New blog

http://theworksofantonychapman.blogspot.com/

I have a new blog for this final year of uni
Link is above......

Rationale

For this project I was required to reinterpret a script in my own way. We were given a choice of three scripts, or were allowed to choose another suitable script if we wanted, however the Frankenstein script fitted my idea perfectly.

My original idea, and the one I eventually saw through to the end, was to use the Frankenstein story as a base and change it to be a story about the creation of my alias/avatar, Rawrberry. I also changed Dr Frankenstein from the traditional mad doctor in an evil looking castle to a more fitting old man in a greenhouse, thus fitting with the whole creating a strawberry/man creature.

The first few weeks were spent sketching ideas for what Rawrberry and the doctor could look like, as well as ideas for the greenhouse and the building it sat upon. I wanted the house to look slightly ominous, thus fitting with the idea of my doctor being more obsessed with is work then his decor as it were, and overall I think I achieved this with the use of low level lighting and long corridors.

With the doctor I was going for a sort of menacing look mixed with the "your granddad in his slippers" look, which again I think I achieved. Saying this however I wish I had spent more time on the modelling of the character, as there are a few glitches that could of been ironed out, namely his shoulders and his elbows, which had a habit of twisting oddly no matter what I did. Overall though I am happy with him.

The Rawrberry model I made I am not very happy with at all I must admit. He fits in well enough, and he does in fact look like a weird strawberry/man creation, however I feel like I could of achieved so much more with him in terms of shape and movement. However he fits the part and does what I needed him to do so in the end I am satisfied with him.

On this project I feel I have improved in many aspects of my work. Firstly my modelling ability has grown I believe, which given my interest in the visual side of 3D I think is certainly a positive. Also my rigging and animation skills have vastly improved since the bots and bananas project, allowing me to do more with my doctor than I could of ever managed with my robot.

In conclusion I am happy with how this project has turned out. I am happy with the models, for the most part, as well as the animation in general. Despite this I still feel that more time could of been spent making the animation look more polished and flow better, and that the models could also of done with a bit of polishing. Another thing I would of improved on is the addition of sound into my piece, rather than just having music playing. I think this would of tied off the work nicely and is certainly something I will look to improve upon in future projects.

Final Animation

Frankenberry(Rawrberry) from o0Rawrberry0o on Vimeo.

Continued some more...

Just a few more shots from towards the end of my animation, including Rawrberry(Frankenberry) and some more of the details from around the lab.

Continued

A couple of shots from my lab, these are the some of the first images you see in my animation, after the initial fly through, as my doctor walks into the lab and looks around, more to set the scene for the viewer.

It has been a while but now time for a mega update

Right I know it has been ages since an update, but the workload on me has been pretty steep. But enough of the excuses, on with the update.
These shots are from my opening scene, and basically, in keeping with most horrors,
they are pretty dark and slightly ominous. Pretty unoriginal I know but it works I think.

Flickr

Ok so I must admit that I have been having some issues with doing this. Mainly have an awful camera and difficulty getting my hands on a new one. However I was finally able to take some pictures and upload them, organize them etc. This here is a link to my page which I will keep adding photos to now that I have a means to do so.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/o0rawrberry0o/

Been a while, but here we go...

So it has been a while but finally here are the first couple of pics from my lab model for my Frankenberry project. Bare in mind that these are a work in progress, for the most part this is me playing with the lighting.

Doodles...

Here are just a few doodles I did whilst I was throwing ideas around. They are not overly good but they get the point across

SteamPunk

Right, as you already know I am setting my project in the Victorian era, thus I have taken the decision to use elements of SteamPunk in my work. My doctor may be slightly off his rocker, but he is still a genius and a brilliant inventor, thus he would have various contraptions that he has invented and uses in his experiments. SteamPunk allows me to create these futuristic contraptions whilst still retaining the "YE OLDE" Victorian feel.

More Environment

Environment

Seeing as I am setting my story in the Victorian age I have gathered a load of pictures of ominous looking Victorian mansions as a reference. Simple eh..... well this is just a basis, I want the house to retain a Victorian essence, however I also want it to express an almost future look. So plenty of glass and steel mixed with Victorian architecture. Yes it sounds like an odd combination but I reckon it will work with the story.

Mad Scientist

As I have chosen Frankenstein as the basis for my project I of course need a scientist, preferably a mad one at that. However this is a picture that caught my eye and makes me think about what I want my scientist to look like, as I rather like the whole gas mask approach as I think it makes him look far more menacing. However I still want to be able to see his eyes so I might aim to make a half gas mask, more like a breathing apparatus than an actual full gas mask.

And finally...

I found this picture of sombody who was as annoyed with the traditional look of Frankensteins monster as I was. He has used the same passage of description as we were given to create his version of the monster. This follows the text to the letter, down to the yellowing skin and black lips. As a reference goes it is pure gold, as it helps form a picture of what the words are saying, and thus gives me a very strong point from which to start.

And now a few more...

Once again...

This version of Frankensteins monster may not have the long hair that I described in an earlier post, however it does display the more human looking side that I want to capture in my own work. The stitching on his face reinforces the fact that he has is Frankensteins monster, and that he is formed of different body parts stitched together. It also gives his face a pained, grimace like expression that I feel works well with the character.

And some more...

Here again is a similar character design to what my initial idea is.

Pictoral reference

This is the first picture I found of Frankensteins monster that does not follow the traditional sqaure look, and oddly enough it is actually similar to what i had in mind.
It may not have the yellow skin or anything, however it does have very drawn skin, the milky eyes and long, flowing hair. As a starting point I doubt I could of found better any sooner...

Initial ideas

Right....
New term means new project, and what have i got for you now you may ask..well!
Basically I have chosen to do my version of the Frankenstein script, mainly because is seems to appeal to my slightly odd nature, that and I think the Matrix will be massivly overdone and the fantastic voyage has so many long and confusing descriptive words it makes my head hurt.

So Frankenstein it is! However I am not going to go for that traditional square head, bolts in neck look, oh no! I am going to use the desription from the book, which describes him as follows:
Limbs all in proportion
Yellow skin
Covered in muscles and veins
Long, flowing, black hair
Pearly white teeth
Milky white eyes
Shriveled skin
Straight black lips
Now this I know sounds oddly like the description of a traditional Frankensteins monster, however the fact that the skin is yellow, and that he is meant to have dead eyes and long flowing hair makes him sound more like a zombie than the traditional look of a sad, square man. Thus this is the look I will endeavour to achive.
More to follow....

Diary & Rational...

Well here we are, end of the first term and I have managed to get my work finished and handed in. So this is meant to describe what I now know about the industry and where I feel I fit in amongst it all. So here goes. I have realised that in the 3D industry you normally have only one job, be that rigging or texturing or something along those lines, and doing it all by yourself can lead you to a mental breakdown. But I feel that the part that I would fit into best is the modelling part, creating the Creatures, buildings, vehicles etc, that go into the final product. The reason behind my thinking are thus; Modelling is what I find most enjoyable. Creating something that looks intricate and impressive is what I like doing. As far as texturing and rigging go they aren't really my cup of tea as it were. I mean I am pleased with how many of the textures came out on my final gather, and if pushed to do so I would gladly do the textures, but if I had to choose I would stick to the modelling. Rigging, and thus the act of animating the models was the part I found the hardest. This is partly due, obviously, to the fact that this is my first time at doing any, and given time I could probably develop at least a decent ability to produce short animations, but on a large scale it is simply mind boggling to me.

Within my animation my pride and joy has to be my Robot, Norm. The model itself is based off the one we got taught in our seminar, at least the arms and legs are, the body, crotch plate, spine and head are all of my own design. I feel that the way I have modelled him really brings across his sadness and his misfortune, mostly conveyed by his downward slanting eyes. This was a concious decision of mine right from the start, that he would look a tragic figure, thus making the audience feel at least a little sorry for him. The other character, the mouse, was part of my original story line, however his role changed slightly from revenge seeker to just plain mischief maker, and this I feel is very fitting for what is, after all, vermin.
The environment is something else that I am rather pleased with. Although not massively complex it serves its purpose. I especially like the fact that you can see the street reflected in all the windows, adding masses of depth to the whole affair.

All in all I am happy with what I have produced, especially as it is my first foray into the animation side of 3D. Given more time there is certainly plenty I would change, however as it is I am pleased with the outcome.