Monday, November 14, 2011

Another Short Film Update...

So, I've been hard at work trying to get stuff done on the short film. I'm really glad that I chose a simple story with only 1 character, lol! I think there are about 32 or so shots, including things that are as short as 30 frames (which could change, if things are needed, or if things need to be removed).

I'm currently on the 4th shot of the film. I've been animating sequentially. I don't have a technical reason for that, other than, those environments were ready to go already.. Back in school I organized all of my shots, all of the render layers etc, and it's really helping out on this one. I started everything off organized, so things don't get messy and confusing when it's time to put everything together. I am bouncing around a bit on content creation. I'll animate a few days, then I'll spend a few days just modeling and rigging assets, or working on the environments. A lot of back and forth! These aren't full days by the way.

Due to my work schedule, and choosing not to work at home when I get off from my job, I found that waking up around 4:30-5am is the best time for me to put in time on personal stuff. I only have a few hours before I have to get ready for work, and the personal work takes longer to get done, but it's a good balance for me. My girlfriend's asleep, I work better in the morning anyways, and I can officially wind down from the day when I get off of work in the evening...

As I started animating on this thing, and began looking at the shots over and over, the doubt fairy has started to rear it's ugly head. I think as animators and artists we are going to constantly go through this. You look at the work over and over to make it better, THEN... Start questioning yourself!

Is that acting choice unique enough?
Could I have thought of a better idea for the story?
Does that look right?
There's a lot of work that needs to be done. Should I invest my time to finish this thing?

So, I'm fighting with those thoughts as I spend days on this thing. But it really is a fun thing!. If you're going to make a short film, or take on any kind of long term project, really love what you're planning to do, and believe in it. See the finished product in your mind! Because there will be times where you just want to be done with it!

On another note, I've picked a still from one of the shots, and I'll be making a promo poster out of it. I'm working on other shots outside of the short, as well as cleaning stuff up on my reel. So, I'll post it as soon as I can. There's still some texturing and lighting that needs to be done for it as well.

Until next time...