ARTICLE RESPONSE 3/17/19

            Power through Composition



            We all have those favorite scenes in movies which grab our heartstrings, that glue your eyes to the screen and mesmerize you in ways you never have known. Whether it be the climax, ending scene, or even the beginning composition. There's a reason gif-edits exist of extraordinary shots! It's all due to the film composition, aka, camera angles, choice of importance, and many other factors that play into creating that emotional, and powerful, message. Aesthetically pleasing shots make viewers more inclined to watch, and show professionalism and experience, even if the scene is as plain as an establishing shot! In the article, "How to Give Characters Power Through Composition" by V Renée, Renée speaks in depth about the importance of composition, and how it can define a character's personality, or scene.
            Renée starts out strong, addressing the elephant in the room- The Rule of Thirds. It's known by amateur artists and the professionals, and the most widely used rule. Categorized by a three by three grid on your scene, this rule helps keep the balance, and establish a powerful dominance of a character. Renée demonstrates with an image of two men taking up the first and last horizontal rows, with empty space in the middle horizontal row. It's nearly symmetrical, clearly showing the emotion between the two, and gives a good idea to the viewer about how they view each other. She then links a video by John Tindell titled, "Rule of Thirds, and Depth." In that video, many more examples are shown to illustrate a clearer view of the staple rule. Furthermore, Tindell discusses another valuable composition law-- Depth. 
            There are many levels to a scene, and each holds their own importance and meaning. For example, the foreground of a scene brings them 'closer to the audience, but also puts them "first in line" in the order in which people view images.' (Renée). It defines the importance, and draws a focus and attention to the character. Another level is Center Framing, a technique to utilize the aesthetics of a scene, and displays the importance of the center frame, using the side elements as a component to draw the focus. Size is another factor in a scene, as much bigger characters demand more attention, and your eye is naturally drawn to them first. It displays personality, strength and dominance over a smaller character in the frame. Even without the body language, you can tell clearly who has the spotlight in the scene by the size! Color works in your favor as well, different grey scales with a single colored or vibrant object often draw much attention. Think, if you're in a pure white room, and there's a red bow in the corner, you're clearly going to be drawn to the bow, rather than the walls or doors. In the end, Renée links two other helpful articles on Aesthetic Theory and a second Composition article.
            Surprisingly, none of this is huge news to me! The Rule Of Thirds is by far my favorite shot composition, the balance just brings a level of harmonious understanding to me that other shots can't quite seem to capture. I've worked with shot compositions in film quite a bit, and understand the importance of capturing a perfect level of depth and size in order to show power and focus. I found this article quite refreshing, and it serves as a great reminder to always plan out a shot, and discuss the emotions around it before executing said scene! Renée's writing is well, albeit a bit short and brief, but extremely understandable. This was a fantastic article, however, I would have liked a better explanation on a few things she touched upon.
            We all know the layout of a scene is important, and with all this rules, it's clear as day that Renée explained plainly how to achieve a perfect shot. Combination is a god-send, and mixing and matching different shot styles can only benefit you in finding your artistic style! The Rule of Thirds, Depth levels, Sizing, and Coloring all play a factor in framing your film or animation, and aesthetics remain the most important reasoning behind love and adoration in such styles.

— WEEKLY COMMENTS

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                          ♕  — LEARNED : Ah, nothing learned this week but to have patience and calm down when things get loud. I can't seem to focus at all lately, so I bought ear plugs in order to help me achieve this lesson of calming down and lessening my sensory issues. Oh, I forgot, we learned all about audio recorders! Very interesting, and I wish I had more time (and better used time) to explore them more, and the possibilities around them.


                          ♕  — WANT TO LEARN: Not quite sure now! I'd love to learn a new language, or master a cooking skill. I'm getting my laptop back on monday, so I have a better outlet to learn and explore more things all language and cooking! Film wise, I'd love to learn more about audio recording and mixing, it's always been interesting to me.

                          ♕  — FRUSTRATED: Oh man, Dysphoria up the... inappropriate word. I've had an awful time dealing with the disconnect between my body and brain, thinking about how hard it will be to get on testosterone and pay for it, thinking about surgery and if people see me as a male. It's hard, I'm just frustrated by it all.


                          ♕  — HAPPY:  Uh, I actually got some Chinese food on Sunday! It was.. super good, I've been craving Lo Mein for a while now, and teriyaki chicken too. So that's a plus! My Father also called me his handsome son the other day, which made me scream in happiness. Other than thaaat, I hung out with my good friend Roman, and we talked about roleplaying and theories about our favorite characters.


                          ♕  — INTERESTING LINK: I found this  animation done by an amateur, they said it was their first animation, and I could see a lot of things to critique about it, and also learn from. Their follow through is marvelous, I adore the way the dragon moves around the screen! However, the pacing of the walk and the lizard moving is quite awkward, and could use some work! I think it's important as an animator to look at other work and take examples and references from them!
                                                                         

ARTICLE RESPONSE 3/10/19

            Appeal - 12 Basic Principles of Animation



            This week, a lovely animator and article author, Ethan Hurd, goes in depth about the meaning of 'appeal' and the misconceptions it tends to hold. The main theme around this article can be summed up by one outstanding quote given-- "Subject matter has nothing to do with appeal, disturbing can be just as appealing as cute." (Hurd.) Whether it be a grotesque zombie, rough bandit, or cute child, each has it's own appeal, and pieces about it that make it worth viewing to an audience. On an animation scale, rather than an illustration scale, certain principles of animation can help bring a broader appreciation and 'appeal' to a particular animation, timing and holds are put into effect as well to convey certain emotions. Appeal is much more than a simple cute drawing. "Appeal is the culmination of all the other principles above it, plus something extra." (Hurd.)
            Using examples that juxtapose each other, such as the Joker from Batman, and a cute group of bunnies inside a teacup. These things are vastly different, but each attract and audience and fame none the less! Now how could that be if the Joker is made to be somewhat disgusting (face it, he looks like a grease vat.) and bunnies are so small and fluffy? The key is the appeal of each, as the colors and design of each of these things bring about their own appeal. The Joker is somewhat scary, meant to send a chill down your spine at the 'insanity' (I use this term lightly.) of one villain, with a comical twist in the cartoons. Bunnies are soft, cute, and face it, we all love those bunny compilations videos that make you procrastinate your work. The appeal of these is in the design, but it only isn't for pictures. 
            Animations hold their own candle to appeal, as seen with the example of squash and stretch given by Hurd. He explains that even though exaggerated squash and stretch aren't quite realistic, they provide a beautiful animation when used properly. Even though it isn't realistic, our minds love to explore the impossible, and seeing a squishy ball, rather than a stiff ball, is much more 'appealing.'  It's simply "more interesting to look at." (Hurd.) Now, over exaggeration and completely unrealistic, it can bring about a bad taste in your mouth. If the ball suddenly becomes a dinner plate upon hitting the ground, it's bound to make the viewer think of it as a glitch, or see it as unappealing. Art is a balancing act of appeal and realism.
            Appeal isn't only in squash and stretch either, it's in the simple choices a producer can make. Whether it be live action of film, we all love a good pause before a punchline. Right before a joke hits, seeing the character take a second to pause in mid air, or star at the screen (or other character) is always funny. It gives the audience a second to register what's going on, and see the humor of it. Though it isn't always realistic, Thumper from Bambi won't jump in mid air and pause with his heart throbbing out of his chest, nor will the Hulk take under a millisecond to punch Thor in the stomach, it brings a sense of comedy and life to a character that is most definitely needed to convey a message.
            Misconceptions are bound to happen when taking things at a face value, however, through this deep-dive of appeal, I've learned it's much more than a pretty face and design. The reoccurring theme of appeal being a 'culmination of all things' (Hurd), resonates within me as I read this article. I found it especially interesting to take a step back, and remember all the times watching movies where an action happened in a split second. Those were one of the funniest moments- and it was all due to appeal! I also enjoyed how he incorporated all forms of art-related media into this article, it wasn't a simple cookie-cutter explanation. 
            All in all, this article written by Eric Hurd is an exceptional piece about the art of Appeal, and why it remains an important principle of animation-- despite being listed as the last. It's all about how it's used, rather than seeing it as one facsimile of illustration. It's color, design, unrealistic tendencies and the balance of such, stretch and squash, exaggeration, the list truly goes on! This was extremely informative, and a good reminder to read when it comes to ramping up one's animation or art.

——————— WEEKLY RESPONSE 3/10/19

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                          ♕  — LEARNED : Well, since all demo's are done, I'll talk about an important lesson I learned. The second time around, run cycles and walk cycles are a huge breeze. Seriously, I felt like I had no trouble shooting out a pretty decent cycle and full body shots. I'm incredibly proud, and glad I've learned that doing things over, I become better. I've learned to take criticism and use it to my advantage, and learn from it.


                          ♕  — WANT TO LEARN: Well, I'd love to master a few languages! Just kidding, animation-wise I'd love to learn how to better perfect my perspective, and animating in perspective, however I know that'll be a lot of work, and a lot of anatomy practice, in which I can't see myself willing to put the full effort into yet. Otherwise, I'd love to learn more about Photoshop's timeline, as I've not really worked with gif-making yet besides a few overlays I've done. It'd be really neat, and next year I feel like my Photoshop skills will make me a pro of the class.

                          ♕  — FRUSTRATED: Hey Ms. Licata and classmates, it's that time of my comments to listen to me whine and complain! I think I learned a very valuable lesson though, be it the hard way, about loneliness and dependency. I don't think many of you know, but I was diagnosed last year with Co-Dependency, an illness I struggle with that alters my personality in bad ways, and it was tested this week to the fullest. My boyfriend, who I am extremely attached to, kinda blew me off for the last two weeks. Which really hurt, as I have nothing to do when he isn't around, and to make matters worse, he hung out with a guy who made him constantly upset, belittled his interests and him, and said his entire identity is a joke. When I warned him this guy was giving off red flags and vibes. So yeah, I was a little frustrated at him, however I love that he has friends and want him to connect and have as many friends as he possibly can. This sounds bad now, I'm a good boyfriend I swear.


                          ♕  — HAPPY:  Not much made me happy this week, it's been neutral. On Saturday though, I went outside for the first time in a while!! I went out to go get some well deserved milk tea, and hang out around Pulp for half an hour. Otherwise, my Dad just got me a really nice set of cook books filled with new recipes to try!! I'm excited as hell, I love to cook and making new food is a huge happy-zone of mine.


                          ♕  — INTERESTING LINK: Another Youtube video! Sorry Ms. Licata, but this one really piqued my interest! It's a 6 year compilations of one artist's animations, and it shows how much progress somebody can really make when they put their heart into it, and strive for bettering themselves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94HN8GMaZwo