.... problems

Due to some problems with getting props that I need in order to complete the final animation project that I originally had in mind, I've decided to go in a different direction. I'm now going to be doing a non-narrative piece. I will still use the same style of animation; the piece will be a stop-motion animation using one of the figures that I was going to use in the art theft piece. I am planning on animating my character to perform the JabbaWockeez dance from the first episode of America's Best Dance Crew. If anyone hasn't seen the show, you should youtube some of the dance videos; they're amazing. The JabbaWockeez performance to a mix of Apologize by OneRepublic was my favorite dance, and this is what I will recreate in a way with my character. The piece will be only 1 min, which is much shorter than my original animation was going to be, but I think it will be more difficult to do because of the attention to detail that I'll have to get to show the movements in this dance. Timing and tempo will be crucial for this animation to be a success. So I'm going from 4 characters to 1, from 4 min to 1, and from a narrative to an expressionist piece. Wish me luck....

Final Project Calendar

Estimated Length of Animation: 4 min?
Working Title: “The Concert”
Technique(s) used: Stop-motion

Week of:
Mar 17 - 23

Do 3-4 lighting and motion tests to prepare and work out problems before the final project shots are taken. Work on building the set and props.

Mar 24 - 30

Continue working on the set and have it 2/3 finished by the end of the week.

Mar 30 - Apr 6

Finish set completely and have all props ready for final project shots.

Apr 7 - Apr 13

Start shooting… total shoot time depends on problems and time worked out during initial motion tests. Could finish in 2 days, could take 2 weeks.

Apr 14 - Apr 20

Finish shooting if necessary, otherwise start putting together in After Effects.

Apr 21 - Apr 27

Put animation together in After Effects and do all necessary clean-up work in order to get a neat, finished piece.

Apr 28

Any necessary finishing touches done.

Final Project Finalized

So I've finished up finalizing ideas for my final animation project. I've decided to go with a piece that will be done completely with stop-motion techniques. I'm going to make a narrative piece depicting the events of the infamous Isabella Stewart Gardner museum theft where an estimated $300 million worth of paintings was stolen. If you don't know anything about this still unsolved crime, or if you just want to learn more, you can read about it here...

http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cid/arttheft/northamerica/us/isabella/isabella.htm

or here...

http://www.stolenthefilm.com/about_synopsis.html

or here...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabella_Stewart_Gardner_Museum

My animation will depict a storyline of what could've possibly happened during that night and where the artwork may be now. It'll be kinda like a murder mystery, with murder replaced with theft. There will be 2 main characters (the thieves) and 2 supporting characters (the museum guards). The final piece will hopefully be pretty dark and suspenseful.