Darren_Jiachen Ding_22018988
Author: Jiachen Ding
Once the members of our collaborative project team had been identified, we also decided on the general direction and content of the project, so during the week I made a schedule for the content of our project. This schedule was developed in two day increments for a total of 45 days. From the very beginning, the style was set Research, Art style, Role design, Scene design, Preliminary model, Storyboard – 3D, Storyboard – 2 D, 3D modeling, 2D Animation, First Compositing, Animatic, Sound, Compositing, Rendering, Editing, Delivery. My aim in writing this timetable was not to make our group perfect and follow it to the letter, but to make it clear what we needed to do and to divide up the work in detail. I used different colours to represent the four different members of our group and organised the work so that we could alternate each person’s tasks to maximise the use of time. For example, after Tianqi has finished the basic model, I can start using the shots to define the subplot for the animation. While I’m working on the sub-screen, Tianqi can continue to finish the refinement of the model and materials. This is of course a very tight schedule and we don’t think we will necessarily be able to complete all of the above, so it will be adjusted according to the actual progress we make subsequently.
I was invited by my classmate Tianqi to form a group with two 2D animation students. We discussed our understanding and ideas on ‘From an everyday object to a fantastical object’ and finalised the content of our animation.
1) Title: Traveling with coins
2) Team members and roles:
Chenyang Deng
MA Animation
c.deng0320221@arts.ac.uk
Role: 2D animator
Yuanjie Lei
MA Animation
y.lei0320221@arts.ac.uk
Role: 2D animator
Tianqi Xu
MA Visual Effects
t.xu0320223@arts.ac.uk
Role: 3D scene modeler
Jiachen Ding
MA Visual Effects
j.ding0320223@arts.ac.uk
Role: Compositor
3)Description of idea:
We plan to use the everyday object of the coin as a medium to connect the real and the fantastical, to show the meaning and influence that humans give to the coin (money) in different fantastical worlds. The project will use 2D animation to draw the characters and parts of the screen. At the same time, using 3D models for the scenes and a virtual camera to complete the subplots.
4)Blog/Personal Padlet Online Power Point Link:
https://vimeo.com/759682547
https://tianqi.myblog.arts.ac.uk/
https://djiachen.myblog.arts.ac.uk/
This week combined with last week’s content to continue learning on the point basis of Matchmove3D. The learning builds on the foundation of 3D space. With the tracking points calculated by the camera, a large number of point arrays can be generated using Point Cloud to organise the relationship between the positions of objects in the frame. Even a prototype 3D model of the scene can be created using BakedMesh.
The assignment for this session is to generate multiple Cards from the tracked points in a space and subsequently add objects and tracking tapers to these Cards. The space is divided into a front ground, a wall with a hole in it, a back ground, and a back wall.
We have three weeks to create a Rube Goldberg sequence using the Bullet system we learnt last week. When I think of the Rube Goldberg sequence, the first thing that comes to mind is a clip from an animated film, Robots, it is a 2005 American computer-animated science fiction adventure comedy film produced by Blue It was directed by Chris Wedge. There is a very classic sequence in the middle of it, which I found on YouTube and used as a reference.
I started by looking at the warp board footage, which I thought was an effective way of showing the physical simulation system, but after trying it out I found it difficult to determine where the object was going to fall. After discussing this with my tutor, he suggested that I use a combination of physical simulation and animated keyframes to achieve the effect.
The second object of reference was dominoes from small to large. I found this arrangement to be visually striking and effective in demonstrating the physical simulation system.
This was our first week of collaborative work, choosing a topic of personal interest based on the topics listed on the Padlet Board. I chose Subject: From an everyday object to a fantastical object because I think that anything interesting comes from the everyday. I think this Subject is an exploration of the creative process (from everyday to fantastical), and I think it’s a good idea to have a special effect. I think this Subject is an exploration of the creative process (from everyday to fantastical), and I am looking forward to it.
I am looking forward to having someone to work with on this subject to create the story. I hope I can exercise my skills in the post-compositing part.
The first Nuke course of the new semester is about the 3D system in Nuke. Here’s our first look at working with the Nuke 3D system. Among them, “scene” and “camera” are the basic nodes of the 3D scene. We can then create basic shape nodes like “Sphere” to add geometry to the “Scene”. You can also import obj files to directly add completed models.
We can adjust the size, material, lighting and many other information of the 3D model in Nuke.
Afterwards, we focused on explaining and practicing the “CameraTracker” node, which allows video sequences to generate points in 3D space through RotoPaint tracking. We can then create and add images or models in 3D space based on these calculated points. Creating a “card” as the ground is our first exercise.
The first class of the second semester is Maya animation ball movement, to imitate the trajectory of the ball in the real world. And understand the Bullet system with Maya.
First, we modeled the ball and the stairs, and then edited the curves in the Graph Editor using keyframe animation, so that the movement of the ball simulates the ball with elastic properties. Then we used the same method to create the second ball again, but the second ball simulated the trajectory of an inelastic ball. This small ball looks like an iron ball in reality, so I use a blue material to distinguish it. To simulate a small ball with elastic properties, I use a red material to distinguish it.
In the second stage of the course, we used Maya’s Bullet system, which can simulate real physical collisions and masses. We add Active Rigid Body to the model so that it can have a movable relationship with other objects. Add a Passive Rigid Body as an object that can only be touched but cannot move.
Our ultimate goal is to complete a Rube Goldberg sequence in week 4.