Blockout 7

I experimented by collecting what I considered to be the strongest footage of my previous blockouts and tests and assembled them into one film. Because of the way I have put it together the camera cuts are very rough and many of the compositions had to be flipped to make it make sense. I think the story works well but my lecturers still have problems with it. However I have no more time to adjust it as I am already falling behind schedule. The films duration is now 1 min 11.

I also tried the blockout without the plum (below) and although this cut off a few seconds I do not think it makes sense.

Moments

My lecturers still feel the motives are unclear and story unrealistic and recommend I change it. Despite it being late in the schedule and me wanting to get on with production, I know the importance of having a believable story and have therefore decided to experiment by blocking out a series of 'moments' that could then be used of additions or improvements for my story.

I developed the climbing down sequence placing more emphasis on the boy's unsure footing. I think this is an improvement although probably needs to be pushed further.

I experimented by decreasing the size of the mound as I thought it was needlessly big. Although most of the animation is unchanged certain bits are more effective.

At several places the boy is on the verge of becoming mean, a characteristic I am wanting to avoid; the idea being a mischievous boy out looking for adventure and excitement. I liked the idea of him giving a glance over his shoulder to check he is not being watched before sneaking towards the goat.

I extended the shot of the goat trying to escape the oncoming boy. I think the goats actions are now clearer.

I played with the proportions of the stick, enlarging it so the boy struggled to lift it. The concept is good, although to include it I would want to change the whole film to focus on the boys struggle with it.

I gave the boy a saucepan helmet to help clarify him wanting to be a knight. I tested out the new prop in the reaching for a plum scene. Although a fun animation it is out of character for the boy and therefore will not be used. The saucepan works well though and I am thinking of keeping it.

Based off a home video I happened to see recently, of me nearly three years old attempting to force feed grass to five unimpressed adult goats already munching away at the village green. I modified the stick giving it a leaf at the end which catches the goats attention. The animation has not worked well but I think it is a strong idea and one I would like to include in my film. Maybe after this the boy could hold the stick protectively from the jaws of the goat and then spy the plum to distract the goat with.

A problem with the current ending to the film is that the goat just seems to accept the boy on it's back as there is a gap before the boy gives the plum as a token of gratitude. I added the goat trying to shake the boy off and now thinks it makes sense. The purpose of the goat to start galloping is also unclear. I wanted the goat to hold some affection for the boy; maybe he is a regular visitor to the otherwise lonely goat. I was finding it difficult to show affection (looking up fondly, galloping off with a smile) because of the limitations of the rig I am using for the blockout; its purpose being to give an example of how to rig a quadruped so there is no eyes or facial rig. To solve this problem I have used the leaf on the end of the stick to act as motive for the goat to start galloping. The action is maybe too quick to be read and I still prefer the original motive.

Story Variation

My lecturers recommended I experiment with a different take on the story as it and the motives were still unclear. I tried retelling it as follows:

The boy exits a cave/den riding a stick as if it is a horse. He rounds a corner and seeing a goat watching him, pauses looking embarrassed. The boy then discards the stick and wonders off. Suddenly an idea strikes him and he stops, turning slowly to face the goat. The boy then starts to sneak menacingly towards the goat who looks up, but the boy casually pretends to be playing. The goat looks away and the boy continues sneaking, but gets too excited and starts running and screaming, which sends the goat bolting off into a chase around the tree resulting in the boy tripping over a tree root. Lying on the floor the boy sees the plum and gets a new idea to entice the goat over to him. He offers the plum to the goat who backs away nervously, but the boy nods encouragement. The goat cautiously moves around the root and the boy gives more encouragement. The goat happily canters over, only for the boy to dive on its back, causing the goat to goat lose balance. The boy feeds the plum to the goat then jumps up and down to starts the goat galloping off. However, the boy struggles to stay on and falls off landing next to his discarded stick. The boy seeing the discarded stick picks it up and decides it was not so bad after all and gallops off with it.

I think the new version has a clearer told story and some nice animation, but I still think the last blockout has more potential to show off animation skills.

Boy Design

I was advised to change the design of the boy to help clarify his age (5-6). This was mainly achieved by scaling up the head in relation to the body. I also took the opportunity to improve the design of the face, tweak small areas and close the mouth for ease in modeling. Below are the new designs.

Blockout 4 and 5

My lectures still thought that the story was not clear enough and gave me some feedback which I have used to create two more blockouts. I tried cutting down the opening sequence and rocky mound section placing less emphasis on that part of the film. I also rearranged the goats reactions and improved and added in new sequences. This has made the story clearer and reduced the overall length by 22 sec, so it is now 1min 8.

I also experimented by changing the boys reaction when he first sees the goat. Rather than ride around in a circle, I had him do an excited bounce and then gallop straight towards the edge of the rock.

I think the first reaction shows the boys intentions clearer.

Blockout 3

Over the next two blockouts I concentrated on improved the actions, making the timing more accurate, changing camera angles and reducing the amount the tree shook after the plum is picked off. I also tried to make the boys purpose more clear by having him notice the goat when he is screaming at the start, then getting the idea to ride it and visualising this by galloping around using his stick as a horse.

I have been successful in fixing my parenting problem from earlier blockouts. There is a parenting constraint option under the Animation menu set, which allows me to do exactly what I need without causing any problems. I do not know why this has next to no mention on the Internet and why any parenting help suggests other temperamental ways to solve it. The only explanation would be that this is a relatively new feature to Maya.

New Timetable

I made timetable for the production and post-production stages of my project. I have allocated myself plenty of time for animating as that is the most important bit and left the last two Weeks blank, for when things go wrong. I have been experimenting with referencing scenes in Maya, which will allow me to add to edit a collection of scenes at the same time. My Referencing pipeline will be:Although I was not able to stick to the exact dates in my last timetable, everything that needed to be done has been achieved so I am very pleased with my progress to date.

Blockout

I created a blockout of my film in Maya using the Goat and Max for Maya rigs from http://www.highend3d.com/. As well as giving me a much better idea of pacing, I used it as a chance to test out animation by keyframing as many animation cycles as possible. To do this I spent a great deal of time filming and photographing myself acting out particular movements and poses, as well as analysing Internet footage and studying Muybridge image sequences. I created a bank of notes, thumbnails and arcs to help when I animate. Both the mound and tree models are still in production.

I think some of the animation sequences work really well particularly for the goat and I am glad I put so many hours into animating it. There are however a few actions that I do not think are clear; the second close up of the goat is supposed to show the goat pulling against the rope trying to escape from the boy. Also as the boy gingerly tries to climb down the rock he ends up falling instead. The main feedback points I received was to make the boys purpose clearer, reduce the shake of the tree and improve the camera angles.

A large problem I encountered was parenting. I needed to be able to turn on and off the parent attribute and move the child independently from its master. This can be achieved to some degree using multiple versions of the same object, but not to the extent that I needed. After much unsuccessful searching through the Maya help file and the Internet, I discovered a script that allowed me to do just that. However the script had many problems which I could not undo. Although it allowed me to do exactly what I wanted, I ended up spending days fixing problems it had caused and therefore I will need to find a more reliable method when I come to animating.

Group Work: Clay Monkey

I was asked to sculpt a clay model of the monkey in Jo's film. This was to assist in the computer modeling of the character. I was given a series of useful drawings which I turned into a page to use as reference. It had to be free standing and completed ready for when we return after the Christmas holidays.I am pleased with how the monkey turned out as the majority of the design is very thin and therefore difficult to model. To create it I made a metal armature for strength, then covered it in newspaper to help the clay stick and reduce weight. There is actually very little clay on it and because of this it can stand up by itself. I textured it to mach the designs as close as possible.

Boy Design

Finally got the boy design finished over the Christmas holidays, after struggling with it for so long. I am really happy with how they have turned out. I am finding that I am having to spend far longer on designs because someone else is modeling them and I feel they have to be completely perfect. I have given the job of modeling him to Joe. I have asked for this to be completed as soon as possible.

Goat Model

I received the Goat model from Joe today. He did a great job modeling it and with a couple of very minor tweaks it will be perfect.

Storyboard

I asked James to draw a more accurate storyboard for me, as I was struggling to visualise my various camera angles and poses. This helped me a great deal when creating my blockout as I could use it a reference for compositions and poses.

Branch Design

I designed the branches for the plum tree with elements of moss and vines, without straying too far from actual leaves.



I still prefer the shape of the leaves in the below picture, as they are almost like wet sticky clumps of thin finger like leaves.

I have given the job of modeling the tree to Matt. I also tried applying a few different colours to the tree, but as of yet I am not sure which would fit in best with the overall colour scheme.

Sneak Cycle

I animated a sneak cycle ready for the boy which I am quite happy with, although it is a bit overbalanced and snappy in places. I am finally getting the hang of ignoring the numbers in Maya. I find it best to keep the channel box closed whenever possible to prevent me from being distracted by the data.

Goat Design

I used Photoshop to edit the goat's design slightly; thickening the horns and softening the face as well as other minor adjustments.





I have given the Goat to Joe to model for me. I have asked if possible for the model to retain some of the a-symmetric qualities of the original clay design. I have asked for this to be completed by the end of the Christmas holidays.

Hill Model

I am having other people do the majority of modeling for my project, as this will give me more time to work on other parts of production. I have given Susan the job of modeling the hill for my set. I have asked for this to be completed by the end of the Christmas holidays.

Boy Design

I created a clay design for my boy character. Unfortunately I made it too small to sculpt the head and have therefore left it as a rough shape. I think the model has some positive features that with some work could be developed into a successful design.

Tree Design

I developed the tree design in clay. It was a challenging model because of the very thin branches and roots. I used wire and newspaper to aid in the modelling process. I think the design is successful because it is both stylised and clear.

Goat Design

I have created a new design for the goat character. Underneath the clay is an armature made out of gardening wire with newspaper to pad it out to reduce weight. I am happy with this design as it is more stylised and simplified than the last goat.

Quadruped Walk Cycle

I have only ever animated a quadruped character once before and they spent most of the time walking on their hind legs, so I do not have much experience animating four legged walk cycles. For the animation I used the Real Dog rig available at http://www.highend3d.com/. Although I have no problems with the technical side of Maya I still find it difficult to concentrate on the character poses as I spend my time worrying about numbers. Despite several attempts, a lot of planning and analysing of reference footage, the resulting animation is poor as there is no sense of weight and it is quite snappy. As it stands I am not benefiting from computer animation's easier working method (building up animation one layer at a time, the mighty undo button) and I am more confident animating in stop motion and therefore need to concentrate on improving my Maya animation skills.