better sound editing!!!!
YEAH!

below is the animation i finished tonight.
i think in total, since our last class meeting i've spent about 8 hrs on it.
i am SO happy with this.

i didn't use any of dan's music, but i think its okay. i am so happy with the way the timing of the music and this syncs up... its too perfect. i never would have found this song if i didnt show this animation to lindsey so... big thanks to her.

i posted this on youtube and on my personal blog and i've gotten alot of good feedback. even though i didn't fly through the space i really think that i achieved the objectives of the assignment.
i also made something that i think is really beautiful so... either way, i'm HAPPY.

I JUST LOST EVERYTHING I DID TODAY.

i didn't even know that this texture still existed on my computer. i saved it and sent it to myself. i really think that i'm going to get it printed on some fabric and turn it into a sculpture!!!!!! (or a dress. because its pretty awesome, if i do say so myself...)

so today, i'm still plugging away on the emitters and deflectors... trying to get the basic idea of the scene down before i start rendering. i did a little bit of work last night on the formation of boxes but they weren't emitting any pattern that i was relatively happy with.

i still need to remember how to change the color of the actual boxes. i'm thinking instead of changing it in the property tracks, i can animate a texture and apply that to the boxes. i just don't want the change in color to be overwhelming. i want it to be just subtle enough to make a significant impact.

also- blyth if you could send me those readings on chaos theory and the bird flight patterns and bait balls and all that jazz that would be really helpful!

is it possible to animate color??

i really like the last part of my factory animation, where the cubes rapidly bombard the screen and through the rotation and layering of the cubes, it creates abstract shapes that shift from 2 and 3 dimensions.

for my final animation, i think that i'm going to try and do this for an entire video, but there will be a color shift in the cubes when the sound starts to build so for various voices and parts of the song, the colors (and hopefully the speed) will change. i want to start with lighter, more subtle colors and then progress into brighter more vibrant colors.

i have thought a little bit more about my final project. i'm still struggling with this a little bit, but i think that i have a somewhat solid idea floating around in my head.

again, i'll be working with boxes, but i want to work with them in a move intuitive/expressive way.

the song that i'm thinking about using now is different from build voice. there is something really incredible about this song, because it has this giant "swell" in it. its just different layers of voices and sounds that build and build and build and then fade out at the end. i would really like to apply the idea of a swarm, or a swell to the creation of these boxes, and try and get them to behave in a way that is not indicative of how boxes would/could normally behave.

i'm kind of approaching this with the idea that i am either making a music video or some sort of animation that will be shown specifically for this music. emailing back and forth with dan deacon has been really awesome, because hes encouraged me to send him the project after i'm done, even though i'm not sure if i will...

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i am also going to sub-divide this animation again once i have the storyboards done. making things happen in different phases seems to be a good way of working for me. its like a divide and conquer thing. i'd rather look at something with a lot of little parts that seem easy to accomplish, rather than looking at one huge project and feeling overwhelmed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWdUewGv49s

dan deacon- build voice.

i intend to use this concept for my animation. i'm not sure how the idea of "building voice" will translate into little boxes, but i think that this idea has potential and could work.

i've been ignoring my blogggg.

okay so- i changed my presentation topic, because i was researching debb todd wheeler and was sort of confused. its not that i don't understand her, or her work, because i really do like it, but i guess i just wanted to learn more about ANIMATION as a whole, rather than one specific animator. i am worried actually now that my presentation is going to be TOO long... but as of 12:40 only three of us have shown up for class so i guess that isn't an issue.


i am really happy with the outcome of my factory, although watching it before class made me think of specific things i could have tweaked/changed. the only section i'm REALLY not satisfied with is when the colored boxes start to emit from the large dark cube. i wanted them to appear incredibly random, so i literally did nothing to organize them or the emitters. i sort of just threw them into the space. last night i was satisfied with the way they look but... today, not so much. this is something that will be fixed before this animation is shown in a more public setting.