{CG Cookie} Blender 2.8 - Low Poly Rocket Takeoff and Life Update

After a long and exhausting battle with depression, lack of motivation and a lost spark since graduating UCA Rochester's Computer Animation Arts course in 2016 caused by my lifelong struggle with Inattentive ADHD and living with Asperger's Syndrome, completing this tutorial meant a heck of a lot to me.

Switching to Blender

As mentioned on my Twitter when I uploaded the video on 19th August, the low poly rocket launch marks my first proper foray into Blender since first stepping foot in Autodesk Maya in 2011. I made this difficult decision for two reasons:

🔘 I had not kept up with the technology due to said lack of spark (last Maya version I worked in is 2016) and after my free student version finally ran out I couldn't reasonably afford the £36 a month for Maya LT, let alone the £222/m of the full version. I had also switched to GIMP as my image editor, again, after my discounted student version of the Adobe Creative Suite ran out.

🔘 I'd heard of the free software and its many possibilities through my occasional writings with the GarageFarm.NET render farm, and was strongly recommended Blender by a staff member who I'd developed a rapport with.

CG Cookie & Regaining my Spark

The 3d modelling side of things had long been my passion until the conclusion of my studies, after which there was a smattering of 3d projects, all but two of went unfinished - the exceptions having been commissioned by my friend, a 3d printing and cosplay enthusiast. This July I became a CG Cookie "Citizen" for $29/m (about £23.50) and I'm so glad I did. I'm gradually regaining my spark for 3d modelling, and it's helping me gain an appreciation for the later stages of the 3d animation pipeline, ones I had developed a great dislike for within the pressure cooker of uni.

Current & Future Projects

At the moment I'm following parts of their Blender Mesh Modeling Bootcamp to learn about the various tools Blender has to offer, and have found myself often impressed by just how amazingly intuitive it can be! After I have completed the current tutorial I plan to switch back to some previously long forgotten creative work that I'm excited to turn into a 3d model and maybe, just maybe, take forward into the once-dreaded texturing and animation stages. Watch this space!

[ND16] 17: The Art of Elements Academy; Re-Upload

For unknown reasons my original Art Of upload on Scribd can not be accessed on the website, claiming that this document has been removed from Scribd, even though it is accessible when I'm signed in to the website, meaning other people are unable to embed it. The same problem occurs when I re-upload a new version, so I've uploaded it with Google Docs instead.

The embed code is: 

<iframe src="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6IRjigAdvGFaG1iVHUxMVdSdTQ/preview" width="640" height="480"></iframe>

For this blog post I have changed the code's width value to "750", which automatically changes the height with it.

[ND16] 16: Elements Academy; Animation, Art Of and Film Stills

Film Stills

[ND16] 15: 'Elements Academy' Ep 01: Wat(er)'s Your Problem?

[ND16] 14: Elements Academy; Full Act II Pre-Vis

Backing music and other sfx will be added later this week.

@Alan [ND16] 13: Elements Academy; Act II Pre-Vis - Pts 1 to 7

For my revised pre-vis I have experimented with multiple camera positions, my favourite is Version 3.

Favourite

Other Versions

@Alan [ND16] 12: Elements Academy; Act II Pre-Vis - Pts 1 to 4

@Alan [ND16] 08: Elements Academy; Act II Pre-Vis - Pt 1 (Take 1)

Any feedback regarding camera positioning, timing, or character posing would be greatly appreciated.

[ND16] 05: Water Character Complete; Full Rig Demonstration

[Major Project] Submission Post

Rendered Iron + Tablet Scene

Character Turnarounds

Act One Pre-Vis

"Elements Academy" Making Of

This will be provided on the submission computer, because as of 5:08pm I am unable to export my Making Of pages from Photoshop, and the software is refusing to open on my home computer. I will attempt to open this within the University soon, once I have commuted there. If I have no luck I will be forced to include the Photoshop file as my Making Of, because it includes all the individual pages set out in order. If time allows, I will provide it within this blog post, if I am able to open Photoshop and turn it into a PDF document.

UPDATE:

I have managed to solve the issue at University, and have provided my Making Of below...

[Major Project] 59: Elements Academy; Act 01 - Full Pre-Vis (Error Solved)

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[Major Project] 58: Elements Academy S1 EP1; Act 01 - Full Pre-Vis

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[Major Project] 57: Iron & Tablet; Fully Rendered Scene (w/o sfx)

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[Major Project] 56: Improved Character Turnarounds; Cl & Wireframe Passes

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[Major Project] 55: Character Turnarounds; Colour & Wireframe Passes

The music is I Like It That Way 4 (60), purchased on a Home & Student license from Audio Network, which is a longer version of the music used for my now-defunct intro animatic. The character names are written in the font Bubbleboddy Neue, by ZetaFonts on Dafont.

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@Phil [Major Project] 54: Character Turnarounds; Colour Pass

I will be setting up the wireframe pass for each of my characters once I have made progress with the Iron + Tablet scene. I rendered out my turnarounds using garagefarm.net at High Priority, which cost between $4 - $6 per 200 frame turnaround; not the $200 total I had been imagining! I have yet to fully eat through all of the 50 free render credits, as negotiated for us by our course leader Phil.

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@Phil [Major Project] 51: Animation/Pre-Vis 01; Collision Scene - Progress 01

Using stepped animation I have been figuring out the key poses for my collision/conflict scene. I have set up five different poses spanning the beginning of the scene to just before the explosion happens. These have been explored with a variety of camera angles, which are shown in their intended order, and numbered to make it easier to provide feedback on specific shots. The current timing of the shots and poses does not represent that of the final animation.

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@Phil [Major Project] 49: Conflict Scene Posed - Various Shot Tests

I'm getting this scene complete first because it is the most complex of them all, since there are so many interacting pieces. For this scene I will be using multiple shots, so I have tested out various camera angles. Hannah suggested beginning with Shot 1, switching to Shot 2 when Hydrogen 01 lunges at Oxygen, and then to Shot 4 when the chemistry equipment begins to fall. Any feedback on camera shots and/or character posing would be greatly appreciated!

3^RD-PERSON OXY pulls a silly face at HYD 01, making HYD 01 furious. HYD 01 rises up as he raises his fist to punch OXY & lunges at him, knocking the table & causing chemistry equipment to fall toward the floor. Both OXY and IRON reflexively try to catch the falling equipment but OXY accidentally slams into IRON’s chest, causing sparks. Meanwhile HYD 02 tries to hold his brother back, failing this he falls on HYD 01’s back instead. HYD 01 continues to lunge and contacts OXY at the exact moment OXY slams into IRON.

Individual Shots

Shot Test 01

Shot Test 02

Shot Test 03

Shot Test 04

Shot Test 05

Shot Test 06

Shot Test 07

Shot Test 08

Shot Test 09

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{3rd Year} Project Idea: Periodic Elements in their Natural Habitats

Background Information

My Adaptation B project proved to be my most enjoyable project to date, during which I turned three of the periodic elements into characters. This project tapped into many of my creative interests such as Illustrator, 3D modelling and science. The resulting pride has shown me that periodic elements as characters is a concept I want to carry into my third year major -and hopefully in some form, minor- project, here is my main idea...

Basic Premise

An animation showing a limited number of periodic element characters and their properties, in which the characters would be shown interacting with each other in their natural (and un-natural) habitats. May include a wildlife documentary style voiceover if appropriate, perhaps with a David Attenborough-esque feel. For a great example, see here.

Left to Right: Helium, Graphite, Diamond and Hydrogen

Environment Design

The literally universal spread of the periodic elements opens up a lot of possibilities for locations, such as upon the surface of the Moon, or even Mars, and of course, Earth. However any environment(s) would be minimalist in appearance, to fit with the characters themselves. The number of environments will be limited to between one and four, to keep the primary focus firmly on the characters themselves.

Minimalist Influence Map

Target Audience

The target audience will likely be teenagers aged around 16+, however I may raise this to young adults in their 20's depending on how I choose to depict some of the dangers associated with many of the periodic elements e.g. Hydrogen's explosivity, Uranium's radioactivity, or Mercury's toxicity.

Colour Palette

The animation may be of a primarily bright colour palette, however less overtly saturated colours will likely be used as well, such as Crimson. A good reference of the kind of colour palette I might go for is in the periodic characters I have already created.

Colour Influence Map

Software

This would be achieved primarily via a combination of Maya, Illustrator, After Effects and Audition. Illustrator for the thumbnails, concept art and orthographic projections. Maya for character modelling, texturing & animation. After Effects for compositing, minor vfx, and sfx. Audition for sound editing.

{Adaptation} A; "Weird Science" Infographic - B; Helium Turnaround & "Art Of"

Adaptation A

Adaptation B