The Chase

This is my Chase project. The scope of the project was to make a chase scene. Make it look like the character in the film was being chased by an unidentified person.

Pre-Production we spent our time storyboarding it and pitching ideas on what we could add or edit to make it better. During production we filmed it and found areas with good lighting and those areas that we knew from Pre-Production that we wanted to shoot at. Post-Production we began editing this short film. We cut our scenes down to a few seconds each and kept the best scenes. We also added music for dramatic effect and to keep it climactic, and keep the viewer interested.

While making this film I didn't learn any new camera techniques, however, I did learn how to edit the audio in different clips in Final Cut Pro. I learned how to make some parts really quiet and then have the audio build up and be really loud at a different part.

One thing I would do differently is not have as many wardrobe changes for more continuity. That was definitely a problem while shooting this. Another thing I would do differently would be to try to act more scared in the scene where I am on the ground and looking to make sure the chaser is nowhere in sight. I thought that scene looked kind of corny and could have been better. Something else I would do differently is make my run look a little more hurried, if that makes sense. Basically, try to make it seem like I am in a rush to get away from whoever is chasing me. In this film it looks like I'm just jogging and in no rush, defeating the goal to convey fear and panic. The last thing I would do differently is not break the 180 degree rule, it confuses the viewer.

One thing I would keep the same is where we shot this. I think that all of the places in this film had good lighting and didn't have a lot of people in them so we weren't bothering anybody or disrupting any classes. Another thing I would keep the same is the music but spread it out more so that one song doesn't come right after another. I thought the music definitely gave the film an intense feel and keeps people interested in what's going to happen next.

The first thing I'm going to draw from this is - like I said before - more spread out music so it's not as sporadic. The second thing that I'll draw from this is better acting. The reason being is to make it look more realistic and help the film give off whatever emotion it's trying to convey.

Overall, I thought the film was good but I definitely could have done better. No major mistakes, aside from the 180 degree rule violation, but there was a lot of small things that could of been done better to improve it.

Character Animation

What is your character? A stick person named Bill The Human who is really happy for no reason.
Why did you design your character that way? To give it a cartoon and silly feel.
What was your though behind your character? Cartoons, funny, silly... Round head... Random pocket.

Did you run into any issues with the design of your character? The legs made his walk look weird but they are meant to be that way. Don't judge.
Did you have any issues with keyframes? Nope, everything went well with the keyframes. I got their timing down pretty well. Left Leg and Right Leg keyframes took place at the same time to prevent both legs going forward at the same time.
I created the keyframes by, first, setting the beginning position by clicking the clock by the word "Position." Then I moved the orange cursor where I wanted it. Then I moved the body part of the character into the position I wanted it to be in at that time.

What are three things you can say you learned about making your character walk? The first thing I learned was when one leg is moving forward, the other leg should be doing the opposite. The second thing I learned is that the design of your character's legs can affect the way the walk looks. The third thing I learned was that the motion of the walk was pretty simple. The last thing I learned was to make the legs bent a little bit to make it look like he has knees.
If you could redo it, would you change anything? I would change his legs so they look more normal but, I still like it.
How do you feel about your work/animation? I think I did pretty well for my first walking animation. I definitely think I could of made it look more realistic and fixed the missing pocket issue. I think I know what caused it: His pocket was not it's own layer in Photoshop so to fix it I would have go into Photoshop and make the pocket it's own layer and then have to re-upload the character into After Effects and animate it again but, I don't have that type of time. Too bad, so sad.

Cartwright A to B 6 Shot System

This is my A to B Project. I learned to come in late and leave early. It keeps the viewer interested. I also learned how to add music to my clips, which I took full advantage of in this short film. I really enjoyed shooting this short film and look forward to making others.

This is a close up of the face. This shows intensity and anticipation. This keeps the viewer locked into the film

This is an Over The Shoulder Shot. This lets the viewer know what he is doing. It lets everyone see things from his perspective.

This is a Medium Shot. Shows he is leaving the room to get where he needs to go. Begins his journey to the Library.

 This is an Extra Wide shot. This is mid-run. He is on his way to the Library. Shows the viewer he is in a hurry to get to there.

This is a close up of the hands. Shows he is opening the door. This kind of shot is a lot more interesting than a wide shot of him opening the door.