Animation progress

 Animation progress on making a seamless animation

I think I’m going to focus on the main elements discussed in the book ‘The Uninhabitable Earth’ on ways in which the world will be damaged by climate change 

I want to make the animation more interactive and three dimensional so I’ve changed the Earth to fire out of the corner of shot which I really like.

Introducing my “creature” more heavily in the project, really enjoying the fluidity of where it’s going. I am not sure that I will add the monster to the animation following the earth scene but I will definitely utilise it.

The green ovular shape is a background used for reference when trying to make my animation have consistent motions. Due to the fact there are allot of chaotic short scenes within this animation I want to try and keep a rhythm of movement through parts of the animations.

Animation inspiration

 Animation inspiration

This animation is fluid and sequential and is now my main point of inspiration for my own animation. I love how the scenes seamlessly flow between each other. What is really interesting is how the animator has allowed the animation to move so quickly and seamlessly and yet the animation still pauses and takes time to breathe in-between scenes. I would love to have my animation be one seamless/effortless motion that flows from one scene to the next. This animation is also showing me that I need to relax in terms of trying to make everything make sense. Instead I need to focus on where I want each scene to go, even if it gets there unconventionally.

https://vimeo.com/191998961

Book cover adaption

This is my latest progress on the book cover I’m making for penguin. I’m attempting to keep it more simple than my last attempt rather than try to make a realistic hand. This was inspired by Saul Bass, however I did choose to keep the colour palette from my original designs. This isn’t the final design that I have done but is definitely  moving  in the right direction.

I have maintained the style and aesthetic that I am going for but am also adding hands to make the image more clustered and uncomfortable to look at.

 

Decided the orange background was too neutral and wasn’t suggesting the horror aspect I was trying to convey. As a result I have begun to look into a red more sinister colour palette. I also like the cluster of hands rather than just a few to add to the uncomfortable horror essence to the design.

Below is a colour experiment, experimenting with the idea of a simpler colour palette and the idea of a much more monochromatic aesthetic. Although it is more mature I think that this might be too basic for the idea of horror I am trying to convey to the audience.

 

Saul Bass designed covers

 

Really interesting how these designs seem to heavily resonate with my own designs for this project. I’m really contemplating including a third colour other than black and white.  The hand to me is the most interesting because it is exactly what I was planning to do for my book cover design for The Uninhabitable Earth.

Animation progress

 I plan on having allot of my monster scenes through the monsters hands/actions. Within this scene I am thinking about how I can have the monster take the Earth in his hand and potentially destroy it somehow. One of my ideas is to have him eat it and another is to have him squeeze it.

This idea is an extension of my book cover design idea to have the hand hold the Earth like the cover of a horror film poster which interlinks the two projects nicely. 

The triangle lines are references to help animate the trajectory of the hand and Earth.

Thinking through how to introduce my monster.....

I am thinking of having the camera pan out to the full monster that is holding the earth...

Storyboard

 In the above storyboard I was continuing to think about how I can have the monster transition between scenes as well as the Earth. I also am considering a scene where the monster swims and sees iconic monuments that have been flooded. This would be reminiscent of the scene from Planet of the Apes where the protagonist finds the statue of liberty.

Saul Bass

 Saul Bass is a renowned animator known for his opening sequences within movies for the titles. I really like the minimal style he uses with bright pops of colour as well as the way in which his animation seamlessly extends from one scene to the next. I would like to bring this kind of style into my own animation. Especially the clever transitions and well thought out details that allow you to understand the genre and premise of the film by watching them. 

Book cover experimentation

 

Following a tutorial with Kevin we discussed how I could take the colour scheme from one of my previous personal designs and incorporate it in to my Climate Terror book cover. Above is my early drawing using this colour scheme. This is a continuation of my designs that were exploring David Wallace- Wells quote about 'Climate Terror' which I thought linked quite nicely with the horror aspect of 'Frankenstein'. Although I like the colour scheme and where the aesthetic is going I don't think this style of drawing suits the minimalistic and bold outlined style that I had been using on my animation.

Putting together my current clips of animation

Artist research

 

Animation

Some completion on the animation sequence I was working on from one of my earlier storyboards, through making a series of these gifs I aim to join them up together in order to make a fluid animation. This will pair nicely with the script which will be small quotes from the book 'The Uninhabitable Earth' and they will join together in the same way that the gifs will. 

 

Reading the Uninhabitable Earth and taking inspiration from it

Currently I have been reading the Uninhabitable Earth and taking key words from the text and putting them in a mind map to look through later to inform my design. The book is highly factual but what is interesting is the way in which it can be phrased. Such as the phrase “Climate Terror”  which to me combines my study in two words. “Climate” is the main part of my study looking into the disastrous effects that humanity is having on the world. “Terror” links to my method of illustrating through the character of Frankenstein's creature, this is because most horror films from the era of James Whales Frankenstein include titles that use words such as: horror and terror. As a result I have now begun to consider a film cover approach potentially in a similar style to the classic movies.

Below are some ideas of how I can then integrate this book cover design into an animation by having the hand come in and squeeze the Earth. I think this would really look great in the animation and could be another way of introducing or re introducing the monster.

 

Storyboarding

Within this storyboard I was thinking about the animation as a whole and how each scene could morph into another. I also have an idea that the animation could end with the painting of the man staring out into the landscape, more symbolic of Frankenstein. I am also trying to incorporate the aspects of climate change mentioned within 'The Uninhabitable Earth' to fit together.

 

More storyboarding ideas

From my earlier research I was looking at the drowned world which really inspired me. As a result I re-imagined my own version with the monster diving into the overflowing world. 

 

Story boarding

Within these storyboards I have been thinking about how my monster could be brought into the animation and what his potential actions could be. As well as this I have also been thinking about how the monster could keep up with the fluid nature of my animation and keep at the same quick pace. I have also been thinking about the green accents within my animation, I'm not sure it will come in the shape of lightning but I do want to see the colour theme continued within the animation itself.

 

Design research

 Recently I watched The Godfather and was inspired by the simple design used on the cover of the film/book. As a result not only did I look into the design itself but also other clever/simple film/book cover  designs. What these designs all seem to do is either literally or symbolically portray a poignant theme/ scene in the plot. In the case of the Hamlet cover, the skull is iconic. With The Godfather cover the idea of puppetry and manipulation to create power is rife. I love the simple design on the Great Gatsby book cover, especially the way the ‘Y’ has been cleverly used to become a martini glass, highlighting the characters habits effortlessly. Using the quotes I have extracted from the book ‘The uninhabitable Earth’ I now aim to attempt to utilise them in order to create a symbolic portrayal of the contents of the book.

Looking at the prior Penguin book design award winners (entries) for inspiration

I really liked this design, it features the gun to allude to the main parts of the book featuring spy craft. However, they have also featured a ‘do not disturb sign’ in order to highlight the ‘night manager’ side of the story. In terms of the design it is simple and efficient with a minimal colour palette and a clever design.  I would like to emulate this style within my own digital art work, however I will keep my options open.

 

These are some more entires submitted to the competition, all of the designs vary in aesthetic, style and material. As a result I will use these designs as inspiration more generally rather than attempting to mimic a particular style. I have learnt that I shouldn’t compromise my own style and should go where my research takes me.