A big week ahead: Tinman Creative and Production Planning

Hi All - I  hope you all had a great Reading Week break. We have a lot happening this week that I want to tell you about.

First up is the lecture on Wednesday, Oct. 30 - the theme is "Production Planning" and our special guests are Morghan Fortier and Brett Jubinville of Tinman Creative. I'm sure this we'll be a very interesting talk on production planning issues from the point of view of a commercial creative animation studio.

We'll also have Maury Whyte on hand to give us an introduction to his Production Worksheet for Excel, which he has created to assist you in your own Production Planning.


Next up is the Wednesday workshop, which should appeal to those of you doing a 3D project. Our own Florian Jacot will give an introduction to the ZBrush Sculpting software in lab A151 at 6 pm.  NOTE THE CHANGE OF TIME and Room !


Lastly, there is another Milestone due this week, which you might guess is related to Production Planning, including an Asset Estimate, a Shot Breakdown and a Production Schedule. It also includes a Design Package. Ask your Mentor for details.

Another suggestion from James Caswell ... Interactive Ontario - Design for Gaming

http://interactiveontario.com/events/view/1012

http://interactiveontario.com/events/view/1012

If I Were in 4th Year I'd Go To This... GAMERCAMP (via James Caswell)

www.gamercamp.ca

http://www.gamercamp.ca

Mentor Maury Whyte's Production Planning Chart

As you know, immediately after Reading Week  there is a "Production Plan" Milestone due.  Mentor Maury Whyte has extended his offer of this Excel spreadsheet , which he calls the "Production Planning Chart",  to all 4th Year students.  You can download the Excel template here: Maury's Production Planning Chart


Take a moment to check it out. If you choose to use it for your Production Planning, you can ignore the corresponding template provided in the student handbook.(You'll still need to do the others however; ask your Mentor if you have any questions about what exactly is needed for this Milestone.)

On Wednesday Oct. 30, Maury will be on hand at the lecture to briefly explain the use of this Planning Chart. We'll also have an extremely interesting discussion of Animation production planning from Morghan Fortier and Brett Jubinville of Tinman Creative  Be there!

Production Planning Chart

LEICA REEL SCREENING - 10 AM Wednesday morning, S235

Even as I write this, technologist Nicolas Hesler is assembling the presentation reel for tomorrow's Leica Reel screening. The screening will last about 2 1/2 hours, with 95 submissions. (Because all 4th Year screenings are mandatory, students who did not submit will receive a grade penalty.)

Please note the early start time tomorrow - 10 AM, an hour earlier than usual. I'll be there at 9:30 pm to set up. See you tomorrow!

- bruno

LEICA REEL SCREENING - HOW TO OUTPUT YOUR VIDEO FILE

Apparently the Animation Wiki is temporarily unavailable, but just in case you want to know how to create a BluRay compatible video file, the following detailed description is from technologist Nicolas Hesler. Please keep it handy for reference when you're submitting your file for the screening.

Note that there is also a video tutorial on this topic available on the Handouts Drive, located at:

O:\Resources\_Video_Tutorials\Export-from-Adobe-Premiere-CS6-for-SCREENINGS.mp4 

Thanks, Nic!

(link to pdf) Exporting for Sheridan Animation Screenings from Adobe Premiere CS6 

Exporting for Sheridan Animation Screenings from Adobe Premiere CS6

1. Select the Sequence you want to export.
   
2. Ensure the Work Area Bar In and Out points are set at the beginning and end of your program.
   
3. From the File menu, select Export...Media... (Ctrl-M)
   
4. In the Export Settings window:
   
   • From the Format dropdown, select H.264 Blu-ray.
     
   • From the Preset dropdown, select Sheridan Blu-ray.
     *** Note: It is important that you select the above preset to ensure perfect audio synchronization and good picture quality.
     
   5. Set an Output Name for your exported video and audio files.
      
   6. Select the Queue button to launch Adobe Media Encoder and queue your export job.
      
   7. In Adobe Media Encoder, press the Play button to begin the export.
      

The Sheridan Blu-ray format will export several files including a .m4v (video) file, a .wav (audio) file and a .xmpses (metadata) file. In order to create a playable video file *with* audio, you need to mux (join) the video and audio files together.
To mux the .m4v and .wav files into a single .m2ts file:

1. Launch tsMuxer
   
2. Click and drag the .m4v file into the tsMuxer window.
   
3. Click and drag the .wav file into the tsMuxer window.
   
4. Click the M2TS muxing option box.
   
5. Click the Start Muxing button.
   

Review your video file with the .m2ts file extension. Play the file using Media Player Classic - Home Cinema (MPCHC). VLC will also play the file, but you may notice that the colors might be slightly washed out.
Ensure that the entire file plays correctly before submitting your file.
For a video tutorial that follows these same instructions, go to the Resources folder in the Handouts
drive O:\ O:\Resources\_Video_Tutorials\Export-from-Adobe-Premiere-CS6-for-SCREENINGS.mp4

LEICA REEL SCREENING - ESSENTIAL INFO

SUBMISSION: 

Due to the Thanksgiving long-weekend, the Leica reel submission deadline will be:

7 am, Tuesday October 15

Note the early hour! This is essential to give Mario and his tech team enough time to prepare the BluRay disc for presentation. In effect it means that your reel has to be ready for submission the night before.

The short time before screening also means that there will be no time to make corrections to your video if there is a technical error.  Make sure your video file plays correctly,  BOTH SOUND & PICTURE  before you submit it!

The procedure for creating the appropriate BluRay-ready video file is on the Animation Wiki. Please consult it carefully before handing in your video file.


SCREENING:

The screening will take place in S235 at:

10 am, Wednesday, October 16

This is an hour earlier than our usual time slot! (We may need the extra time to allow room to present everyone's Leica.)

Note that this screening is mandatory and is graded. Showing your film in public, even in this early stage of development, is an essential part of the process!

WEEK 6 - GUEST LECTURE BY PETER BIELICKI - MENTOR GROUP LEICA REEL CRITIQUE

We're very lucky to have Peter Bielicki here this week to give us some ideas about visual design in his lecture and workshop on Guerrilla Design. The lecture as usual is at 11 am in S235, the workshop follows in the afternoon, 3 pm in A150. (Note the return to our usual time slot for the workshop.)

Peter has worked as a background designer and layout artist on such films as Disney's Pocahontas (1995), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Mulan (1998) and Atlantis:The Lost Empire (2001.)
Peter currently operates SHow Communications, which specializes in multi-media exhibit design; art direction and direction for live action; and animated educational film.

---

This is also a big week in your production timeline, because your Leica Reels are presented for a critique session in your Mentor Group meetings. Your Mentor will invite a guest to view the reels with you and offer constructive criticisms and story suggestions. It's an opportunity for a fresh point-of-view and maybe some new ideas to help solve problems in the story development and visual presentation.

A MUSIC SCORE for your Senior Animation Project

I recently received this email from a musician who would like to offer his scoring services for your film project. He's done some nice work for Sheridan students in the past. Take a look at his demo reel (at the link below, fast forward to the end, where the Sheridan projects are.)

Contact him at the address below if you'd like to explore further. Here's a good use for your freshly minted Leica Reel! 

(from Elliot)

I wanted to provide your students with the option of having their 4th year projects scored.  I've done this in the past for Sheridan students and others.   I was wondering about posting a flyer at the school or posting something online, specifically for your students, where I could make my services available.  If you could advise as to whether that is possible or how I would go about getting approval it would be much appreciated.  I've provided a link to my demo reel, as well as website, please feel free to watch.  

Demo Reel Link:

https://vimeo.com/76300373

Website Link:

elliottjmarshall.com

Thank you for your time, 

Elliott J. Marshall

647-876-7887

info@elliottjmarshall.com

elliottjmarshall.com

Master Class with Film Titles Designer Karin Fong

This just in from James Caswell:


BELL LIGHTBOX - Friday, November 8 from 11:00am to 12:30pm


Master Class with Film Titles Designer Karin Fong

Karin Fong joins post-secondary students and faculty for a behind-the-scenes look at the development of creative content for commercial advertising, digital and interactive platforms, feature films, and global brands. Her reel includes the main titles for Boardwalk Empire, Charlotte’s Web, The Pink Panther 2, Terminator: Salvation, Hellboy, and Ray. This event is a co-presentation with the Association of Registered Graphic Designers (RGD).



Jim has 10 tickets to this event. If you're interested, contact him at: jcaswell@caswelldesign.com

The Wonderful World of Color Keys

This week we have a new lecture by our very own Nancy Beiman on the subject of color design for animation. Titled "The Wonderful World of Color Keys" (a play on the title of the classic early color TV program, Walt Disney's Wonderful World of Color), Nancy's talk will investigate the use of color in animated cartoons past and present, including examples from classic designers Maurice Noble, Jules Engel, Ken O'Connor, Ty Wong and current Sheridan students.

Of particular interest to some of you will be Nancy's examples from a beautiful recently published book, The Noble Approach, by Ted Polson, based on the design notes of Maurice Noble, featuring artwork from such classic Warner Bros cartoons as What's Opera, Doc?



In addition, given that your Leica reels are due in a week or so, I'll give a quick guide to recording  a dialog scratch track using the resources available here at Sheridan, including the new high-quality, easy-to-use "Snowball" USB microphones that are availble for sign out.













Last but not least, the workshop this week will also be of interest to you as you design your film: A Character Design Critique by our own Peter Emslie. Bring your character designs to A150 for discussion, beginning at 4 pm (note the change of time!)

(Character design inspiration for an ugly animal?)

- bruno