OranHickey @k00332047 - Tumblr Blog

Set up of Work for Selected Discipline Assessment

My setup of my accumulated work during the Selected Discipline module in Animation & Motion Design for the assessments next week.

On the desk I had room to show drawing exercises from the start of the module, my mini-me, my mouth pieces and the stage parts for the mini-me scene, one piece of design work from the team project and a showcase of my drawings from FOTA and Cobh as well as the dog life drawings across a few different sketchbooks.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Pitch

Today we finally delivered our big pitch to the tutors and the rest of the class, and it went wrong in a number of ways.

We spent the morning preparing to present and deliver the pitch after lunch. Caoimhe put the slide show for the pitch together, with all our accumulated work organised and just a few notes from the rest of us. We each also had certain speaking roles for the presentation - mine was to talk about our storyboards, my script is shown below (I wrote the back part).

Just before lunch, we did a quick rehearsal of the speaking parts of our pitch, which helped us to know exactly how to approach the real thing and also showed problems that were then edited and resolved quickly before the class pitch.

Unfortunately though when the time finally came, all the groups had trouble emailing our slide shows to the tutors so we could present them on the projector screen. There was a lot of confusion with sending the presentations in the right format and getting them to work afterwards.

Of course, they eventually did all get working, but when we finally went up, alas, we ran into another problem of our own. We ended up uploading an older version of our PowerPoint somehow, which made it harder to show all our work, and one of the slides didn’t even show up for some reason! To be honest, all this mishap made the pitch even more daunting to deliver, so that was quite tough.

We did it anyway though, and Paul said the pitch had problems but we still did pretty good overall, so I’m glad for that.

Our group presentation (the final version) is shown below (reminder: I talked about story boarding):

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 10

Final day before the big pitch. We had a meeting with the whole group in the morning (via call for those who couldn’t come in) where we discussed our pitch and did a brief rehearsal.

After that, I spent the rest of the day finishing off the master shot that I started as best as I could. I mainly focused on filling in all the spaces I had lined out with watercolour, though it was tricky to paint in the larger areas around everything, especially with the seagulls.

I put about three layers of watercolour on the water space, as I wanted to create a display of water in layers to help with the sense of depth in the shot.

I also added some colour penciling at the end to add a quick last bit of shading, especially to the characters in the foreground, as well as to make some shapes clearer, such as the distant figure of Alonzo on the boat.

For the bit of land in the left of the background, I didn't think about it too much because it would be a faded piece of town in the distance anyway, but in order to draw something at least slightly descriptive and appropriate, I referred back to the images I previously researched of the Port of Bordeaux, particularly the 1871 painting of it by Edouard Manet.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 9

Today we started preparing for the pitch on Thursday. We spent the morning working on a rough script for the pitch as a group, and breaking it down into different segments that each of us could take on.

Later on in the afternoon, I started my final master shot continuing from the rough sketches I made yesterday. It took a while to sketch it all out again on a bigger page though, especially as I was having trouble recreating the composition I decided on.

I eventually got to filling it in with watercolour in the last hour of the day, though I still have most of it to fill yet. I’ll get as much of that done tomorrow as I can.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 8

First day of the final week of the brief. Including today, we have three days left to get all our work organised before we have to pitch, so we were all working frantically throughout the day.

Fortunately, we were able to get the majority of the team together today, so we came together in the morning to decide what we needed to do. We resolved that all of the character design work was finished now, so the last big part left would be the background work and master shots.

I decided I wanted to work on the master shot for a scene from my storyboard, which could illustrate the seafaring aspect of Alonzo’s maritime adventure. I started with some quick research into ship paintings from the 18th century, by artist Thomas Gainsborough, and then began looking to them to help inspire the composition for my master shot.

I mainly looked back to my storyboard work for ideas, but Caoimhe also suggested an original shot of Alonzo looking out at a ship from the docks, longing for adventure, so I drew that first. It turned out rather well - I looked back at the photography of the docks I took from our trip to Cobh, and I was able to create a surprisingly meaningful scene.

I did a few more thumbnail sketches anyway, to experiment with a few different compositions and scenes before the final drawing. That helped me decide for sure that I was most interested in the composition looking out to sea, as the one facing towards the dock seemed too similar to the background studies my teammates had already made.

However, I decided it might be better to focus on Alonzo’s family watching him sail off into the distance, as my tutors thought the composition expressed well the person watching a ship depart for a long journey. I also admired the composition of seagulls I created in a previous drawing, but Yvonne said that the gulls would more likely be flying in the direction of the ship, so I implemented that for my chosen angle, and I felt it really worked for enhancing the composition.

Finally I added a ridge at the left of the background to show the country Alonzo was leaving, but that appeared too tall and intimidating, so I made it smaller in a second attempt at that composition.

Hen Character Design (Self-Directed Work)

A redesign of Alonzo's hen sidekick Rosita adhering to our chosen group style, similarly to what I did for Alonzo on Friday. This time I did a quick bit of research into images of white hens online, as I neglected to do so with my original design, so there were a few more changes in form with this one.

Final Design:

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 7

This morning we were presenting our current progress in the project again, which I unfortunately didn’t feel as prepared for this time. We spent the little time beforehand getting our most recent storyboards onto the wall (by photocopying), and I added one more image to show the scene from start to finish, even though I may have rushed it a bit and left out one or two potential shots.

Paul and Yvonne noted that we had three working days left before we had to pitch on Thursday, so we would need to be looking at where we are now and quickly deciding how to wrap up. Paul also noted about my group’s progress specifically that our individual designs were too different from each other and we needed to come together on a cohesive design and proportions. So yes, I did find all that information a bit overwhelming.

However, me and Caoimhe were able to get caught up a bit during the remainder of the day. I felt my storyboard, while a bit rough, was more or less complete at this point, so I felt comfortable moving on from that.

So we looked over our existing designs to see how we could stylise them more consistently, mainly around Sophie’s art style that she organised on Canva earlier in the week. It was a bit hard to figure out what we needed to change. The main changes we figured that my design needed were removing outlines, making body features smoother and more bubbly, and using block colours on each area with two tones each.

I applied these ideas to an improved design of the protagonist using watercolour first, then colour pencil on top, mainly for the shading. I think that this worked out pretty well - I was able to create a simplistic, expressive design that seemed much closer visually to Sophie’s design of the character Silva, so I think that’s a good start for our final stretch.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 6

Today we continued to plough ahead with working on rough storyboards. I continued my scene on from the start I made yesterday - I was a bit nervous at first, as Yvonne told me this would be a good opportunity to establish the general atmosphere and tone of our series, but I think I was able to find my footing and accomplish that after some time.

We also watched a presentation and a few videos in the afternoon on pitching our show idea, which did make a bit worried about whether we were close enough to being ready to pitch, or whether I had the gusto to deliver my part of our pitch. I suppose we still have a week to figure everything out though, and it’s only 5 minutes, so it’ll probably be okay.

At the end of the day, I still hadn’t finished my scene storyboards, but I think I was able to get a great chunk of ideas down, and I probably have enough done to wrap it up quickly tomorrow and move on.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Storyboard Progress

Today I would normally be working on CCS, but that module is finished for the year, so I used a bit of my left over time to make a start on my contribution to the storyboards for my group’s animation pitch.

I close to make a quick storyboard of the beginning of Alonzo’s voyage yesterday, but I couldn’t remember everything I had in mind for this scene, so I had to make a quick mind map first, which I was then able to develop the structure of my scene from.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 5

Today was another slow start, as the team was mostly split up again, for a few different reasons. In any case, me and Caoimhe continued to work on character designs. I started by coming back to the front back and side view that I started yesterday, which I was a bit hesitant about at first since Yvonne had already encouraged us to make the line up chart first to see if any changes needed to be made.

However, we didn’t have enough of the character designs finalised to complete the line up chart yet, and I figured I started my 360 view on too small a page anyway, so I decided to finish off a rough interpretation of what the side and back views would look like. I did the side view but didn’t finish the back view, which was okay because I already decided not to worry too much about this version anyway.

I also continued developing a simple design for Alonzo’s chicken Rosita, following the same principle of building from shapes that I used to figure out Alonzo’s overall appearance. I didn’t spend too long on her though, because I figured that she would probably just serve as a gag character in the overall series and I thought I should get into figuring out the other design issues.

So then I moved onto colour studies for Alonzo, which I worked out using colour pencil on top of the finished design sketch I previously made. I tried to use colours that weren’t too vibrant, as a nod to the traditional styles of fashion and painting in the Renaissance, but also mildly flashy to show Alonzo’s eagerness for adventure.

After that, Caoimhe helped me photocopy the design work I had done so far in my sketchbook, which I then stuck up with our group work display on the wall. I felt ready enough to start on a rough storyboard after that, of the part of the story where Alonzo initially sets out to sea, but there wasn’t much time left in the day at that point, so I decided to park it there so I could continue with it the next day.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 4

We started off the week with the presentations we were meant to do on Friday. Afterwards, we got straight into work again. We started by creating a group file through the app Canva through which we could share our individual work with each other online.

We then started to make plans for what to do next. We mainly wanted to continue developing the characters, but we had to figure out a consistent art style to focus on so that all our different interpretations wouldn’t clash with each other too much. So we discussed potential sources of inspiration for a bit, and eventually settled on a style with bodies built from simple shapes and just the right level of detail.

So then we continued developing our character designs having this all organised. I did a new drawing of Alonzo as one final try before the front back and side view. I found it a bit confusing to adapt to our selected style at first, especially with his hair, which I couldn’t decide on the shape for, but eventually I found an understanding of the flowing contours of Sophie’s images and was able to wrap that style around my initially sharp and blocky sketch, with a hairstyle that was wonderfully breezy and wavy.

So then I began developing my front back and side view, but Yvonne said that we should make a line up chart to measure the heights of all the characters against each other first, so we began making silhouettes of our designs so far to measure against each other. I did so with my last finished sketch by recording it on tracing paper and transferring it onto black card, before finally cutting it out and leaving it beside everyone else’s, so we can figure out the measurements from those tomorrow.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 3

We didn’t do much today - we were meant to give presentations on our progress in the brief so far, but not that many people showed up in the morning, probably because everyone was so exhausted after the FOTA trip yesterday.

So those of us that did attend were left to our own devices instead. Me and Caoimhe spent the morning tipping away at our project. It was hard to be very organised without the whole team around, but I decided to do what I could, starting with continuing developing a character bible for our protagonist Alonzo.

I continued to type it out in the college library, organised with the images of Renaissance clothing I already researched. I also added a bit of extra research from the movie Muppet Treasure Island, as our initial discussions of the young Alonzo sailing made me think of the character Jim Hawkins, which I think allowed me some additional inspiration when making sketches for Alonzo’s character design.

I also drafted a rough description for Alonzo's character, shown below:

Alonzo was born into the wealthy and successful Ferrari merchant family. Growing up, he dreamed of adventure and freedom, though he was required to behave and follow strict manners and rules to help uphold his family's legacy. However, Alonzo would spend the weekends working at a farm at the edge of his village, where he felt much more comfortable and freer than at home and school. He particularly took a liking to the chickens on the farm and named his favourite one Rosita. Soon after Alonzo turned twelve years old, his parents spent too much money on luxurious goods and earned less from their trade, eventually going broke. His father then unfortunately fell very ill, and the family desperately needed money from their trade to pay for medicine, to which Alonzo jumped at the opportunity. So, his family reluctantly let him set sail on one of his family’s small caravels to make the trades to Italy in his father’s space, while bringing along Rosita for company.

(I'm sure I recall the idea of Alonzo having a pet chicken thrown out in the group at least once, and I really wanted to explore it - we can always cut it out later if it doesn't fit).

Finally I made a few quick sketches further working out the character design. I would've liked to do a bit more, but I had my work for the CCS module to finish off for the afternoon, so I can continue with that next week.

FOTA Drawing Trip (Cobh)

After our time at FOTA, we went on the train again to the seaside town of Cobh, for lunch and to see some interesting architecture. Contrary to what I anticipated, we were left to our own devices there again, even for just grabbing some lunch. I didn't really feel as comfortable roaming a busy town like this again, so I just stuck with the same group as at FOTA. We didn't really do much - we just grabbed some lunch and hung out at a fancy bar for a while.

I did attempt some quick drawing with whatever sights we went past there though, so here they are:

I also took some photos around the coast, as I did find some of the sights near the water rather pleasing to look at. Maybe some of the pier imagery could even contribute some more inspiration to my team’s animation pitch?

I did feel dissatisfied with what little drawing I got done there though, so I did two more on the train just as we were leaving for home.

They’re both pretty rough, and I definitely didn’t learn as much from them as with the animal drawings, bit I did find the places depicted in my sketches pretty fascinating visually (the tunnel on the way out was particularly mysterious!), so I think it was worth saving the memories of them in a quick sketch.

FOTA Drawing Trip!

On Thursday we went for a day trip to FOTA wildlife park, and it was awesome! We had a long journey to the park by train, which was honestly a bit overwhelming, especially as it was so early in the morning. Once we got there though, it helped to be out in the fresh air again. We took a big group photo together at the entrance, and then we were left to freely roam in small groups of our choosing. We went walking around the park, making sketches of animals as we passed them.

Me and my group started by observing the spider monkeys near the entrance, which I think was a good starting point as they were similar enough to humans in the form of their limbs and heads.

Next we witnessed the free roaming lemurs, who were really interesting. They came up really close to us too, so I was able to observe many parts of their bodies and movement, as well as their babies clinging to the mothers' backs, which was so adorable! I also spotted a wallaby through the bushes with her baby in her pouch, which was also very sweet.

The animals I was most interested in were the kangaroos, which I believe I spent a good half hour drawing once I eventually found them. I just thought their bodies were really interesting, with their huge feet, long tails, deer-like ears and pouches for their babies.

I found their positions and movements quite fascinating as well. It was naturally difficult to capture them in their famous hopping motion, but I really wanted to, so I made a strong attempt, which I think turned out pretty well, even if I wasn't quite able to finish studying it, as I only saw one of the kangaroos hopping for a short amount of time.

Another unique part of the park me and my group visited was the Madagascan Village, with a house that housed fish and amphibians (which was convenient, as it had just started raining!) I really admire fish as well, and they weren't really discussed much in the studies we did on animal drawing beforehand, so I was eager to have a go at sketching their movements when we found them.

We also saw some red pandas, penguins, tigers and a rhino. They were really interesting as well, but I unfortunately didn’t get to draw most of them, as we soon had to return to the train station to move onto Cobh with the rest of the group.

There was actually the option to stay in the park and meet back up on the train two hours later, but I was afraid to separate from the majority of the class and the tutors, so I went along.

In hindsight, I might have preferred to stay to draw more of the animals, though I suppose I only would’ve had about an hour after lunch for it anyway. I’d definitely love to return to the park for the same kind of drawing practice someday soon. It was really fun, and I do feel like I learned a lot more about the real animals and their movements from it.

Reinvention in Storytelling - Day 2

Today we stuck our progress so far up on a wall outside the studio, and then we continued developing the pitch for our Row, Row, Row Your Boat Renaissance series. Starting off, we each took on a character to flesh out more with research and start a design. I got to work on our main protagonist, Alonzo, and tried to figure out his general appearance from what we already knew about his character and some research into clothes that men and children wore during the Renaissance.

It was a bit challenging to find a nuance between the information I found (that children were made to wear snug, formal clothing similar to adults) and appropriate wear for Alonzo’s maritime journey. One idea we had within the group was that because of his taking up of his father’s role he could dress in his merchant garments that were too big for him, which I figured would therefore allow him more freedom of movement on adventures.

A little while later, we gathered together to establish a rough outline of our story typed out. We had the whole team together today(with an additional 5th member because of group adjustments by the tutor), so we were able to make good progress on the story, as well figure out some confusing aspects.

However, we didn’t get to finishing it in the afternoon, as we had a presentation in the studio on preparation for our upcoming trip to FOTA wildlife park on Thursday.

So for the last part of the day I continued to work on research for Alonzo's design, by finishing off a quick sketch of him and printing the images I found online of Renaissance clothing. (I forgot to photograph the printed images, but the sites where I found them are listed below)

Research Sources:

I've just finished reading Ulinka Rublack's Dressing Up: Cultural Identity in Renaissance Europe (Oxford, 2010) and came away from it

Pluderhosen or Upper hose (also Upper hosen) – short, baggy trousers for men made of fabric, usually velvet, with vertical slits showing the

Children's clothing in the Renaissance was very similar to what adults wore, however their clothes were a bit simpler and had sturdier mater

https://blog.fabrics-store.com/2011/08/11/a-breakdown-of-men%E2%80%99s-fashion-from-1550-1600/

This doublet is a rare example of sixteenth-century male clothing, very little of which has survived. The cut of the doublet, particularly t

Doublet ca. 1580 European silk, metallic thread, brass Catharine Breyer Van Bomel Foundation Fund, 1978 1978.128

Research - Portuguese Caravel

After some time figuring out our group's initial idea of a boy sailing out to sea on his own in the Renaissance, Caoimhe shared a potential type of ship that the boy could use with me, a Portuguese caravel.

This looked like the right kind of ship model to me - compact, small enough for a boy to sail on alone - but I thought some imagery of this ship in the sea would be more helpful, so I did a quick bit of research into that alongside my world building research.

Re-invention in Storytelling - Day 1

Returning from Easter Break, today we began a new brief, in which we have to create a pitch over the next three weeks for an animated series inspired by a nursery rhyme.

We were split into 5 groups, each of which were assigned a nursery rhyme, time period and genre for our pitch (all at random). My group received the combination of:

Rhyme: Row, Row, Row Your Boat

Time Period: Renaissance

Genre: Adventure

We started by brainstorming ideas on a large, shared page for our show thinking about what scenarios we could develop from a boat and the Renaissance, which led to a general agreed upon concept of a French-Italian boy’s adventure along a trade route to Florence, Italy.

So me and my teammates, Sophie and Caoimhe, began figuring out the structure of this story in terms of the research required, characters and world building (we can get to the script later - our team was one person short for today). For our roles, I started figuring out the world building for our series, starting with the main locations of the boy’s village, the port, the sea, and his destination in Florence, Italy.

Later on we figured out a path for the protagonist’s journey, based on a map of Renaissance trade routes (he’ll sail from the top of France around the Spanish and Portuguese coastlines, eventually reaching Italy through the Mediterranean). So I spent the last part of the day researching imagery of ports around the route and locations we agreed upon. Here are a few images (modern or historical) that I thought might be useful:

Port of Bordeaux, France:

Port of London, England:

Port of Lisbon, Portugal:

Fritz Bamberger - Spanish Coastline between Murcia and Almeria, 1868

Gibraltar (Port near Spain-Morocco Divide)

Balearic Islands (Spain, all from same site)

Paul also suggested the depiction of Renaissance Italy from the video game series Assassin's Creed, so I looked up that as well, and the results I found did seem like potentially great reference.

Trending Blogs

Recently Viewed Blogs

OranHickey