There is currently no essay introduction on Presentation 2 due to the fact that during my sessions with student support (Pamela, if I'm permitted to name names), we've been concentrating more on the Time Machine presentation since that needs to be done very soon. We haven't had much time to discuss resources to research from or essay structure, so I have little to nothing to work an introduction out of.
Presentation 1
Presentation 2
OGR 21/03/2012
ReplyDeleteHey Tom,
Okay - my first impressions of your story idea and accompanying storyboard is simply this: there's not enough emphasis on the cuckoo clock itself. There's a reason why the project isn't based around human characters, and it is to ensure that the challenges of anthropomorphism are met, and expressed through the principles of animation. In general terms, your story is promising, but really it is Harold's story, not the clocks and I think you could have much more fun with 'flamboyance' etc by losing the human characters completely;
For example; your animation could start with the cuckoo clock in the window of a clock-shop, with a label that says 'Less Than Half Price - Must Go Today!' (The true meaning of this, will of course be revealed during the course of animation). As a simple soundtrack, we could hear the bell above the shop door opening and the cash register, and then, the next shot we now see the cuckoo clock is on another wall in someone's home. From this point on, you have an escalation narrative, in which, every time the clock strikes, the bird comes out with increasing flamboyance - the first time it has one feather in its tail, the next time 3, and then next time it's dressed up like a peacock; then it sings, then it sings opera and so on and so on. At the end of the animation, we see the clock is returned to the shop, and its label is back on. Take a look at this animation:
http://vimeo.com/20793651
Notice the sheer exuberance of the animation itself; for example, your cuckoo could blend into a fantasy sequence of utter showbusinesses - it leaves it's perch, flies through the air, swoops, becoming more elaborate and fancy as it does. I want you to think much more imaginatively about 'animation' as opposed to animation just being in the service of telling a story. So - short version is lose the human characters and all the exposition about why the clock is bought - and just get to the good stuff.
When you've got your written assignment figured, let me know and I'll take a look - but your animation profiles are reading really well, so you may find that you're halfway there already...
Oh - and finally - I notice you've got ALL your personal details on your script document - including your phonenumber - can I suggest, in terms of being online savvy, that you remove your personal details?