Of the many types and genres of digital art to use for my
BFA piece, I will make a 3D-animated short. I feel that an animation would best
show the story I want to tell, as there is much movement between characters and
transitions between scenes. Of course, being an animation, there is only one
part in the piece.
The story of this animation tells of a man who, looking for
refuge from life, visits an enigmatic merchant in the middle of a barren
desert. The merchant agrees to give the man such refuge, but only in exchange
for the light the man holds, of which is from his heart. But before the
exchange is made, the merchant warns the man that once the exchange is made,
there "are no refunds." The merchant then shows the man previous
events involving people who were in the same situation as the man, and what
became of them. The power of choice and the value of life are what will
ultimately decide the man's fate.
The animation will be done using 3D software, such as Autodesk
Maya. The style, however, will be that of a comic book or graphic novel, such
as cross-hatching for shadows, the merchant character's use of panels and
borders to show the man past experiences, and possibly cel-shade-like outlines.
And as with certain comics, the animation will be in black and white.
Narrative-wise, the story will be told in a poetic style. The voice-acting will
only be the narrator, as the characters will only "speak" by what the
narrator reads in the poem.
The final format of the exhibition will include the animation
on DVD and to be played through projector onto the wall. The reason for this
being that the projection would be an emulation of the "light" that
the man character has from his heart. The projector will be mounted on a table
with a black-colored cloth. There will also be an additional, larger table with
another black-colored cloth for my production bible, of which will have the
face of the merchant on its front cover. This set-up will emulate the scenario
as if the people in the audience are visiting the merchant themselves.
MATERIALS NEEDED FOR PRODUCTION:
- Autodesk Maya 2013/14
- Adobe Photoshop CS5/6
- Adobe After Effects CS5/6
- Wacom Tablet
MATERIALS NEEDED FOR POST-PRODUCTION:
- Option for Projector
- Option for Monitor
- DVD for Animation
- DVD for Animation
- 1 Table
- 1 Sheets Black Tablecloth
- Speakers for Audio
MISCELANEOUS:
-Access to MacLab and PC Lab
LAYOUT
And the audience will be seated in the diagonal row of seats.
UPDATE: There will not be a "production bible," nor a table for it.
Happy drawing!
-Aaron Martin
PROGRESS CALENDER