Lab 7:Story Development
IDS252: 3D Animation, Spring 2016

Goals

• Work with 1 other person to develop a story idea for a 1 minute animation. (1 person will work alone or 1 group will have 3 people)
• Draw the storyboards.
• Pitch the story.
• Choose stories and groups for final project.
• Deliverables: The text of a story, brief answers to the Story Check List, and the storyboards.

Links

• Resources for Storyboarding.
• See Evaluation Sheet (pdf) for the "Story Check List" and the "Storyboarding Check List".
• Directions for Converting Your Storyboards into a Storyreel (this will be used in the next lab)

Files and Folders

• In this lab you will work with one partner. On cs-render, in folder \IDS252Sp16\Lab7, create a folder with the name of both you and your partner. Any files you create or use should go in this folder.

Story Options

There are several approaches you may take to developing your story. Your 1 minute animation does not have to be a complete story. Instead, it could be your own interpretation of:

• A brief excerpt from a book or play that you like and you feel would work well as an animation.
• A brief excerpt from a well known story, e.g. a fairy tale (e.g. Little Red Riding Hood). Fairy tales tend to be about the universal human qualities, emotions, experiences. You can re-tell a part of a fairy tale either 1) in a modern day context or 2) from the perspective of a different character or 3) use the fairy tale characters in your own story.
• A brief excerpt from a film (live action not an animation!) that you want to turn into an animation.
• A serious or funny scenerio you have written yourself or modified from something you have seen, e.g. a newsreel, a documetary, etc. Or, imagine two Andy's sitting together, e.g. in a restaurant or a living room. Who might they be and why are they there? a father/son arguing, a couple breaking up (or proposing, or having an affair), a doctor and patient, two friends who love to eat and order way too much food, .... What is the conflict and resolution?
• An animation that explains a concept (e.g. math or science) or recounts a historical event.
• A scenario or story that conveys a message or idea you feel strongly about - global warming, love, war, gay rights, food, growing up, relationships, family, etc.
• A full 1-minute story that you have written and that works well as an animation.

Considerations:

• Aim for a story that is 1 minute long. Go for quality, not quantity - don't bite off more than you can chew. To do a good job you need to allow plenty of time for the modeling, lighting, camera work, animation, etc! And, you need time to go through several edits.
• Your story should not take place in more than 1 or 2 environments.
• Think long and hard about what will work as an animation given your skill level. Try to avoid dependence on special effects - this is an exercise in animation more than in anything else.
• Your animation will have music and foley but no dialogue. How might these be used to help convey your story? What, if anything, will you want to ask the musicians to do or to consider?
• Vary the pacing and tension.
• You may use any rigged characters as long as you have tested the rig and find it easy to use. Be careful, some rigs are huge and complex, and can really bog down Maya.
• You may model your own simple characters. For example, look at what students have done in previous animations, e.g. their "characters" have been balls, cars, mice (with no moving legs), sandwiches, etc. You should not try to rig your own full blown characters because this will take too much time and you will not have time to do a good job on the animation.

During Lab (Thur, Mar 3)

• Pick a partner. Be sure to get contact information so you two can communicate over the weekend. On cs-render, in folder \IDS252Sp16\Lab7, create a folder with the name of both you and your partner.

• Brainstorm story ideas with your partner. If you are stuck, consider the story options listed above. Also feel free to consult others in the class or the instructor.

• Once you decide on a story, write it down in text/paragraph form:
  • This is a visual story - your words must show, not tell. Your story must be told through the characters' gestures and actions, and supported through the use of camera, props, sound, and lighting.
  • We can't read your character's mind. For example, if your character Frank is hungry, you don't want to just say "Frank is hungry" you want to describe the scene and how Frank is behaving so that the viewer can infer that Frank is hungry. Include foley sound if you want. "We see Frank standing in front of the pastry counter staring at the donuts. His stomach lets out a loud growl..."
  • Include camera shot information where possible. For example, "the scene opens with an establishing shot showing a dimly lit bar with a few patrons sitting at tables. The camera cuts to Frank who is slumped on a stool by himself at the bar counter with a half drunk glass of whiskey in front of him...."
  • If you identify the emotion, intention, and thoughts of the characters, you must say how will these emotions will be visually conveyed to the audience. Don't rely on subtlety.
  • Every action should be clearly motivated. Think about who your character is and what is motivating him/her to behave in a certain way. What is his backstory? A great resource is "Acting for Animators" by Ed Hooks (excerpt is on cs-render). Read his discussion of the "Seven Essential Acting Principles" (summarized on page 11 of the book).

• After you have finished the text, read the story aloud and, as you read, act out what is happening. Use a stopwatch to time how long you take. If you go over 1 minute it is probably too long.

• Homework (due Tues, Mar 8): Over the weekend, continue to work out the details of your story idea with your partner. By class time on Tues, Mar 8, place a typed copy of your story text in your Lab 7 folder on cs-render. In the text write-up, include a story title and your names. Be prepared to pitch your story.

During Lecture/Lab (Tues, Mar 8)

• During class, we will go through all of the stories and provide feedback. In lab, revise your story based on the feedback.

  With your partner, go over questions in the Story Check List given in the Evaluation Sheet (pdf).

  Begin drawing the storyboards. To work out ideas, you may want to create storyboard thumbnails. Once your ideas are finalized, you should create large storyboards as described in the Storyboard Check List given in the Evaluation Sheet (pdf)

• Homework (due Thur, Mar 10): By class time on Thur, each group should have:

  • A revised version of the written a story (placed on cs-render).
  • With the written story, include brief answers to the questions in the Story Check List.
  • A set of large storyboards to pitch to the class (see Storyboard Check List).

During Lecture and Lab (Thur, Mar 10)

• In class and part of lab, each group will pitch their storyboards. The pitch will be timed to make sure each story is approximately 1 minute long.
• Once all the stories are pitched, we will take a (secret) vote to find out which stories we will produce. Note, stories which are much too long or too complicated, are unlikely to be selected.

  Warning: if you are absent when we do the vote, you will be assigned a story.

• Once groups are formed:
  • Come up with a short one-word name for your group (to be used for your mail group) and a working title for your animation (you can change it later).
  • Create a folder for your group (e.g. use the group name) on cs-render in the folder \IDS252Sp16\Lab8. Copy the story over from the Lab 7 folder.
  • Begin the homework (see below) which is the start of Lab 8.

• Homework (for Tue, Mar 15): At this point, you are done lab 7 and Lab 8 begins:

  • Meet with your group to go through the story and the storyboards to make sure everyone is in agreement. Modify the story or storyboards, as needed.
  • Once the storyboards are modified, scan them into the computer and put together the storyreel.
  • Fill out the shot list and task list.
  • Collect reference material and place it in a "Reference" folder (within your cs-render group folder)

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