Things I saw From Where I Slept (prelude)
Laura E.
running time - 1:35 (extended edition)
Multiple methods are used to create a layered, surreal effect reflective of a dream. Hand-drawn transformations evolve around an ever present circular entity, which manifests itself in different forms conducive to the fantastical narrative.
The extended edition is only available on the DVD, so sorry, (I don't think anyone will see it...)
But I'm very pleased with the final version.
I think we're supposed to have seven entries - and to complete my three blogs on the studio process I will talk about both the kinestasis and cutout studies.
Before these two projects I had really avoided using the computer aside from editing and compilation; I'm not that good with computers in that I don't use them that much in my process , however I am a quick learner and can usually grasp how to go about things (albeit not always efficiently).
Kinestasis came first - I listened to the lecture on keyframes and then when I went to work on the project after class I found I could recall nothing about keyframes -- after looking at some tutorials I started to get an idea of what I was supposed to do, but it wasn't until the next morning that I really got the hang of it, and even began connecting the dots in exploring things outside the transform tool, such as opacity and the overlaying effect -- which was found by accident - at some point I noticed you can put clips over other clips (as I said before, I'm not used to this program) - I then began looking for a way to make one picture more transparent, I found overlay and thought that it sounded right (the options listed were similar to something I was used to in photoshop); The overlay effect was used reflective of the Kinestasis vid posted in entry #3. I was somewhat disappointed in the zoom capabilities, but my way around that was to add another picture and crop it thereby making the zoom go further...
The cutout video was a lot of work and stress. I don't know where I came up with crocodiles but I did and beginning looks like some kind of Tim and Eric sketch. Just an absolutely difficult piece, but I'm not sure it would be any easier with an analog process; cutouts take time. I used keyframes as before - but there has to be an easier way then how I was using them. The pics that worked the best had no background - the keyer left some lines as we all know, but some pics with no background wouldn't import at all so I went back into photoshop and added the green in. I had many duh moments where I realized that for the crocodile's mouth to move and be open I needed to created two separate pictures etc. etc. (even more work). There are some things I would have liked to go smoother and sound would have been a plus but, as I said, it was work enough to get what I could.
But it is full of fun enjoyable videos for your viewing pleasure! I suggest actually going to youtube to watch them because the videos are so small here (whatever works)...I jumped around with these clips, it's not necessary to watch the whole thing...but if you're bored well...
To start things off here's a film by Estonian animator Priit Parn that combines traditional drawn animation with cutouts (how nice for us who just studied the subject) ...(and btw watch out it's one big sexual innuendo)
Destino - Directed by: Dominique Monfery for Disney (originally Disney/Dali 1946 collaboration). 2003, running time: 6:32 min
I think the issue here is hybridity - the first what with the nice combo of cutouts and drawings and then the latter with the CG/drawings. The Parn one is...so strange, I wouldn't have posted it if it didn't have cutouts; the fluidity of the transitions is so very impressive, the whole piece moves beautifully while expressing the artist's personal scraggly style. I know the subject matter was weird (yes beware of little brown men who live in your stove) but the constant deluge of metaphors really adds to the work depth-wise; it's fascinating because it's unexpected when it happens (her cutout lips and eyes falling into the meat grinder she's using - she turns them in ground beef - is this expected? No. Is this supposed to be sexual? I don't know, but it is now)
I didn't know Disney and Dali were ever in on a film - but it didn't get completed till much later -- my decision to post Destino was due to the novelty of Disney acting strange, but I also thought you all would enjoy it. While it is unconventional for where it is coming from, it doesn't depart completely from studio traditions - character movement and expressions as well as the animation's appearance (fluidity, smoothness - it's akin to what their contemporary films look like) - I stated before that this is a hybrid of traditional and digital, it's so damn smooth I'd want to peg it as CG dominant - but no, it is actually mainly drawings (with 17 sec. of original footage from its conception).
Well, I hate to be a spoilsport, as good as the film is, I don't like the digital/traditional hybrid (or at least the Disney methods of using it) -- it's just too smooth...their animation is already too smooth and perfect and now... - maybe the digital had trouble integrating (they're on two different levels); it just stood out too unnaturally (was 2003 so long ago - maybe the tech is better now, well regardless we've come a long way from Aladdin CG, everything is digitally involved)...I digress, it's not a bad film, I'm just nostalgic for the days when Disney animation wasn't so flawless...and shiny (okay, okay - so the shininess in this case was a stylistic choice but still...)
Anyways - thoughts on hybrids?
Going into this project I really wanted to be spontaneous with where I took it; no storyboard in this case. I knew I wanted to do a stop-motion piece simply because that is what I am most comfortable with at the moment (very little experience with digital thank you) - and I got a notion in my head about using hands and making colors change to black, which expanded to include the nail polish sequence.
The camera I used was pretty old (as far as digital cameras go, it's clunky and outdated) - simply because my digital camera is a battery vampire (the paper bag animation took an entire pack of batteries) and the older camera came with a power cord. I set up this animation to be made without assistance - somehow I got the tripod and camera in front of me to record the drawings, and as mentioned in class all the shots that needed two hands were done using the 10 second timer (yes a little tedious in the long run, but I'm such a control freak, I don't think I minded it that much). One issue I had was getting the surface to the plane that I wanted it - I assumed in my head that I would be viewing the video from directly above; obviously not taking into account the tripod's actual relationship to the table (it is a drafting/artist table - I ended up tilting it up as far as it would go and taping all the paper on).
The workspace
The various tools I used included Copic/Tombow markers, water and
Sumi ink, and the nail polishes. The paper that was used in the nail
polish scene wasn't that heavy - but it held up. I waited for the
initial dots of nail polish to dry, but after that I just did my best
not to get too messy (nothing got on the camera actually) and I wiped
off my hands if polish got on them. My favorite part I think is when I
swirled water on the marker drawing - here it was more unexpected and
experimental for me because I hadn't thought it out at all - I was just
trying to figure out how I could move from the color to the black that I
knew I wanted to transition to (and whether to directly cover up the
colored drawing) and my first instinct was to start with water. I was initially hesitant about getting rid of the old drawing (I tend to adopt a hoarder mentality in my creation).
In progress
Destruction of the marker hands
Overall I do like the piece, but as a finished artwork I think it would have been good to revisit the hands at the end (and now after all is said and done I think of a interesting way to do it - maybe in the future friends)
Some stills from the film:
101 Dalmatians lol
What a mess. Ever since I put the ink on it the nail polish has been sticky (it was dry before that)
