Soundscape: Audio Editing 01 - Roar Creation Attempt

Due to how central the interaction between the almost dog-like creature and the human are in the painting/keyframe, I feel it absolutely necessary that there be action - and as a result sounds - involving them in the animatic. For this reason I have experimented with a sound I recorded, cropped it in areas and added fx in Adobe Audition to gain a semi-successful roar sound. It is to be noted that the original sound may even be more suitable, in a cropped form without fx.

Keyframe: Isolated man and creature, with sketches.

Keyframe: Isolated man and creature, in the painting.

The Audio

The sounds in Adobe Audition.

Soundscape: Latest Keyframe Response - Drums, Demons & Volcanoes

Since I saw within the painting people, demons and beasts I've had this image of a battle between man and monsters. The painting's colour scheme emanates such heat via its strong use of blood reds, oranges and yellows in contrast to the prominent blacks; it brings to mind the destructive force of nature that is a volcanic eruption. 

Influential image of a volcanic eruption.

It's as if the battle is is full of monsters composed of black volcanic rock with lava dripping from the seams like blood. 

There is a hellish appearance to all this and a feeling of hopelessness, as if the painting's one discernible human is fighting a losing battle against Satan's minions. 

He seems surrounded by monsters both sides of him; some rushing towards him from the left, flags and spears raised while others stalk their prey from behind. His raised arm appears as if it's been cut off above the elbow, mid-swing - the sound of metal slicing through flesh and bone amplified for a brief moment.

Unnatural roars ring out across a volcanic battlefield, pierced by the war cry of a man willing to fight to the death. All the while the sun burns overhead, sizzling the flesh of its victims with its immense heat.

Key Frame: The Funeral of the Anarchist Galli (1911)

There is nothing happy about this painting; it screams death, battle, darkness, pure evil and the apocalypse. Its as if even the sun is a source of punishment and death, its searing rays of light filling a daytime sky, leaving only small amounts of cool blues behind.

There is also a tribal feel to it, as if it is a battle of myth from a primitive culture, fighting the darkness not with guns and bombs but with spears, swords and fists. Throughout the beat of a drum matching that of a racing heart.

The action feels like it would be so fast that the use of slow motion at times would allow this epic battle to truly be watched, the drum beat slowing down with time itself and the beastly roars made terrifying at a slow speed. Maybe the soundscape could be both discomforting, dark and hypnotic.

Previous post: Soundscape - Seeing Imaginatively Via Cut Outs

Annotated cut-outs showing what I see in the painting.

[From Script to Screen] 'Like for Like' Storyboard: War of the Worlds

For my 'Like for Like' Storyboard I detailed an approx. 30 second sequence from the "Abduction" scene of 2005's War of the Worlds as directed by Steven Spielberg.

The majority of this storyboard had been drawn before I'd gained knowledge and advice on how little detail was actually required for this storyboard to serve its purpose so I was obliged to keep this detail level. However after having learnt a lot about the do's and don'ts of storyboarding over the past few days and seen several examples of successful storyboards from people I can interact with, means I now know the right way of doing it and will use this newfound knowledge for my own eventual storyboard.
[Larger Image]

In the video below the storyboarded events span between 0:39 and 1:11

Soundscape: Seeing Imaginatively Via Cut Outs

Here's my original animatic idea:
Tribal warfare VS modern warfare/technological warfare: 
Tribal warriors with spears, battling on desert sands, in the background an atomic bomb is dropped, the shockwave and heat incinerates the warriors. The keyframe to be used soon after the bomb has been dropped to illustrate the appearance of the mushroom cloud in the first few milliseconds after it has been dropped.

However looking at the painting again, my imagination has since seen more than something based in reality; not only seeing humans, but creatures too, among other things. I have cut from the painting the things I have seen so far and annotated them.

For reference, here is the original keyframe for my animatic, The Funeral of the Anarchist Galli (1911) by Carlo Carrà.

In the center of the frame it appears that a man is about to attack creature #2, I have focused the attention on this event below and added arrows indicating possible movement.

Seeing this creature as an important part of a future animatic I quickly produced a basic sketch of what it may look like without what I visualise as intense red and orange highlights and harsh black shadows such as from a powerful light source e.g. the sun.

Looking at my sketch I was reminded of a variety of things that could be used to inspire developed designs of creature #2, below is the Influence Map for any developed drawings.

With this new look at my keyframe, it will undoubtedly lead to new, more exciting ideas for both the animatic and the all important soundscape.

[From Script to Screen] 'Like for Like' Storyboard Plan - War of the Worlds

There was never any doubt in my mind what film I'd be using for my 'Like for Like' Storyboard, that film being Stephen Spielberg's 2005 adaption of War of the Worlds, a film that has remained my favourite ever since I first saw it. 
Movie clip of scene: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kopi8gT9KE

War of the Worlds – Like for Like Storyboard Plan

30 seconds: Duration through movie = 1:32:40 – 1:33:10

1:32:40 – Upside down car – zoom towards broken window.

:43-45 Rachel screaming

:44 Max zoom – see Ray’s head

:46 Ray turns head, looks out glass hole.

:47 Switch to view through small round glass hole, framing helpless Rachel in a ring of broken glass. Zooming in…

1:32:50 Max zoom – Rachel looking in father’s direction, right at camera.

:51 Cut to – behind Rachel – tripod in front of here, bright tripod light above her head – rather than safety, means danger, tripod moving towards her [Note Tripod leg positions]. Camera dollies backwards…

:55 Dollying continues… Rachel full body in shot – Tripod head above & in front of her, lights focus on her at the same time Tripod’s centre leg comes down behind, to the right – Rachel begins walking backwards.

:56-59 Dollying continues then completes before cut. Tripod continues to come towards Rachel then tilts head down to look at her, lights intensely focus on her – like an abduction beam.

1:33:00 Cut to shot through Tripod eye, Rachel standing on red weed covered ground looking up at tripod, encircled by the spotlight. Camera zooming in…

:02 Camera zoomed really close to Rachel, she fills frame centre.

:03 Cut to Ray running to the right, extreme motion blur of surroundings. Camera trucking to the right…

04: Cut to more distant view of tripod, Rachel and Ray tiny in comparison, Ray running from behind Tripod towards Rachel as Tripod tentacle reaches out towards her.

07-10: Rachel grabbed by tentacle, brought towards Tripod eye as the Tripod rises. 

(:09- Rachel screaming)

Soundscape: Keyframe and my first response

While I was unable to be present when our numbers were picked out of the 'Mysterious Blue Box', it was gladly done for me; I received Folder 13 which led to the painting shown in (Fig. 1). Within a short period of time, I responded quite strongly with various words or sentences related to both possible elements of the animatic and sounds that could make up its soundscape, also coming up with my first idea.

Fig. 1: 'The Funeral of the Anarchist Galli' (1911)

Words and Sentences

Drums, Wind, Flag, Shouts, Industry, Bashing of metal, Party, Africa, Native chants, Battle, Screams, Anger, Dragon, Fire, Booming, Deep pitch, Whooshing, Bass, Footsteps in sand, Clashing of steel on steel, Sun, Sizzling, Fire, Splatter, Atomic bomb explosion, Mushroom cloud, Hypnotic, Distorted, Dramatic, Thunder, Lightning.

First Animatic Idea

Tribal warfare VS modern warfare/technological warfare: 

Tribal warriors with spears, battling on desert sands, in the background an atomic bomb is dropped, the shockwave and heat incinerates the warriors. The keyframe to be used soon after the bomb has been dropped to illustrate the appearance of the mushroom cloud in the first few milliseconds after it has been dropped, as shown in (Fig. 2).

Fig. 2: 'Trinity' Atomic Bomb Test, mushroom cloud first stage. (1945)

Illustrations list

Fig.1: Carrà, Carlo. (1911) The Funeral of the Anarchist Galli [Painting] At: myUCA (Accessed 07.01.14)

Fig. 2: Renner, Eric. (1945) 'Trinity' Atomic Bomb Test, mushroom cloud first stage. [Pinhole photograph] At: http://blog.nuclearsecrecy.com/2012/03/30/trinitys-cloud-1945/ (Accessed 07.01.14)