SDGM 560 Process Journal - Steven Roberson

The weekend was a quick turnaround, but we achieved a lot in regards to nailing down the environment. I was able to produce the map and some beat boards to help communicate my plan. Being the creator of the map actually let me have a huge impact on the story, because I was tying specific moments to locations and shots that I was seeing. Many of our crew members were pulled to Writer's Block , so each member of the environments team had greater agency over how the world was built. I created many different maps to help explain things to the crew, and digi-scout said they loved having the beat boards to help with their explorations from a story perspective.  This was the earliest version of the map. I loosely blocked in the neighborhoods, considering the layout as well as the 3d realization of what would come next. I was thinking very sculpturally and trying to wrap my head around the space. I was also considering the character's journey and how the terrain would contribu

Today was our big pitch for the environment of Cinque Terre. The environments team did a great job of pulling together mood boards and reference images to showcase the potential we saw in the location. We also created sketches to show how we would innovate on this material. I chose to do lots of black and white tonal studies to give an example of just how simple, yet powerful this location's geography could be. Others experimented with color, constructive drawing, and other techniques to test the location's narrative durability. For my pieces, I was considering how Hans Bacher would approach the shape language of an environment, emphasizing the depth through value and overlap. I wanted the city to feel rhythmic and alive, so I made sure to always include arcs and alternating patterns in my designs. A major element we liked about the city was the winding roads, and I wanted to make sure that was expressed in a larger sense as well.  The class really responded to our pr

The past week has been a blur of changes and updates on both films. On Writer's Block , we have been course-corrected to make sure the tone is light and fun. Some of our boards were getting too dark. We have worked out our pipeline for creating animatics for daily review, which has helped a lot for collaborating with VFX and Film.  One major change was that the Speakeasy scene has been nixed, and it has been replaced with a Sahara to tundra to volcano sequence that better showcases VFX. We have also been exploring various transitions between Henry's office and the stories. I helped with the planet sequence, where we zoom in on the globe and the world morphs around it into a planet.    Professor Pattinson provided us with a very helpful cinematography presentation to help us understand how to use the camera for emotional effect.  The painter-over crew, which I was a part of, also delivered some location concept art of the London wharf scene that was very well

They also led to this exploration of the character being sad.

The sketches in the last post led to this painting exploring the figure's excitement.

Here are various drawings that explore how the paper figure could look and move.

On Sunday we decided to have a voluntary meeting for the concept crew. At it, we distributed roles and scenes for Writer's Block . I was assigned the Wharf Crime Scene, which is perfect because I have already been researching that location. I'm excited to work on it because it will likely include some matte painting and green screen technology, which will be fun to learn about. We also nailed down some ideas for Analog , and I created an architectural sketch to help flesh out our ideas for the overall location of the short.

I took a stab at the initial idea for the London wharf scene in Writer's Block . The idea was for the characters to be just off the wharf and to have the ships in the background obscured by fog. This could be shot on Riverstreet inside of an alley and expanded with matte paintings. At first, I had the foreground in a heavy fog, which is still an option, but I figured it would be more useful to actually see the environment for the sake of developing the location. This led me to include puddles of water that create interesting lighting effects and set a somber mood.  I also collected many images for costume and location reference and uploaded them to the 560 Google drive in preparation for our concept meeting on Sunday. 

Here is my take on Henry's office from Writer's Block . I was focused on exploring the lighting. I thought it would be interesting for him to be in an environment that had nice furniture but was disheveled. This would show his past success but present struggle.

Today's class brought a lot of chaos and order in one fell swoop. Both of the stories underwent rewrites that resolved almost all of the issues I had with them.  Analog seems to be in good shape now, and we are starting to discuss more aesthetic concerns like what how the paper character functions. We also have a clearer idea of what locations we are going to be developing, so I can keep an eye out for reference for cafes and shops that might fit the story.  Writer's Block  was where we made the most progress today. The film crew joined us, and we finally got a clearer idea of how we would be interacting with them. This added a ton of complexity to the equation, but the systems of interaction are being worked out. There are still some questions remaining about logistics, but roles have been assigned. I have joined the environment concept art team, and we are waiting for our locations to be assigned to us. Some will likely be real locations, such as the speakeasy or the stud

Here are some early ideas for what the artist in Analog . We have not determined anything about the artist's character, so these are part of that searching process. I wanted to produce a variety of personalities, body types and cultural backgrounds. There are so many types of artists at SCAD that narrowing down the major and background of the artist would be very helpful. I am assuming that she is a major that prioritizes drawings.

Today was our initial meeting for the SDGM 560 class, and it brought together the writing, VFX and Preproduction teams. We heard several versions of the stories for Analog and Artist Block . I enjoyed elements of each of the stories and had some thoughts after our meeting. On the topic of Analog , the pacing seemed to be moving very fast. We were always moving, with few moments to rest. A lot was happening, but not every moment revealed who the characters were or what they wanted. We discussed refining who the paper character is, but I think that we need to determine more concretely who the artist is as well. In multiple drafts, the artist abandons her drawing because it is not fulfilling. Then, later in the story, she accepts it back again for reasons mostly attributed to the wear and tear of its journey. Honestly, this setup just makes me not like the artist very much. I understand the theme that the scars of our journey can make us beautiful, but I do not  think  the payoff is