Extra Credit

Im hoping this extra credit will be sufficient, but i attened the Silicon Valley Contemporary art Festival which had so much to look at! There were countless mediums being used (even animation!) and i spent half the day just wandering around, enjoying the strange, wacky and really amazing art everywhere!

Extra Credit: Lighting a Scene in Maya

THIS FIRST SHOT IS 3 POINT LIGHTING

THIS SECOND SHOT IS 1 POINT LIGHTING

THIS 3RD SHOT IS 2 POINT LIGHTING :)

Recreating Cameras and Lights in Maya.

origional:

Here are my attempts:

stop motion character animation

Stop motion character animation
 Joon bak and i sat down and shot around some story ideas until we settled on a story we liked. We then story boarded our ideas, found props and scouted locations. We used an I-phone to shoot the move together and edited our footage using Photoshop, quick time and adobe premier.

Science Fact of Cinematic Fiction

Since the dawn of time, humans have been fascinated by the cosmos. It makes sense that space and the unknown would be a popular topic of film. There are so many opportunities for wonderful adventures through space, fantastic rocket ships that take us to uncharted territories, crazy space suites that help us explore the surfaces of strange planets, what is not to like? But today we know much more about space than we did even just a few years ago. This new found knowledge gives cinematographers the ability to make even more fantastic and realistic films. Along with the ability to make the physics within these films more life like and accurate, this knowledge can create room for mistakes as well. For example, in numerous movies set in space there is the existence of sound. Sound travels by vibrating particles. We see (or should I say hear) this on earth very well because the earth has oxygen. Oxygen particle are dense and everywhere and therefore serve as a great medium for sound to travel upon. But space is more ore less a vacuum meaning there are particles but significantly less of them. This means that although technically sound is able to travel through space, the human ear is unable to detect it. This is a known fact but despite this, films and tv shows like Star Wars Episode 6, Wall-E and Star Trek Nemisis use sound incorrectly for cinematic value.

The Star Wars sagas has been immensely popular since they first came out in 1977. There are countless things to love about these films, but an especially entertaining part of these films would be the fantastic space ship chases with loud explosions and darting lasers. As popular and entertaining as these films are, this simply isn’t possible. At least what we hear during these sequences is not. A great example of the missuses of sound in a Star Wars film is Episode 6, Return of the Jedi. There is a scene in which Luke Skywalker is taking on the task of destroying the death star from his space craft. During this process his ship is chased about the surface of the death star by enemy ships, all the time both Skywalker and his opponents are being shot at (loudly). Skywalker even destroys a few enemy ships which result in numerous explosions. Finally, the Death Star is destroyed in a giant booming explosion! Unfortunately for cinematographers, in real life, this explosion would go unheard. One could argue that this film does not take place in our universe so therefor, perhaps sound could exist in the space of Star Wars. But we can agree if these ships existed in the skies above Earth, they would be silent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQFrl5rpXMg

A large part of the beloved film Wall-E takes place in space as well. This film also takes place on the surface of Earth as well as in the skies above Earth so we know the universe follows the rules of physics we know to be true. There are even a few scenes in which the lovable robot and his love interest, Eva are floating free in space. Specifically, there is a scene in which Wall-E uses a fire extinguisher to propel himself thru space towards Eva. This principal of prepulsion is correct, but the sound that occurs when this takes place is not. With every push toward Eva we hear the sound of the chemicals being expelled and viewers clearly hear the sound of the extinguisher. Not only do we hear this sound, but we also hear the “conversation” shared by Wall-E and Eva. One could argue that this film is more from the perspective of the robots and they may be able to “hear” in space, but there is no way to really know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHXx8AmBwXg

Finally, The TV series Star Trek Nemisis is a great example of the missuses of sound in space. This series, like like Wall-E, takes place in the same universe as earth, so we again know the physical laws that exist to a certain extent. This show, like Star Wars, was and is widely popular for its features of loud and exciting ship chases and battles. In fact so much so that they occur in almost every episode. There are explosions, loud lasers, crashes and bangs upon impact, the swooshes of the ships darting by, the list goes on. The viewers hear pretty much every detail of the fights and chases taking place in space. This simply can not be.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQK8ZAQ5usE

Its quite obvious that all of these instances in space would be, to the human ear, completely silent. All the crashes, robotic conversations and explosions would be just visuals. Movies are so much more than just visuals, they satisfy the audiences sense of sound just as much as that of sight. With that said, viewers would be far more distracted by lack of sound rather than the fact that sound in the scenes they were watching would be completely impossible if to take place reality. This is wonderful because it just goes to show how films are made to bring us into new reality’s and universes. Although the films discussed earlier take place in our universe or one similar to ours, many films do not, and sometimes they are much more entertaining. Films are not always about being completely accurate when it comes to the laws of physics. Many times, the entertainment quality is much more important that whether or not sound would exist in space.

Science Fact or Cinematic Fiction? Outline

paragraph: Showing that sound is non-exsistant in space. Sound travels by vibrating particles (on earth sound uses air particles). In space there is no air so much emptiness, sound is unable to travel.

Paragraph: Star wars Episode 6

When the death star explodes there’s a huge eruption of sound

Paragraph: Wall-E

When wall-E uses a fire extinguisher to travel thru space, the viewers can hear the noises coming out of the extinguisher, not to mention the “conversation” shared by Wall-E and Eva

Paragraph 4: Star Trek Nemisis

During a chase between 2 ships in star trek, we hear the sounds of the blasters hitting each ship loud and clear

Paragraph: Even tho its useful for entertainment value, sounds in space just don't happen!

Reverse Video Reference

Stop motion Animation of falling

For my stop motion animation all i did was use a web cam to take a few images of Hello Kitty in a falling and bouncing secquene. I used the comonly used animation program "Flip Book" to combine the images and time them out. As for planning the Kitties fall, i just tried to give her a little overlapping action in the begging with her heaving herself off the cliff, added a few extra frames at her apex  to create a feeling of hang time and tried to vary the bounces of her body and head upon impact to avoid strobbing. Enjoy!

The Laws of Physics in an Animation Universe

One of the most wonderful benefits of animation as a medium is the ability to create universes out of almost nothing at all. These universes, although not always plausible, are believable if executed properly. The universe depicted in the 2011 film “The Lorax” is a perfect example of a universe that is believable yet does not follow all the same rules of physics we know to be true. The directors of this film were able to accomplish this believable non-existent universe in countless ways. A few prime examples include the use of slow motion to exaggerate motion while still keeping the feel of gravity, inventions like Teds motor bike, and overall exaggeration of movements.

Slow motion is a perfect opportunity to showcase specific moments within a film. Some directors use slow motion to exhibit remarkable athletic ability or some natural phenomena. Others use it to highlight a specific moment in time within a film to add drama or prove a point. Directors of animated films, on the other hand, tend to use this technique to highlight comedic moments. This is what Chris Renaud, Kyle Balda used slow motion for in The Lorax. This technique is also used to help establish the type of universe the film is taking place within. For example, when the Once-ler arrives in the forest and is first unwelcome by the woodland creatures, he tries to earn their trust using a bag of marshmallows. When he opens the bag of marshmallows the slow motion shot begins and the sweet treats erupt out of the bag with more force than possible. When the marshmallows begin to fall, the animals are shown jumping through the air, catching them in their mouths. The animals are also shown it what looks like a vast pool of marshmallows that act in a similar way to water. Water is a real substance that we are all familiar with so the eye is fooled into thinking a marshmallow lake is plausible. The commercial for bottled air is also shot in slow motion. In this shot, whenever a bottle of air is opened, the person opening it has a force of propelled air acting upon them as if a fan or burst of air is hitting them in the face. A bottle of air would release a slight burst, but not one large enough to blow someones hair straight back or to alter the look of someones face. But since the action is exaggerated for comedic purposes and still adheres to gravity, the audience buys into the improper visuals. 

                                          

 Teds motor Bike is another great example of how the universe within the film strays from our reality yet stays intact enough for the audience to believe in it. The way Teds bike moves is comparable to that of a segway, a mode of transportation that is very real and exists in our world. There are some obvious differences between the two. For example, there is a scene in which Ted rides his bike up a flight of steep steps with ease. This would not be possible on a segway unless some specific modifications were made to the steps or the vehicle. Another difference is seen when Ted is fleeing through the city to avoid O Hare and his goons. Not only is ted speeding around town on his bike in a theatrical way, but he also has his grandmother and love interest, Audrey on the bike with him as well. In our universe, it is very possible to have 2 people on a motorcycle but certainly not a segway. This means the idea of 3 people on a segway is utterly preposterous. Although the way Ted rides his bike up the stairs is highly improbable and the way he rides his bike with three passengers is most likely impossible, the way his body moves in relation to the bike and weight distribution are executed in a way that is not distracting and is believable.

Finally, the audience is exposed to a great deal of exaggerated movements that still seem to follow the laws of gravity. Teds Grandmother bounces her food with her fork like a super ball then allows it to bounce straight into her mouth. The audience recognizes that bouncing a ball in such a way is totally possible and follows some laws of gravity. But if examined closer, the substance Teds grandma is bouncing resembles some sort of gelatin which doesn’t act the same as rubber. Or for example, when the Lorax pops out of a tree like a ball out of a cannon the tree buckles in a way that would show that something was about to be pushed out from within it. A tree would never do this but the way the tree is contorted by the animators is very accurate and believable and would act this way if perhaps made from a substance other than wood. When the Lorax emerges he plops out with a great deal of weight and even thou his landing is a bit exaggerated and quicker than natural, it follows the laws of gravity. The Once-ler makes pancakes and flips them in a believable way yet moves his body in a way that is very noodle and impossible. I’ve seen my father flip a pancake successfully so I know it is possible, yet I know my father and most other people are incapable of bending backward to catch a pancake behind their back at the same angle the Once-ler does. And finally during the Thneed song we see a nun jump over a crowd of people as if suspended from a harness and we see a man use the Thneed to wiggle a child around his belly in a totally impossible way. The boy has overlapping action and the timing is well orchestrated still making the shot plausible.

  

All in all, the Lorax displays a beautiful, well designed universe that has many laws of physics that are similar to our own. This film also breaks many rules of physics, mainly for comedic value. When these laws are broken, the view is not distracted by them because they are carried out in a believable way.

1. Introduction

a. The Lorax (2012)

b. Thesis: Although it is clear through exaggeration in physics that this film takes place in a universe other than our own, the universe of the Lorax is still believable and displays many laws of physics that our own universe has.

11. Body Paragraphs

1. Slow motion

a. Slow motion for comedic affect that entail unrealistic moments, but also displays some believable weight distribution and existence of gravity

b. when the Once-ler arrives in the forest and feeds the woodland creatures marshmallows, the marshmallows explode out of their bag falling into the little animals mouths and creating a marshmallow ocean in which the critters use each other as boats in

c. The commercial for bottled air shows people opening plastic bottles and being hit in the face with air.

2. Teds motor Bike

a. although this bike has the potential to work in our own universe (maybe like a segway) it defy s many laws of physics through out the movie

b. Ted rides his bike up stairs in a way that is unbelievable, yet his weight distribution looks believable

c. When Ted is fleeing through the city to avoid O Hare, the bike is able to sustain the weight of ted, his grandmother and Audrey

3. Exaggerated movements and use of gravity

a. Teds Grandmother bounces her food with her fork like a super ball then allows it to bounce straight into her mouth

b. The Lorax pops out of a tree like a ball out of a cannon

c. The Once-ler makes pancakes and flips them in a believable way yet moves his body in a way that is very noodly and impossible

b. The entire Thneed song shows people bouncing, flipping, and wearing/using the thneed in impossible ways

Conclusion:

1. The laws of physics are broken through out the film, yet some laws from our own universe exist

2. Even though many rules are broke, the films universe is still believable

Video Analysis of Path of Action

"tracker Video Analysis of Falling"

So for some reason i couldnt get the program to install correctly....but i did take the video Reff

Shooting Video Reference:

You might be wondering, "Who is this Alisia? I wanna know stuff about her. The good stuff.” Well, it’s your lucky day. Here's some stuff about me:

Let’s start with the academic stuff. As you might have noticed, I’m an animation illustration student with an emphasis in animation. I really enjoy the process of film making and, if I’m not an animator, I’d like to get into the production side of things. I’d love to direct a short live action film more than anything. I love movies and the whole idea of hundreds of people working together to create a single, unified piece of art. The thought of it is totally mind blowing to me! That is why I’m going to work in the film industry someday soon . But until then, I’ll be busying myself with ani128b, ani118b and this wonderful PHYS123 class!

If I wasn't an animator, I’d be a geologist (Archeologist? I thought they were the ones who look for fossils, but maybe I’m wrong). I’ve taken a few classes on the subject, and I LOVED them all. If it weren't for all that math I’d be out uncovering fossils right now!

As far as extracurricular things, I LOVE dancing and going to raves and concerts. I like to draw and paint, and I really enjoy making stuff. I like to decorate and re-decorate my house, make costumes, sew, and bedazzle! I also enjoy being outside and running around in the wilderness. Canoeing and swimming bring me a lot of joy as well.

And if you REALLY wanna know more about me, here's the results to a personality test i recently took:
 https://whoami.visualdna.com/?c=us#feedback/4e8aa5f9-319e-4f36-a6e3-f59da2e83548

Time for the mini portfolio! 

Here are some some old final projects from past animation classes. The first video is traditionally animated and from ani115 and the following image is a simple turn around for the character Goldie who appears in the video. The turn around was also done for ani115

This is just an example of my own personal style. I love to draw women and usually women in outlandish or weird costumes

Finally, i just thought id include my final animation from ani114 from a few years back. At the time this animation was a major successes for me and was definitely a stepping stone for me as an animator although it looks a bit goofy today

Just so you know what i look like, here's me (center) with some fellow animation/illustration members at the short film Jimmy Loves Juice wrap party!

Welcome to my first real blog! My name is Alisia Munoz and I am an SJSU animation illustration student finishing up my 6th year (yikes, i know) This particular blog will be following my adventures through a current class im taking called Physics of animation.  Our first assignment (drum roll) make a blog! Done and done.