Creating Stereoscopic 3D Images

 

This last one is my favorite! Merry Christmas!!

Recreating Cameras and Lights in Maya

Original:

Maya:

 Original:

 Maya:

Extra Credit: Lighting a Scene in Maya

One Point:

Two Point:

Three Point:

Building a Scene in Maya

Special Effects in Animation and Live-Action.

My first two term paper scores were 90 and 85; I will not be writing a third term paper.

Outline for the Third Term Paper

Introduction

a)      Creature effects animation is a common feature of contemporary movies, and a form of special effects widely used in two of the highest-grossing film series of all time: Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings.

b)      For this paper, I will focus specifically in the characters of Dobby and Gollum as they are two very similar characters in their appearance and actions.

Harry Potter

a)      Dobby created using a combination of computer animation and models

1.       Stand-in actors or objects were used during filming when Dobby would be computer generated

2.       Stand-ins were used for character placement, but actions were not used for animation

b)      Many models used in the making of Harry Potter creature effects

1.       Models used when a creature would be in a scene with limited or no animation

                                            I.            Full-body model of Dobby after being stabbed for Daniel Radcliffe to hold

                                          II.            A full-scale robotic model of Buckbeak the Hippogriff for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

2.       Occasionally creature effects were a combination of models and CGI in one shot

                                            I.            Multiple versions of Dobby’s head were modeled

                                          II.            The fire-breathing dragons in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – For the scene where the dragons were in cages, the heads were models with built-in flame throwers and the rest of the bodies CGI

3.       I visited the Harry Potter Studios in London over the summer and was able to tour the “creature lab” where the film models were on display

                                            I.            Including the real models of Dobby!

Lord of the Rings

a)      Gollum a combination of live action and computer animation

1.       Motion Capture

b)      Andy Serkis played Gollum

1.       While the character we see on screen is completely CGI, its movements are based on Serkis’ face and acting choices

2.       Gollum’s actions were a combination of traditional animation and rotoscoping based on Serkis

                                               I.            Rotoscope: When an actor’s motion is copied frame-by-frame in animation, can potentially feel stiff and boring when not paired with traditional animation

                                             II.            Example: Jim Carrey’s A Christmas Carol 

3.       Gollum’s voice is done by Serkis

c)       Animators “pushed” Serkis’ acting to better fit the character

                                I.            This video with a side-by-side comparison of Serkis acting and the final Gollum animation shows how the animators mostly followed his movements and facial expressions, but in some cases added more movement or exaggerated a motion

                              II.            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbW-Zv_kR5Q

                            III.            This combination keeps Gollum feeling real rather than like bad rotoscope

Comparison

a)      Each of these films is successful in their character effects
      1.       Both films contain a multitude of characters that needed to be created with special effects and animation – films would not have been successful if they didn’t have an amazing special effects team
      2.       Dobby and Gollum are both extremely important characters to their respective plotlines and are characters that the audience really connects with

                                I.            Connection to audience shows success of special effects

                               II.            Entire theater cheers for Dobby's successes, such as his freedoom from servitude with the Malfoys, and cries over his death

Character Animation

"A Hold Up"

I worked with Katie Heckey to make this stop-motion animation. The story formed around the characters we found, who we have named Unicorn Fred (due to the Unicorn on his shirt) and Pioneer Bill (due to his coonskin cap). We first created the set for our film, making a forest backdrop for them to stroll through. We then planned out what actions would take place and what would happen in the film. When we began shooting, we both would figure out how the pose needed to look for each frame while Katie posed the characters and I took the pictures. (A special thanks to Katie's brother Robert, who helped us when we needed a third person in order to make the gun fly out of Pioneer Bill's hand!) While some of the actions are very silly, we made sure to follow animation principles such as follow-through and overlapping action.

After taking all the photos, we timed out and edited the film in Quicktime and Adobe Premiere. Katie did the wonderful voice-over dialogue and sound effects. She does an excellent trumpet impression!

We had a lot of fun making this animation!!

Science Fact or Cinematic Fiction

                All movement is partially defined by the physical laws of momentum and force of impact. The momentum of an object in motion depends on the velocity and mass of the object, and the faster an object’s momentum the more force is necessary to stop its motion. If an object has a large momentum, it must impact either with a large force that stops it quickly, or a smaller force applied for a longer amount of time in order to stop moving. These laws are often manipulated in films to create cooler, more dynamic effects – it is a manipulation often found in fight scenes to make the impacts within the fight more visually interesting to the viewer. “Comic-style” films – films that are based on comics or have a comic book feel to their visual storytelling – are some of the biggest offenders of this manipulation. The films Kick-Ass, Zombieland, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World all have instances of incorrect physics with varying degrees of success. These movies ignore the laws of momentum and its subsequent force of impact for extra dramatic effect in key scenes; however, unless this physics manipulation fits into the physical world described by the rest of the film, this action will appear wrong and out of place.

                The film Kick-Ass is based on a comic book by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. This movie tells the story of a teenager named Dave Wizewski, who transforms himself into a real-world superhero by the name of Kick-Ass, despite having no super powers of his own. Due mostly to his own naïveté, Dave gets caught up in the very real battle between Damon Mcready – whose superhero persona is known as Big Daddy – and drug lord Frank D’Amico. Along with Big Daddy’s daughter Hit-Girl and D’Amico’s rogue son Red Mist, the film culminates in a final showdown of good versus evil in which the vigilantes naturally walk away victorious. While there are obviously many fight scenes in a movie entitled Kick-Ass, there is one scene that particularly stands out for its shockingly bad physics. In the climactic battle, just as Frank D’Amico is about to kill a weakened Hit-Girl, Kick-Ass returns to the fray with a gigantic bazooka gun. He fires, hitting D’Amico and blasting him out the window – where he continues to project along with the bazooka shot well out over the streets below – before the eventual explosion occurs. According to the law of momentum, an object as big as a bazooka rocket would have a large mass, as well as an extremely high velocity once fired from the weapon. Upon hitting Frank D’Amico, who also has a large mass, the bazooka should have exploded instantly – as one would assume such a weapon would do. Rather than exploding on impact, the bazooka “pushes” Frank as they fly out the window together, horrendously breaking the law of force of impact. Further, this scene also breaks laws of falling and gravity, because when Frank and the bazooka a projected out through the window they move in a straight line, when really their movement should be a parabolic arc. This scene is quite jarring because it does not fit into the physics of the film, as the film is set in real-world New York City with characters who are normal people. Because the world built in this film generally follows the physics of the real world, it makes no sense for explosives and projectiles to behave this way.

Flight of the Bazooka

                Zombieland is set in a post-apocalyptic America, after the majority of the country and its people have been destroyed by a mutated strain of mad cow disease, which ultimately became a “mad zombie disease.” While the film is not based on a comic book, it is told like one with voice-over narration and graphic elements to go along with the storytelling, such as when main character Columbus presents the rules for dealing with zombies. The plot of the film follows Columbus on his journey to reunite with his family, along the way joining fellow survivors Tallahassee, Wichita, and Little Rock, and ultimately ending up at the supposedly zombie-free Pacific Playland in Los Angeles, California. Before meeting the sisters, Columbus and Tallahassee travel together, revealing Tallahassee to be quickly violent towards zombies. In one scene, the pair enters a grocery store that has been overrun by zombies. In order to entice the zombies out, Tallahassee picks up a banjo and begins to strum the infamous Deliverance tune. This draws a zombie out of hiding, and a fight ensues. The zombie and Tallahassee both have the large mass of a human body, and both begin to run at each other full-speed, creating a high velocity momentum; however, when at impact Tallahassee smacks the zombie’s head with his banjo, a large force impact, the zombie head and banjo are both unharmed. With such a large force of impact, the banjo likely would have broken and the zombie’s head would have been visibly injured. As explained in the vampire stake demo, a fast, large force acting on a hard object like a human skull would result in physical damage; however, in Zombieland the zombie is just knocked down. The zombie doesn’t sustain any real injury until Tallahassee stops and directly his him repeatedly with the banjo. Because Zombieland is set in a near-future America, it should demonstrate real-world physics. This scene definitely breaks the law of force of impact, considering a large-force impact stops a high-momentum movement without any visible damage to either party. Also, while oftentimes similar stories will have zombies experiencing different physical responses to the real world, Zombieland does not demonstrate any sort of altered sense of physicality created by the zombie virus. Throughout the film, the zombies mostly react physically to attacks the same way a healthy human would, so the zombie being unaffected by such a blow to his head in this scene does not make sense in the film’s universe.

Zombie has a pretty mouth

                Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is one instance of a film where a manipulation of physics actually works in the movie’s favor. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is based on the graphic novel series Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O’Malley. Scott Pilgrim, bass guitarist of the band Sex Bob-omb, meets the elusive Ramona Flowers and is instantly infatuated with her. After much obsessing over her the two begin to date, and shortly after at a battle of the bands Scott learns that in order to date Ramona, he must first defeat her Seven Evil Exes. Each evil ex has their own unique superpowers and all prove a challenge for Scott, with her seventh and most evil ex, Gideon, being the most difficult battle of them all. Once he earns the “Power of Self-Respect” sword in the epic final showdown, Scott is able to defeat Gideon and pursue his relationship with Ramona. The film carries a video game motif throughout, including coins for winning battles and “extra lives.” The film displays a large manipulation of physics in Scott’s battle with Ramona’s first evil ex, Matthew Patel. Crashing into the middle of Sex Bob-omb’s battle of the bands performance, Matthew – a high mass body – rushes through the air at Scott with a very high velocity; however, Scott is able to stop Matthew’s high-momentum attack with only his unflinching hand. Further, there is no reaction to the force of impact being acted on Scott through the halting of Matthew’s motion. The law of inertia suggests that an object in motion will remain in motion, meaning that upon impact Scott should have naturally reacted to Matthew’s forward movement with a backwards-moving recoil. Scott’s hands and feet represent a small force that could not possibly stop Matthew’s high-momentum attack so quickly, especially with Scott remaining in a static position throughout. While this battle clearly breaks the laws of momentum and force of impact, it actually does fit within the realm of the film. The video game motif used in Scott Pilgrim allows the filmmakers to play with the film’s physicality. Each of the battles with Ramona’s Seven Evil Exes breaks the laws of physics in different ways, but because each fight is presented as a video game battle the exaggerated physics actually make sense.

Scott stops Matthew with a single elbow

More often than not, the altering of physics will feel like a mistake that will take a viewer out of a movie. While erroneous scenes from Kick-Ass and Zombieland create comic effect, they are also clearly physically wrong to an audience, even if they can’t explain why. For example, most viewers wouldn’t recognize the lack of a parabolic arc in Kick-Ass, but they would intuitively feel that it is wrong; however, this instance of strangeness creates a funny moment that almost mimics a Looney Tunes cartoon. But if a manipulation of the physical world is done within the constraints of a films established universe, it can actually help to enhance the film. This physics play works in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World because it fits into the theme of the movie, and is clearly done deliberately. If an artist or filmmaker is going to deviate from the natural laws of physics, it must be done purposefully and with scrutiny, and when done right this can actually produce a film with new, fabulous, and fun results.

KO - New High Score!

Outline for the Second Term Paper

1.       Introduction

a)      Fight scenes in movies often ignore the laws of Momentum and Force of Impact

b)      “Comic-style” movies are the biggest offenders – Kick-Ass, Zombieland, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

c)       Thesis: In an attempt at extra dramatization, movies may ignore the laws of momentum and its subsequent force of impact; however, unless this physics manipulation fits into the physical world described by the rest of the film, this action will appear wrong and out of place.

2.       Kick-Ass

a)      Short Summary

b)      Bazooka Scene

 i.   Bazooka shot has a very high velocity and mass, and should stop (explode) instantly upon hitting Frank D’Amico

 ii. Instead, the bazooka “pushes” Frank as they fly out the window together – at least the width distance of the road outside the building until it later explodes

         a.  Also breaks laws of falling – bazooka and Frank project in a straight line, when it should be a parabolic arc

c)       DOES NOT fit into movie world

   i.  Kick-Ass is set in a real place with characters who are normal people, so the incorrect physics with this scene does not fit into the physics established within the film

3.       Zombieland

a)      Short Summary

b)      Grocery Store Scene

   i.  Tallahassee and a zombie (high mass) run at each other full-speed (high velocity), but when Tallahassee hits the zombie in the head (large force) with a banjo, the zombie head and banjo are both unharmed.

  ii.  With such a large force of impact, the banjo likely would have broken and head would have been visibly injured (Vampire stake demo). The zombie is knocked down but isn't really hurt until Tallahassee directly hits him with the banjo.

c)       DOES NOT fit into movie world

  i.  This is a post-apocalyptic version of the real world, so it should have real-world physics.

 ii.  Also, the zombie being unaffected by the blow to the head does not fit into any altered sense of physicality created by the zombie virus because the zombies mostly physically react to attacks the way a human would.

4.       Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

a)      Short Summary

b)      Matthew Patel Fight Scene

 i.  Matthew (high mass) rushes at Scott (high velocity), yet Scott is able to stop Matthew’s high-momentum attacks with only his static fist or foot

ii.  Scott’s small hand/foot represents a small force that could not stop Matthew’s large force so quickly, especially without any recoil

         a.  Law of intertia – Scott’s body does not compensate for the force acting on him through Matthew’s attacks – he is able to stay standing straight up/in place despite such a strong blow

c)       DOES fit into movie world

 i.  The video game motif throughout Scott Pilgrim allows the filmmakers to play with the film’s physicality. Each of the battles with Ramona’s Seven Evil Exes breaks laws of physics in different ways, but because it is presented as a video game battle the exaggerated physics makes sense.

5.       Conclusion

a)      More often than not, the altering of physics will feel like a mistake that will take a viewer out of a movie.

 i.  While scenes from Kick-Ass and Zombieland create comic effect, they are also clearly physically wrong to a viewer – even if they can’t explain why

         a.  ex. Most viewers wouldn’t realize the lack of a parabolic arc in Kick-Ass, they would just feel that it is wrong – but that makes it funny

b)      If manipulation is done within the constraints of a films established physical world, then it can actually help to enhance the film.

c)       If an artist is going to deviate from the natural laws of physics, it must be done purposefully and with scrutiny.

Reverse Video Reference

Stop Motion Animation of Falling

I was inspired by a pack of fruit snacks on my kitchen shelf! When I found them I decided I wanted to do my animation of fruit falling from a tree so I planned out a path of action thinking of a ball drop, but considering that the physicality of fruit would cause it to be less bouncy than a ball. I set up a scene with cut paper on my tabletop, and made a makeshift downshooter for my camera. I then used Photoshop to put the photos together into an animated GIF. Yum!

The Laws of Physics in an Animation Universe

Term Paper: The Laws of Physics in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

    

            Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is an animated film by Sony Pictures Animation about a young inventor who develops a way to turn water into food in order to feed a town with no former food options other than sardines. While at first glance the world of Swallow Falls appears to be a world very much like our own, there is actually a great amount of physics manipulation to achieve the effects of the world. In this film we see fantastic scientific devices, Jell-O structures, a suspension of gravity, and – of course – raining food. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is set in a world that understands a different fundamental science than our own, and Sony further manipulates the laws of physics in order to use it as a storytelling element within the film.

                Tired of eating sardines every day, Flint Lockwood invents the Flint Lockwood Diatonic Super Mutating Dynamic Food Replicator, or FLDSMDFR for short. The FLDSMDFR absorbs water molecules and creates food by manipulating and rearranging the structure of the molecules. By simply typing in his meal order, Flint is able to produce any kind of food imaginable using the FLDSMDFR. In the film he makes foods such as hamburgers, steak, hot dogs, and spaghetti and meatballs, among many others; however, in the real world this machine is scientifically impossible. A water molecule is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, while most foods are made up of much more complicated combinations. Even if the FLDSMDFR absorbed an infinite amount of water molecules, it would still only be able to make combinations of hydrogen and oxygen. While these are two very common elements, other elements are required to make the wide variety of foods that Flint does in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Figure 1 shows how the film gets around this issue – rather than food being made up of complex combinations of atoms, the hot dog is simply made up of “hot dog molecules.” In this way, the FLDSMDFR just has to make one new kind of molecule in order to produce an entirely new food.

(Figure 1: Normal hot dog molecules and mutated hot dog molecules)

Another aspect of physics that is highly distorted in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is the physics of falling. Falling objects are an important motif in the film, and these objects typically fall a very long distance with no reaction upon impacting the ground. One of the earliest examples of this is near the beginning, when Flint and the FLDSMDFR destroy Sardine Land. The park’s giant glass fishbowl is knocked off its stand and begins to roll through the town, bouncing like a ball until it hits an exploding building; then, it is thrown into the air before coming crashing back down onto the concrete. Throughout all of this, the glass bowl stays intact, something which wouldn't happen in reality. The bowl doesn't break at all until – after all of that action – Flint touches the side of the bowl with his head and it shatters around him. This is obviously done for the comedic effect, but nevertheless it greatly deviates from standard laws of physics. The destruction of this scene was caused by the FLDSMDFR flying throughout the town and being projected into the air, where it remains for the duration of the film. From its position in the clouds, the FLDSMDFR absorbs the surrounding water molecules and rains food down onto Swallow Falls; however, the constant “rain” of food never causes any harm or damage. From the height that the food falls, it would hit the ground at such a high speed that it would most likely break something or hurt someone, or at least the food itself would break apart. In the film, though, the cascading food only causes real damage as the film reaches its climax, and the destruction is added for dramatic effect. The only instance of food-related destruction previous to the danger of the climax is seen in the Roofless restaurant. Giant steaks fall down from the sky, shattering wine glasses as they hit the tables; however, the wine glasses are the only objects affected by the falling food. No people are hurt, no tables broken, and even the plates – which are made of a similar material to the wine glasses – remain perfectly intact (Fig. 2). During Flint’s dinner with his father, the steaks begin to grow and mutate but the gigantic steaks cause the same amount of damage as the regular-sized ones.

(Figure 2: Roofless)

                The laws of gravity are also flexible in the universe of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. In one scene, Flint creates a Jell-O house for Sam the weather girl (Fig. 3). Inside the Jell-O house, Flint and Sam bounce all around with very little regard to gravity. Despite having walking through the walls to get inside the house, they are able to walk up stairs to upper floors of the house and interact with furniture without the same relationship as they had to the walls. Due to gravity, Flint and Sam should be falling through the floors of the Jell-O house in the same way they slipped through the walls, as humans are much denser and heavier than Jell-O.

   

(Figure 3: Jell-O House)

While the Jell-O house obviously demonstrates a skewed sense of gravity, most of the gravity manipulation within the film deals with the FLDSMDFR. During the tornado created by the FLDSMDFR, Flint is able to “swim” through the air, moving in all directions, maneuvering around other flying objects to avoid them, and manipulating the speed of his fall. True physics would dictate that after being flung into the air, Flint should be falling right back down to the ground without the ability control his fall. During this scene, the cause of the tornado, the FLDSMDFR, remains suspended in the sky as it does throughout the majority of the film (Fig. 4). This makes no sense. While the FLDSMDFR is high up in the atmosphere, it is not high enough to be released from Earth’s gravity and into a state of orbit, which would be required for it to float in the air the way that it is. Even though a great force propelled the FLDSMDFR into the air, it is a large, heavy object that should have come crashing back down to Earth when its upward-pushing energy ran out.

(Figure 4: FLDSMDFR)

                With all of these strange laws of physics operating in the world of Cloudy, there are actually many instances of inconsistencies. As stated, some falling objects are destructive while others do nothing. This is a clear example of a manipulation of physics for storytelling effect, because when the food is a good element in the film it is not harmful; however, once the FLDSMDFR begins to malfunction and create giant, mutated meals, the food begins to destroy the town as things begin to look bleak for its future. The FLDSMDFR also displays an inconsistency in the laws of gravity in this world, as it is able to float freely in the air while other characters are typically affected by gravity normally. Throughout the film, the biggest derivations from the presented laws of physics are done in a way that they advance the story, and the film is better with these broken laws.

                The story of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is fantastical in itself. In the real world, someone couldn't make the weather “rain” food. As artists we aim primarily to tell a story the best we can, in any way possible. While the artists infused the story into the design of the film's characters, environments, etc., they also pushed it into the physics of the film's animation. Many times that the natural laws of physics were broken throughout the film was with purpose to exaggerate specific storytelling elements, such as the danger the FLDSMDFR posed to Swallow Falls at the film's climax. When a story is as oddball as Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, the manipulation of physics does not distract the viewer from the story being told; rather, it actually enhances the story by allowing the audience to be completely transported to a new world where events such as giant raining foods are both plausible and enjoyable. 

Term Paper Outline: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

        I.            Introduction

     a)      Animated Feature Film: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

     b)      Thesis: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is set in a world that understands a different science than our own, and Sony further manipulates the laws of physics in order to use it as a storytelling element within the film.

      II.            Molecule Manipulation

     a)      FLDSMDFR converts water molecules into food

     b)      It is impossible to create solid, prepared food (ex. Hamburgers, spaghetti, hot dogs, etc.) by rearranging water molecules

     c)       Water molecules contain hydrogen and oxygen – many more elements needed for food. Can’t create these elements by rearranging molecules.

    III.            Falling

     a)      Objects are constantly falling from the sky, hitting things but rarely causing any harm or damage

     b)      In the beginning, the giant fishbowl falls from the sky and the glass doesn’t break until touched by Flint. Physics manipulated here for comedic effect.

     c)       Throughout the film, food is falling from the sky and rarely injures anyone or breaks anything despite being a solid object falling such a far distance.

     d)      In the “Roofless” restaurant, falling food shatters wine glasses but doesn’t damage plates, tables, or people – giant falling steaks would likely injure someone.

    IV.            Gravity

     a)      Inside the Jello house, Flint and Sam bounce all around with little regard to gravity, are able to stand on upper “floors” or Jello without breaking it/falling through

     b)      Flint is able to maneuver through the air during the tornado scene, avoiding objects in his way

     c)       The FLDSMDFR remains suspended in the sky throughout the film, when in reality it would be pulled back to Earth due to gravity

      V.            Inconsistencies

     a)      Some falling objects are destructive while others do nothing – food becomes more dangerous as things begin to go wrong in the story

     b)      Gravity doesn’t have a universal effect – FLDSMDFR is able to float in the air and characters occasionally move as if there was no gravity, while others are affected normally.

    VI.            Conclusion

           a)      When the story is as fantastical as Cloudy, the manipulated physics do not distract the viewer from the story being told; rather, it enhances the story by allowing the audience to be transported to a world where events such as giant raining foods are both plausible and enjoyable.

Video Analysis of Path of Action

Tracker Video Analysis of Falling

Shooting Video Reference

Mini-Portfolio

Hello! I am a fifth year Animation/Illustration student at San Jose State University with a minor in Humanities. The A/I classes I am taking this semester are ANI 130a (Intermediate Modeling) and ANI 117b (Visual Development). After school I hope to pursue a career working as a visual development artist for animated feature films. As for science classes, I took AP Biology way back in senior year of high school and have taken an awesome Astronomy class here at SJSU.

Here is some of my work:

A visual development piece for a tree house design

Digital still life painting

This is a first pass of character designs for the 117b class I am currently in.

Spider Lady! Work in progress!

This is my short film from David Chai's ANI 115 class. 

The First Post

The First Post