The foundation of animation is body mechanics, and a good animation is not possible without an understanding of body mechanics and movement.
I took a video reference of a frustrated sit down
plan
2d plan in maya
My initial idea was elements from the Song of Ice and Fire, volcanoes and snowy mountains, fight scenes in the middle of lava caves, snow at the beginning and end.
I’m trying to learn to model and texture mountains with gaea
Made fog and drifting snow using a particle system
The snowy landscape consists of snowy mountains on several sides and some flat land in the middle of it On the flat land, I put some dead wood and stones to create the feeling of a broken village.
The cave scene is made up of volcanic rocks and some blueprints of flames where the lights are set off by the lights of the flames.
Dragons breathing fire blueprints
Last scene.
I animated both of these scenes for Flame
In the first stage, I did not properly deal with the relationship between the ankle and the front of the foot leading to the phenomenon of sliding. After class, I studied the binding and found the right way to handle the sliding.
Throughout the cycle I found that there were still some problems with the movement of my knee
There are three key postures in the walking cycle.Key poses: In a walk these would be your contact poses.Breakdowns: The passing position between your key poses.Extremes: These are the highest and lowest points of the walk.
I followed the teaching video and keyframe to make the blocking of the walking animation
a balanced pose
The inspiration for my project was an allusion to the dragon slaying boy who eventually became an evil dragon. If you fight the dragon too long, you become the dragon; if you stare into the abyss too long, the abyss will stare back. Nietzsche, The Other Side of Good and Evil.
I’ve been dying to finish this film since a year ago, it sprang from my life experiences and the books I’ve read, and for me it’s very difficult for people to assert themselves in the face of temptation
Storyboard
Editing:
Primary means of building a chain of shots and scenes into a complete film. Each edit ends one shot and begins another. In live-action film this usually takes place after the film has been completed. In an orthodox, narrative animation editors usually work closely with the director and the story supervisor from the point where the storyboards are ostensibly complete.
Long takes are often considered an alternative to editing The viewer gains the most obvious plot information from the shot but the shot lingers or things continue to happen without a cut occurring
Montage Editing: brings individual shots together to generate a shock, strange juxtaposition, or a new idea.
Disney Hyperrealism
The artistic paradigm promoted by Snow White has since been known as hyperrealism
The artistic paradigm promoted by Snow White has since been known as hyperrealism Paul Wells has come to define hyperrealism as referring to a mode of animation which despite the medium’s artifice strives for realism This paradox attempts to represent reality in a medium predicated on artificiality that makes hyperrealism an appropriate term frequently seen ‘as the yardstick by which other kinds of animation may be measure for its relative degree of ‘realism’ (Wells 1998, 25)
Mark Langer asserts that Dumbo shows two disparate animation traditions operating simultaneously within the Disney studio. These sequences ‘alternate between those presented in Disney’s West Coast style, an expression of the classic Hollywood tradition, and an imported East Coast style, which emphasized artifice, nonlinear narrative, and “rubbery” graphics’ (1990).
In my opinion,It offers a break from the predominantly naturalistic style of film, demonstrating the creative potential of animation to explore abstract concepts. The sequence captivates the viewer’s imagination with visually stunning art that adds an element of surprise and wonder.
Strategies for conception and development of the story, focussing on narrative resolution building events and engaging the audience.
Staging in animation, film, and theatre shares common goals and overlaps in their aim to direct the audience’s attention with precision.
Composition plays a crucial role in animation, not only serving as the foundation for visual expression but also directly affecting the audience’s understanding of the scene and their emotional experience.
Facial Expressions provide a clear indicator of how someone is feeling. Body Language may also indicate how a character feels towards another character or may reflect the state of their relationship.
Screen direction is very important.A rule of continuity film editing and film grammar is that movement from one edited shot to another must maintain the consistency of screen direction in order to avoid audience confusion. “Camera left” or “frame left” indicates movement towards the left side of the screen, while “camera right” or “frame right” refers to movement towards the right side of the screen.
While larger animation projects require editorial screen direction decisions to bring precision to scene timing and flow, primarily this is determined in pre-production. Screen direction has to be fully pre-determined and is resolved at storyboard and animatic production stages, and is an essential In professional animation production.
Taxonomy of Animated Documentary:
1.has been recorded or created frame by frame
2.is about the world rather than a world wholly imagined by its creator
3.has been presented as a documentary by its producers and/or received as a documentary by audiences, festivals or critics
‘Animation, in part through its material differences from live-action film, shifts and broadens the limits of what and how we can show about reality by offering new or alternative ways of seeing the world. It can present the conventional subject matter of documentary (the ‘world out there’ of observable events) in non-conventional subjective, conscious experience – subject matters traditionally outside of the documentary purview’ (Annabelle Honess Roe, 2013: 1)
The animation and documentary should cohere into a single form ‘in which the animation works to enhance our knowledge of an aspect of the world and to the extent that the separation of the animation from the documentary is either impossible, or would render the inherent meaning of the film incomprehensible
“animated documentaries do not easily into the received wisdom of what a documentary is” (Honess Roe, 2013: 3).
Christina Formenti locates it in the realm of docu-fiction due to what she perceives as the lack of objectivity of what we observe on screen (2014: 108-110)
Animated documentaries have the potential to both enhance and detract from the seriousness of a situation. On one hand, the use of animation can introduce a degree of abstraction that might make it harder for viewers to directly engage with the factual content. This abstraction could potentially dilute the perceived gravity of the subject matter, especially when dealing with sensitive or serious issues.
However, this abstraction can also be a strength. By distancing the audience slightly from the raw reality, animation can offer a different lens through which to process difficult topics, making them more accessible without losing their impact. In some cases, it can even emphasize the emotional or psychological truth of the subject in ways that live-action footage might not.
Historically, animation has been seen as a medium primarily for children, which has contributed to the perception that it is unsuitable for serious or “grown-up” content. While this stereotype persists, it is increasingly being challenged by works that use animation to tackle complex and mature themes. I disagree with the notion that animation is inherently ill-suited for serious material. On the contrary, its versatility allows it to explore issues in unique and powerful ways.
Animation’s ability to abstract and stylize can foster a more universal level of identification. By avoiding the specificities of live-action imagery, it can create characters and scenarios that resonate across cultures and personal experiences. This universality can help audiences connect with the underlying themes on a broader, more empathetic level, making it a valuable tool for storytelling in documentary contexts.