditional” pose.

3. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Song is still playing.
ACTION: M/S of Bride and Groom staring into each other’s eyes lovingly. They lean in for a kiss.

4. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Song is still playing. Sucking Face noise.
ACTION: Bride and Groom are making out.

5. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Song stops Abruptly. Record Scratching Noise. Popping Noise. Small, Male, Yelp.
ACTION: Groom pulls away from Bride with a little yelp.

6. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: None
ACTION: C/U of Groom’s face. His lips have been bitten off by the Bride, and there is a big chocolaty hole where his mouth should be.

7. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: None
ACTION: M/S of Groom looking at Bride accusingly. Bride shrinks back.

8. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: None
ACTION: C/U of Bride looking “sorry” and embarrassed, while she licks the chocolate off her lips.

9. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: None
ACTION: C/U of Groom raising an eyebrow thoughtfully.

10. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: None
ACTION: Both the Bride and the Groom look at each other for a bit, and then give a wicked smile.

11. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Music plays again.
ACTION: Bride and Groom then attack each other in another face-eating make out session.

12. SPEAKER: None
SOUND EFFECT: Music playing.
ACTION: Camera pans upward for End Credits.

Premise

Alright, it officially here! I swear! No changing from this point forward!

Basically, the scene takes place on top of a wedding cake. The bride and groom toppers are standing together and looking lovey-dovey as usual. They lean in for a kiss and a piece of lace covers the screen, casting them in silhouette. Everything seems adorable, but then the groom lets out a small scream and leans back in surprise. His "wife" has bitten off his mouth, leaving a big, gaping, chocolately smile. There's an awkward pause, as they both stare at each other...but then they decide to just start making out again, because hey, love conquers hunger right?

It sounds really creepy, I know...but in my head it looks absolutely adorable! Just trust me...


Here are some sketches for the two lovelies...if all goes well, I'll beable to tie down the character designs this weekend and get started on storyboarding. Wish me luck!

Friday, January 30, 2009

Dialogue

This project was a complete pain in the butt! Even so, I've completely bonded with my character on some strange level. I drew her completely on a whim. She is supposed to be very VERY loosely based on what's-her-face from Beetlejuice (Because that is where the quote is from) , but I was too lazy to look up a proper reference. Nonetheless, the randomness of her design has kind of grown on me. For now, anyway...




Blogger's compression is making this lag in strange places. It looked fine just as a normal avi...gah. I better figure out how to upload a decent movie or else my final is going to look like a complete load of shiza.

For the record, absolutely hate the switching mouths process. Maybe I was going about it the wrong way...but it all looks very "poppy" to me. A part of me died a little inside while doing this dialogue, because the method is completely different from traditional or even proper 3D animation. If I were to do this project again, I'd probably add some more "in between" mouth shapes so the animation would look more fluid? There's got to be a way to make flash look like a smooth, proper animation! There's just got to be...

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Walk Cycle and Ghosting?

Hey, look! Two posts in one day!

I just wanted to upload my walk cycle so everyone can view the spectacular craptacular. For some reason, I keep getting these strange "ghosting" images behind the little guy, and I'm not sure why that's happening. I spoke with my Prof., and he said it may be an optical allusion? All I know is, I've tried messing with the frame rate, but I'm still getting the same result. Maybe I'll try to fix/trash-and-redo this project at another time *yeahright* and try to fix the glitches.

Leave it to me to discover yet another unsolvable problem. It's Mr. Acordian Arms all over again...




As you can see, this is my sad sad attempt at Princes et Princesses style. Think of him as the jittery, streaking cousin twice removed that the whole family would rather forget about. I know I will.

Frustration

So...flash and I aren't really getting along. I really want to explore and experiment with different kinds of animating styles, but I just feel as if I'm getting no where fast.

I've been working on my walk cycle for the past few days, and so far, the thing looks absolutely atrocious. It's as if I've given birth to the antichrist of animations. Not fun.

Anyway, not to be completely negative...I'll upload another cool video.



I love silhouette animation! Princess et Princesses is so incredibly beautiful, it's a shame we don't see more of this in America. It's like animating lace. I'm sure these puppets were a pain in the arse to create and animate, but the end result is amazing! If I could, I would live in a world like this. Ha!

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Rotoscope

This assignment was fairly easy...There's not really I can say about it, other than my back hurts from hunching over the cintique's for so long.




If you can't see the following figure properly, I apologize. The video seems clear when I view it on my computer, so I'm not sure why Blogger is acting this way...





For some reason, when I exported the movie, I kept getting these strange glitches in my animation! I'm not really sure how to get rid of it...so enjoy the awkwardness.

Alright, so it was about...2-3am when I created the reference for this next exercise. I could say that I was tired and wasn't in my right state of mind, but we all know that's a lie. This is really how I act in the privacy of my own home.

...

I'm such a goober.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Tick Tock

Though the quarter has barely begun, I feel as if time is already slipping through my fingers on these projects. I'm starting to realize that my initial ideas may be too long and complicated for the final flash animation. However, how does one keep something simple and short, yet exciting and fun? Is it possible to edit down my ideas without butchering them completely?

How the heck do you save a Quicktime video without purchasing the "pro" program??

All of these questions will be answered in time, I suppose.

While I muddle about with my own thoughts, feel free to check out this week's fairytale!

Also, after speaking with my friend, Zane, I need to have more stories with villains...which I admit, is a bit of a problem for me, since I apparently live in a land of rainbows and gumdrops. So, dear readers, I am enlisting your help! Who is your favorite villain and why is he/she so wickedly awesome?

I look forward to hearing about their dastardly deeds soon!

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Jumping Puppet

Alright kids, it's time for another flash exercise post! This time around, we had to create a "puppet" with a tiff image that the Prof. provided us with. The character was ugly as sin, but I dealt with it for the sake of the project.




I didn't even bother using motion paths on this one. Some of my other classmates were, and the whole process seemed more of a headache than needed. Instead, I just continued adding keys to the piece until I liked the result. Nothing special.




The next jump I had a little too much fun with. At first, I wasn't even sure of what kind of character I was going to use, but then I was struck with an idea at 4am! Cotton Candy Sheep. It's just crazy enough to work! Ha ha!

I spent more time than necessary on the background, and I still don't really like it, but I'm very happy with my candy sheep. He lives in a land of wonder and goodness, next to the springs of everlasting joy and the beyond the valley of awesome. He was animated practically the same way as the ugly clown...aand that's where the similarities end. If I ever re-animated this (which I most likely won't)...I'd give the poor thing spine, neck, and knee joints...he was really awkward to work with without them.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Inspiration Take 3

Alright, so I still don't exactly have a premise yet...but that's mostly because I keep getting inspired by new and different things/artists/storytellers!! Too many ideas are rolling around in my head now, and I'm afraid that by the time I settle on just one, it'll be too late to complete it the way I want to! If only this class lasted for two entire quarters instead of one, I would feel a little more comfortable.

So, Alphonse Mucha, right? Of course! His style is so incredibly amazing and his line work is so detailed, it was only a matter of time before I became obsessed with his art.

While I was browsing through his work, my classmate and friend, Jen, and I were talking about how intricate all of the borders looked. Then, I was struck by yet another idea! Stained glass windows! What if, I did an animation about characters who lived in stained glass windows?! I would be able to add all the details I wanted around the borders, but the characters themselves could be simplified enough so that I don't kill myself while animating!

I'm so incredibly excited now, it's ridiculous!



The character designs for Sleeping Beauty always reminded me of stained glass. I really like how everything was very angular, yet very soft at the same time.



And of course, the prologue from Beauty and the Beast is an excellent resource for the stained glass theme! I think I'll give myself a mini Disney marathon this weekend for research. And by research, I mean over indulging in childhood fantasies.


So, I think it's about time that I come up with a premise? This is probably liable to change, but for right now I'm definitely leaning towards:

1.) Bride and Groom wedding cake decorations. For some reason the bride gets pissed off at the groom, and tosses him off his own cake.

2.) Stained Glass window lovers. (Insert incredibly awesome and witty idea here.)


I promise I'll tie down my premise by the end of this weekend! No joke! Just give me a little more time to sort out all of my wild ideas...there are just too many bats in the cave right now.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Four Day Weekend

My friends and I went to Disneyworld a few days ago, and it was A-mazing! I was laughing and screaming and crying so hard, by the time I returned to Savannah, my throat was completely sore from all the adventuring!

Though, I was sick in bed and wasn't able to do much animating, I did manage to think of a few ideas for our final film!

Let me know what you think:

1.) A bride and groom doll having a food fight on top of a wedding cake.

2.) An old woman pours some tea to find a "steam spirit" rising within her cup.

3.) A little girl and boy are playing a game (chess or checkers?), the sun starts to set, and the boy turns into some kind of monster and upsets the table.

4.) A toy maker's apprentice gets kicked out of his toy shop, and to get revenge, lures all the toys away with his magic flute.

5.) A woman is trying to comfort her lover who is huddled in a dark corner of the house. When she tries to kiss him, she is turned into some form of metal or stone.

6.) A girl visits her beau in a dessert shop as a surprise. They talk for awhile, and then it begins to rain. The beau dissolves into sugar.


I would really enjoy animating each of these concepts, however, I'm pretty sure some are too extravagant to complete in such a short amount of time. Perhaps I'll use one for my senior project? If you readers have any suggestions, feel free to comment!

Oh! And I'm also very interested in attaching really delicate, lacy patterns to my overall design. How I'm going to accomplish this without flattening out my characters to oblivion or giving myself an extra large headache...I have no idea. It'll take a lot of research and experimentation that's for sure. A LOT.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Bouncing Balls!

An animation classic! Just so you know, the second video was done with the "Custom Ease" graph.







Wow, this actually wasn't as difficult as I thought and I actually had a good time making these! Could it be that I'm starting to get the hang of things?! Such a cliffhanger! Ha ha!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Inspiration Take 2

A very short list of a few artist's who inspire me...


Kay Nielson:



Julie Dillon

Rogner5th
Fashion also inspires me a lot too, so I figured I would post some designers and models I like.

Mother



Raquel Reed


I also like checking out Lookbook for all the latest in fashions from around the world! These kids are amazing!

Dita Von Teese


The Bride Wore Purple

Street Performers: Living Statues








Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Inspiration

I love dark fairytales. Absolutely. I feel it's the perfect foil to my usual bubbly self. Although some of this isn't 2D Animation, I thought I'd post the videos anyway to illuminate the darker side of my moon.

Shockheaded Peter


Alright, this one is pretty disturbing, not to mention long. The beginning is a montage of the entire stage production, which is contains very vivid imagery, creepy music, and amazing stage and costume design. I really love this show because of it's texture...it really looks like concept art come to life! The puppetry is also nothing to sniff at.

If you don't have a lot of time, I suggest skipping forward to 3:14 to view a preview of the actual show. Shockheaded Peter is a stage adaption of a series of German folk tales called Der Struwwellpeter. Believe it or not, these stories were actually written for children! Not your typical "Hansel and Grettel", Shockheaded Peter isn't afraid to show what becomes of bad little boys and girls!

Paprika

I adore this movie! It's very whimsical and surrealistic I think. Definetly not as dark as some of the other videos, but I think it's a great film for some incredible animation and storytelling!


Coraline

I'm sure everyone and their mothers' have seen this trailer already, but I'll post it anyway. I love the transitions between Coraline's normal life and the new one behind the door. Though I don't know much about the story, I'm very excited to see this film! Amazing color schemes, character animation, and plot! It definetly draws the audience in...

Fantasia 2000: Steadfast Tin Soldier

I'm a huge fan of Hans Christian Anderson's works! The Steadfast Tin Soldier is one of my favorite stories, and although Disney didn't keep the sad ending, I still fairly enjoy this video. I want to say that it's a mixture between 2D and 3D? Either way, who doesn't love toys?

Howl's Moving Castle

Whenever I'm feeling melancholy or nostalgic, I watch this movie with a cup of hot tea in hand. Another whimsical fantasy, I really admire the character animation, color, and growth of both Howl and Sophie. I want to make empowering films like this one day.

Shirley Bassey: Get This Party Started

Alright, so it's not an animation, but it is inspiration nonetheless! I've always found mirrors very creepy and mysterious as a child. They continue to fascinate me to this very day! In fact, I have severall stories written about mirrors on my other blog, if anyone is interested.

If you don't know Shirley Bassey...you should. Although she's doing a rendition of Pink's Get the Party Started, Bassey is an amazing singer! Heard of James Bond? She's sung most of the classic themes!

Little Nemo

An oldie, but a goodie! This movie terrified me as a child, but I absolutely adore it now! It has a lot in common with Howl's I think, in terms of color and design...or maybe it's just the circus theme? Ha ha!

The Thief and the Cobbler: Re cobbled Cut

Though I don't like the actual "musical" film that's on sale now, this "recobbled" addition is very nice. I just love how smooth and detailed all of the animation is! It's absolutely ridiculous!

Wow! A lot of these didn't turn out to be so dark after all! Maybe I just can't hide my colorful candied insides after all...just like a pinata.

All About Me

So what can I say about myself that won't sound completely boring and trite?

I'm super woman. Oh yes...I wouldn't lie to you.

When I'm not saving the world, I tend to pose as a third year college student at Savannah College of Art and Design, majoring in animation. I've taken a few 3D classes in the past, but seeing as I tend to crash Maya more often than not...I've pretty much decided to stick to 2D. Which, by the way, is really exciting for me because my ultimate dream is to one day own my very own animation studio and produce 2D animated films based off of my stories.

Oh yes, that's another thing about me. I love to write stories. Or maybe it would be more accurate to say that I like to dream of stories. I'm pretty much notorious for being a day dreamer. Whether I'm sitting on the bus, walking to class, or even just chatting with friends, all of these strange ideas continue to pop in my head. For the past couple of years, I've jotted them down in a variety of different notebooks, but never really attempted to develop these strange thoughts anymore. I hope that my blogging will put a stop to this.

Shameless, I know...but if you'd like to check out any of my stories, feel free to check out my other blog. There, you'll get to follow my Fairytale 100 project. My goal is to write one fairytale per week, no matter how rough or silly it may be, dealing with a certain prompt. If I'm feeling extremely festive, I may also add some sketches for each tale! You never know!

In the meantime, I hope all of you readers will enjoy following my journey through this strange and exciting world called Flash...or is it Toon Boom's Digital Pro? I haven't decided between the red pill and the blue pill yet.

Either way, I'm sure it will be an adventure.