Getting Close

Getting close to finishing skinning but there are still issues with the mesh that are proving hard to fix.

Still Skinning..

Skinning is going as expected, slow.

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Rigging Complete

This model was quick and easy to rig because of its size and simplicity however I think skinning and actually animating will be a different story.

Rigging

I have started to rig the model.

Minion Model Complete

Minion Model Complete. Now it just needs to be rigged and animated.

Almost done..

The minion is now almost complete, most components are in place, I just have to duplicate the finished side. As always some adjustments had to be made from the initial turn around but nothing too major.

Minion 3D Model

I have started building the minion in Maya. It was a pretty simple design so shouldn't take me long to finish.

Minion Progress

So far for the asset section of this project I have been developing and building a minion. Here are some of the initial concepts and final concepts with the final image being the chosen design.

Narrative Issues

I have now made headway with writing the brief but I have yet to consider the type of narrative my animation will have. Given the nature of the new process I am going with I think this will limit the kind of narrative I can have if I want it to make sense... I guess it could be extremely abstract and make little sense? Not sure which route I want to take yet.

Approaching the Idea

How I am going to approach this idea? I have been deciding between adding in all the content in to a 'final product' file as I go and creating a clean animation and then adding in all the work from the early stages. Currently I am leaning towards the latter as I think a file with everything it will become too convoluted and hard to maintain order. Speaking of order, I have also been thinking if all the content in the animation should be in chronological order but I have decided that it should go in the order that is most aesthetically pleasing or makes sense in the narrative. The important part is having all the work in the final product, not necessarily in chronological order.

New Idea: Turbos

I've had a new idea for my specific application to the animation process, one that I think fits in better and gives me an interesting idea I'd like to pursue. My new idea is using the concept of a turbo charger in the animation process. Fortunately I already have some knowledge on turbo systems so I don't have to do much research at all. Turbos basically use the exhaust gasses produced by your engine to spin up a turbine which sucks in air that is cooled and then forced into the engine (hence why turbos are known as 'forced induction') this additional air means there is more oxygen in the cylinder during compression which creates a bigger explosion which means more power. So to simplify we are taking waste from your car and indirectly using it to increase the power output of the engine or 'improve' it. My idea to extend this to the animation process is to take all the 'waste' like early concepts, mood board images, reference images, animatics, etc and incorporate these into the final product. I am feeling for confident about this idea because it seems to fit this assignment better and I think this 'no waste' idea could give interesting results.

Some research for reference:

Woodford, Chris. (2010) Turbochargers. Retrieved from http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-turbochargers-work.html

Ignition Timing Research

After doing a bit of research on ignition timing I have come up with a basic idea that I might be able to get to work: generally with ignition timing you want the spark fired a few degrees BTDC (before top dead centre) which is when the piston is in its highest position on its exhaust stroke and the cylinder chamber experiences the most pressure. The spark occurs slightly early of TDC because it takes time for the air-fuel mixture to burn inside the cylinder so by the time the mixture has fully burnt the piston is on its way down the cylinder again and the detonation of the air-fuel mixture creates a force that pushes the piston down the cylinder harder therefore creating more power. As your engine rev's higher the pistons are moving up and down the cylinders faster and faster but the air-fuel mixture takes the same amount of time to burn so the spark timing must be advanced further (fires earlier) to give the mixture time to burn. Now with that out of the way, my idea was to do something where was the animation becomes more complex or as it gets faster there is an event that occurs earlier and earlier to mimic this spark timing. I am not sure how I would relate this to the actual animation process though so this idea isn't final yet.

Research Reference:

unknown author(s), (2015). Ignition Timing. Retrieved from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignition_timing

Completed Production Schedule

As with the brief this is the first draft and final production schedule and so is subject to change before the project starts but will remain close to this version.

Completed Brief

Due to the fact that I created this brief in a short amount of time this is the first draft and final brief, it may be edited over the next few weeks before the project starts but it will stay relatively similar to this version.

Rhys McKenzie

Transdisciplinary Animation Brief

Creative Process

Chosen Discipline:

For my animation I have chosen to integrate the discipline of automotive engineering and more specifically the application and function of a turbo charger. A turbo charger works by using exhaust gases from the engine to spin up a turbine that then forces additional air in through the intake manifold and into the cylinders of the engine. This increases the power and torque output of the engine which is generally seen as a positive thing.

Animation Application:

In order to apply concept of the turbo to animation I simplified it to it’s basic operation which is taking exhaust gas (waste) and utilising it to improve performance (make the end product better). In terms of animation I intend to take all materials that are usually wasted during a project and find a way to include them into the final product. ‘Waste’ will include things like early concepts, notes, animatics and so forth- pieces of work that are created that don’t usually make it into the final product. The aim of this application is to make an animation that is comprised of all work that went in to making it, not just the fine tuned shot selection and ‘clean frames’.

Idea and Content Generation:

The process of trying to integrate various forms of work that don't usually make it into final products will generate ideas within itself without having to look for outside the project for inspiration.

Project Completion:

Even though this project will contain content that is not traditionally in a final animation the animation itself will still be traditional in the way that it has a subject, beginning, middle and end with the unorthodox work fitting in to these predefined sections.

Final Presentation:

Given my chosen discipline I believe that creating a standard digital video will be the easiest way to encompass all the work, even if the work was originally done in a physical medium it could be photographed and introduced that way.

Project Scope

Animation Length:

Given the 8 week length of the project this allows me to create an animation of decent length, exactly how long is hard to determine at this time because there are going to be unforeseen events or processes I am going to have to integrate into the animation process because of the changes I am making. In saying this I believe the animation could end up being on the longer because the final product will have extra content in it.

Software and Tools:

Adobe Animate will most likely be the dominant program used in the creation of this project. This is due to the fact that using a 2D platform will make it easier to incorporate other mediums of work such as sketches or pictures opposed to a 3D platform.

Format:

This project will most likely be produced in a traditional digital video format because this will be the easiest and most concise way into incorporate all the work done for the project, opposed to a physical display or something to that effect.

Restrictions/ Paramaters:

In terms of usable software and mediums I will be able to work in I will have plenty of freedom because any work done for the project will automatically become part of the project however one restriction I might run into is the narrative of the animation. Because I’m going to be adding in work from different mediums and work that traditionally isn't used in animation productions, like notes or other pieces of inspiration no matter how odd they may be, this will limit the potential narrative options as only so may topics will allow for such a mix of content and actually have it make sense to exist within the animation.

Project Objective

Determining Project Quality:

This will be harder to determine than in some animations as much of the content will be rough or unfinished work so the actual quality of individual components will vary greatly. I think if the end project looks aesthetically pleasing as a whole this will indicate that the quality is on par. Whether or not I have done a good job will be decided on audience reaction given I am trying to demonstrate a point to fellow animators. Even if only one other animator agrees that this animation method has merit of inspires someone to try it or something similar I think this project could be considered successful.

Target Audience:

For a project such as this my target audience would actually be fellow animators. I feel like so much good work is disregarded and thrown away in the traditional animation process and I would like to give an example where all of this work can be added to the project and actually raise the quality of the project or improve it in some way.

Purpose/ Expectations:

This project is as much a message as it is for my own entertainment. I would like this project to serve as an example that there are other, more efficient ways of creating interesting animations without having to disregard material created early in the development pipeline because it wasn't polished enough for the final product. Obviously my example will be an extreme case where all work will be incorporated into the final product but the idea is that this type of thing can be done and have a positive effect on the final product.

Specific Concept

Now that I have chosen my disciple I need to choose a specific area or component of that disciple into my brief. As I said before I was thinking about integrating ignition timing somehow but I am still unsure if this is the direction I want to go in.

Choosing Discipline

After giving it considerable thought I have decided to choose automotive engineering as my discipline to incorporate into my animation process. It was between this discipline and something to do with computers/tech, I chose this one because I already know a decent amount of information without having to do much research, also I have an idea to somehow involve the concept of ignition timing into the animation process.

Final Touches

In the last week before deadline I finished my section of the animation and completed the Matte Painting.

Big Update

I have forgotten to do an update for a few weeks now so here is everything that has changed/progressed:

-The Mudbox sculpting has been done on the main X-22 model
-I have begun Mudbox sculpting on our secondary Synth Overlord character
-Michael and I worked on concepts for our cityscape matte painting
-We have now begun work on the final version of the matte painting
(background/building concepts shown are my works, the matte painting in progress is a mixture of mine and Michael's work.)

UV Mapping

Last week I did the UV maps for the right shoulder and right bicep armor pieces.

Back-plate Complete

Today I modeled the armour back-plate for our character. With this done our model is now 100% modeled and ready to be sculpted in Mudbox.

Game Blog 6: Hotline Miami

Game Blog Week 6

Game: Hotline Miami

Question: Of the key narrative elements discussed so far in the course (interactivity, level design/linearity, moral choice/nonlinearity, character), which do you think is the most prominent, important or interesting in your chosen game?

Hotline Miami is a unique indie game that puts the player right into the action after blatantly explaining the controls in a small tutorial section. Though this game is basic, it’s tight but fair controls mixed with its brilliant sound design, soundtrack and 8-bit visual aesthetic with its bright neon colours make it a joy to play even though you are mindlessly murdering enemies in a methodical, premeditated fashion.

Like I said this game is basic, you can move through the level with WASD, attack/shoot with left click and pick up/throw weapons with right click mix this with different animal masks you can wear that give your character ‘Jacket’ different abilities and that is the entire game. Despite this the game is addicting to play even though you are doing nearly the same thing in all 15 levels and I believe this is actually a point the game is trying to make. It seems to me that the Developers of Hotline Miami are trying to make a statement that level design and interactivity are the most important parts of any game and they do this in an interesting way.

Hotline Miami throws you into the game after only a quick tutorial and a very vague cutscene in which 4 questions are asked; “Do you like killing people?”, “Who are you?”, “Where are we?” And “Why are we having this conversation?”. Of these four questions I believe the later three are there to make a point because for the next 11 or so levels these questions remain unanswered and it's as if the opening cutscene didn't happen at all. But if the game is presenting questions like these and then disregarding them why do we keep playing? Why are we caring about this game? We keep playing because it is fun, it's challenging, it controls well and above all it offers an adrenaline filled experience that is satisfying to play. This is the developers showing us that maximum agency mixed with a good visual and audial experience is all you need. This message is then reinforced by one of the later levels in the game, the player is in hospital and is attempting to escape, the colours of the environment are muted, character movement speed is decreased and you are stripped of all your weapons. This level stands out like a sore thumb because it isn't very good at all, it's slow, boring and drab but by including a level like this, one that contrasts with the rest of the game so heavily it makes the rest of the game seem that much more appealing by showing that when you take away great mechanics and level design and leave the player with a bland level with minimal agency that it makes for a lesser experience.

The game then hammers this point home when another playable character is introduced, ‘Helmet’. Helmet is the opposite of Jacket, Jacket went around just killing blindly without needing motivation or really questioning what is actually going on whereas Helmet is trying to get answers out of people and trying to make sense of the events taking place. These two different character types basically represent two different types of gamers. Some prefer gripping narratives to drive there adventures forward whilst some some people are just content with just playing the game to enjoy it at face value and aren't too concerned with discovering the underlying meaning of the game. The only thing is that when you start playing as Helmet.. Nothing changes, the game is not necessarily more fun nor is it less fun it's just the same. What Hotline Miami is trying to show here is that narrative is irrelevant, it doesn't matter if you have in depth character motivations, moral choices or amazing plot twists, games with good fundamental controls and design elements will play the same regardless of these factors.

I agree with this point of view to an extent. Like with many things in a medium subjected to personal critic and evaluation I don't believe there is a single, clear cut answer to a given scenario, genre or game type and so when making claims such as Hotline Miami does I personally find it hard to agree wholeheartedly. I agree with the message I believe Hotline Miami is trying to convey… in the context of Hotline Miami, I enjoyed this game just as much when I had no idea as to what was going on vs when more of the narrative had been revealed. In saying this there are many other games that still control well but I feel are driven by their story and world events and are that much more enjoyable when you have context to what you're doing and characters with backstory. For me the Halo games fall into this category as well as a recent game called Sunset Overdrive both of which have very tight controls (at time of release) and the story and/or general dialogue and character interaction only enhanced my experience with these titles.

So yes, in terms of Hotline Miami as an individual title player agency, tight refined controls, great presentation and level design are in my opinion more important aspects of this game than any sort of narrative or character driven story; however I don't think this single view should be taken and applied to all games as it is implied here.

Face-plate, Pelvis and Chest Armour Complete

Today I refined and finished off our characters pelvis armour, chest armour and face-plate only leaving the back piece before the mode 100% complete as far as maya is concerned.

Right Arm Finally Completed

Finally finished the right arm, pretty happy with the model and ready to take it in to mudbox to refine it.

Right Arm Almost Complete

Nearly finished the whole right arm in maya

Right Forearm Complete

I have finished the right forearm bone blade and inner cables