Video & Sound Production: Final Project
WEEK 01 - WEEK 15 [01/04/2022 - 10/07/2022]
Adena Tan Sue Lynn (0345769)
/ Bachelors of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
Video & Sound
Production
Final Project
DIRECTORY
CLASS EXERCISES
Week 01
For this week, Mr Martin had us compile some Stop Motion videos & Visual Effects videos that we liked.
Three Stop Motion Videos I Liked & Why
1. Bench by Waaber
I found Bench to be an interesting short, which provided such a simple concept, but turned the plot into a shocking one! I won't spoil the shock factor as I feel it is better to experience it for yourself. However, I do enjoy how Waaber used clay for this short, as I felt the flexibility allowed for a more fun look. It also provided an intriguing look on how the characters moved and felt alive. For example, when the smaller one's tummy rumbles, it is expressed by Waaber's pressings into the clay. I also love how Waaber does the chewing motion. I remember trying to work with clay when I was younger. It used to make me annoyed how clay would mix eventually, creasing a dull colour. However, Waaber manages to make the chewing motion very pleasing, and I can't imagine how taxing it was to do it.
2. Archie by The Shorts Network
The above stop motion is the longest among the three videos. However, I enjoy the story relayed in those few minutes. It is very detailed, especially the characters, Archie & his dog. I believe they were made out of felt, and there is a visible difference between each shot of the felt. However, it doesn't feel out of character as Archie and his dog are shown to both be dogs, which makes the felt feel like just normal fur. I think the choice of character design was smart, in terms of knowing that the creator couldn't force the felt to stay in the same place, whenever they made adjustments to the character. Not only that, I love the lighting and weather changes which feel smooth. For example, the lighting when Archie & his dog are in the dark. It manages to have such intriguing movement, despite light being something which flows.
3. Small Popcorn Factory by tomosteen
I find the above stop motion the most fun to watch. The concept is simple, making popcorn. However, tomosteen managed to make this fun, with various characters (skeleton, duck, etc). Everything in this short also feels detailed, with the beads symbolising fire and moving constantly, even with the pan on top or even the popcorn rolling down the fill. I also enjoyed the sound effects, which added even more to the stop motion as it felt more alive (Example: Cat meowing, owl hooting, etc). Something else I enjoyed was the end when the hand was holding the popcorn, because it could have so easily also been a video, rather than stop motion, but the dedication was very much appreciated in making the video whole.
Three Visual Effects Videos I Liked & Why
1. Lab is Closing by Michael Andrian
For the above video, I really liked how the robots were integrated into the world, and how high tech it felt.
2. First to the Gate by Zach King
I was in awe when I watched this video. I really enjoyed the different transitions, from the small suitcase to the toy plane turning into an actual plane. Everything was smooth and felt nice to see.
3. Visual Effects Compilation by Kevin Parry
Finally, is this video compilation by Kevin Parry. It is all small videos, but I enjoy how smooth the effects are, and it can easily fool the viewer and trick their brain.
INSTRUCTIONS
Week 06 Task:
Based on the 3 visual effects/optical illusion, write a ONE minute simple story (One or two character, less than 3 locations)
Thus, here is my story:
GET READY!
Adena, well, me, is scrolling through social media, when she gets a notification from her friend asking if they are where they are supposed to meet. It is clear that she has forgotten, so she has to rush to get ready! She needs to change to proper clothes, luckily she has the power of changing clothes quickly by jumping into them. After this, she continues to get ready.
As she is leaving the house, she falls down, getting a huge gash on her arm. Who would expect she has yet another power, and that's fast healing! She immediately heals her wounds and is ready to go on with her day.
However, guess what else happens... She realises that her mother has locked the door from outside! (based on true story.... my mother did really accidentally lock me inside my own apartment before) Thus, she finds a way to slip through the door, turning flat. She is off.
Shooting/Editing Test:
To test out filming and editing a VFX scene, Mr Martin allowed for us to come to campus to try out with his guidance. In the session, Adeline, Audrey, Hansel and I were the only ones who attended. We were instructed to try out a scene from Adeline's storyline.
Below was our final test:
Storyboard
For my storyboard, I first did it through Procreate. Below are my initial storyboards:
After Mr Martin's feedback, I produced the following storyboard:
Shooting
Shoot Attempt #1
For my shoot, I decided to use my father's camera, Canon Rebel T3i EOS 600D. The SD card he had was only suited for taking photos (Class 4). However, I noticed this right the moment I wanted to start shooting. Thus, I had to go buy one. I got a Class 10 SD Card (which means it has a higher read and write speed). By the time I got back home, it already had gotten dark so I had to start filming the next day.
Shoot Attempt #2
The next day, I was able to get a majority of my shots. In order to get my shots in order, I compiled a list for myself to ensure I am on the right track.
For some fun info, if you do not have a tripod, but do somehow have a movie projector stand and some boxes, they will help you loads when filming!
Below are screenshots of all of the initial ones.
Shoot Attempt #3
For this, I just took some shots which I initially needed a bit of help with as they requires tilt downs at low angles. I asked my mum for help, especially since she was of similar height to me.
Shoot Attempt #4
For this one, I needed to reshoot after Mr Martin's feedback in Week 14. Thus, here we are:
Editing
For me, editing took a while as I wanted the video to be as good as possible.
For example, for this shot here:
For this shot, I had used a IPhone shortcut which can provide notifications if widget is clicked.
Then, I brought it over to Photoshop where I made the notification cleaner & made the background transparent.
Then, I just input it into the shot and adjusted the path & opacity!
For my sounds, below are the links towards the audios I had used:
After getting feedback from Mr Martin in Week 15, I decided to try the parent layering as he suggested. As I had never done it before, I found this video which explained the process clearly.
Below is me in After Effects trying it out:
Finally, I colour corrected everything.
FEEDBACK
Week 10:
Mr Martin advised me to take shots for my storyboard as my drawn storyboard confused him. He also advised me to cut down the number of shots as it was a bit excessive.
After I sent him my updated storyboards, he replied with:
Week 13:
Mr Martin said my shots are good! However, he said to trim the shots as they are currently too long.
Week 14:
Mr Martin pointed out that he thought my second scene didn't make sense. He also advised me to trim the shots further, to make it 1:10 minutes.
Week 15:
Mr Martin agreed with me that I needed to colour correct some scenes as they are still looking quite raw. He also advised me to input my second vfx into After Effects to allow for a more seamless follow. Finally, he advised for me to add some "magic" sound effects to further convey the "magic".
REFLECTION
Overall, this project was eye-opening! I had never tried doing VFX, and I thought this process was very interesting. Even though I wanted to pull my hair out at times, I am really grateful to have gotten this experience. To be honest, I was a bit lost at times, due to the fact I somehow didn't believe I could do it. However, I'm very grateful for the millions of resources/tutorials out there as well as Mr Martin's advice to help guide me. This project was definitely a starting point for me to learn how VFX works, and I am eager to learn more about it in the future! I know I will definitely be using the knowledge I gained from this in future projects.
