Artists Lecture 2

Anita Kuntz has been in the illustration business for 30 years and has worked for companies such as GQ Magazine. During her time she has also received the Canadian Honors. Anita also has a pet peeve for doing work that decorated walls.

Steve Boaduer-Harper who has done pieces for PBS, Sports Illustrated, and Village Boys, usually generates pieces that have to do with political satire and believes that stories build the art. He has also gained somewhat celebrity notoriety with Martha Stewart, whom Steve caricatured during her stint with stock fraud. I found him the most entertaining and enthusiastic out of the three, though I also felt he had begin to annoy Anita and Luba.

Luba who believes that change is always good and that you have to be clever when dealing with clientsto sway them to your vision seemed the least talkative out of the three.

Artist Lecture 1

Jack Myers, who was the son of an art teacher, previously attended MCA. Hailing from Arkansas, Myers’ work stretches back as Photoshop 64K Atari 800; his main inspiration being Joseph Campbell. He has worked for companies such as: HBO, MTV, CINEMAX, and SHOTIME. At first, Myers did not want to e an animator but, a penniless bohemian. A lot of the times through out his career he suffered from what he called “, The Lizard Brain;” a situation in the brain that controls basic survival functions when it came to showing his work for jobs. The way he delivered his presentation sounded a bit depressing at the beginning but became more upbeat towards the end.

Self Critique

So, the final rendition of this project has been completed. Changes made to this piece include: the Earth becoming more animated with it's dancing, the saucers are given some floating motions while surrounding the Earth, the Earth facing in a different direction while being surround, and more emotion is shown while the saucer proceed to surround it. Also, credits have been corrected in order to give proper credit to those who've provided the sounds used. I really had fun using the sound and would definitely consider expanding on this and other projects involving sound.

Self Critique

Ken Walker

Project: Final

4/26/11

Synopsis: The Earth's life is put at risk as the leaders in electronic companies settle in for takeover.

Intent: To show the negative side of how the influence of major electronic companies (i.e. Apple) have come to highly influence us and our environment.

The strong points that I think bring this piece out is the detailed background and the high use of futuristic sounds.

One of the areas I had a problem with was the rotation of the Earth at the beginning of the piece; trying to work with the different positions and opacity in order to create the illusion of a 2-D figure being 3-D.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oGZW0suCi0

Logline

More than the Earth's peace and tranquility is at stakes as the forces of big business' plans of take over are put into action.

Storyboard for Final

Pitch

One Sentence

The Earth is being taken over by the technology of big businesses.

Synopsis

For this next project, an anthropomorphic Earth is basking in the quietness of it's solitude. While doing this, a fleet of what seem to be UFOs begin slowly descending upon and surrounding the Earth. The UFOs turn out to be space crafts for big named companies such as Apple, Sprint, Motorola, and HP. As they come closer and closer to the Earth, giving it no means of escape, a huge shadow is casted over them. To the Earth's surprise , it is a satellite. The satellite along with the surrounding ships fire beams of green light at the panicking Earth, sending it into a brainwashed daze (fade to black). Fading in, we find the Earth hooked and wired to a huge computer being fed information through the wires as it repeats the words "Technology is now...technology is the future...technology is forever." While repeating these words, silhouettes of towers sprout from the Earth's background, a sign that it is a slave to it's corporate captors.

Intent

-To show how big business brainwashes society into thinking we need their gadgets to go on in this world.

-Aesthetics-- This piece will be hand drawn using PS and/or AI and imported into AE.

One on One Feedback: Put an emphasis on the big named corporations so it'll be easier for audience to identify with them.

Establish character design so that they are easily identified.

Maybe have big buildings rising from the Earth after it gets brainwashed to to hit on the big business aspect.

Structure Analysis

Scene 1: Space and Solitude- The Earth is enjoying the peace and tranquility of the solar system without a care.

Scene2: Unexpected Fleet of Oppression-- A fleet of UFOs owned by big businesses descend upon and corner the fearful Earth.

Scene 3: Mothership...--A shadow is casted over the Earth and the surrounding fleet.

Scene 4: ...and Mind Sweep--The shadow, revealed to be a satellite, and army of spacecraft corner and brainwash the Earth.

Scene 5: Now and for Ever--The Earth, now hooked and wired to a giant computer, is nothing more than a mindless zombie fit to please it's captors.

Scene 6: The Mark--Silhouetted towers sprout from the background of the Earth; a brand for it's big time oppressors.

Self Critique

Well for this revision I made a list of the suggestions made by fellow students and went back and made those. Doing this, I think it did add a little more flavor to this piece. In it I added more emotion to majority of the speech bubbles to keep the audience attention since there isn't any sound; I made the patient cringe during his transformation to add more emotion to a somewhat emotionless character; also going back to add my credits 1 second of black at beginning and end.

Creative Commons Research

With the use of strategies such as copyrighting and trade marking, which seem to be working against us as artists; a "shared culture" seems like more of a pipe dream. Creative Commons, as far as there philosophy and mission, states that their intentions are to make a cooperative setting between you and the internet while using the full extent of the laws of copyright, trade marking, etc. This will enable many users, no matter the profession, to share there works freely without the hindering of copyright or trademark laws. But with this freedom comes a price. If one is willing to use the work of another, those at Creative Commons ask that you give credit to whoever you share with or be willing to share your own material in exchange for using someone else's. So in a way I see these as a barter system-like strategy, if you allow me to use something of yours, then I'll return the favor letting you use something of mine; allowing a wider range of ideas to be expressed and recognized.

Bring Me Back To Life V3

Bring Me Back To Life from Kenneth Walker on Vimeo.

Mid-Term Project Feedback

-Bring down and give motion to thumb pushing down syringe

- Slow own blood travel

- Make speech bubbles more dynamic and comic book like

-Adjust scale size to make characters less pixelated

-Have the patient twitch in pain to make transformation more convincing

-Take out staff of Mercury (Red Cross is enough)

-Make patient look more like Ronald Reagan

Assignment Write Up

Synopsis: A patient finds out from his doctor that he is suffering from a symptom known as Progeria. With no known treatments, the doctor takes drastic measures and use untested and maybe unstable nano-bots (represented by ones and zeros) in his attempt to help his patient. The nano-bots do the opposite of what the doctor intended, eating away and taking over the patient’s body revealing a metallic skeleton; whose glowing eyes only spell trouble for the doctor.

Intent: An insight on what the far future may hold as society rapidly develops technology for the advancement mankind and how what we have created to help us, may take a turn for the worse and rebels against us.

Problems: Attempted to do a flowing walk cycle, which would then have the doctor walk into the hospital. But the character became too choppy, so the idea was scrapped leaving the scene with the doctor already standing next to the payient as he breaks the news to him

Bring Me Back To Life

Bring Me Back To Life from Kenneth Walker on Vimeo.

Pitch For Mid-Term.

For the mid-term project, I'm thinking of reusing what i've learned from the last two projects, making use of the disintegration effect.

In this next piece, a man, whose human body is weakening, is placed in the care of a hospital for treatment. As he lies in bed, he is approached by a doctor who informs him that there is only one cure for his condition; an untested sierum that may have dramatic effects on the body.

As the man lies on the bed he is injected with nanobots (represented by 1s and 0s using what I've learned from the text project) by the doctor through a sirenge. His skin burns away slowly revealing metallic insides. As this is happening, a heart rate monitor, starting from a flatline, will be increasing it's pace until it is at a steady heart beat; ending with a close up of the face (now a skull) with the eyes slowly revealing a red glow.

Proj 4 Write Up

Proj. 4 March 3

Energy Orb/Tears of Blood/Man To Machine

-A blue ball of energy floats in space

-A girl is crying as she is over taken by her inner demon whoe insanity turns her tears to blood.

-Through our overt dependency on technology, wed get a look into what is yet to come as a man transform into machine itself.

-Trying my hand at one of the tutorials to get a feel of the different effects

-Wanted try transforming some one to enhance the work done in class

-Using the 'disintegration' effect was an attempt to do better with tansforming one character into another.

My main tension were some of the effects not working as well as I had intended or not working at all.

i really had fun doing this project;

I felt i learned a lot of the keys and techniques thanks to the tutorials from 'copilot.' The Disintegration effect semed to my favorite one to do and i might incorporate it into my next project if possible. I do think I've could've slowed it down a bit though. The CC Mercury seemed to be the hardest of the keys to use.

Proj 4

Untitled from Kenneth Walker on Vimeo.

Instructions for 1st Cmp

I Start with a black solid background.

effects—stimulation---cc rain to give the appearance of rain, using the amount, opacity, and drop size to get it at the state I wanted

add psd file, duplicate it; the first image being stable and unchanged.

cc mr. mercury to alter the duplicated image, giving the girl the appearance of shedding tears; though it was obviously not realistic at first.

turn down the velocity and Turn Radius Y to 68.0 and the birth rate to 0.5 to shrink and deplete the number of drops.

Reposition to the corner of the eye, but still not realistically enough.

scaled it down to make it slimmer and gave it a 360 rotation; positioning it at the tear duct of the eye to increases the illusion of crying.

The flowing still looked very flat; so I turned the opacity down to 26% to give it a more reflective and realistic look.

Now I wanted her face to transform into a demon while crying.

went to (http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorial/demon_face_warp/) at 8:11 on the tutorials time line.

effects--distort—liquefy

I selected the “Warp Tool” and “Pucket Tool” and increased my brush size and pressure just a bit

I also used the “Distortion Offset” on her eyebrows.

To increase the size of her nose, I selected the “Bloat Tool”

Now I wanted skin to change color while transforming

effects—color correction—hue/saturation and effect—color correction—curves. And now for the blood.

mask the area I want to change; in this case the tear.

Effects—Color Corrections—Hue/Saturation and turned the Colorize Hue to 0x +7.0, Color Saturation to 100, and Color Lighting to -41.

I wanted to add a flash of lightning with out the bolt

create white solid and position it in front of the girls face. I then created 5 different keyframes and brought them close together; copy and paste them and set the second set of keyframes a second away from each other.

http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorials/q/demon/

http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorial/water_drops/

Instructions for 2nd Comp

I wanted to try making a ball of energy. To achieve that, I went back to Andrew’s tutorial at “http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorial/3d_light_casting/.”

new comp and solid

create two to three masks of wavy paths with the pen tool.

Vegas effect (effects, generate, Vegas) creates a line contour

Change segment to 1, midpoint opacity to 1, start opacity 0

Duplicate the Vegas effect and switch the path to your second mask. Then repeat the duplication and switch to mask three.

Pre-compose (layer—pre-compose—move all attributes) and offset (effects—distort—offset) your layer.

Animate the center point by adjusting the shift center

Effects--polar coordinates.

Change the type to “Rect To Polar,” turning the interpolation to 100%. Turn up the width of each Vegas Effect to about 4.

Create a feathered mask (New Solid—Ellipse—Subtract—Turn Up Mask feather). Alpha invert the second layer on your comp by using the toggle switch bring down the mask expansion to the negatives, feathering the edges as the energy goes out.

Pre-compose your two layers into one.

Go back to my String energy layer to adjust the offset x-position.

Create a new background layer.

select the 3D layer (Cube shaped icon) and duplicate the layer a few times.

Rotate selected layer with layers in ‘’screen mode.’’

Copy, paste, and rotate the layers until a volumetric form is in effect

use the orbit tool to help in seeing the ball in a 360-degree view.

To create the white glowing center make a new solid the same color as the lines but much lighter and feather it. Duplicate and feather the mask.

Transfer mode to add

Duplicate and feather the mask scaling it down a bit

Create a new darker solid. Take the ellipse tool and create another feathered mask; this time a bit bigger than the center change to add

Create a null and parented the energy line layers to the null and make it 3D.

Created black solid. Effects—Simulation—CC Particle World

Selected Particle Layer and changed it to Faded Sphere--Physics and altered the Velocity a bit and turned the gravity down to 0. Edited the Birth and Death size and also the color of each. Used the Depth of Field options for the camera; also adjusted the aperture and blur levels. Went back and changed the colors of one of my Vegas Layers. Went into the Null to edit rotation.

http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorial/3d_light_casting/

Instructions for 3rd Comp

Imported an image and Effects-Keying-Luma Key(Key out the white. lining)

Pre-compose this comp twice

set the TrkNat to Luma Matte to make it fade away.

Create an adjustment layer and then Effect-Distort-Displacement map and duplicate the texture comp (renamed displace and the adjustment layer (Displace)

Set Displacement Map to displace layer to offset it (using Max Horizon and Vertical Displacement)

Effect-Distort-Transform-Alt+Click the position and tyoe value+[ and drag your parenting tool to Max Horizon and Vertical Displacement

Place “Transform” above Displacement (this keeps image in place wile displacing)

Create an adjustment layer (named “Blur”)

Go to effect—blur—compound blur (drives how much blur is applied)

duplicate the “Displace” layer (Blur Comp)

Take the original blur comp and set to the copied blur and invert it to give it a smokey effect.

Pre-compose the first comp (original texture comp)

Add a fast blur and turbulance displacement (shrink the size of the turbulance)

Animate the evolution (time*250) Drag blur below turbulance

Create another adjustment layer copy the blur comp (name texture comp)

Set turbulance below texture

Line up texture comp with image and set to luma inverted

Adjust the curve and animate the evolution

Turn blur opacity to 90%

Select turbulance and texture comp and duplicate and alter the setting to get a good blend

New adjustment layer and duplicate texture (rename Hot Stuff) layer amd move below blur above displacement

Alt+drag the ‘’original texture comp” to texture comp 3’’—effect—blur—fast blur—effect—distort—turbulant displace and animate evolution (time*250)

Effect--color correction—colorrama—ramp grey

(on wheel) top(black) bottom (white) left and right (black)

alter blur and select Hot Stuff

effect--color correction—curves adjust curves and tint until you get a firey look and set Luma Matte and Mode to Ad

Another Adjustment Layer—duplicate Texture (Luma Invert)

Color Correct and Tint Color Layer and create a black solid (set to screen) below the color layer

Also used the linear transition to guide where the fire burns

http://www.videocopilot.net/tutorials/disintegration/

Artist Research

After searching through artists and companies, I came across ‘Prologue— a company whose graphic works range from title/ending credit sequences and in movie graphics for Iron Man 1 and 2, The Karate Kid,, TRON, Spider-Man 2 and 3, and one of my favorite zombie flicks; Dawn of the Dead. ‘Prologue’ is a company whose philosophy is one based on unity; treating its artists as one body. Below are links to Prologue’s main website; also title sequences to: Spider-Man 2, Dawn of the Dead, Superman Returns, and Robin Hood (beginning and ending sequences included for Robin Hood).

http://prologue.com/philosophy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Nnr49f3kHs

http://www.traileraddict.com/clip/dawn-of-the-dead-2004/opening-sequence


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3Xmbz_wnAE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-ODF6REEDI

Assignment Write Up 3

Kenneth Walker

Project 3

Anatomy 2-19-11

A body, is autopsied to reveal to be an android revealing mechanical working organs.

Mankind slowly becoming it’s own creation

Movies such as Terminator, I Robot, Artificial Intelligence, Bicentennial Man, ect. and the mass consumption of technology by society

Theme- Technological take over. Becoming our own creations.

After getting a good grip on masking paths, hardly any conflicts came up. But I had a bit of “writer’s block” when thinking of the stomach area for my character; the ending choice being a whirling mass of green energy.

Strengths include the flow of the organs

After finishing and rendering the film, it was suggested that I could’ve panned out to show more of the character to put more emphasis on the main character having a human-like exterior.

Anatomy

Untitled from Kenneth Walker on Vimeo.

Proj 2 Crit-Crit

Kenneth Walker
Proj 2/ Android Prototype/2-12-11
After reading the feedback from other students, the main suggestion seemed to be to have the background move with my character instead of having him run place. After going back and looking at the previous work, i tend to agree with the suggestion. Going back and doing so, I feel it gave my character a better flow in his movement.

Assignment Write Up 2

-Kenneth Walker

-Project 2

-iDroid 2/5/11

-A big time company android prototype that will be used for marketing of future technology.

-Technology has become such a connivence for society that we are slowly becoming the gadgets that we we feel depended on.

-Watching sci-fi movies or anymore that involves androids taking the place of human society.

-Technological take over.

-An android walking the city; while listening to music, downloading CDs, talking on a cell and blue tooth, and taking pictures with an "eye" camera.

-It was a bit irritating at first getting the visor to blink how i wanted it to. Also getting the running down right. It was also problematic getting the pacing and timing right.

-Learned a long and a short way to masking but i will have to do both a few times to get use to them. Would like to learn how to a more realistic walk/running cycle

Assignment Write Up 1

Kenneth Walker

Project #1

Technological Dependency 2/1/11

Two rotate in from left and right, meeting in the center. A flash drive and hard drive plug in, sending out tiny radio waves. Scene lowers down to a brain as the electronic convince the brain that they are needed. An iPod then rise and confirms this. The gadgets then lower off screen and the states that it must buy these products.

I wanted to show how technology influences our lives to the point where we as society feel it is a necessity.

This ides developed over years of seeing commercials badgering on about how we need the next best thing, then seeing people with the products advertised in their hands the next week obsessing over it like it’s the best thing in the world.

Technology and how it heavily influences society to the point of an addiction.

Brain is over come by gadgets convincing it that they must be bought.

Not much tension or conflict as far as this project went.

No frustrations with this assignment though it took a little bit of time to get everything right where I wanted it to be.

Internet Sources

http://therumpus.net/2009/03/is-the-internet-ruining-our-lives/

http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/special_initiatives/wa_resources/wa_shared/backgrounders/digital_kids.cfm

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/2006-06-19-oblivious-kids_x.htm

Proposal

So I did another brainstorm and redistilled. Doing that, I found a topic in “Technological Dependency” and weather it’s helping or diminishing society.
Subjects in this topic that interest me the most are weather or not technology is “dumbing us down,” and making society lazy. Or, is it opening up doors and uplifting society. So far I think the outcomes seem more negative than positive but that may change over time.
Generation after generation are swiftly becoming more obsessed with technological advancements; and while some become secluded, and social and life skills slowly deplete, others are becoming so “tech savvy” that these new inventions have opened new doors to more opportunities; using technology to their advantage. For example forming a great multitude of connections in business, and making it easier for people to keep up with the world around them to the point where books, magazines, and newspapers are becoming obsolete.
We’ve all have probably heard the phrase “Big Brother is watching.” Well inventions such as the Internet seem to be doing just that keeping tabs on us from Facebook to Google. But without it, we wouldn’t be able to make fast paced connections with out of state loved ones (social networking), find our way around new and unknown areas (GPS), or make quick purchases of supplies and or good saving time from long tiring lines (Amazon). Just like knowledge, technology can be a gift and a curse and too much of a good thing could be bad. It all depends on whose hands it falls into and the way it is used. Will technology becoming the great commodity it was intended to be or will it doom us all as it continues to evolve?

Books

The Age of Spiritual Machines by Ray Kurzweil- a vision of what may come in the future through the eyes of futurist Ray Kurzweil in which the development of artificial influences the consciousness of humans. Also looks at technological singularity, the unpredictable nature of advanced technological creations.

This Perfect Day by Ira Levin-A heroic sci-fi in which a seemingly perfect world is run by a central computer, “UniComp,” programmed to keep every human on Earth in check in a technological utopia. Now the fate of the world lies in the hands of a rebel influenced by his non-conformist grandfather.

1984 by George Orwell- The classic by George Orwell. A world of war and governmental surveillance in a world run by ‘’Big Brother.’’ But a rebellion has formed now and the fall of “Big Brother” may be emanate.

Brainstorn 2

1. Futurism
2. Machinery
3. Technology
4. Advanced
5. New Age vs. Traditional
6. Taking the place of
7. Programmed
8. Freedom
9. Slavery
10. Liberation
11. Amish
12. Old World
13. New World Order
14. Apple
15. Google
16. Watching
17. Industrial
18. Conspiracy
19. Numbers/ Numerology
20. War
21. Peace
22. Rebel
23. Anarchy vs. Form of Government
24. Natural
25. Earth
26. Withering
27. Metallic
28. Utopia
29. Wasteland
30. Matrix
31. Advertisement
32. Power
33. Greed
34. Control
35. 1984
36. Technocracy
37. All is One
38. Order
39. Law
40. Fate
41. Tarot cards
42. Fortune tellers
43. Prophets
44. Nostradamus
45. Jesus Christ
46. Muhammad
47. Religion
48. Destiny
49. Control
50. Mind control
51. Psychology
52. Sigmund Frued

thumbnails

Opposites

1. Futurism- Traditional, Classsical
2. Surrealism-Reality, ordinary
3. Hip-Hop-Boring, Stationary
4. Phoenix-Fall, Die, discontinue
5. Religion-atheism, nihlism
6. Culture-Society, Background
7. Inspiration-Muse, Motive, Idea
8. Introspective-Extrospective, Open
9. Stories-Truth, Fact
10. Life-Inanimate, Dead
11. Psychology-Mindset, Therapy
12. Funk-Smooth
13. Cartoons- Live Action
14. Childhood-Adulthood
15. Symbolism-connectionism
16. Graffiti- blank
17. 90s- New millennium, 2000, Y2k
18. Jetsons- Flintstones
19. Technology- Amish
20. Cheshire-frown
21. Insomnia-Hypersomnia
22. Id-Mature
23. Ego- Big I, Freud
24. Super Ego -I, Freud, self
25. Classic-New
26. Now-Past, Future, Tomorrow, Yesterday, Today

Similarities

1. Futurism- Sci-Fi, Forward looking, Geometric, Advance
2. Surrealism-Dreams, Subconscious, Weird
3. Hip-Hop-Hip (style), Hop (movement)
4. Phoenix-Rise, Rebirth
5. Religion-Following, Religio (respect for what is sacred)
6. Culture-Society, Background
7. Inspiration-Muse, Motive, Idea
8. Introspective-Contemplative
9. Stories-Legend, Myth
10. Life-Animation, Spirit
11. Psychology-Mindset, Therapy
12. Funk-Strong, Distinctive
13. Cartoons- cartone (strong heavy paper)
14. Childhood- kiltham (kilþei-womb), Past, Wonder Years
15. Symbolism-symbolon (tokon), token
16. Graffiti- scribble,
17. 90s- Nostalgia, Retro
18. Jetsons- Hanna-Barbera, Future, Fiction
19. Technology- study(-ology) of art, skill, or craft(tech)
20. Cheshire-Chester, grin,
21. Insomnia-in(not), somnus(sleep)
22. Id-Primitive, It, Instinct, Freud
23. Ego-I, Freud, self
24. Super Ego- Big I, Freud
25. Classic-Prototypical, superior
26. Now-Present, Today

distilled (redo)

1. Futurism
2. Machinery
3. Technology
4. Advanced
5. Programmed
6. Freedom
7. Amish
8. Old World
9. New World Order
10. Apple
11. Watching
12. Industrial
13. Conspiracy
14. Numbers/ Numerology
15. War
16. Rebel
17. Government
18. Natural
19. Withering
20. Matrix
21. Advertisement
22. Power
23. Greed
24. Control
25. Technocracy
26. All is One
27. Order
28. Law
29. Fate
30. Mind control

Brainstorming