Thesis, what have you done to me?

After months of being hunched over drawings, my back has really started feeling sore. Stretching has helped, but I finally gave in and bought this back brace. It does help while animating, so I think it was a good investment.

Destructive Animation

Throughout my thesis, I am using a technique known as destructive animation, pioneered by animation masters Piotr Dumala and William Kentridge. What this means is after I create an image, I erase it and draw over it. In traditional animation, you would have each image on a separate piece of paper so that the image would be clean. With destructive animation, the previous drawings leave a ghost image that remains on the page throughout the duration of the shot.

This type of animation is perfect for my story because it evokes the idea of memory and loss. The ending images are like maps of where I've been, and the time I put into my animation. Below is an example of the type of drawings I'm left with after finishing a shot.

Animation Continues...

It's been awhile since my last post, but I've just been plugging away at my animation. I try to animate almost everyday, though it can be difficult with other work and life getting in the way. Here's a tiny peek at a shot I'm working on now.

In other news, I finally used up my tuff stuff eraser which I've had for over three years now. It has served me well and now I definitely need a refill so I can keep on working.

Spark of Inspiration

In my class tonight, illustrious Disney producer Don Hahn came to lecture about making a great film. I found his lecture very inspiring, and I know will apply his advice to my thesis film.

One of the things he focused on was how the character relates to the overall story. Of course there are a few things that go into this, but everything boils down to a simple concept: What does your character want, and why can't he/she have it?

This statement really struck me and I decided I wanted to create an image to capture this question and hopefully answer it. This drawing is based on a rough storyboard from my animatic. 

My Thesis Journey Takes a Turn: Meeting the Man Who Wrote the Words

After months of correspondence and some last minute travel arrangements, I made my way from LA to New Hampshire in order to meet and record the voice of Donald Hall, the man who started it all with his powerful poem. Meeting Donald was an incredible honor and delight. He welcomed Jordan and me with such a generosity of spirit.

Sitting there in his living room, surrounded by hundreds of books, original artwork, and a liftetime's worth of knick-knacks and personal history, I knew how special it was for us to be there. It was beyond moving for me to sit in front of him, clumsily holding a mic, hearing him read A Letter in Autumn. His strong voice and heart adds so much more to the narration than I could have ever imagined.

This short trip was such an amazing experience, and it is something I will never forget. I'm so grateful to Donald for being the wonderful person I hoped he would be.

New Hampshire itself was also very inspiring. The area was pretty rural and there was plenty of natural beauty. It rained our whole first day, but the mist was really quite picturesque.

 

We had to of course pay our respects to Jane Kenyon, Donald's late wife. This graveyard has been around for a long time. Many of the stones had dates in the 1800s.

Post Game Work

I went to the USC game versus Cal this weekend, and it was a fun break from work. I bought the tickets for Jordan's birthday, so it was nice to enjoy the time with him. Sadly I couldn't lose the entire day. I went back to the basement to work after the game.

Starting to Animate!

After a few tests, I've finally started animating. I'm diving right into production by starting with a 24 second continuous shot. That may not seem like a long time, but when you're drawing every frame (24 frames in one second) it really starts to add up. This is just the beginning of my 24 weeks of animating under the camera. Here are a few pictures of my set-up and of me working, courtesy of Linda Jules.

If you're wondering about the face mask, it's because of the charcoal dust of the drawings. A little bit is ok, but I think breathing that in for months might do some damage. I'm also working with a digital downshooter along with two lights, and a computer running Dragonframe Stop Motion Software.