Extra Credit: Lighting a Scene in Maya

Initials: EY

1 Point Lighting (Spot light)

2 Point Lighting (Spot light + Ambient Light)

3 Point Lighting (Spot light + Ambient Light + Directional Light)

3 Point Lighting w/Color (Spot light + Point Light + Directional Light)

Building a Scene in Maya

I tripped over some of my son's blocks today when I was thinking of what to do for my initials in Maya soooo here you go. =)

Initials: EY

Special Effects in Animation and Live-Action

My first two term paper scores were 90 and 100; I will not be writing a third term paper.

Outline for the Third Term Paper

I. Special effects in animation and live-action

A. Flight, specifically flying people

B. Spiderman (2002)

C. Chronicle (2012)

II.  How it is created in live action films

A.  Wires and harnesses, edited out against a green screen

B.  Scale models

C.  Animated 3d rigs

III.  Spiderman (2002)  

A.  One of the first superhero films to really start realizing 3d animation to its full effect to showcase Spiderman and the Green Goblin having spectacular aerial battles through the city of New York.  It still used some full scale models that were suspended by various techniques but it relied heavily on computer FX to bring these characters to life.  

B.  Green goblin glider, suspended full size glider for close ups

C.   Animated 3d rig for wide shots of both Spiderman and Green Goblin

IV.  Chronicle (2012)

A.  A movie about 3 high school seniors who gain telekinetic powers which they first use for mischief but then one of them starts using his powers for more villainous purposes.  One of their abilities is the power of flight.  This movie was interesting because it was filmed in a documentary like form so the flight techniques they used needed to feel more real than those you found in a more fantasy based universe like Spiderman or The Avengers.

B.  They definitely used wires and harnesses filmed against a composited background.

C.  One of my favorite tricks they used however was the building of gliders that looked like people.  Even the citizens of New York were fooled into thinking that there were flying people about.

V. Conclusion

Stop-Motion Character Animation

"Footsteps" 

a stop-motion animation by: Jessica Tong, Catharina Sukiman and Edric Yamamoto

Song: "100 Years", Five for Fighting

Software: StopMotion for iPad, Adobe Premiere

This animation was a lot of fun to create!  I worked together with Jessica Tong and Catharina Sukiman over the course of an evening to make our little minute and change short animation.

At first we had a fairly complex story involving Transformers and rubix cubes but decided to try and simplify.  Catharina spotted my son's shoes lying on the floor and after an hour or so of brainstorming, an idea was born!

First we went to work building our set.  We used my dining room pendant lights and diffused them with sheets of animation paper to eliminate any hot spots/reflections on the floor and set up a key light to add some nice shadows.  I found my step ladder and fastened a board to it and then clamped my iPad to the end for a makeshift downshooter.  The software we utilized is an app called StopMotion which allows onion skinning and playback which helped tremendously.

I cut up some cardboard and used duct tape to fashion blocks that we could use to raise the shoes for their contact and passing poses.  Catharina and Jess animated the adult shoes and I animated the kid boots and the baby shoes at the end.  

We filmed the first half on 4's and the 2nd half on 6's.  We used Adobe Premiere to composite and add audio.

Big thanks to Cat and Jess! =)
and Choco of course.