Monday, January 27, 2014

Effects Animation Drop-In Session with Trevor Davies - Tuesday 10 am, A161

Do you have fire, rain, snow or water in your film? Do you need to add a glow, sparkle or other special effect to a scene?   Come to A161 (the Technologist Office - Studio area) and sit down with Trevor Davies to explore the best software techniques to use in animating these various Effects challenges.  Tomorrow (Tuesday, Jan.27) from 10 am to Noon.


Wednesday's Spotting Session - Meeting With U of T Musicians

This Wednesday (Jan. 29)  both the lecture and the workshop are given over to finalizing your music plans for your Senior Project film through the Spotting Session with the U of T musicians.  The day will proceed according as follows:

12 noon - Gather in S235 for a preliminary meeting, including a screening of projects from previous years.  I will also attempt to create a personal meeting schedule between the various U of T musicians and yourselves.

appr. 12:45 pm - we will move en masse to the 4th Year Studio, where you can sit down with your musician at a workstation and review your Leica Reel / Pose Reel, discussing the type of music you want, and just as importantly, where you want it in your film. Bring headphones! TAKE NOTES!

3-4 pm  - The U of T musicians return to Toronto.


Preparation:
Please review the following list to make sure that you and your partner have a mutual understanding about  working on your project. I have done my best to update it according to information sent by yourselves and the U of T students, but be prepared for some surprises on the day:  http://sheridan4thyear.blogspot.ca/2014/01/music-partnership-list.html

Make sure you have an up-to-date Leica Reel (or better, your Pose Reel with your workflow test shot cut into place.) A temp Music track is a good thing as it focuses the conversation and may serve as a guide to the composer.  Be prepared to give your musician a copy of the video file to take away. Bring a good quality pair of headphones and be prepared to share them with your partner.


Special Note to Students NOT participating in the U of T Collaboration:
The 4th Year Studio will be quite busy and crowded for a few hours on Wednesday afternoon, so you might find it easiest to just stay away until later in the day. If you really want to work in the studio,  please be generous with the space and equipment  for these few hours on Wednesday afternoon.







Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Video - Sound Design of The Desolation of Smaug

Here's a nice little (less than 10 minutes) documentary about the sound for The Desolation Of Smaug. At first it's a little heavy on the "Golly, aren't we wonderful!", but makes some interesting points later, especially about the interweaving of dialogue, music & sound effects. (starting at 2:43).

Here are a few other sections that relate to topics we've discussed in our sound design work:

2:43 - blending of dialogue, music and sound effects elements
3:36 - the voice of Smaug - relationship of dialogue and sound effects
4:40 - relationship of music & sound effects
8:08 - picture must leave time for sound!







Monday, January 20, 2014

The Business of Animation & A Workshop with ToonBoom

As usual, this week we have a lot going on at BA Animation 4th Year. For the lecture on Wednesday morning we have not just one but three guests, followed by two special events courtesy of ToonBoom Animation.    



The Lecture (11 am, S235): 

First up is Tony Tarantini, who will give us a quick update on the preparations for Industry Day. This is a short presentation, as Tony will give a much more in-depth look at Industry Day in a few weeks. 

Next up is a special visitor, Josh Bowen from Bite On Mondo (http://mondo.bite.ca), an online animation series. Josh is interested in your story ideas, character designs, and series pitches, in fact, he's interested in just about anything you have that Bite On Mondo might be able to use in its online shows. But be sure to read the fine print, because the devil is in the details! 

What concerns me is some of the legalistic text in the "Agreement" page of the website, in particular the "Waiver on use of similar or identical material" (page 2.)    Basically, it says that your creative material is not unique or even original. While that may or may not be true, it seems to be written into the "Agreement" in order to forestall any legal complaint from you should your creative material mysteriously appear in animated videos on the Bite On Mondo website. 


Last but not least, we have the renowned James Caswell, who will offer us the fruit of his years of experience in the animation business. Perhaps he has dealt with Bite On Mondo or similar organizations and can provide some insight into their methods?





The Workshop (2 pm, A150)

We have a special guest from ToonBoom presenting some of the interesting things their software makes possible. In their words:

The Toon Boom Pipeline, a review of how Toon Boom products are being used in current studio workflows (i.e. Nelvana & Mercury). The focus will be on how Harmony and Storyboard Pro's advanced features are allowing studios to push the envelope of traditional/tradigital animation. 


The Sales Pitch (6 pm, location TBA, but I'm guessing S235) 

6-7:30 - Open session - Toon Boom product review with a focus on new features and tools in Harmony 10. Lilly with share how Ari Folman used Harmony in his 2013 live action/animation film "The Congress".  This is usually a talk that also allows opportunity for Q&A.

Offer of Character Voices for your Film

Sheridan BAA grad and voice actor Tara Burke has generously offered her vocal services for the character voices of your films.

Tara has acquired a lot of experience in doing broadcast voice work, as you can hear in her demo reels:

Tara Burke Animation Demo 

Tara Burke Commercial Demo


You can contact Tara at:

tarajburke@gmail.com



Thursday, January 16, 2014

MUSIC PARTNERSHIP LIST

This is where I will attempt to maintain an accurate list of the current Sheridan - U of T music partnerships. The list is sorted alphabetically by Sheridan student last name. Please note this page for future reference.

For complete contact information for the UT Musicians (and their demo reels) please refer to this post:  http://sheridan4thyear.blogspot.ca/2013/11/u-of-t-music-student-demo-reels-and.html




SHERIDAN                   UT MUSIC            DEMO (Feb. 16)   FINAL (March 30)
  1. Melissa Allen         Monika Gurak
  2. Sanaz Aslostovar      Dylan Bell
  3. Vince Bruni           Tze Yeung Ho          
  4. Stanley Chan          Colleen Anderson
  5. Kar Mun Chang         Robert Taylor
  6. Miranda Dawn          Joshua Denenberg
  7. Tig Dixon             Colin Sandquist
  8. Elizabeth Estee       Colleen Anderson, Roydon Tse (??)
  9. Kai Tik Fong          Monica Gurak 
  10. Joy Fu                Robert Taylor (?)
  11. Branden Garland       Robert Taylor (?)  
  12. Maurine Good          Victor Vrankulj
  13. Dani Gosselin         Shaghayegh Rajabi     
  14. Yacheng Guo           Dylan Bell
  15. Rachel Hand           Colin Sandquist
  16. Meagan Harris         Kenzie Yango        
  17. Alex Henderson        Mandy Woo           
  18. Dayna Ibarra          Robert Taylor
  19. Katie Jones           Mandy Woo
  20. Angela Aki Lee        Bryan Gilmartin
  21. Cheryl Lee            Roydon Tse
  22. Colin Lepper          Babak Taghinia
  23. Jean Liang            Babak Taghinia
  24. Ailin Liu             Dylan Bell
  25. Kay Ketong Liu        Roydon Tse          
  26. Melissa Lyn           Britta Johnson
  27. Nick Motrich          Kenzie Yango (?)
  28. Sophie Nasr           Robert Taylor (?)
  29. Dan Neal              Robert Taylor
  30. Lili Nguyen           Britta Johnson  
  31. Elena Quast           Kenzie Yango    
  32. Miranda Quesnel       Joe Wu
  33. Angela Chuchen Pan    Mandy Woo
  34. Natalie Pasko         Dylan Bell
  35. Dominique Paynter     Joe Wu
  36. Charlie Richards      Joshua Denenberg
  37. Matthew Scott         Victor Vrankulj  (?)     
  38. Xiaotang Shao         Lindsay Foote
  39. Jordan Shereck        Shaghayegh Rajabi
  40. Nelizza Silva         Kenzie Yango
  41. Alicia Spilka         Kenzie Yango (?)       
  42. mattieau.st.cyr       Tze Yeung Ho        
  43. Cheryl Lee Ann Ting   Roydon Tse
  44. Isabella Tse          Roydon Tse
  45. Dhrumit Variya        Mandy Woo
  46. Kelley Wu             Joshua Denenberg
  47. Lisa Yan              Kenzie Yango
  48. Gary Ye               Victor Vrankulj  (?)
  49. Miranda Yeo           Joshua Denenberg  
  50. Jenna Yu              Robert Taylor  
  51. Kevin Zaw             Monika Gurak 
  52. Yuanli (Annie) Zhang  Mark Ballyk   (?)
  53. Hao Zhang             Kenzie Yango       
  54. Dakota Zima           Colleen Anderson
  55. Cecelia Zeng          Lindsay Foote





Here is the same list sorted by composer: 


Babak Taghinia         Colin Lepper          
Babak Taghinia         Jean Liang            
Britta Johnson         Melissa Lyn           
Britta Johnson   Lili Nguyen           
Bryan Gilmartin        Angela Aki Lee        
Colin Sandquist        Tig Dixon    
Colin Sandquist        Rachel Hand    
Colleen Anderson Stanley Chan          
Colleen Anderson Dakota Zima           
Colleen Anderson       Elizabeth Estee  (with Roydon Tse?)
Dylan Bell             Sanaz Aslostovar      
Dylan Bell             Yacheng Guo           
Dylan Bell             Ailin Liu             
Dylan Bell             Natalie Pasko         
Joe Wu                 Miranda Quesnel       
Joe Wu                 Dominique Paynter     
Joshua Denenberg Miranda Dawn          
Joshua Denenberg Charlie Richards      
Joshua Denenberg Kelley Wu             
Joshua Denenberg     Miranda Yeo           
Kenzie Yango           Nelizza Silva         
Kenzie Yango           Lisa Yan              
Kenzie Yango     Elena Quast           
Kenzie Yango         Meagan Harris         
Kenzie Yango         Alicia Spilka   (uncertain)      
Kenzie Yango     Nick Motrich    (uncertain)            
Kenzie Yango      Shelly (no  last name)
Kenzie Yango      Hao Zhang
Lindsay Foote          Xiaotang Shao         
Lindsay Foote          Cecelia Zeng          
Mandy Woo              Angela Chuchen Pan    
Mandy Woo           Alex Henderson 
Mandy Woo              Dhrumit Variya    
Mandy Woo              Katie Jones
Mark Ballyk         Yuanli (Annie) Zhang  (?)
Monica Gurak          Kai Tik Fong          
Monika Gurak           Melissa Allen         
Monika Gurak          Kevin Zaw             
Robert Taylor          Dayna Ibarra          
Robert Taylor          Dan Neal
Robert Taylor          Jenna Yu    (?)           
Robert Taylor     Joy Fu          (uncertain)       
Robert Taylor     Sophie Nasr     (uncertain)       
Robert Taylor          Branden ( Garland?) (uncertain)
Robert Taylor          Kar Mun (Carmen)Chang (?)      
Roydon Tse             Cheryl Lee            
Roydon Tse             Cheryl Lee Ann Ting 
Roydon Tse             Elizabeth Estee (doubled! - please check)  
Roydon Tse             Isabella Tse          
Roydon Tse           Kay Ketong Liu        
Shaghayegh Rajabi Jordan Shereck
Shaghayegh Rajabi Dani Gosselin        
Tze Yeung Ho         mattieau.st.cyr       
Tze Yeung Ho           Vince Bruni           
Victor Vrankulj       Matthew Scott  (?)
Victor Vrankulj        Gary Ye (?)     
Victor Vrankulj        Maurine Good (?)     
       

Monday, January 13, 2014

The Art of the Music Spotting Session

In three weeks the U of T musicians will be visiting us, with their purpose in mind being specifically to work out the details of the musical score for your film. This important meeting between film-maker  and composer is traditionally known as the the "Music Spotting Session."

To help you prepare for this meeting, Wednesday's Lecture and Workshop are both oriented to an explanation of the Music Spotting Session.

A while ago I wrote the music for Chris Walsh's short stop-motion film,  True Family Story.  We recognized our collaboration as a "teachable moment", so I saved the files I created as the score developed. These files now make a very  effective demonstration of the collaborative process between a film-maker and a composer.

During the lecture (11 am, S235) I'll walk you through the three stages of the Music Spotting process as it took place in Chris's film, as well as play for you some famous and not-so-famous historical examples of "Temp Music" and musical scores.

The 2 pm workshop (A150) gives you a chance to "spot" your own film with me and the other students. Consider it practice for the real spotting session with the U of T musicians when they visit on January 29.

Free Pizza. Also, meet the Deans...

Just received this post from FAAD Administration:

"This year we are launching a new forum for FAAD students to come meet each other and their dean / associate deans over pizza lunch. We are also calling it "open mic" to give everyone a chance to share news, info and aspirations for our "art school" within a school.

Please notify your students of this event, and join us on Tuesday, January 21 at noon in Theatre Sheridan."



Monday, January 6, 2014

4th Year Winter Semester - Welcome Back

4TH YEAR WINTER SEMESTER OVERVIEW

The winter term is devoted to your film’s development, but this semester’s secondary purpose is to prepare you for the “real world”. Thus, lectures and workshops will address not only production issues, but also concerns such as small business management, legal considerations for artists, development insights for animation projects, and panel discussions with recent grads to gain perspectives into what lies ahead, once you’re done school.

As with the Fall semester, there are 3 main components.

1. LECTURES - Wed. 11-1, SCAET theatre
- production issues, and a range of “real world” topics

2. WORKSHOPS - Wed., 2-4, A150 and/or A151
- production issues, and a range of “real world” topics

3. MENTOR MEETINGS - various rooms and times
- to support production



Academic Advisor and Course Lead:
Bruno Degazio
Academic Advising Hours:
Tuesday, 3-4, Thursday 12-2, or by appointment
bruno.degazio@sheridancollege.ca
Extension 2306



4TH YEAR COURSE HANDBOOK - WINTER SEMESTER

The handbook is available as a hard copy for each student, and on this link. This handbook is ESSENTIAL for you this year. All of your Milestone assignments are found there, and all master tech. spec. info as well.

As revealed by this outline, 4th year classes are largely made up of guest presentations. For that reason the schedule will change, to allow us to include guests that become suddenly available, or that are only in town for a brief time. The schedule may also change in response to production needs of the students.

Milestone due dates are stated below, but refer to the 4th yr course handbook for ALL specifics of milestones. Obviously, your mentor will also clarify what he/she expects of you, in terms of assignments.

It’s safe to assume each week’s lecture will also include general updates for 4th year in terms of academics and production, even if not noted in the outline below. Hence, if you don’t attend lectures, you won’t be up on the latest info (and your marks and film will suffer).



Winter 2014 - Lectures, Workshops & Milestones

WINTER 2014 - TOPICAL OUTLINE

Week 1 - Jan. 8
Lecture:  Advanced Colour Design, For 4th Year Films -  Mike Hitchcox 
Workshop: Advanced Colour Design - Mike Hitchcox

Dailies begin - Milestone 1: (Weeks 2-11)



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Week 2 - Jan. 15
Lecture: Approaches To Spotting Sessions For Soundtracks - Bruno Degazio
Copyright Fair Use - Bruno Degazio

Workshop: Spotting Session Q&A - Bruno Degazio
Bring your Films to this workshop for a spotting session try-out before the UT musicians show up. 
MILESTONE 2: 
  • 2D:   Scene Workflow Test; 
  • 3D:   Rigs/Aerobics Test; 
  • Stop Motion: Scene Workflow Test


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Week 3 - Jan.22
Lecture: 
11 am - Update on Industry Day - Tony Tarantini
12 noon - Animation Business Basics- Jim Caswell

Workshop:  ToonBoom Animation software - (with special guest from ToonBoom Inc.)

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Week 4 - Jan. 29
Lecture: U of T Musicians come to Sheridan for spotting session, details TBA 
Workshop: U of T here for spotting session, continued



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Week 5 - Feb. 5
Lecture: Inspired Acting PART 2: A Study of Great Moments From Great Actors - Stephen Barnes

Workshop: Character Animation: Insights and Critiques - Workshop Leader: Stephen Barnes (tent.)



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Week 6 - Feb. 12
Lecture: Indie Gaming Industry Insights - Miguel Sternberg, Spooky Squid Games Inc.
- NB - Miguel starts at Noon. 

Workshop: Adobe Flash Q&A - Colin Smith, Adobe Inc. (tent.)

MILESTONE 3
  • 2D- 100% Rough Animation
  • 3D- Key Poses and Render Test
  • Stop Motion: 20% Completed Animation





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Week 7 - Feb. 19
Lecture: The Smartist: Ninja Networking For Artists - Ben McEvoy (√) 
Workshop: Self- Promotion In The Animation Industry - Ben McEvoy

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS THIS WEEK:
  • Mentor Meetings  - Guest Critique for Rough Animation
  • Demo Music track due from U of T 




BREAK WEEK - Feb. 23





Week 8 - March 5
Lecture: Rough Animation Screening (NB - starts at 10 am ) 
Workshop: Adobe Flash Workshop - Amir Avni


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Week 9 - March 12
Lecture: The Animation Industry: Self-Promotion -  Brandon Scott (creator of Justin Time)
Workshop: General Portfolio Review - Brandon Scott

MILESTONE 4

  • 2D -100% Cleaned Animation
  • 3D -  50% Completed Animation
  • Stop Motion: 90% Completed Animation

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Week 10 - March 19
Lecture: TBA 
Workshop:   Adobe After Effects Q&A - Colin Smith, Adobe Inc. 


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Week 11 - March 26
Lecture:  Creative Ownership - Graham Peddie (Sullivan Entertainment) - tent. 
Workshop: Transmedia and Why It Matters To You - Jason Thompson (TBA)


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Week 12 - April 2
Lecture: Promoting Your Finished Film: Festivals and Distribution - Chris Walsh
Preparation for Industry Day -  Tony Tarantini - 
Assignment of Student Stations for Industry Day

Workshop: TBA 

Other Highlights This Week: Final Music track delivery from U of T musicians
MILESTONE  5: Finished Film

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Week 13 - April 9
Lecture: Screening of Finished Films (NB - starts at 10 am)
Workshop: TBA 



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Week 14 - April 16
Lecture: Life After Industry Day - Graduate Panel Discussion
Workshop: Portfolio Review - tent. 

MILESTONE 6 -  

  • Portfolio Flat Artwork & Demo Reel,
  • Film Promo Pack


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INDUSTRY DAY - Thursday April 24 - Friday April 25