Sculpting 12/04/16

Really enjoying the sculpting lessons we have recently started. We have been set the task of recreating the bust of a character of our choice. I chose to model the Star Wars character Admiral Ackbar. I thought his head shape and features would make for a fun challenge and I am really enjoying the progress so far. This week we added bulk to our model and started to define distinctive shapes.

Last Acting Class

 

It was our last acting class this week and I have to say I have really enjoyed the lessons. We learned many skills from Dan that we can use in our animations and it was also really fun to do something different and more relaxed. These are a few photos from when we played 'Ninja'. Much fun!

 

Adaptation B - Beachcomber's Cottage

This is obviously very late in the day and I'm aware I have a lot of catching up to do with this project but these show the progression of drawings for the Beachcomber's cottage for my adaptation of the book 'Baggywrinkle'. The first pencil drawings were too generic but I was trying to get a sense of what was needed in the building. The story says that the small cottage is on the edge of the beach with a hammock and rocking chair on the balcony. The cottage is made from the leaves of a palm tree and filled with treasures from the ocean.

These next few drawings were inspired by palm trees, masks of the Ivory Coast (where the story is set) and patterns and textures from the seventies, which is when the book was written.

These are a few ideas I had for how to show the sea and the trees on the beach. I wanted to incorporate the seventies theme and these patterns seemed to work quite well.

A quick sketch of the interior and notes on how the cottage is described in the book.

Adaptation B-Interim Crit

Adapt B-Interim Crit

Film Review: When The Wind Blows (1986)

Fig.1 When The Wind Blows (Movie Poster, 1986)

 

Set during a time of nuclear war, When The Wind Blows tells the story of James and Hilda Bloggs who live together in the Sussex countryside. Although they believe they are fairly prepared for a nuclear strike in regards to getting their home set up, when the time comes that they are hit, they only receive 3 minutes warning. The film shows the few days of post-nuclear strike and we gradually and helplessly see the couple deteriorate. The film is heart-wrenching and shows the bitter side of war that doesn't often get shown.

 

When The Wind Blows, was directed by Jimmy T. Murakami and written by Raymond Briggs (The Snowman, Father Christmas). The gentle feel of the animation makes us warm to the characters and their situation even more and really highlights their vulnerability. The muted colours reflect the solemn time and the touching score is provided by Roger Waters with the theme song from David Bowie.

 

Whilst this film is ultimately upsetting and sad, there are some comical moments between the husband and wife which tell us more about their character and their relationship and shows their naivety. The film is an adaptation from a book (written by Briggs), which had previously been adapted to a stage show and a BBC Radio 4 dramatization before the film was released. Despite the sad nature of the movie, it was very enjoyable and was well received by critics on release in 1986.

Illustration List:

Fig 1, When The Wind Blows (1986) [Movie Poster] At:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b6/When_the_Wind_Blows_1986.jpeg
(Accessed 10.03.16)

Acting week!

This week was acting week so yesterday and today we had lessons with actor Dan to help us with animation. In all honestly I was dreading the lessons because performing is not my strong point, but early on it was clear that we were going to have lots of fun.

In yesterday's class we had a few simple activities to break the ice and introduce ourselves to Dan. Then we had to team up and mould our friends into different positions and later on told stories with three different poses. We also played 'keepy uppy' with a toy cheeseburger which for me was the highlight of the day! 

Thursday's lesson involved more improvisation and thinking on our feet. We teamed up and created objects with our bodies and also had to get a message across to the audience and our partners just by using mime. Lots of fun and I'm really looking forward to next week's lesson. Here are a couple of quick happy snaps from today...

Actor Dan

Adaptation A - Musicals Infographic (WIP)

Trying to get back on track after a few tough weeks. This is my infographic so far (without the wordy parts). Lots to work on and I realised through this project how little I know about After Effects! Onwards...