Project Three – Overview
Project Three is a one-minute video that expresses five personal fixations within the framework of a loop.
“Different Steps” Final Loop Video
Guitar by Kevin Lapointe / videos courtesy of YouTube
I chose to develop a video around my fixation on dance and the transition from childhood to adulthood. I wanted to create a fluid feeling through continuous motion, by having the figures drawn as a scribble I was able to achieve the raw, unfinished look I desired. Through a rough sketchy drawing I was able to attain a delicate feeling and convey the essence of unraveling. I had originally planned to transition from a light shade of purple to violet in order remain consistent. Instead I opted to use orange and red to differentiate between either video. My original concept was to rotoscope four videos to show the transitioning into various form of dance from age 6, 12, 18 and 23. However I decided to rotoscope only two of the videos I uploaded off of YouTube and center my focus on age 6 and 23, although this is a larger gap I feel it still works. The larger gap creates a stronger comparison visually. For the audio I wanted to use a soft sound in the background to create the feeling of a body floating as it manipulates sounds into fluid rhythm. I decided guitar would be a perfect solution in order to attain the effect that I wanted, at that point I turned to my brother Kevin to come up with the perfect melody. I was a little unsure of the voice over at first as I had recoded it several times in order to achieve the perfect sound. I am very pleased with the final video as the recording of my voice is not overpowering and viewers are able to focus their attention on the animation and not on text. If I was to do anything different I would have lengthened the video by adding in more frames. I really enjoyed this project and would like to draw a detailed rotoscope once I have a concrete concept to work with and of course time permitting.
Final Script
I have always had a strong passion for dance
I started out in classical ballet
this style of dance is highly technical
I remember being asked to straighten my posture and turn out my feet
this became a daunting task
each step had to flow with precise timing
I can still hear the soft tinkle of piano keys
as I got older I began to develop a real appreciation for the intensity of hip hop
in its many forms i centered my focus on lyrical hip hop
an entirely new movement to me with harder hitting steps
much like ballet, lyrical hip hop tells a story through unique fluid movements
dance to me is a spiritual form of art that allows me to express myself
dance is in my soul, I am reborn on the dancefloor!
First script attempt
‘Coming of Age’
(fade from light purple – rich violet)
(spinning through each scene – loop)
She is 6; a soft presence is evoked through her
delicate steps carrying her through each motion. Gracefully she with little effort.
She is 13; a rush of excitement has come over her, she feels alive and in her element.
She is 18; translating every beat into a pulsating movement her body is like the string of a guitar manipulating sounds into a fluid rhythm.
She is 23; sensual passionate movements eclipse the dancefloor, her presence is felt through her captivating soul.
(replay entire video in reverse, increase speed)
Reflection – Take on me
Take on me is a song by Norwegian pop band a-ha released in 1985. Throughout the 80’s synthesizers were used to create an electronic feel to music, this effect is also being revamped throughout contemporary music today. This video used rotoscoping in combination with live video footage to create a multidimensional space. The female character played by Bunty Bailey is lured into an animated fantasy world by her seducer, played by lead singer Morten Harket. The video tells a story of romance suggested through the extreme close ups of eye contact and body language. The placement of certain objects such and the detailed wrench, bring a more realistic sense to the animation. In some cases it seems that the smaller components help to create strong visual impact on a viewer.
The Girl from Moush (Garine Torossian)
This video tells a poetic story about the artists subconscious journey in Armenia through a collage of personal images. The layering of images add a beautiful dimensionality to the piece displayed through a loop. The essence of the film is captured through a scrapbook arrangement of memories. The blurred lighting and saturated hues throughout pixilated images add to the timelessness of the piece. The background music brought a sense of realism into the piece and allowed me to feel as if I was experiencing what the artist had experienced at one point in her life.
“Light and Lighting Techniques”
Light allows us to create different moods, and gives us the ability to control and manipulate light when establishing a shot. During the first project Light/Form Mike, Emma and I had to decide what type of mood we wanted to evoke and how we would go about create that through strategic placement of lighting. In the end we decided to have the key light situated high on the right side of the subject (orange) in order to achieve hard lighting and a single shadow cascading off the left side of the orange this allowed us to give the orange some depth, and eliminate double shadows. In choosing to use only one light source and center the orange on a white background we eliminated the light being absorbed by a dark background. The light is intense and brilliantly illuminates the bright orange colour and textural detail on the outer casing and inner skin of the orange segments. I believe light is what makes or breaks a shot, light helps to bring dimension into an establishing shot and is essential in creating successful compositions.
Inspirational Videos
“Crime Fighters” Animated 2125 + frames rotoscoped
This rotoscoped animation is the lastest music video from the album gentlemen prefer bombz. I find this animation awe inspiring, the sketchy drawings of the figures add to the musicality of the video. The swift movement of the figures is captured through many different angular shots within the video, which are then enhanced by the dark outlines. I find that the dark outlines appear when the animator wants to develop the intensity of the image. I applaud the artist for the amount of work put into this video and the amount of time this would have took, my hats off to the artist!
“Down Here With Me” Beautiful paper animation
This stop motion animation uses pencil, paper and glue to create a peculiar perspective on an alternate underworld. I believe this animation depicts a woman trying to escape the chaotic nature of our world. She escapes by digging a hole to submit to a secluded life resistant to the modern lifestyle. The concept of depression is enhanced by the fast passed sound and soft melody played throughout. The lighting is dim with a yellow tone creating soft shadows of the high rise buildings. It seems as though the world up above the dismal rat hole is lively and much brighter, below the light is cautiously placed on the figure to suggest that her new world is isolated and dark. What captivates me is that although the female figure has disappeared into darkness she still has an all seeing eye to view the world above her. Time permitting I would like to experiment with 3D paper animation, once I develop a concrete concept.
“Fixations”
“An obsessive interest in or feeling about someone or something.”
Adulthood
- dancing
- photography
- R&B and Jazz music
- organization
- fashion
Top Five “Fixations”
Dancing
From age 6 I started taking ballet classes which I believe was the source of my intense fascination and passion for dance. I grew up choreographing dances with close friends in our backyards, when I was old enough I started going to dances at our local recreation center. During high school my friends and I started going to ‘Jump’ a local club every Friday night. I still enjoy going to clubs occasionally when time permits.
Photography
When I was 11 I was fortunate enough to go to art camp and take a course in b/w photography. Through this two week course I learned how to use a camera and develop film. Photography allows me to instantaneously capture and preserve memories that have become forgotten with time. I am able to express myself and develop a narrative open to interpretation through a viewers perspective.
Organization
As a child I developed a habit of arranging my things in an orderly manner, that has since developed into a neurotic behavior. I have never lost anything or forgotten a deadline, everything is easily accessible. I find tranquility in having things organized it makes my chaotic life more manageable, it is one thing I am able to control.
Colour Purple
I can’t quite remember how far this obsession goes back, but it seems to be a re-occurring trend with me. I believe at one point most of my wardrobe was purple, I remember having been a very colour child.
Ace Ventura Pet Detective – Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey has always had an ability to make me laugh, I have always had a strong appreciation for his sense of humor. Ace Ventura Pet Detective was the first movie I watched with Jim Carrey, I have seen it approximately 30x since I was 7 yrs. old. I believe at a young age I had an emotional feeling towards Jim Carrey which stemmed from the movie Ace Ventura P.D.


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