Thursday, May 2, 2013

Final Exam

Our class final is:

Thursday May 9th, 8 am - 10:30 am.  Computer Lab 110 (same as always)

You are expected to be there, with your final project finished/exported.  We will watch the movies on the big board.


Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Senior review today in gallery at noon

Calaca by Amanda DeBusk


Luis Cifuentes/Amanda DeBusk/Lewis Straughter will be participating in their oral reviews today (4/30) in the gallery at noon.  

(from the JTAC article written by Kenneth Brisendene)

DeBusk, a digital media major, will be displaying both photographs and watercolors based on her photographs. Her show will feature her‘Punisher’ series of portraits as well as various flyers she has designed for events.

Straughter’s work tends to focus on typography and logo design, including typographic illustrations and some advertisement work.Straughter says he wants his work to inspire others. “I really want to touch those who need that help, who need to be motivated, who need to be inspired,” said Straughter.

Cifuentes’ graphic design work will feature printed works such as magazine layouts and posters.

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Melissa Crosby/Bailey Drake Brown Bag Lecture April 23 at noon

Lesly by Melissa Crosby

Drake’s illustrative works have a cartoon/comic style and explore character design and background concepts. She is interested in developing a career in children’s book illustration.
Crosby’s focus is on concept art for video game design. “I draw landscapes, mercenaries, pirates, monsters, whatever comes to mind,” she said. Crosby would like to continue working on concept art for a video game developer in the future.
Come see the artists talk about their work at the gallery at noon on 4/23rd. 
(by Kenneth Brisendene)
In the Forest by Bailey Drake

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Senior Exhibit 1 - Ayers/Kutch - Brown bag lecture 12/17 at noon

Duality by Kim Kutch

article written by Kenneth Brisendine from the JTAC, see original here
From April 15 through May 8, the gallery in the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center will be hosting Tarleton State University’s senior artists. 8 graduates will be presenting their work to qualify for the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree this year, and the senior exhibition will split into four separate exhibitions to allow all the graduates room to show off their work.
From April 15 through April 18 the gallery will be displaying work by Ashley Ayers and Kim Kutch. There will be an artist’s reception on the17th from 4-6pm. A brown bag lecture where the artists will discuss their work is April 17th at noon.  
Zooey by Ashley Ayers
Ayers is a BFA with digital media emphasis candidate whose media of choice is photography. Her show will consist of children’s photography. “In my photographs I’m trying to portray the beauty of life and the joy that little ones bring to us. Take a trip down memory lane for a minute and remind yourself of all the good times from when you were young,” said Ayers.
Kutch is also a BFA with digital media emphasis candidate, who’s work combines photography and sculpture. Her show will focus on two of her concentrations; night photography and macro photography. “For my night photography I have taken many pictures of the Milky Way, stars, the moon sunsets and some character work involving people,” said Kutch of her work. “I love doing night photography because I feel like my imagination can run wild when I frame the shot.”

Monday, April 8, 2013

Student Exhibit Reception This Thursday at 4-6pm


STUDENTSHOWSpring2013x
The reception for the student exhibition is this Thursday the 10th from 4-6pm the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center Gallery. Bring family and friends and enjoy some free food as we celebrate the achievements of the Fine Art grads.  Also congratulations are in order to the winners of the President's Circle awards!  The winners were Garrett Lambert (1st place and winner of wine label competition , Blu Dornan (2nd Place), and Elizabeth Phelps (3rd place).

After Effects Tutorials - Basics of Animation and more...



See More Tutorials for:

Layers
Effects
Masks

Saturday, April 6, 2013

Animation examples


Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Story boards

Story boards you can print out here.

They have about every style and aspect ratio you could ask for.

Final Project


For the rest of the semester, you will be creating a unique and mature piece of work in class.  
The piece must include:

1. A work that has a theme or a story that is thought provoking or emotionally moving (funny, sad, etc.)
2. A work that has good form (good ending, climax, conflict, resolution, character arc, etc.)
3. Animation that is timed well (ease in and out, appropriate speed, not choppy)
4. Good use of art and design: nicely drawn backgrounds, characters, props; good use of color and composition
I would like you to work up a little "pitch" for your final animation project idea, 
and pitch it to me and the rest of the class on Tuesday (3/26)

come up with a schedule of completion by thursday

storyboard
dialogue
character design
film footage
backgrounds
audio 
final

Here some further details on the final project.

The course culminates in the development of your own animation piece.

This can be done individually or in groups of two or three students.

In the case of a group project, the duration of the piece should be at least on minute.

Other than that, remember to keep it as simple and short as possible.

Pixar's 22 rules for storytelling by Emma Coats


  1. You admire a character for trying more than for their successes.
  2. You gotta keep in mind what’s interesting to you as an audience, not what’s fun to do as a writer. They can be very different.
  3. Trying for theme is important, but you won’t see what the story is actually about til you’re at the end of it. Now rewrite.
  4. Once upon a time there was ___. Every day, ___. One day ___. Because of that, ___. Because of that, ___. Until finally ___.
  5. Simplify. Focus. Combine characters. Hop over detours. You’ll feel like you’re losing valuable stuff but it sets you free.
  6. What is your character good at, comfortable with? Throw the polar opposite at them. Challenge them. How do they deal?
  7. Come up with your ending before you figure out your middle. Seriously. Endings are hard, get yours working up front.
  8. Finish your story, let go even if it’s not perfect. In an ideal world you have both, but move on. Do better next time.
  9. When you’re stuck, make a list of what WOULDN’T happen next. Lots of times the material to get you unstuck will show up.
  10. Pull apart the stories you like. What you like in them is a part of you; you’ve got to recognize it before you can use it.
  11. Putting it on paper lets you start fixing it. If it stays in your head, a perfect idea, you’ll never share it with anyone.
  12. Discount the 1st thing that comes to mind. And the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th – get the obvious out of the way. Surprise yourself.
  13. Give your characters opinions. Passive/malleable might seem likable to you as you write, but it’s poison to the audience.
  14. Why must you tell THIS story? What’s the belief burning within you that your story feeds off of? That’s the heart of it.
  15. If you were your character, in this situation, how would you feel? Honesty lends credibility to unbelievable situations.
  16. What are the stakes? Give us reason to root for the character. What happens if they don’t succeed? Stack the odds against.
  17. No work is ever wasted. If it’s not working, let go and move on – it’ll come back around to be useful later.
  18. You have to know yourself: the difference between doing your best & fussing. Story is testing, not refining.
  19. Coincidences to get characters into trouble are great; coincidences to get them out of it are cheating.
  20. Exercise: take the building blocks of a movie you dislike. How d’you rearrange them into what you DO like?
  21. You gotta identify with your situation/characters, can’t just write ‘cool’. What would make YOU act that way?
  22. What’s the essence of your story? Most economical telling of it? If you know that, you can build out from there.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Student Exhibition due Mar 22

The work for the student exhibition is due March 22nd.  if you have any time based work you may give it to me anytime before that date and I will make a DVD for it.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Adam and Dog

Noon Lecture Today - Co Founder of Sony Pictures Classics



Today there is a great lecture about movies going on at 12:15. Michael Barker, co-founder of Sony Pictures Classics will be giving a lecture on “Why the Oscars Still Matter” in the Math building room 109. Sony Pictures Classics is responsible for the distribution of many Oscar nominated films such as Midnight in Paris, Capote, and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, along with this year’s winner for Best Foreign Language Film Amour. Thanks to the Department of Communication Studies for hosting this event.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Fresh Guacamole PES

Project 4 Character/Environment

Design one animation of a character in Flash. it must be an original character, in an original environment. Your animation must show the character interacting with his/her/it's environment in someway.

Project due: swf and fla due by the end of class Thursday 3/7

You are not allowed to use the Flash trace options on the background design. Your character must have a flexible rig. Sound will be added in class.

Flash Masking Tools

Project 3 Walk Cycle



Design a simple character and have him perform one complete walk cycle.

Due: 2/19

Must use the Flash Bone Tools

Character Animation in Flash

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Walk Cycle

from Richard William's book "The Animator's Survival Kit"

Friday, February 1, 2013

Bouncing Ball Terms


Here is a tutorial about the bouncing ball project for hand drawn animators.  It contains many of the necessary terms for understanding the project, such as squash and stretch, arc, and timing.  

Thanks to the angry animator...

Project 2 Bouncing Ball



Complete a realistic looking bouncing ball in Flash. Must contain realistic easing, and squash and stretch. Even better if rotation, shadows, and a background are incorporated.

Due at the beginning of class Tuesday February 5th. 

Easing in Flash
Squash and Stretch
Motion Tweens
Motion Editor

Here is a handout on drawing a bouncing ball by hand from the Angry Animator

Don Herzfeldt - Billy's Balloon

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Sunday, January 27, 2013

Safari Photography in South Africa Study Abroad Meeting Wednesday

 southafrica

Devon Nowlin - Brown Bag lecture

devonlectenemail   

The Department of Fine Arts is proud to present the first in the 2013 series of Brown Bag lectures at the  TSU Fine Arts Gallery.  Devon Nowlin will be talking about her work and the current exhibit Between You and Me (up until Feb. 14). Devon Nowlin is an accomplished artist from the Fort Worth area. She earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in painting at Texas Christian University in 2011 and an undergraduate degree in Drawing and Painting from the University of North Texas in 2004. Nowlin has exhibited her work at  venues including the Fort Worth Community Arts Center (FWCAC), Fort Worth Contemporary Arts, Gallery 414, Craighead-Green Gallery, and 500X.

In 2008 she completed a project for Fort Worth Public Art, the “Chickering Road Curb Enhancement Mosaic.” She is currently designing a 360 square-foot artwork for the Clearfork Main Street Bridge. The bridge is public artwork are scheduled to be completed in Spring 2013. She currently works as the Gallery Manager for the Galleries at TCU and is a founding member of the Fort Worth-based artist collective Homecoming!!

See the artist's webpage

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Class Notes: Flash - Getting Started


Flash Concepts
  1. Bitmap Graphics
  2. Vector Graphics
  3. Frame Rate
  4. Keyframes
  5. Object versus Merge Drawing
  6. Distribute to Layers
Flash Tools
  1. Flash Stage
  2. Draw Simple Lines and Shapes
  3. Brush Tool
  4. Free Transform Tool
  5. Zoom Tool
  6. Bitmap into Vector (bitmap trace)

Kraftwerk The Man Machine


Early inspiration for the current assign...lots of great visuals with simple effects based off of Russian Graphic Designer El Lissitzky. Kraftwerk were pioneers of electronic music in the 1970s.  Appreciate and love them.

Daft Punk - Around the World

 The video featured robots walking around in circles, tall athletes going up and down the stairs, women dressed as synchronized swimmers, and skeletons and mummies dancing to the beat of the song. Each character in the video served as a visual presentation of the song.

The four characters represented a different instrument or part. For instance, the robots depicted the vocals, the athletes symbolized the descending and ascending pattern of the bass guitar, and the disco girls characterized the keyboard. Moreover, the skeletons represented the guitar’s melody while the mummies symbolized the drum machine. (text from Director-File)

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Project 1 250 frames

Create an animation with 250 keyframes that represents an abstract representation of the song you choose.  You may do if you like.  You are allowed to use any kind of images or graphics in your animation.

Due  at the end of class Tuesday, January 29th.

Points to Consider

Be instinctive about the shapes you draw, but methodically about where they are placed.


Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Week 1 tue Notes

Went over course syllabus Watched "The Secret Powers of Time" (see above) Intro to Flash uses: animation, web design Talked about perceptual weirdness Homework: find a song that like, have a personal memory attached to, that you might be able to visualize somehow....bring the mp3 to class.

Forging the Frame: The Roots of Animation


Forging the Frame: The Roots of Animation... by CarlStallingEnthusiast

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Class Syllabus


COURSE DESCRIPTION

This is an advanced course in digital media, with an emphasis on the moving image as a vehicle for expression. As a studio-based course, it will investigate the principles and processes of video editing, 2d animation, and other forms of motion graphics. This class will switch it's focus from 2d to 3d animation from year to year. We will learn the importance of storyboarding and acting, and move on to hands on camera and studio equipment demonstrations. For processing, industry standard software such as Adobe Premiere, After Effects, and Flash will be covered, among others.

Art382 is an upper level course for Digital media majors to use in the service of artistic exploration and portfolio development. Non art majors will find this class informative for multiple fields such as electronic publishing, journalism, communications, business, etc. I see it as a class for everyone to explore their ideas and have an enjoyable time doing so. Video and animation is more challenging then you may realize, because we are so accustomed to seeing it everyday. That said, it is because there is such a large audience for this particular set of skills that I think you will find a lot of pride and enjoyment in connecting with the work you do.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

In this class students will learn….
• the make up the digital files as they relate to motion.
• basic camera and recording equipmentuse, from technical and compositional strategies.
• the basics of Adobe Create Suite 6
• how to add animation believably to static images.
• the interrelationships between the images, sound, and motion in our everyday experience. Then learn to interpret and critique them.
• a basic introduction to history and current issues in contemporary art related to video art, film, and animation.

COURSE RULES

1) Projects: Each student will complete a total of 4-5 (estimated) major class projects. These projects are due at the beginning of the class critique. They must also be in the format specified on the project description on the class blog. Incorrect or late projects will be assigned a point loss at the discretion of the instructor. Smaller class assignments may also be assigned weekly to tighten technical skills, so attendance is crucial.

2.) Critiques: Students are expected to participate in class critiques of works, both completed and in progress. As the term evolves, we will orient towards weekly progress critiques. Talking about your work and the work of others is a crucial aspect of design. Learning to articulate what your work is about is just as important as the actual making of the work. The ideas shared in an open critique will help us all learn from each other and greatly increase our ability to understand our creative practice.

3.) Blog: www.art-382.blogspot.com: All assignments and related class material will be posted online. Specific tutorials, example videos, and other online source material will be assigned and posted on the blog as the course progresses.

4.) Supplies: USB Drive (4 gb is optimal, more is better), headphones, and later, blank DVDs.
5.) Equipment check out: we have video cameras, along with tripods, studio lights, steadicams, audio recorders, and more. There are DVD movies available for check out as well. All equipment, especially cameras, are due back the NEXT class period, or you will receive a grade deduction on the current project, and then your university records will be charged for the equipment.

6.) Attendance: mandatory at all class sessions. Class moves fast and it is extremely difficult to catch up unless you take responsibility and look up anything you missed. More than three absences (excused or unexcused, they are all the same) lower your final grade 1 grade down each absence. Come prepared for work in class or you will receive an absence. Looking at on the internet during a class discussion will give you an absent mark, no questions asked. Since most class material is covered at the beginning of class, being notably tardy also counts as an absence.

7.) Grading: There will be 4 or 5 (estimated) major projects that are worth 100 points. Students will be graded according to how well their projects reflect an understanding and a willingness to experiment with the techniques, issues and practices covered in class. The grade breaks down as follows: Concept and Creativity – 25%, Understanding and Execution of the project – 25%, Craftsmanship – 25%, Writing and Participation– 25%

LAB ETTIQUETTE

Students are responsible for the frequent and methodical back-up of their class work over the course of the semester. Data loss—from a lost, fried and/or stolen hard drive, or satanic software - cannot be used as an excuse for late or missing work. Students are responsible for the re-creation of any required files that go lost or missing. Back up your work weekly.

Students are not permitted to use the internet or any electronic devices during lectures or student presentations. Cell Phones must be turned off unless instructed otherwise. Headphones must be used with video projects. if you want to surf the internet or talk on the phone you should do us all a favor and stay home.

ACADEMIC HONESTY

Cheating, plagiarism (submitting another person’s materials or ideas as one’s own), or doing work for another person who will receive academic credit are all impermissible. Turning in work made before this class, or from other classes, is also a violation of academic honesty. Disciplinary action may be taken beyond the Department of Fine Arts.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

It is the policy of Tarleton State University to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and other applicable laws. If you are a student with a disability seeking accommodations for this course, please contact Trina Geye, Director of Student Disability Services, at 254.968.9400 or geye@tarleton.edu. Student Disability Services is located in Math 201. More information can be found at www.tarleton.edu/sds or in the University Catalog.