Snoreeze Advert

Recently I got to work on an idea for a new advert for Snoreeze, a company specialising in snore relief products, nasal sprays and throat sprays. The intended audience for the advert is both genders, aged between 20-40 years of age.

The advert was only intended to be between 10-15 seconds long, so the challenge was to leave an impact in a very short space of time. I decided the best way to achieve this was to make the advert humorous, so I searched for situations in which it would be humorous or unfortunate to fall asleep.

As a result of the hype for this year's biggest film releases, such as Spectre, Jurassic World or Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I wrote a script where a young film buff falls asleep and misses an entire film on its first screening.

This is the final design for the "young film buff" who falls asleep during the movie. I recycled this design from my final BA animation, "Gopher Golf", where I had created several background characters. This character seemed to fit my idea for the Snoreeze advert best, due to his youthful, energetic and enthusiastic look and design.

As with most of my work in 2D animation, I drew the designs first, then scanned them in and coloured and perfected their designs in Photoshop. All the animation and editing for this piece was created in Photoshop, After Effects and Premiere CS6. When added up, the process of creating this advert took approximately two days.

Storyboards for 'Scream Street' Competition (CBBC)

"Scream Street" is a new stop-motion series which made its debut on CBBC in October this year. The show is made at Factory, an animation studio in Altrincham, and is owned by Coolabi.

Recently, CBBC, Factory and Coolabi launched a competition for aspiring animators in Northern England, inviting students to create a 45-second long animation featuring the show's comic relief characters, Dig the dog and Lulu the leech. Using these two characters and a selection of props (which the modelmakers at Factory have already produced), I storyboarded a short piece, imagining what these two characters would be like in a particular situation. The situation I chose was "bowling", a situation which would allow Dig to show his over-eager personality and Lulu her bossy personality.

AX3003: Editing a Showreel

 Recently I put together a showreel, with the aim of demonstrating my best animation work in the space of one minute. I knew in advance which clips I wanted to see in the showreel - especially my most recent work which, in my opinion, is far superior to what I was capable of a few years ago. The showreel includes footage from my graduation film 'Gopher Golf', my first and second year films 'Catch of the Day' and 'Cheese Please', additional university and personal projects such as 'Quench' and 'The Time I Like Best', my A2 media studies piece 'Intoxicated' and the short film I directed on work experience in China, 'Travelling by Food'. I especially felt it was important to include the latter on my showreel, as it was the first time I had directed a team of animators on a project.

A clip I animated for 'Travelling by Food', showing the words "let's go!", opens the showreel. I did this to hopefully gain the viewer's interest straight away. Clips from 'Gopher Golf' immediately follow this and also close the showreel, because I feel that this film specifically shows my best work.

Choosing a suitable piece of music was slightly more difficult, because it had to match the energetic tone I wanted to give my showreel. It also had to be close to one minute in duration. I was unable to find a composer, so I managed to find a royalty free piece of music online which, in my opinion, suits the fast-paced, energetic, exciting feel I wanted to give my showreel. I particularly enjoyed editing clips in time with the music, such as the final clip, which helped decide which clips should be placed where. The clips all blend in, such as water in 'Gopher Golf' fading into water in 'Catch of the Day' and, as a result, I feel the showreel has a better narrative and almost feels like a short film in itself.

DD3992: Making a Splash

During a sequence in 'Gopher Golf' when the Golfer is practicing golf in his garden, the golf ball lands into a pond in a shot which only lasts for three seconds. However, creating the water for this one shot needed careful thought, as water is often hard to make realistic in 2D or stop-motion animation.

Scaling the fence to a realistic height, based on the feedback from the test screening of my film.

The entire shot was animated in Adobe After Effects, using motion blur to make the movement of the ball look effective. For the water, I actually reused a clip from one of my earlier films, 'Catch of the Day', where I had created water in stop-motion quite effectively. The water is made from different sizes of see-through clingfilm over sheets of blue tissue paper. In 'Catch of the Day', the clingfilm was animated at different speeds depending on how quickly the water was supposed to be flowing. For instance, some parts were double-framed (animated at 12 frames a second) when the mood was meant to be tranquil, then animated at 25 frames when a man is later seen being carried down the river.

I think the result of this shot in 'Gopher Golf' works particularly well and blends in with the film's style, created using mixed media. Like the explosion and smoke effects I demonstrated in an earlier post, the splash generated by the golf ball was a CG effect free for use.

My first year film, 'Catch of the Day', can be viewed online. Two years later, I'm still pleased with the water effects I created, although I feel my animation skills have greatly improved since then!


Catch of the Day - Uni Short Project from Christopher Blower on Vimeo.

Gopher Golf: Gopher's Burrow

The Gopher's burrow is only seen for two short shots in the film, but still required some thought in how it would be produced.

The burrow was initially to be a flat background behind the Gopher, but instead the Gopher was sandwiched between a background and two foreground layers, covering the top and bottom of the screen. This would give the illusion of the Gopher digging his way through a tunnel. Part of this idea was inspired by the way digging is shown in films such as 'Fantastic Mr Fox' (2009). Many recycled drawings from other scenes in 'Gopher Golf' - including the fence, a golf tee and some pebbles - were reused in these scenes, albeit slightly modified with darker lighting and more texture.

Gopher Golf: Background Characters

These videos are short animations completed in Photoshop, showing the background characters for 'Gopher Golf'. These will all appear in one short clip of a crowd behind the Golfer, cheering for the winner. The characters will be in darkness as the Golfer is the scene's main focus.

Farmer

Old Man

Middle-aged woman

Young Man

Gopher Golf: Further Background Designs

Here are some of the final (and near final) backgrounds I have developed for the film 'Gopher Golf'.

These backgrounds were drawn out first, then rendered in Photoshop. These drawings lack shadows and fine details which will be added in post production.

Gopher Golf: Animating in Photoshop and After Effects

Some scenes in the film 'Gopher Golf' will be animated using a mix of Adobe Photoshop and Adobe After Effects, as well as traditional stop-motion animation. The scenes animated on the computer will be those involving just the props, not the actors (or puppets) which will be filmed in stop-motion. Together these methods will create a unique style for my film; a bright, colourful world to suit the comedic nature of my film.

The biggest advantage to animating in After Effects was being able to create effects that otherwise, when using stop-motion techniques, would create heavy time constraints. One such effect is being able to add motion blur to a golf ball flying through the air, completing the effect. Such effects can be done in stop-motion using an overhead rig, although given I am working to a deadline for my project, I have to consider the easiest and quickest methods to use - which luckily, in this case, are also the most effective. The other main (and most important) advantage is that I can start filming on the project whilst the Golfer puppet is still under construction.

The above screenshot shows what live, 3D objects will look like against my 2D backgrounds. The whole film will be done in this style. Officially, the definition of a "prop" in live-action is anything which interacts with an actor. So, for my film, any props in 3D will be props which interact with the characters. All other visuals in the film will be 2D.

Gopher Golf: Background and Set Designs #2

The following screenshots, created in Adobe After Effects, show tests of what the backgrounds in 'Gopher Golf' may look like, albeit currently lacking final detail.

These backgrounds both combine drawings, sets and props I've created using Photoshop. Using these backgrounds I can now create some of the more simple shots in the film - the shots which don't require the main characters to be present. Shots such as the golf ball flying through the air and over the fence can now be done easily animated in Photoshop or After Effects.

I did consider using Hornby grass for the main character to stand on, as I mentioned in a previous post but, in this particular scene (at home in his garden), the Golfer is never actually seen interacting with the set. The only other props he needs to interact with are his golf club and the golf ball, which will be filmed using a combination of stop-motion animation and Photoshop / After Effects animation.

Gopher Golf: Background and Set Designs #1

Here are some background and set designs which were drawn out first and then coloured and rendered in Adobe Photoshop. The background, foreground, Flash animation and stop-motion elements will all be created separately then combined together in Adobe After Effects.

All the stop-motion scenes (involving the Golfer and Gopher) will be filmed separately against a green screen, or blue screen if the characters are standing on green grass. All background elements will be hand-drawn then scanned in digitally.

This last pic is a demonstration (minus shadowing) of what these drawings may look like against a real Hornby grass mat, which may be used in the final film.

Gopher Golf: Updated Animatic, 10th February 2015

https://vimeo.com/119225647

The above link is for the updated version of my animatic, based on feedback I received recently that the set-up for the conflict wasn't strong enough.

I wanted the Gopher in the film to be a device, not a main character, so the film focuses more on the Golfer, his vanity and his eventual comeuppance. However, when I test screened the film for different audiences, it was felt that the ending was too random when a gopher appears out of nowhere. Then, when I included the Gopher in the first half of the film, it suddenly made the ending too predictable - which was something I really wanted to avoid.

The best way to compromise was to have the Gopher appear in the first half, then misdirect the audience - making them think one thing might happen, then something completely unexpected happens. I was reluctant to this as it made the Gopher more of a character than a plot device, but I can understand how it creates more interesting conflict between two characters - effectively like a Tom & Jerry or Looney Tunes short.

In this version, I've used a tutor's idea to have a house blown up by dynamite as the Golfer's comeuppance. This was originally to be the Golfer's own home, but this then leads to a massive plot hole - the Golfer has won enough money from the tournament to buy himself another house, so he doesn't get his comeuppance. I went around this error by having the Golfer spend his winnings on a new, improved house - in fact, a Californian mansion.

Whilst I still feel unsure about the ending, it definitely works better than previously - it works better for comedy, whilst still keeping the same moral values I've always wanted this film to have. The Gopher has become more of a character, but the story is still about the Golfer, his obsession with fame and fortune and the consequences it results in.

AX3001: Creating a Style

In the making of my film 'Gopher Golf', I've always imagined the film would be shot in stop-motion animation - even though this would mean time management would be much stricter, if the film is to be completed for its deadline in May. This is because each element and effect seen in the film would require a different approach. These would all have to be worked out accordingly before they are filmed.

Effects required for the film include:
*Water = blue tissue paper and cling film (previously used in my earlier film 'Catch of the Day': https://vimeo.com/66972956)
*Rocks = pebbles/slate collected from Wales
*Grass = rolls of Hornby grass/turf grass
*Garden Gnome = photos / miniatures.
*Walls of house exterior/interior = drawn or constructed from wood
*Background crowd shots = animated in 2D in Flash.
*Backgrounds = drawn or animated in 2D in Flash.

The film's main character, the Golfer, is a puppet which is being constructed especially for the film. However, the construction of the puppet has proven more complex and is taking much longer than first expected - which, initially, created huge problems by delaying work on the film's sets. To conquer this problem, I have now decided, under the advice of my tutors, to revamp the style of the film in a mix of 3D stop-motion and 2D Flash animation.

I've always intended for the Golfer's performance in the film to be the focus of the animation, so I could improve my abilities in character animation especially. This has been key to the development of the film's style, since the main character has more focus than most background elements - such as the spectators at the golfing competition, who are only seen in shadows. This means they can be animated in 2D whilst the Golfer, the film's main focus, will remain animated in stop-motion as intended.

I was encouraged by my tutors to develop my drawing style before creating backgrounds and background props in the film. Particularly my style of line drawings has received comparisons to artists such as French painter and sculptor Jean DuBuffet, whose work I was encouraged to look at for research.

I have also looked at previous combinations of multiple art forms in animation. Before directing his own feature films, Terry Gilliam was well known for producing cutout animations for 'Monty Python's Flying Circus' (1969) and the feature films 'Holy Grail', 'Life of Brian' and 'The Meaning of Life'. These combined Gilliam's own drawings with photographs to create a bizarre, surrealist style which matched the Python's bizarre, surrealist comedy.

The popular 1965 TV series, 'The Magic Roundabout', uses 2D trees and backgrounds, with the characters and all other props being animated in stop-motion.

Another famous use of this technique came ten years later, in the TV adaptation of 'Paddington Bear' from 1975. Most famously, Paddington Bear himself is a stop-motion character, whilst all human characters, including the Brown family, are cutouts. The sets are also paper cutouts, although the sets and characters are distinguished through the use of colours - the human characters are in full colour, whereas the sets are only partially coloured or completely white.

Whenever a character interacts with a prop, the prop is also in colour most of the time and crafted as either a 3D model or a 2D cutout, depending on which character is using the prop. In one scene from an earlier episode, Paddington hands a 3D object to Mr Brown which turns 2D when he receives it. Below is another example where Paddington is stuck in strings of 3D film rolls, in front of a 2D background.

The only time all the sets are in colour is in the 1986 TV special, 'Paddington's Birthday Bonanza'. This is also the only time the mouths move on the human characters.

This is very similar to how I can imagine 'Gopher Golf' looking, once all the techniques as listed earlier are applied. By adapting a blend of visual styles, my aim is to still produce excellent quality in my animation in the very limited space of time that I have.

The backgrounds in my film will take inspiration from these styles, using hand-drawn images which will later be coloured in digitally in Photoshop.

This is the art style I adapted for my first designs of the Golfer himself back in September - although the initial drawings were very rough. The final backgrounds in the film will look more refined with darker lines easing the process of colouring in digitally.