Weekly Comments #15: Roses & Thorns

    Hello friends! Happy April, even though it doesn't exactly feel like it, due to the crazy weather we've had the past few weeks. Curse you, Mother Nature, for ruining my chances of filming outside!! Ugh. Why did I have to make 90% of my entire poem video have to be shot outside? Sighs, guess who won't be turning that in on time...

    This whole week has just been full of stress and hard work. This year, I've noticed, I've been though a lot of ups and downs, where I won't have any homework or major assignments for a week and I can relax, and then the next week my teachers decide to throw everything at me all at once. Then comes the part where I'm freaking out, trying my best to get everything in on time but nothing is cooperating with me (glares at Mother Nature), and I hardly have any time for myself. Yeah, I probably just sound like a whiny baby right now, but gosh, sometimes life is hard.

    On a lighter note, a little bit ago, last month, Ryan and I were on LCTV for an interview with the founder of Asha Sanctuary to talk about our documentary and commercial. It went well, I'd say. I was pretty nervous, as I usually am for things like this, but it was fun. I'm actually going back next Wednesday for an interview for the LCTV scholarship. Wish me luck! :0

    Link of interest: The Magic Ingredient That Brings Pixar to Life. This TED Talk with Danielle Feinberg goes into detail about how animation, art, and science intertwine. It's not only informational, but also quite inspiring; how when she was little, someone told her that she could never make a living by creating art, and yet, here she is now.

Hoping this week goes well for everyone!

Article Response: "7 Tips For Drawing Realistic Humans"

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    If you're someone like me who doesn't know anything about anatomy, physics, or drawing realistic people, well, you should probably consider learning, as it's something that's rather critical in the character creation world of animation. However, if you're just starting out, this article should be rather helpful, as it contains simple tips that are geared towards people who don't know much about anatomy.

    The first pointer takes the line of action into consideration, which can give a character life and make their pose appear more natural, instead of looking stiff. Drawing the line of action first can help you build the character around it, allowing you to indicate the emotion you're trying to convey. Next, consider the height of your character, and remember that their legs should be about the same length as the torso. A simple way to keep track of this is by using the character's head as your outline for how long the torso and legs should be, for instance, "For a tall, stereotypical hero, this could mean drawing the body 8 heads high. So, 4 heads for the torso and an additional 4 heads for the legs." This technique can also be used for the shoulder width of the character.

    The fourth tip explains the structure of the face and forehead, and how you should be leaving a bit of space for the forehead, instead of drawing the eyes too close to the hairline. Also, you should keep in mind that necks flow diagonally to your shoulders, instead of straight down (because anatomy just isn't that simple). For the sixth tip, they talk about drawing mouths, and specifically, smiles. Sometimes people will draw open-mouthed smiles in the shape of a banana, however, the corners of your mouth can only move sideways, not upwards towards your ears. Lastly, you can easily use gridded boxes to sketch out a head. This way, it can be easier to visualize a character's head from different perspectives. 

    I found this article to be rather helpful, especially for someone like me who really only doodles for fun instead of learning more about it for a future job or career. Also, I do like that they included pictures to further explain what they're talking about, instead of just having us assume we know what they mean, as I'm much more of a visual learner than anything. All in all, definitely a very helpful resource for anyone looking for simple and quick drawing tips!

Video Response: "Joel & Ethan Coen - Shot | Reverse Shot"

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    One particular aspect that goes into making a movie or short film interesting are the shots you use, either during dialogue scenes, or in general to show the character's actions. One of the most famous shot-to-shot sequences is the shot/reverse shot, used as a quick way to record dialogue between two characters. Joel and Ethan Coen are considered the masters of this, and for good reason. What separates their shot/reverse shot sequences from other filmmakers, is that they tend to keep them simple but precise.

    Most filmmakers tend to record dialogue scenes from an over-the-shoulder point of view, while in the Coen brother's film scenes, the characters each get separate shots, meaning, they shoot a lot of singles. They also tend to shoot on wide angle lenses. This way, they're able to zoom/dolly in up close on a subject or a part of them, say, to exaggerate a part of an actor's face. This can make the viewer feel somewhat uncomfortable, but it can also make the scene rather funny. This can also exaggerate the actor's movements, as the wide angle lens usually creates more of an effect on a person's actions.

    The Coen's editing style is also quite different and more distinguishable from other film director's. Most of the time, the 'rythem' of their editing is nonverbal, and usually from facial expressions. The Coen's goal is to have the viewers empathize with the characters. They frame wide enough for you to see the environment, and put the lens right next to the characters at their lowest points. That way, you can see what they're seeing, and be close enough to almost feel what they feel.

    This video was certainly interesting, however somewhat confusing at some points. I understand it can be quite difficult to explain shot sequences and editing techniques, but I believe it would have been easier to understand if they had included more examples from other directors and their film styles to distinguish between the Coen's style and other's. I do like that they explained the effect that this has on the viewer psychologically, though, as that's something I believe you should pay attention to when creating your own film.