AICP Southwest 2011 Sponsor Reel

Dallas-based Element X Creative garners a trainload of nostalgia for the AICP Southwest Awards Show with their 2011 Sponsor Reel.

Through a mixture of blood, sweat, miniatures and CG, the Element X team “came together to write, storyboard, model, texture, shoot, rig, animate, composite and edit the final [5-minute] product” in short order. Four weeks, to be exact.

Of course, the storyline echoes several other time-rigging plots in popular science fiction media (e.g., two Back to the Future Easter eggs), but in this rendition, hitching a ride through Element X’s innocent world of special relativity makes sitting through a usually long drawn-out list of sponsor logos feel like the speed of light.

Element X was kind enough to elaborate on the development from beginning to end — nuts, bolts, and tools. Check out the process in their own words after the jump.

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From Executive Producer, Rick Perez:

Twenty-six extremely talented people, 90 Shots, 377 GB of files, two melted building models, all produced in four weeks in our spare time (if you want to call nights and weekends spare time).

Our creative minds here at Element X Creative (Dallas, TX) were pretty stoked about the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) asking us to create this year’s Sponsor Reel for the Southwest show. The creative carte blanche was daunting given such a small window of time to concept and produce a 5-minute piece. Adding to the challenge were our own high expectations, not only in terms of storytelling, but also wanting to create something that had not been done in the history of the show.

During the conceptualization phase, one of our big breakthroughs was our lack of time in general. Short deadlines are notorious in this industry and we’ve all yearned to stop time for a second and catch our breath. This idea, fused with the childhood nostalgia of miniatures and train sets, became the base foundation for our story.

Beyond the short-notice four-week production window and already ongoing gigs in house, we tackled many other production hurdles. We decided to shoot the background plates on a Canon 60D for several reasons: (A) these DSLRs are just pumping out fantastic pictures, and the readily available lens selections make getting the right angle easy; (B) we wanted to shoot over-cranked at 60 fps to help sell the scale of the miniatures as larger than they were — also some of the cars/trains that we moved practically through the scene, would look more realistic slowed down a bit; and (C) the flip-out screen made it super easy to get into tighter spaces, and to see what was going on quickly.

We also chose to shoot at a minimum of f/11, and when possible f/16 — I wanted to keep the DOF deeper, so it would seem more like it was photographed in the real world. We still wanted selective focus, but just not as much as you usually see when people show you photos of a miniature layout. This required us to dump a lot of light on the set to be able to shoot that stopped-down and still maintain a low ISO.

Last, we tried to get the camera as close as we could to ground level to mimic a large set — again with miniatures photographed that you might see, frequently it is shot from high above, since that is our natural vantage point in relation to them.

Using our internally developed OTTO rigging system, we put it through its paces quickly setting up dozens of characters and vehicles. Shooting such small miniatures with extreme focal lengths also made the 3D camera tracks challenging in certain shots. Logos were also pouring in at the last minute, so compositing was being handled up until the final hour.

Many late nights and take-out orders later, combined with a custom score and sound effects mix from Tequila Mockingbird, we came away with a unique animation that we are very proud of.

So take a peek at our latest and greatest! We hope you have as much fun watching it as our hero had while running around in the tiny world we created for him.

Official Press Release

CREDITS
Director — Brad Herbert

Executive Producers — Chad Briggs, Rick Perez
Producer — Amy Cass

Director of Photography — Brad Herbert
Location Crew — Luis Martinez, Jiss Kuruvilla
Location Manager — Robert Bray

CG Director — Eric J. Turman

Animation Director — Luis Martinez
Animators — Aaron Werntz, Steve “Q” Quentin, Andrea Thomas

Lead Modeler — Christopher McCabe
Modelers — Bobby Reynolds, Mathew Nith

Lead Rigger — Christopher McCabe
Rigger – Eric Turman

Editor — Luis Martinez, Brad Herbert

Lead Lighting Artist — Christopher McCabe
Lighting Artists — Dennis Kang, Mike Martin, Chad Briggs, Jason Moxon

Surfacing Artist — Christopher McCabe, Bobby Reynolds

Lead Compositor — Brad Herbert
Compositors — Dennis Kang, Mark Lopez ,Mike Martin, Laura Wallace, Christopher McCabe, Chad Briggs

Visual Effects — Dennis Kang, Mike Martin, Laura Wallace

Render Wrangler — Candace Morrish

Pipeline/Tools Programming — Steven Keiswetter

IT Director — Greg Glaser

Audio provided by Tequila Mockingbird
Executive Producer — Angie Johnson
Composer — Justin Tapp
Sound Design — Shayna Brown
Mix — Marty Lester

Background Plates : LMRA Railroad Activity
Special Thanks : Robert Bray (LMRA)

TOOLS
3D Package — Soft Image 2012 (.5)
Rigging — otto|rig — Proprietary Rigging Plug-in
Sculpting — Z Brush 4.2
Rendering — Arnold 1.13
Tracking — Syntheyes
Compositing — After Effects CS 5.5
Custom Scripts — Python
Cannon Cameras — 5D and 60D

Posted on Motionographer

Sometimes The Stars: Ari Gibson & Jason Pamment

Ari Gibson and Jason Pamment (Director and Art Director of The Cat Piano–read also our post on that award-winning film here.) teamed up again, this time to bring us this gorgeous music video for the title track of The Audreys’ new album ‘Sometimes The Stars’. The storyline and art direction is simple (you won’t find any glossy eye-popping CG here) which in my opinion makes the end result even more effective, poignant and memorable. According to Ari and Jason, ‘at a basic level it’s about someone suffering from a loss and their journey towards making a connection.’

I caught up with them to find out a few questions about the project, you can read all about it after the jump. But for now, sit back, turn up the volume, dim the lights, and enjoy…

Thanks for the tip, Jayden!

(Click on each image to see a larger version)

1. Tell us a little bit about yourselves, and how did you end up working together on this piece?

Jason: I’m a freelance Art Director and Illustrator based in Adelaide. I’ve been in animation and VFX for around 6 years, having begun my career as a designer and 3D artist in film and television, before being given more Directorial opportunities.

Ari: I’m an Animator and Illustrator also based in Adelaide. I’ve been working in the animation industry for about 7 years now. I served as Art Director at The Peoples Republic of Animation (PRA) for several years working on countless film, television and video game projects, eventually transitioned into taking on Directing roles. Since then I’ve moved from the PRA to become independent and further develop my own style and voice in the industry.

Studying at the same art school between 2000-2003, it wasn’t until 2006 and The People’s Republic of Animation’s short film Sweet & Sour that we first worked together. From that time we’ve been involved in a number of commercial and film projects, including the PRA’s 2009 short The Cat Piano, which Ari Co-Directed with Eddie White and Jason Art Directed. Although we’ve collaborated on numerous commercial and film projects, this music video is the first time we’ve teamed  up independently on a production.

2. How did the project come about? What was the initial brief like?

The clip began with Producer Luke Jurevicius and The Audreys’ lead singer Tasha Coates. They had been friends for many years and had wanted to collaborate for some time. The Audreys’ single Sometimes the Stars became that chance. Luke approached us having seen our work on The Cat Piano. The clip seemed the perfect opportunity to pursue our goals of creating mature emotive animation.

When we joined the project, a simple and evocative idea already existed. The concept, by Luke, of a girl journeying towards a fading star through a sky filled with monstrous creatures, was our starting point. Included with the concept were some excellent sketches by  Shane Devries. At the time the clip was intended to be done in 3D and the design reflected that, with more form and detail to the characters and the world.

 

3. How did you arrive at this final solution, narrative wise, and design wise?

Our first task was to flesh out the narrative and instilling atmosphere and a mature tone to match that of the song. We built acts and structure around the idea, conceived scenes and transformed the fantastical environment into a dreamscape. The once disparate elements within the world become allegory for the Lost Girl’s memory and emotion. For the conclusion of the clip the fading star became a character and the moment of connection: an intimate union of lost souls.

The design of the clip evolved both out of necessity and as a natural extension of our narrative development. Despite being initially envisaged as a 3D production, we chose a 2D approach, feeling the warmth and artistry would marry well with the song’s soft melancholy. Our narrative adaptations, to a more subtle suggestive story, played out in these visuals: the world became more vague and mysterious; silhouettes and mist became prevalent, with simple shapes emphasised over detailed forms. To pronounce this graphic approach we emulated stage lighting techniques and used simple theatrical compositions, working in monochrome with only a subtle grade at the end. Working only with monochrome values created greater consistency throughout the piece and helped us finish shots more quickly. With only the two of us for the bulk of production these stylistic decisions aided us immensely in outputting shots with efficiency and made the clip achievable on the tight schedule.

 

4. Hardware used? Software ? What was your production process/pipeline like?

We use Photoshop for all the 2D animation and background art, as well as most of the effects animation. Photoshop’s animation timeline transitions nicely into After Effects, which we use for compositing. In a typical shot, Ari will produce line animation that will go on to be coloured, while Jason paints the layered background art. We’ll import those Photoshop files directly into After Effects retaining all the background layers, which can be animated and used to create camera moves. A compositor will then add effects plates, animate layers, grade elements and generally fine tune a shot until we’re happy with it.

5. Timeframe? Budget ? Crew size? Credit list?

We worked on the clip over about 4 months, finishing in December of 2010. Hours were long with six day working weeks and regular days ending between 9pm and 1am. We were lucky enough to have Ryan Kirby compositing for a month and a half. Illustrator Jarrod Prince and Animator Joshua Bowman also helped out, colouring the 2D animation. As is the case with most projects of this nature the budget was tight.

(For full credit list please see below)


6. Biggest challenges technically ? Creatively? Any unexpected stumbling blocks?

Having worked on similar 2D projects before, the pipeline was fairly familiar to us. Challenges tended to be more creative than technical. Obviously with such a small crew we needed to work in an achievable style. Building the clip in monochrome suited the song and made shot consistency much easier to manage. We could marry the character to the
background far more cohesively and quickly than we could working in full colour.

Another creative challenge was in keeping the style appropriately simple. We wanted something that felt quite
traditional and organic, however when working digitally the easiest solution isn’t always the right one stylistically. For instance there were times in which we had to resort to 3D software for tricky perspective animation. While these methods save time, we had to carefully integrate them so that all the visuals match the intended style.

7. What’s on the agenda next? what can we expect from you guys ?

We’re currently mid-way through our next music video, again in 2D. In some ways its similar: a mature approach with a strong narrative; in some different: a more classic style with a semblance of watercolour. We won’t mention to much more for fear of ruining the surprise. Suffice to say it’s going well.

As artists and animators we want to promote the Australian animation community and its immensely talented people by  continuing to tell stories with emotion, through relatable characters and to the highest standards of which we are capable.

 

Thanks Ari and Jason, we wish you all the best for your future projects!


Credits

Music by The Audreys

Produced by Luke Jurevicius

Directed by Ari Gibson & Jason Pamment

Production Designers
Luke Jurevicius, Shane Devries, Jason Pamment, Ari Gibson

Story by
Luke Jurevicius, Ari Gibson & Jason Pamment

Executive Producers
Tasha Coates, Tristan Goodall & Stu McCullogh

2D Animation Ari Gibson

Background Art Jason Pamment

Compositing
Ryan Kirby & Jason Pamment

Colouring
Jarrod Prince & Joshua Bowman

Special Thanks
Sarah Macdonald, Makoto Koji, Jeremy Hill-Brooks

Posted on Motionographer

Alexander Chen: “Conductor”

Interactive Designer and Google Creative Lab’s own Alexander Chen reinvented the subway map of  New York City into an interactive, real-time instrument at mta.me. By utilizing the MTA’s actual subway schedule, each departing train is graphically represented — beginning its journey independently and assuming a place in the symphony at large. The piece extracts data from the MTA’s public API and visualizes every motion of the New York City transit system, while steadily continuing in a 24 hour loop. In his own words:

“The piece follows some rules. Every minute, it checks for new trains launched from their end stations. The train then moves towards the end of the line, with its speed set by the schedule’s estimated trip duration. Some decisions were made for musical, aesthetic, and technical reasons, such as fading out routes over time, the gradual time acceleration, and limiting the number of concurrent trains. Also, I used the weekday schedule. Some of these limitations result in subtle variations, as different trains are chosen during each 24-hour loop.”

However, according to Chen, the map is not entirely accurate and while the train departing time is on par with reality, the map is mostly an exercise in creativity. Moreover, the visuals are based on Massimo Vignelli’s 1972 diagram.

Posted on Motionographer