The Making of Project #3 (Part 2)

Our team arranged to meet up so we could all combine our individual footage together and form the making of video. I was very satisfied with the diversity seen in the other members' work, as we all seemed to go in different directions in what visual input we decided to put to our audio, which I think will make the making of video be a lot more entertaining as it shows show each of us tackle tasks differently, and how we have used that to our advantage. One of the concerns that I had with my addition to our project, was that I wasn't able to get the humour which I tend to incorporate into most my works, so I was very satisfied when I saw Rowena's clip had a lot of humorous visuals implemented over the clip of us explaining how everything went wrong. Dale's 3D animation was a very essential addition as it offers a huge variance in what me and Rowena had to offer.

Us editing the making of video on After Effects

The main goal of this session was to see how well our animations linked together, and make what we can of the making of, making note of any additional work which needed to carried out for the final product. Because of the fact that we went off to do our own thing for the project, we thought it was important to contribute to the making of video together, so that it is a reflection of all our work, not just one of us assessing, ordering and presenting the other members' work. I am very happy that I was able to do so this time, as due to communication issues in my previous project, I feel as though I wasn't able to fully gather my other team member's thoughts and opinions on how to make the making of video, therefore making the video not get the full story in terms of the thought processes and production methods of both members. After a while of editing, we made a basic outline of how we wished the video to play out, however this was when we noticed the issue, which was the camera cutting out when we got to the part of the video, where we discuss what each of us regards as an outsider.

We couldn't afford to loose this part of the discussion, as it was an essential part of the brief and caused us a lot of issues so it was without a doubt needed to be addressed in the making of. As the audio was still in tact, I opted to add another visual addition to the piece to occupy the place where the video would have gone. From the previous exercise in this project, I realised how much enjoyment I got out of producing caricatures, so I decided to draw each of the team members as whatever the perceive an outsider to be.

My illustration for my definition of an outsider

I started off with mine. An outsider means to me someone who has views and experiences different from my own. I chose to represent this through me staring curiously at someone from a third-world country, who is also staring curiously back at me. I drew this because I would have had a completely different life than a subject such as this, and observers will be able to gather this by nothing more than the designs of the characters.

My illustration for Rowena's definition of an outsider

For Rowena's definition, she thought of an outsider as someone who is simply an outcast. For this one, I took into deep consideration lighting and the effect it would have on the piece. Whereas on my initial illustration, very vibrant colours were used as I intended it to be light-hearted, in this instance I made use of darkened shadows and shading to emphasize the loneliness of the Rowena in the foreground, with the light originating from the silhouettes of the people in the background, thus representing that they're on the lighter side. Not only did I draw Rowena excluded from the group to show her definition of an outsider, but I also altered  her posture so that it is more of a closed expression by having her grip her arm, thus showing that her definition of an outsider would typically be shy and reserved.

My illustration for Dale's definition of an outsider

As Dale lacked a speaking role in the section that I animated, a caricature of him wasn't created, therefore I had to draw one specifically for this drawing, which as I stated earlier, I enjoy doing. Dale thought of an outsider as someone who is not directly connected to the story, so for his drawing, I drew him reading out loud from a look, therefore he is simply retelling an already established story. I included a reference to his initial idea on the front of the book that he is reading.

I never thought I would have said this, but I am happy that part of the video was cut off, because if it hadn't, I think that we would have been satisfied with leaving the video of us talking to run through this entire segment, thus resulting in a much less inspired making of video, plus I got the opportunity to practice more with caricatures. Rowena also added a segment of typography animation of us all stressing after realising the video stopped recording, providing yet another alternative to the video footage.

After all the work necessary was completed, the video was then finalised and rendered, the result of which was be viewed below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YlUQx3YJZ8&feature=youtu.be

I aren't pleased with the fact that we were unable to produce a product which would stand alone outside of the making of video, as in the past two projects in this 'making of' module, I have produced outcomes which can be enjoyed without the need of understanding the context and watching it in a making of video. Due to the non-scripted audio, I feel that at time we all don't manage to clearly communicate out point as effectively, so although some improvisational dialogue may be effective when showing ideas being generated, sometimes a scripted explanation will communicate better to the audience. 

Saying this however, it was very refreshing to make a 'making of' video in a different style than what was utilised in my previous two, as I already feel that due to the feedback on my initial video, the following, second making of video communicated very effectively the process of designing and manufacturing the product, so learning a new way to communicate this process would be a beneficial experience. This links me back to the 'map making' tasks at the start of the module, as there we explored alternative ways of communicating a journey, just like what I have done in this most recent making of. The video itself, I feel is a lot more interesting than the previous two making ofs, despite it being less informative, which is most likely due to it's experimental and playful nature, which forms what I find to be a very entertaining five minutes. Contrary to what I thought, all our different styles worked together well, and opened an insight into our styles for the audience, but it's just a shame all our animations (which turned out brilliantly) cannot be enjoyed outside of this context of 'making of', but at least it has helped us develop our skills. I feel like my team have very effectively worked around our initial issue of not understanding the brief, which I am very happy about. 

Overall, I am satisfied with the film that my team managed to make, and think we have all worked equally and fairly on it, with easy communication to one another making discussion a lot more effective. Despite all the negatives I have mentioned, this has been an experience in following a specific brief, problem solving, teamwork and of course animation. Next time, I will ensure to read the brief carefully before selecting it, and try and make a product which can be universally enjoyed.