I finally have an Animatic

There is now an animatic for my thesis story. I did it as a final storyboard in my storyboarding class from the semester. My original idea was only for a three min short, but this had to be six... so its stretched unnesssarily for my likings. I plan to use my semester off this coming jaunary to work on it and get a final animatic buttoned down so that I can start animating in my senior year.

Check it out!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqK_DlT_Uiw

Basic Story Idea

I've been procrastinating a lot on my set design idea, but considering I dont have work anymore, and two weeks before school, that will be coming soon. In the meantime I have thought of a base idea for my thesis. So here goes:

Char (short for charachter cuz I have yet to think of a name) enters this foreign landscape. He wanders around lost, confused, and curious of his surroundings. Backround music is futuristic and desolate with a hint of a Japanese flavor.

Char stumbles upon, discovers a drum. Sleeping on it is a small black creature. Char invistigates and rouses the creature who jumps. As he does so, his bouncing on the drum creates a beat. Delighted at the noise, Char (using his head) mimics the tone.

Char and the creature go back and forth mimicig each others playing, thier notes slowly start to beat out the patterns of a song. The tempo picks up and an obvious song is now being played between the two of them.

Pan out to find Char standimg amongst many creatures all on thier own particular intruments (mainly drums) as they continue to play through the song (which I will write and have my taiko team record). The song ends and Char closes his eye in a happy smile. All the music stops.

Silence (possibly rushing wind) and Char opens his eye again to find himself in a new foreign landscape. Backround music picks up slowly as he wanders around lost, confused, and curious of his surroundings.


Sooo, that's my idea! I was really excited when I thought of it. Of course I was driving and was no where near my destination (work). So I kept repeating it in my head until I got there, then busted out my sketchbook and began frantically writing. Got a few weird looks... Anywhoo I think I might want to develop more of a chrachter arch and give it more story rather than just being a music video for a piece I've written, but we shall see...

Developed Ideas

I have been working on exploring the design for this charachter. I've started calling him Char for short, since I am so bad at thinking of names. I have run into the problem of expressing emotions with only one eye and no eyebrow. Maybe I will incorporate an eyebrow because I really dont want to change the one eyed model...

I've been looking at Dali's "The Persistance of Time" a lot lately. This has been the inspiration behind my thesis idea. I want my film to have an art school look to it, yet with a practical/funny/entertaining story. So I have been mulling over working with this as inspiration for my setting.

I know that I can kill two birds with one stone if I incorporate my asian studies minor thesis with my animation thesis. That being said, why not include the LMU taiko group which I have been so involved with, and am actually going to be leading with my roommate next year? So with a taiko score written by myself I imagine Char wondering around in a foreign world that looks like Dali's TPoT, but instead of the telltale melting clocks, something with a more Japanese/Taiko theme.... What happens after that? Not sure yet...

Concept art on the setting coming soon! Or at least... next.

Charachter Concept Drawing

I have started thinking about thesis. I am about to begin my jr year and I want to get a solid head start on a large project that I am probably going to take on by myself. I know that I want to combine my animation thesis with my thesis project for my asian pacific studies minor as well as compose a score using taiko and have Shin Kanarazu Daiko (SKD) record it for me.






This is the drawing I made about a year ago. I have kept returning to it every so often wanting to do more with it. So I have been exploring this charachter in my sketchbook and try and develop him a little futher. Eventually I will have to name him as well... So more to come later! I have an idea, and I am working on it to see if its really something I can work with...