Modeling Begins.

So today I started playing about with maya trying to block out some organic raven shapes. Here are some progress shots starting all the way from a cube.

Pretty Cube-ish not much to add.
Started creating some shapes by extruding and scaling the faces. Creating a basic structure for the body of the bird.
Pulling out some wings taking into consideration bird anatomy.
Working on the neck but realizing that the shape isn't organic enough. It is very frustrating working without reference and unfortunately there aren't any raven refs to be found. :s

After inserting a few more edge loops and tweaking the mesh, I decided that modeling this bird in Maya was going to be far too complicated and would look far too inorganic. There wouldn't be any bumps or notches or anything that makes us original.

It is time to consider changing software. So I shall be looking into zbrush.

Starting up with the Ravens

Working with Sophie and my fellow Ravens has been dreamy, the project is very interesting and even though we have a set concept, there is still so much room to be creative. Sophie took us through all the Ravens that live in the tower and we all came together to brainstorm whom we would like to focus on, and what steps we should be taking first.

Emma also knocked out some lovely concepts and we looked through them, discussing how to take them forward into the photo realistic model.

I also heard the legend of the ravens, the script I shall be animating an introduction to. It is as follows;

It is not known when the ravens first came to the Tower of London, but their presence there is surrounded in myth.

For Legend has it that should the ravens ever leave the Tower, the white tower itself will crumble and the monarchy will fall.

Update

So it is indeed time for a completely overdue update on my third year. So without further delay... lets get this ball rolling.

So my pitch went well, and the feedback was mostly positive, So I am mostly happy with what I produced over the summer. However I do agree with Mike in wanting to see more concept as I myself would have loved to of produced more. However, working over the summer left me with little time and sadly my pitch suffered. Little Red Revenge was sadly not picked, and even though we had the opportunity to take our concepts further and create a 30 second short, I do not feel I could have done LRR justice with that time frame.

But not to worry, as some rather lovely pitches WERE chosen for the 3rd year films and I am excited to say I have chosen 2 projects to work on over the year. Below are the projects and my role.

EDIT: I have been asked to work briefly on another short found below.

The Raven Project: I shall be working on this short producing a photo realistic Raven model to be animated, I shall also be producing a 2D Animated introduction for the short.

Unhatched: I shall be producing character concepts for the short Unhatched.

Heroes 1.0: *NEW CHALLENGER* Kofi has asked me to produce some quick character concepts for his pint sized super hero short.

So now that that is covered... best get started! :D

MOOOOOOOOOD BOREDS!

I have just finished off 4 mood boards for Little Red Revenge. Each one is associated with different aspects of the short. Mood boards to me are extremely necessary as it keeps everything I want to bring forth in a character in one place.

The first board represents Location. I have a mixture of images and looks that i would like to convey in LRR. I would love a heavy Parisian vibe crossed with some vintage america and lights. I love cities and lights and crude advertising. I may perhaps have to look up some 1940's style advertisements for my concepts.

The next board depicts aspects I want to take into the consideration when designing Red. Clothes are a major factor here, as you can see the hood is something ive taken into consideration, as well as hair. There is also tube socks, Doc Martens and a football jacket, all 3 of which i would like to experiment with whilst creating a contemporary outfit for Red's design. Images of some Shuriken and a desert eagle (Red's weapons of choice). There is an image of Coraline as I like her proportions and finally a Glen Keane Image as he is a huge influence on me, and I adore is line work.

Third up is Big Bad's mood board. Here I have looked at various images involving werewolves for all sorts of artists. I found this incredibly interesting as they come in all different shapes and sizes, the pictures included are my favourite adaptations. I also took a few images of fierce wolves, this is to help with characterization and emotion. There is also images of 3 different types of long fur, very helpful. And lastly some creepy eyes which i would love to incorporate and an image of the hulk, as again I like his proportions.

The final board is of various textures I would like to incorporate into my short. These textures are mostly of the grunge variety and I feel can create not only a rustic and fantasy feel, reminiscent of LRR's original roots, but also a seedy/street contemporary theme to suit LRR.

Sexy Book Inspiration

So I bought this book the other day in Forbidden Planet Covent Garden. (HAHA backwards) Only one thing can be said that describes how horrifyingly amazing this book is.

If books had genitalia, I would have so much sex with Watchmen: The art of the Film.

I think what really gets me excited about this book is the slight similarity between both Watchmen and Little Red Revenge. The fact that Watchmen was adapted from a comic and LRR is an adaptation of a Folk Tale, makes both projects slightly similar. Reading this book was so many things for me; inspirational, exciting and reassuring. It took me through all the steps they underwent to bring the comic to life.

This book was a invaluable find. I shall forever have a place in my collection.

Gobelins Inspiration

I have just looked at the 2010 shorts from the French animation school Gobelins. I found them of outstanding quality as usual, their animations really never fail to impress. I absolutely love the exaggeration in their characters. Everything is endearing and enthralling, from the designs of the character's to the beautiful/twisted environments. If I could achieve even half the quality in Little Red Revenge I would be immensely happy.

One short in particularly caught me eye. The Animation is called Smoke My Christmas and is a rather delirious piece. In other words, it made me feel like I had drunk ALOT. What really caught my eye is the little city fly through at the start of the piece. It's mind blowing. I think it may have been created in low poly 3D with high definition textures. I may need to research this further. Check it out below. If I am right, I would most definitely consider using this method to produce the city fly through in LRR.

Enjoy.

Glen Keane Goodness

Check out these shots I found of some designs by Glen Keane for the new Tangled movie. They are hella good and there are some beyond amazing expressions.

I really hope that one day I will be able to draw like this. Practice Practice Practice. MOAR CAN BE FOUND ERE!

MOAR Inspiration.

BBC Weather Ad

Saw this the other day on TV, i really like the style, I imagine the concepts are quite similar to my own. I have no idea who made it, so if anyone knows feel free to drop me a line!

Coming Soon

A poster I quickly knocked up in Photoshop and Illustrator. I like how it came out, simple, bold and effective. It doesn't give too much away and the simple title really sticks in the brain. I think my use of a simplified logo is my own homage to comic covers, such as the X-men and Watchmen. Lemme know what you think!

And It Starts.