1632 hand drawn Digital Flash frames are in the animation
So I've spent the last 4 weeks working very hard on making the Animatic, animating movement and loads of other touches which will be screened to a small audience this coming week to see if the timing is right and to see if there is anything that could/need to be changed.
I've been madly keeping in touch with the sound musicians (Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer) and I have sent them the animatic so they have a rough idea of the timing they would need for the music track.
Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer have just come from a busy busy set of Gigs out in Australia and they are busy with being on the radio and fitting in where they can recording the music for "Dust & Bone.
Can't wait to hear what they have, its in their hands while a few tweaks are added to "Dust & Bone"
I will let you know when I have heard the 1st sounds from "Dust & Bone". Vicki and Jonny are two amazing people and they will bring the EPICNESS to the whole thing.
So I've been working very hard on making an Animatic, I'm putting some rough animation into it and not JUST stills that show the length of how long a scene will be.
I've been studying how a horse runs and what I've learnt is that the horse uses its back legs for the power of pushing its self from the ground and the fount legs are running cycle part like how a person runs.
All the legs work together all at the same time.
Here is some animation that I have done for the Animatic of how the horse could run.
I've been very busy with getting my official Storyboard together, I will have to try and scan it to post on here (which will be super soon)
I've still be working close with Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer the professional folk singers that will be making the sound track for the production, I'm really looking forward to working with them, at the moment I've been sending them all what i have been doing they are the only ones that have been seeing what I've been doing before it is posted here.
Right now I'm working on an Animatic which is is the length the animation should be in shots and gives an idea how the moment will be, some shots being sill though.
Think of it has a kind of movie trailer that gives away to much.
While I've been working this Story boarding I've been listening to alot of Western themes such as "The Ecstasy Of Gold" For the Good, Bad And The Ugly.
So the next few items I will post up on here will be The Story Board and the Animatic plus not forgetting any testers I make for the Animatic!
Heres my 'Turn around sheets' for the new animation.
After the turn around sheets are done(which they are) I will be drawing up the official storyboard and I will be cutting the animation down because of the time lemit i have. (1-2mins)
Heres the mean one, Harvey Erbine.. this is the bank robber!
Wednesday I presented my story and ideas to everyone.
So as we was in the room and no other ears was going to hear i told my tale and after about 10-15 minuets of explaining i think everyones faces was stuck in shock mode and also because I was trying to keep things secret people wanted more info!
I told them about my two twists and they was firing questions at me and people, I saw mouths open and when I looked across to Tim Shore, he was smiling then he said, "You are aware of the time scale?".
I knew I was going little over board but I was ready for this and in the Story Boarding process had planted a place so it could be cut and still make sense and still be at lest a good bit of animation.
So I'm going to have to cut it down and leave a "cliff hanger" in the 1st half (after all it was 4 sheets worth more like a film) but i still make the other half in my own time.
Less animation to do then I wanted but hey, let things press on.
Yep thats right there is a dark twist to the western animation and hopefully I can pull it off, the video that I've been inspired from above should give you a massive clue.
The Mock Storyboard is done which means i have a complete story, here are the four tiny pictures and remember they are crappy drawings because i can't spend loads of time drawing anything perfect, thats for the real Storyboard and Animatic.
Take a look-
Treatment:
Set in the old west, a man (Luis Murphy) proposes to his girlfriend (Adel Taylor) in a bar when the local villian (Harvey Erbine) interrupts this from happening But when Harvey Erbine tries to rob a bank Luis tries to stop him leaving Harvey to be jailed and with horrifying out comes.
With a brath taking twist Harvey escapes and and seek revenge on Luis but in another shocking twist Luis becomes something else entirely when everything was said and berried...
So I've been been drawing up my plan of my story in a "Mock Storyboard" on bits of A4 drawn into "comic grids" which is what you do before drawing up the 16:9 shots on the official storyboard which is A3 size.
The shots of the story is planing out well, I have a fear though that the story might be alittle to long for what I need.
I've stopped at a point though where the story could easy end with just what I have but I feel its to weak to stop there, I have to have add the rest because I know it is a strong story and give more to the "love" part of the animation.
So I'll go on to do more of my story and on the mock storyboard, its been one hell of a day.
More soon, going to reval something about the animation so keep watch!
I've been listening to a lot of rock music with that western feel to feed off them for what i want to do with the animation, as I'm working and listening to the music there are parts in them that grab my strings and makes me scream- "I would like to hear in my animation!"
Though I do have a story and I'm in the middle of putting it to paper, I'm at the same seeing my visions come to life in my mind with the type these bits of music, this will be such an importent part in the animation and theres a lot music that I'm listening to.
They have been sent to Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer (my wicked friends who are pro musicians thats working on the sound in the animation AS YOU SHOULD KNOW BY NOW!) so they can hear the types of music i would like to have in the animation.
A lot from the game Red Dead Redemption, eeek!!!
These are the ones-
I have a story- its worth telling and I'm very excited to get this thing lifted off the ground and its driving down the runway fast!
Today I've spent most of my time not as my usual self because of thinking about the story i want to tell, if it wasn't worth telling then i wouldn't do it.
Its kick arse and hopefully the animation will interpret this in its most violent parts (fingers crossed for the out come)
I've come up with some thing original and has a personal message with in its self, thats for me to know and people to work it out, as with all my work.
As well as knocking my self out (LITERALLY FOR 15MINS!) thinking about the story I took my uncle to Greenwich Cemetery SE9 for a Family Tree project his working on at the moment, (really interesting stuff) so as I'm going to be making an animation in the old west i thought this would be the right time to take pictures of the cemetery, this will help me with ideas for the lay out and design for what i need in my cemetery in the animation.
Thanks to another uncle today pointing out that in the western times a cemetery would be called
"Boot Hill"- (Ideas!!!)
Heres the pictures i took today, distasteful i know but i need ideas, i've tried to be arty with some lighting skills just to give me the scope for visual preferences.
I've been studying how people in the old western times used to get married, like how and if they got engaged, how would they do it?where would they do it? who would be present?
From the research i found its just the same back then as it is today, though the engagement ring style had its very own western theme, this helps to accurately draw up some production concept art rings, WESTEN STYLE!
I found a modern art memorial of two western style rings thats been built in the US in a place where once stood a church in the 1800s
Its been such a brain aching day, sleep i need!
Whats next then? Treatment to write and a mock up Story Board to make.
As of yesterday (16 of March 2011) i began to think of what kind of story i could bring to your screens made as an animation
I started to think of on the lines of Anti-Heros and Heros, I'm a MASSIVE fan of comic books so i know your everyday Superheroes, Heros and Heros with out a Super-powers or a cape or gadget, the ones that don't need to wear a mask, there are a lot of types!
People these days are more interested in the stories that make the hero, its the deep story that grabs the mind as if it is being sucked in (Or is that just me?)
Now the 1st of the Anti Heros i can recall on screen is Cowboy, Clint Eastwood in "Fistful Of Dollars" and researching other Anti Heros that we have around today on screen such as V in V For Vendetta ,Hulk, Swamp Thing, Jack Sparrow, The Crow, Spawn there are so many more.
As the Western times was the Birth of the Anti Hero I'm really thinking about making this Animation a Western!
So I've been researching into loads of material and I've started with Music first as thats always my place to start and is the very thing everyone turns to no matter what emotions they fill, "Days Of The New" have a notorious sound style of the Old West, I started of with this song called "The Down Town.
I've been so inspired by this song!
This brings me to think about the type of sound i want in the animation and after being very inspired by "Days Of The New" i really would want a western feel to the sound, so how about a Soundtrack, like music playing through out with a bit of Foley?
I work with well known Folk Singers Vicki Swan and Jonny Dyer on the Notschool.Net project and they have inspiered me MEGGER!
They are SUPER SUPER TALENTED with sound and are very "Hear-isionary" with what music they want to make they have the right SUPER talent to bring this western animation to life, in most of their music they create has such an up and down types of transitions to the flow of their amazing songs!
I've asked them if they could help me out and take part and the answer- yes!! (I'm so grateful to them, Vicki and Jonny has helped me A LOT with some moments in my life and has even made sounds and music for some of my Flash animations. ((Pats heart) Thank you, Vix and Jonny!)
They are getting bigger in the world of music, check em out, click the picture below.
I have a working Title "Dust and Bone".. I'll post my blogs inspirational material ON THIS PAGE!
