Class Log 02-21

Today we began by looking at boards. Wei did a great job on his version of the Dress Shop sequence. One major thing we all liked was the paper falling off of the trash can in defeat. Ultimately, it got moved for the sake of the story, but it was an important tonal note that we used for our later discussion.

That discussion was about how far we should delay the paper's feeling of conclusion. Sarah brought up a great point that the paper is feeling good before the classroom, and it would be better to put that off so that we don't know what to expect going to the final scene. This tied in very well with the paper being put in the bag, and people suggested that we could have the artist choose between throwing away the paper or putting it in her bag. This was a much-needed change so that the story has a more complete arc to it. Gabi and Dennis are going to be smoothing out that idea as time goes on.

Gabi also showed us a new version of 800 where the paper has left the artist and is wandering alone to the festival. I really liked the isolation, and yet the curiosity that gets piqued by the festival. People were asking about how the paper would go from feeling happy to sad to happy so fast, but I pointed out that the paper is still a child. Children's emotions change very fast, and a kid can still have tears in their eyes while smiling from ear to ear. We clarified that the emotion would be one of curiosity, which turns into being overwhelmed by all that is going on as it gets swept up into the festival. 

I am not sure if we need the paper to be photocopied anymore. I think it is enough for the paper to simply be the example for all the other students that if you are yourself, you will make artwork that is authentic and valuable. Emily's boards work fine with this as they are, and it removes the whole idea of a copier. It also removes the problem of how her paper character transforms into other character.

Emily completed a color version of the dock, and Shannon said it looked good other than the pink stones. Wei did a nice shot of the dress shop that will be useful for the hero assets of that building. I pulled together the hilltop assets into one file and created a more-refined painting of the assets in that area. I would have liked to develop it more, but the deadlines are coming fast. Shannon did some Vespa designs and a painting for the dock scene of the Seagull and the paper. Chris asked if that was a complete background, and Shannon said it was. He said it could be used for a matte painting. I think this shot in general would be a great one for texting that out on, since Shannon put a 2d pole in the foreground that is out of focus. 

For characters, we got some more clarified designs of the seagull and the cat from Shannon. We also got some color designs from the crew for Phoebe's clothing colors. Ana made her leggings darker, which I'm not sure if I like. I have not been a fan of leggings the entire time. I think more breathable fabrics would be preferable. Leggings are also very synthetic, which I think goes against the "natural" vibe that Phoebe gives me.

Digi-scout went overboard today and got all of the layouts finished for the various areas of town. The buildings are still placeholder, but we now have locations we can work with. It also pointed out areas that we need more clarity, like the Piazza. Kyle also modeled hands with fingers, although we decided would only be rigged like mittens. Addie did a great job on the hilltop design, and it was really cool to see the area I have spent the most time designing start to take shape. Kang also modeled the classroom, and it looked really good. We used it to discuss how we would be doing the shots in such a close space by removing things that are unnecessary for each shot. Now that we have these models, we can start doing the camera work for each shot!

Textures are still being developed, but now we have them rendered on buildings. I think they look really good overlapping other areas, but the corners facing the camera really suffer. Instead of looking like a sharp corner that has dimension, they appear to be made out of clay or play-dough. Overall, it makes it feel kind of cheap instead of luxurious and ancient.

Haley is going through and making a list of all the hero assets we need through the story. I think this will be what helps us complete the design list for the modeling crew so they can make all the rest of the content for the film. Our goal this weekend is to start getting that list knocked out as soon as we get it.