Study Task 1 - Types of Sources

Nostalgia

For this theme, I want to explore how certain aesthetic choices are made in order to connect emotionally to an audience, by accessing a schema surrounding memories from their youth.

Four Moving Images:



This video adheres to the theme of nostalgia as the song not only reminds me of my own childhood however the style also references 8-bit arcade games, such as Frogger, Galaga and Donkey Kong.



I've noticed recently that a lot of films and tv series that come out today are set in or based on the 1980s such as, Stranger Things, Ready Player One, X-Men Apocalypse, The Goldbergs etc. or they are rebooted franchises such as, Blade Runner, She Ra, Star Trek etc. Parodies are also respected such as the Keith and Paddy Picture Show.



This animated music video also references iconic films.



Once more, even advertisements pay homage to iconic films and series from the 1980s.

Three Written Sources:

Cross, G. (2015) Consumed Nostalgia: Memory in the Age of Fast Capitalism. Columbia: University Press.

'Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires': Film Review | Annecy 2018

Sperb, J. (2015) Flickers of Film: Nostalgia in the time of Digital Cinema. Rutgers: University Press.

Two Still Images:

The aesthetic design of this poster is clearly influenced by artist Drew Struzan, responsible for many iconic film posters such as: Back to the Future, Indiana Jones and Star Wars.

Nagel, P. (1982) The Nagel Woman.

One Other Source:




Listening to a mixtape through a cassette player can transport you into a certain headspace as physically, it is able to trigger certain memories. The Awesome Mix Vol. 1 and 2 from Guardians of the Galaxy has clearly been deliberately sampled and ordered in such a way.

Inclusive Storytelling

I believe that celebrating a variety of strong women in media and animation, and who are strong for many different reasons, is important as a storyteller.

Four Moving Images:



Hester Shaw is a perfect example of how to write a complex and flawed yet wholehearted heroic female character who has depth and isn't perfect. Nor does she rely on her looks alone. Although this does bring up complications when comparing the books to the film adaptation as Hollywood still can't handle an "ugly" woman lead.



I grew up watching films with compelling female leads such as Mulan which is why I feel inclusive storytelling is so important to younger generations.




These themes should also be highlighted through advertisement as in the past, most women in adverts are objectified to sell a certain product.



Joanna Quinn is an incredibly inspirational animator to women also studying in this field.

Three Written Sources:

Pilling, J. (1997) A Reader in Animation Studies. Indiana: University Press

Furniss, M. (2009) Animation: Art and Industry. Indiana: University Press

Hollinger, K. (1998) In the Company of Women: Contemporary Female Friendship Films. U of Minnesota Press

Two Still Images:

It's refreshing to see a woman facing the camera on a poster whilst the man is behind (doing the over the shoulder pose) as in most cases, these roles would be reversed. In many posters, there is a trend of the "faceless woman" where only her legs or boobs would be in shot, so this is an important step in the right direction.

I visited Comic Con this weekend and saw many woman of different shapes and sizes cosplaying various characters from popular culture. It felt incredibly empowering.

One Other Source:



Ariana Grande is a very inspiring role model for young girls. The visuals in this music video are stunning and powerful.

Context of Practice 1 Recap (Week Commencing 19/11/18)

This week we were briefed on our first study task; for which we must find twenty sources that explore two potential essay question topics. The two topics I have chosen are:

• nostalgia
• inclusive story telling

I am planning on visiting Birmingham Comic Con this weekend for inspiration for my visual journal/ concertina.

Weekly Recap (25/11/18)

Tasks Completed:

• visited Birmingham Comic Con
• completed three scenes towards Study Task 5 (Animation Skills)
• began looking into sources for Context of Practice 1
• attended a DLSR Induction session

Intentions:

• refine certain frames using After Effects 
• identify ten adverts from different countries for PP1
• write up the sources on the blog alongside a weekly update for CoP1
• add sound to my final animation

Study Task 4 - Let Me Entertain You!

Twelve Animations (from Twelve Countries)

1) Amaro and Walden's Joyride - The Line (GB 2015)



Before I visited MAF, I discovered this clip on YouTube and chose to include it as I felt the animator gave great consideration to every aspect of the character's appeal. While at MAF, The Line presented a Masterclass covering their previous commissions and having seen their various techniques, this only made me more interested in this style of animation.

2) Afternoon Class - Seoro Oh (South Korea 2015)



Sound in this clip is utilised effectively to further connect to the audience's emotions as they follow the relatable narrative before them. The metaphorical visuals work incredibly well alongside the sound in this 2D digital animation. Considering the aesthetic, the colour stood out to me in this clip.

3) Scrambled - Polder Animation (Netherlands 2017)



This film is slightly longer than the first two however I feel the length is exactly right to tell the narrative without losing the interest of the audience, which I found a few other animations were guilty of.

4) Raymonde or the Vertical Escape - Sarah Van Den Boom (France 2018)



At MAF, I was introduced to this animation. I thought the story was thought-provoking and emotional, and the concept left the audience with a certain impression that was unique to the film and couldn't be replicated.

5) Who's Hungry? - David Ochs (US 2009)



The use of sound in this animation I believe helps capture the horror the story tells of; particularly the screeches of the kidnapper and the whirring of the blender. The lack of colour and sketchy, pencil-drawn style I find also evokes a more melancholy and uneasy vibe to the clip. The length also works well in leaving the audience apprehensive of what is about to happen, yet is also not too drawn out that they lose interest.

6) Animal Behaviour - Alison Snowden and David Fine (Canada 2018)



The voice acting in this clip and behavioural stereotypes based on the animals I feel made the animation much more wholesome even though the basic concept is a little more cynical masked with humour.

7) Wildebeest - Nicholas Keppens and Matthias Phlips (Belgium 2017)



I found the tone of this animation to be rather dark despite the fact there is humour running throughout. I thought this juxtaposition worked well in order to invoke a certain, unique response from the audience, which left questions in their minds.

8) Squaring the Circle - Karolina Specht (Poland 2018)



The use of abstract metaphors in this animation I felt provided something unique and fresh to the media.

9) One Small Step - Taiko (US/China 2018)



Similarly to the first clip, I felt the characters' designs were incredibly captivating and likeable.

10) The Fox - Sadegh Javadi Nikjeh (Iran 2018)

At MAF, I watched this animation. I thought the story was poignant and riveting. Aesthetically, the design (particularly the background) I believe adds another layer to the overall message by capturing a particular tone.
Link to the Fox Trailer

11) The Fly - Ferenc Rofusz (Hungary 1980)



I chose this clip as it uses a different technique to the others and also is much older so I can see the variation in animation and how it has evolved as time has gone on.

12) Death of a Father - Somnath Pal (India 2017)



This animation evoked an incredibly strong emotional response from not just myself, but most of the audience it reached as the focus of the film is something most people will experience in their lifetimes. The artistic design reminded me of old Pop Art pieces.

Weekly Recap (18/11/18)

Tasks Completed:

• wrote first COP1 update
• finished animation for LoopdeLoop
• visited MAF

Intentions:

• sketch character designs in concertina
• research nostalgia in animation
• add sound to LoopdeLoop clip

Study Task 3 - Research

10 Online Sources

• On Animation
• AWN
• Skwigly
• Animation Studies 2.0
• Cartoon Brew
• Short of the Week
• YouTube
• The Line Animation
• 3D Total
• Slurpy Animation Studios

5 Print Based Magazines/ Journals

• Animation Magazine
• A General Aesthetics of American Animation Sound Design - Paul Taberham
• Fudge Animation Journal
• 3D World Magazine
• Wild Cartoon Kingdom Magazine

5 Books

• Animation: The Global History - Maureen Furniss
• The Animator's Survival Kit - Richard E. Williams
• Animated Performance: Bringing Imaginary Animal, Human and Fantasy Characters to Life - Nancy Beiman
• Animation: A World History - Giannalberto Bendazzi
• The World History of Animation - Stephen Cavalier

3 Places

• The National Science and Media Museum
• The Manchester Animation Festival
• Birmingham MCM Comic Con

Context of Practice 1 Recap (Week Commencing 12/11/18)

2. Manipulation, aesthetic choice, lack of identity... How is the concept of nostalgia utilised by the creators of animated content?

This question stood out to me as when I was younger, my mum brought me up on films and music from her own childhood, meaning as I grew up, it was almost as though I longed for a time I hadn't even lived in.

I also feel there are a lot of new films and television series either set in the 1980s, or have been filmed in such a way that remind me of these older films.

After MAF, I felt even more certain that this was the question I wanted to pick as I saw some animations I felt definitely relied on nostalgia.

• The Line - Super Turbo Atomic Ninja Rabbit
• Mike Mort - Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires

Study Task 4 - The Great Bouncing Ball Challenge

Part A

Exploring straight ahead animation, I shaped a piece of plasticine into a ball and using Dragonframe, animated it dropping on the floor. This way, I could focus on timing by squashing and stretching the ball so that it portrayed different speeds at different heights.



Link to Ball Drop

Part B

Using footage I filmed in person and also referencing a diagram depicting arcs, I animated using the same software, a ball bouncing across the floor. This time however, I practiced pose-to-pose animation as I needed to make sure the ball was at the correct height after each bounce.



Link to Ball Bounce

Part C

In groups of four, we animated a pendulum swing in Dragonframe. Because we used a pencil, we didn't have the power to manipulate the object the same way we could a ball of plasticine so, we needed to look into easing to capture that sense of speed.



I made a conscious effort to keep the tip of the pencil in the same position and also rotated the pencil as we animated so it appeared to be rolling. However, I feel the timing is a little too mechanical.

Link to Pendulum Swing

We then had a couple lessons in Photoshop experimenting with rotoscoping. I began by doing a quick sketch of a ball on a string however I wanted to refine this by adding a 3D element as well as colour to the animation. By doing so however, I lost the means that allowed it to loop as the ball spun slightly which meant the first and final frame didn't match up.



Link to Ball Swing

Part D

Applying the skills I had learned from the rotoscoping lesson, I animated a short looping clip of a pair of crocs that explored the principles we have covered so far. I particularly paid attention to squash and stretch, easing, and timing. As the theme of the project was "shoes" these movements were more subtle as I focused them in the expressions, especially the eyes, of my personified croc. I also added a couple flies to my final animation to further demonstrate these principles.



In future, I need to work on simplifying the task as I feel the clip above didn't need half as many frames as I had animated and if my knowledge of Photoshop was more developed, I'm sure I could have found a way to avoid adding these unnecessary frames.

Link to Final Animation


Link to Reference Video (Part A)
Link to Reference Video (Part B)
Link to Reference Video (Part C)

Weekly Recap (11/11/18)

Tasks Completed:

• attended a Photoshop session on rotoscoping
• animated three pendulum clips using various techniques and media
• began working toward the final part of the great bouncing ball challenge

Intentions:

• colour my final animation before the deadline
• if possible, add extra elements such as sound to my animation ready to enter it for LoopdeLoop
• prepare for the Manchester Animation Festival

Weekly Recap (04/11/18)

Tasks Completed:

• created two short animations looking into timing and movement
• began exploring different types of animation from around the world
• attended the second Photoshop workshop

Intentions:

• move onto parts C and D of this week's study task
• make sure I complete the tasks set next week ready for MAF the following week