Weekly comments! (Grease Photos!!)

Hey, gamers! There's no tea this week, but I have a few things to talk about!

So as you may have heard about, I played a greaser in the local production of "Grease!" Our closing night was tonight and it was such a brilliant performance! The cast party was amazing, too. I'll update this blog with photos once I get them from the CD. (Check the end of the blog! They're there now!)

This last week has been great, in all honesty. I was, however, frustrated over sicknesses, since my body insists on bleeding and getting sick either during or after every year's performance. Whether its the sudden dropoff in activity in performers or just the changing weather, it grabs hold of a ton of cast members, even the crew sometimes. I usually get over it in a few days, but last years was undeniably the worst. I was out for a good 4 days, missing school because of it, stuck with a sore throat, feeling dead and dry. Speaking of dryness, I believe that's the culprit for my nosebleeds, along with seasonal change, of course. In less humid areas, I usually feel either nauseous, tired, or crusty (pardon the language, it's the only way I can describe it) and most of the time when I'm a combination of two or more of those, I'm unsure whether to expect blood or the usual. Thank the heavens that the nurses were able to help me out in my most tragic times when I had fallen to the hands of a seasonal nosebleed, I don't know where I would be without their guiding, helpful words and rhetoric. 

Happiness in the week comes from new hobbies/interests and rediscovering old ones. I had gotten back into watching Game of Thrones, and needless to say, it's amazing. I cannot recommend it enough, just be warned that the contents are definitely not kid-friendly. Recently, I had been trying to pick up more craft ideas, such as sewing, embroidery or needle felting. The last one appears quite interesting to me, especially since characters of any color and size can be made given the right colors are available. The process is actually the most intriguing of the three, too, since the wool needs to be "felted" or stabbed into place with a hooked needle, creating a more compact, dense fabric. Didn't know one could just do such things. Almost like it's the magic of the fabric world. That, and the ability to dye fabric.

This week in class, we worked on our Final projects for the most part. I'm starting to get a grip on what needs to be done for mine, just working on creating cohesive backgrounds and such for now. Hope that everyone else is finding a comfortable flow in theirs as well.

I hope to learn more about the abilities presented to us with the new Adobe CC programs, especially Character Animator since it utilizes puppets to animate for the most part. I had intended to learn how to use puppet animation properly, and I have hopes that this program will make it easier than trying it in Harmony. I'm interested to see how next year plays out in terms of programs and workflow. Only time can tell, though!

(EDIT; 5-1-19) Okay, so here are some of the best photos overall from the performance! Enjoy!)

Art in Practice; Why it Matters in Animation

So as we as artists are always told, the key to getting better is practice! Studies have shown that we as humans learn better in smaller chunks and in repetition than in big pieces once in a while. This week in Blogscape Smackdown, we analyze "Practice Art and Animation" from AnimatorIsland (Ferdinand Englander) via YT. They explain in depth the ways to better your artistic and creative endeavors and habits in order to form a solidified understanding of your subjects and media. This comes in the form of 4 simple tips.

Tip One, as they explain it, is "Be Specific" with your studies. Englander describes how bigger, more vague goals are often too hard and too far-off to reach and are just recipes for intimidation. Identify what you need to improve, and begin with the basics of that part. I, for one, still struggle with drawing necks, torsos and midsections along with mouths. Something to consider here is that this definitely takes a ton of time, but also consider that your daily "work" in animation or illustration alone will only get you so far. Practicing what you feel is a weak point will hone your creative skills to make your improvement visible. Tip Two is to do just that, whether it be by using a sketchbook or a binder to hold your work. Using loose sheets of paper may mean you could lose the visual progress that may impress yourself and others around you. This establishment of prosperity is key to creating the drive for imaginative creativity in your artwork.

Tip Three is to set a schedule and create habits. There are artistic challenges like Inktober that are meant to create healthy artistic habits without too much stress, and that's always welcome in my house. Set aside a timeslot for just art and art alone. Daily practice may seem hard to keep up, but you will never know until you try. Tip Four; along with this, you should be logging your work; what you worked on, how long, how it went. This also means you should be practicing what is hard for you, not what you've already got locked down. There is a difference between seeing things and knowing how things look when you go to draw them; taking a closer look at things in both a metaphorical and literal sense could help you build your skills further. Logging your work (or documenting it in further detail) could help you in kickstarting your drive for the next day.

Englander provides a heaping helping of details and hands us creative tools towards the end that could help you on your journey. I've come across a few of these before, and although I was a bit timid back then, they would have definitely helped me along my track. Hopefully, you can find use in these programs and sites to level up your art. This blog is quite useful as a reminder of where to aim your creative energy, so I must extend my thanks to Englander for the information.

This week's link of interest comes from Clara Lieu; an Art professor at RISD. The focus an artist must have when nearing the end of their Senior year of high school usually arrives in the form of a portfolio. Stress and anxieties rise when this time for artistic evaluation comes around, but fear not! Lieu provides us with what you should and should not include in your portfolio- providing essential tips for a better overall shot at your dream college, including a variety of content as well as professional evaluations of student portfolios. Take a look if you've got some spare time.

Weekly comments #10, Tea update!

Hey everyone! These last weeks have been undoubtedly rough on me, but as I was reminded, it was mostly self-induced. My workload has been tough, but it's a week away from being lifted. How're you all doing?

We began our Final animations last week; gathering research, data, resources, whatnot. Not much new was learned aside from new experience with voice acting and opportunities for auditions in our peers' animations. Personally, I learned more in-depth on what next year could be like. I've taken precaution to ensure I have enough wiggle room to execute my ideas thoroughly in accordance with deadlines of all kinds with my scheduling, so Senior year shouldn't be so stressful.

 I'd love to learn more on composition and more complex techniques, but I know we'll be getting into that next year. I'm working on an attempt at a comic, a first for me. Ironically enough, it's on burnout and caffeine abuse. Yay! I also plan on getting back into the grooves of inkwork since I adored how my art from Inktober came out, it's just that my fountain pen isn't too spiffy right now.

A few things that have frustrated me over the course of time have made themselves much more apparent as of recent. I'm still feeling around for the handle on managing my time, but the swift hammer of responsibility came crashing down on me this week especially with the Musical, my AP classes and animation deadlines coming at me at top velocity, armed to the teeth with laser blasters and electrified knives. I'll get over it sooner or later, preferably sooner.

I gained the courage to come out to my musical directors, which hopefully influenced them to make changes to their language use from here on out. I was somewhat surprised over the course of my transition to find out that the science and English teachers almost always understood 100% of the time, with a few exceptions, of course. Their main goal as teachers is not to accommodate, but to educate and be educated. Things take time, but I'm happy to know I have people-- teachers and teen friends alike, who are with me in this.

For the link of interest, here's a blog that inspired me to do more with my work. It was a "swift kick in the teeth", but an effective one.

A joke link for Licata, Taylor, and Jaden; some nice ASMR.


For those interested in the Tea Update;
Markus Persson has had every mention of him removed from Minecraft. He's had major backlash for his tweets and people began seeing how much of an uncivil person he is. Nice moves, Microsoft. Remember that just because Notch made the game, it doesn't mean you can't enjoy it. Microsoft owns it, so he can't change anything. Take it as you will, but IMO, I think this is a win for activism in the gaming community. So, as a closing note to Notch; Herobrine says "Trans Rights"  :^]

Pixar Magic; Lighting up your world.

This time on Blogscape Smackdown, we investigate our second TED talk of the year, hosted by Danielle Feinberg: "The magic ingredient that brings Pixar movies to life". This is a deep dive into the creative imagination of a Pixar animator who grew up wanting to take part in the artistic side of sciences and coding- realizing her potential the minute she was introduced to 3D animation. Feinberg takes a particular liking to the lighting aspect of animation due to how it can make or break a scene and often is the key factor in creating the illusion of realism in animation. Here is an analysis of her speech.

The parts of lighting in 3D animation that make the job worth it for Feinberg is the moment when all the pieces fall into place to create the vivid worlds she imagines. From a few lines and faces into a myriad of creativity, her passionate spark is lit ablaze when the scene sprouts alive. The artist in her truly never gets old of this "Wow, I helped make this" moment, and I don't blame her. She explains that lighting has many different uses; such as to tell a story, tell the time of day, tell what emotions are being conveyed in the scene, to draw the viewer's eye, to differentiate a character from a busy set, etc. There's so much creative power to lighting that remains untapped to amateur animators that often takes years to master. The sheer amount of imaginative freedom that can take place inside an animator's computer can become chaotic at times, which leads us to her next point.

Science is always a go-to for grounding unbelievable ideas and animations-- a backbone of sorts to keep things "tethered", as to not fly over the audiences' collective heads. The example Feinberg uses is "Finding Nemo", in which the studio had to do extensive research into the sciences of oceanic movement before even animating. Things such as how the light travels through the water, the invisible currents that move particulate around underneath the surface, how red and green light fade with depth-- the sciences of the ocean are used not only to convey realism but also to help establish shots, she explains, since fog beams were used to hint to the direction of "up" in shots where the surface wasn't in sight. Combining these sciences created the aquatic magic of the scenes here since the combination of invisible currents bending particulate in and out of the fog beams creates a realistic vibe that is both relatable and quirky, fitting in nicely with the story itself. Feinberg explains that tethering your creative limits won't always lead to epiphanies since they (Pixar) had to bend reality to create a believable world that the audience could immerse themselves in-- cranking up the realistic visibility of water to convey a theme, adjusting colors to fit the certain moods an area or scene has, so on. The goal of animation is to create something you and an audience can enjoy and relate to; not something hyperrealistic. We see that every day already. One of the hardships Pixar ran into while working on "Wall-E" was his binocular lenses, which were his only way of acting and conveying emotion. They realized that the way they had him set up, he always appeared glassy-eyed; a hard selling point for any audience that's looking for human qualities. They fidgeted with it forever until they created a light specifically for Wall-E that reflected off of his aperture blades, creating humanesque irises in his lenses. This, ultimately, sold him as a robot with a soul. A robot capable of human emotion. We look for human-like qualities in animation that we relate to. It's ultimately what drives animation; that search for the perfect mix of humanistic realism and fictional sciences that spark millions of forking paths in an animator's psyche. The great thing about this is they were able to utilize the glassiness of his binoculars in a later scene where they had to sell the idea of lifelessness in Wall-E. It worked extraordinarily well, and the movie benefitted greatly from the discovery of this accidental light.

There came a stage in "Finding Nemo" where the entire team struggled. This was the jellyfish scene, one based almost indefinitely on a real-world clip of South African jellyfish. The problem with this scene was that the tether Feinberg explained prior began strangling them when all they were able to focus on were the percentages and data- the sciences; rather than the arts, the beauty of what life brings. She decided to dive deep into the scene when it came time for her and ended up doing the impossible for the team. The moment, she describes, is what she lives for when it comes to her job, her animations, her lighting, and passion; the moment everything, specifically the sciences and arts weave together to give life to a scene and wow everyone in the room. The moment where a scientist also becomes an artist. The moment where you know you can't let this go.

The arts and sciences of this world are astounding to think about, especially on your own. I really enjoyed Feinberg's speech on the intermingling of these ideas. The insight she offers into only an aspect of animation alone gives us all the notion that animation of all kinds can create miraculous spectacles when put to good practice. I remember loving the movie "Coraline" growing up, and I believe it's for this reason. The combination of lighting and dark themes along with the happy-go-luckiness of claymation made for a beautiful endeavor 11-year-old me couldn't get enough of. Although claymation isn't my thing personally, the introduction to animation at a young age definitely inspired me with later projects. The tether of sciences we place on animation often is viewed as a line to cross, but we need not forget the importance of a tether. Without it, we overshoot, we lose sight; grip. We need the line to reel us back in from our flow before we get lost in it and burn out. Find that happy medium and run with it.