Evaluation
Before we broke off for the Easter Holiday, I was ecstatic for this project knowing that when I had completed this piece, it would be the start or ruin of my future career. Soon after the holiday had begun I had an idea, so I began planning and drawing out my creations; not sure whether it could be done on the computer with the right programmes or if I had the skill to accomplish my visions. The ideas sprung up on me when I was playing the game Bioshock, I liked the way game developers (2K) presented the powers within every Bioshock game. This gave me the idea to design an advert for the objects that I would design. The original idea for my final major project was to create a humorous advert, in which I would add my own twist to it by making it old fashioned with future technology that I had modelled in Maya.
Now that the project is finished, my final piece is different from what I set out to achieve, instead my project looks futuristic and clean, with a 3d background and an empty room, which is similar to an animation I saw about a tennis simulation that happened to be an advert about the future clothing line for the company Lacoste (2012).
I feel that I have achieved the advert that I had wanted even though it was different from my original idea and I wish I had more time to perfect the ending which left me in a hurry to finish. Though I am quite disappointed that I could not achieve the original idea that I had planned out, I am honestly happy with what I have achieved with the result of my final render.
When I began searching the internet for inspiration, I quickly learned the necessary needs for an advert and with this in mind I began my research. I did find research a weakness for me; being the first time that I had to go into detail about what I was creating and then digging deeper and reading between the lines. However, finding what I should research about became my downfall, I overcome this by researching relevant subjects such as robots to refer to my AI that I had created. I came across different styles of robots; such as humanoid limbs or no limbs at all, I also searched for the types of colours and features I should use. Over time and constantly drawing different styles, I chose to use the same shape that destiny uses for one of the enemy drones called a servitor; due to the fact I like the simplistic design of a sphere with a camera I picked that for the body, also when I researched further into the styles of robots, I came across many robot designs being a shiny white, with no scratches or rusty unlike the beaten up style that companies use for wasteland games such as claptrap from Borderlands (2009).
When I asked my lecturers and class mates for different ways I could research, during feedback, I was mostly directed to YouTube (2005). From this I could see the different years of adverts, from 1941 to today. From there I researched further, I began looking into the creations of robots and the start of science fiction, where I was inspired by the concept art and the stories being told by each and every different advert.
I am proud to say that I believe my research was successful, due to the time I took to carefully draw and present my products. I studied the different ways I could make objects into weapons and how I should design the object to match them to the need of the suitor. Though, I did mostly rely on games such as Destiny (2014), and random pictures that I had come across on the internet to give me successful designs.
There were different issues I came across in my project such as slow rendering in after effects and Maya, also the time consuming technique of rotoscoping, which caused me to edit every frame per second. When rendering in Maya I found using a spare computer to render the scene and then carry on my work on the computer I originally used, made the process quicker, so I could complete the scenes faster. At some point in the middle of the project I also began to struggle with my ideas, I realised I had no way to present my render models, so the only thing I could do was to ask for advice from my lecturer, which ended with me having a small breakdown in front of him. He took me aside till I calmed down and helped me to realise what I was doing wrong and pointed me in the right direction.
When it came to sticking with an idea that I had created, I struggled. My mind kept changing and new ideas came to me all the time, some were too late to include as I was close to finishing. When I first started my second year of animation and game design at college, I quickly learned the concept of after effects and in my first year we learned about modelling in Maya, so taking these experiences I was confident about my skills however it was my first time combining these and filming appropriate scenes for my project, I overcame these problems by continuously filming different angles and different movement, to which I would place them all in front of me and then decide what I like and didn’t.
Coming to the end of my project I began to realise what I was beginning to achieve, and I started to build my own experience, especially from my feelings of failing at the begging of this project, which changed the outcome of my personal statement.
When using the method of rotoscoping in after effects, I found it a very useful tool, it enabled me to get rid of the background in my filming and select the main object. Though I did find using this method very frustrating, having to roto every frame it took up most of my time. If I had a chance to re-do my project I would change my approach, I believe at some point I forgot what my true purpose was, and that was to create an advert not an action film with fancy gadgets.
Many things changed in my project, I had planned to make it more similar to the Bioshocks plasmids clips. Such as my characters, these were originally going to be still shot drawings and I wanted to make them emotionally change with fancy transitions, like making the still shot twirl around showing the new emotion. I changed this due to the fact that I am not confident at drawing, and I knew the unnecessary stress I would place on myself If I had followed this path, luckily I still had the option to film live footage. Another example of a change I made was the complete style of the animation, I had planned to make it old fashioned with the crackle of a gramophone in the background with the effect of static, but because I changed my approach on the characters I decided to make a rash decision by taking a different path from my original idea. I did this by making it similar to the Samsung adverts, and with more time I could have improved my project further.
I’m glad that I could overcome these problems I faced at the beginning of this project, though I had rushed a bit at the end, I am still happy with the result of these eight weeks. I’m sure if people were to see my final render, I would hope they would realise the time it took me to create what I had achieved and the complications I met. I would happily show them the models I rendered in Maya, which I am very proud of.
Being an hour away from college, I had to plan my time carefully, due to the fact that I don’t have a computer at home and only a laptop that allows me to write in word and research the internet. So I decided to design and research at home and then complete my project during the time I spent at college. Another way I planned my time was by writing new lists every week in a small notebook that I would keep on me whenever I was at home or at college, inside it I would write to do lists and what I needed to research or any other ideas that came to me during the day or night.
Effects and my weaknesses are my constant indecisiveness; not being able to stick to one idea and I felt my research skills let me down. If I had another ten weeks I would improve the ending, feeling that it wasn’t the standard that I wanted to achieve, this is because I felt I rushed because the deadline was fast approaching.
Major Final Project 