Charlotte's CG Arts and Animation Blog

@ Phil Draft Script

2012-02-16T09:46:00.000-08:00

Voice Over Script Draft 1

Hi Phil here's a draft version of my script. It still needs a lot of work though.

Texture Tests

2012-02-08T05:03:00.000-08:00

In an attempt to get to grips on how I can make my world feel and look as if De Chirico himself made it, I gave the Toon Shader a test. It was also influenced after seeing Jordan (a fellow student) blog. The ideas was to see if I can get a balance between the 'flat' appearance of his images and a 3D space.

@Phil: Major Project Proposal

2012-02-06T13:00:00.001-08:00

Major Project Proposal: De Chirico

My major project proposal. I wouldn't mind some feed back in terms of 'where to go from the start of the idea'.

Logo Idea 2

2012-02-02T09:01:00.000-08:00

Was told that the est idea was to stick with silhouettes. So to try and push the idea tried the silhouette with gray rather than black and white.

Logo Idea

2012-02-02T04:55:00.000-08:00

A quick idea of a logo design. Tom suggested I used my Knight character and so I've been experimenting with different colour schemes. Also included a few of the designs with the + and - as that's a main symbol associated with me. However not quite sure which one works best if any.

Project Purpose

2012-02-01T06:11:00.001-08:00

Just a few things I'm looking at to help me create a solid idea for my De Chirico world. They're mainly for me to be able to find all my ideas in one place. Will tidy this post up later when my idea is solid.

This is a rough idea of what I could use as the basis of my project on. This was created by a guy on the course I did in college and is a virtual tour of Canterbury College campus.

De Chirico

2012-01-31T05:32:00.001-08:00

A proper proposal will be posted by the end of the week ready for Monday but for now here's a rough outline as I need to refine some ideas. My idea is to create a 3D wodl where the audience can get closer to De Chirico's work. The audience will be able to see round certain corners such as the one seen in the bottom left hand image on the influence map

Things I need to think abuot

How to show the world with a meaning on why the camera is there

A voice over track

Brand for sucha project

A Knight's Journey: Final Animation

2012-01-19T14:42:00.000-08:00

Animation Comps

2012-01-19T11:15:00.000-08:00

All rendered scenes for my animation, all comped and read to go for deadline.

Making Of PDF

2012-01-19T08:24:00.000-08:00

The Mappa Mundi

My Making Of, ready to be included in the PDF version of my blog for the project deadline.

CD Desgn

2012-01-14T16:18:00.000-08:00

CD Template design. Had trouble with this to, but then inspiration suddenly took hold. Hate it when an idea forms at the back of your mind but you can't quite grasp it.

Animation Part 2

2012-01-10T14:39:00.000-08:00

Needs timing sorting out and I need to give the horse some movement. Also I had to re think having the camera so high above the board. My background kept on getting in the way. I was told to keep the short of a close up of the horse to see details by Tom. Having done this, a few problems seem to have been cleared up.

Making Of Book : Arived

2012-01-10T12:08:00.000-08:00

As the title says, my making of book finally arrived today. :)

Heaven Test Renders

2012-01-07T04:07:00.000-08:00

Been an interesting week. A mixture of good and bad moments. Good, in terms of work flow and bad in terms of my laptop screen and tablet pen have broken. The laptop is still usable, but I need to use a different screen to use it. But enough of that, below are some test shots of the design for heaven.

To Hell

2012-01-04T11:29:00.000-08:00

Texture for Hell. Tried to make it look all fiery and burning wood etc. Not a nice place to go.

Animation Part 1

2012-01-03T07:41:00.000-08:00

I've finally started animating. A few things still need texturing or the texture tweaking, but I wanted to make a start to take advantage of the time I have to do so.

Making Of

2012-01-02T03:46:00.001-08:00

Just a short update on my Making Of. I sent off for my book and it should be here in a week or so (roughly by the 13th)

@ Alan

2011-12-29T10:27:00.000-08:00

Hi Alan

When showing me how to tidy up the geometry on my Knight character, what window did you open which shows you what's wrong on a model? Was it something which can be used in 2010?

@ Phil: Title Ideas

2011-12-29T09:11:00.000-08:00

A few title ideas for you to work with. Hope there's enough

Mappa Mundi: Dires Irae

Mappa Mundi: A Knight's Journey

A Knight's Journey

Mappa Mundi: To Judgment Day

To Heaven or Hell

Finished Texturing

2011-12-29T08:03:00.000-08:00

Added a bump map to my Knight as well as some lighting ready for some renders for my 'Making of'

Ride Like the Wind to the After Life

2011-12-28T04:21:00.000-08:00

Next up, the texture needed to represent Hell.

Knight Character: Texture Base

2011-12-26T12:18:00.000-08:00

After a nice little break over Christmas it's time to get back to work (and put the nose to the grindstone). Finally got a layer down for the base of the Knight's texture down as well as the Servant's. Both need touched added to them to make them look less samey

Had to use UV sets along with the relationship editor to apply my texture to the Knight.

Merry Christmas: Mappa Mundi Style

2011-12-25T13:17:00.000-08:00

Just a rough thing I put together using some basic renders (nothing brilliant). Rather inspired by watching the series final of Merlin the other night.

Knight Character: Rig Compleate

2011-12-22T14:39:00.000-08:00

After what has felt like forever, my character is now ready for animation. Had a few problems (mainly with the horse's neck) but all fixed now. Feel really pleased (if I'm allowed to say so). My first official character modeled, skinned and rigged.

@ Phil: Animation Name

2011-12-19T13:01:00.000-08:00

Hi Phil

I need some help coming up with a title for my animation. Any ideas?

Knight Character Skinned Re Edited

2011-12-18T06:36:00.000-08:00

Ok a lie, turns out there were a few problems with the original skinning. However all fixed now. Am also flying through the rig for my Knight character. It's safe to say I prefer rigging than skinning.

Knight Character Skinned

2011-12-16T04:27:00.001-08:00

After a bit of a struggle, I've finally managed to skin the horse and Knight. All that is left now (Which I aim to get done by either the end of the day or the weekend) is to put in some basic rig controlls so I can animate. Rather pleased with this as I'm not too good with skinning and the last time I did something like this it was all the way back in the second year. So overall very pleased with the outcome.

Knight Model: UV Layout

2011-12-14T04:51:00.000-08:00

After having to go back and just clean up my model a little, the UV's for my knight character are finally laid out. Next up, creating joints (which I've already mapped out) and then onto rigging, which I'm rather excited about even if it's not a fun job. It will be my first official rig since learning how to do so in the second year. Hopefully I'll be able to start animating at the beginning of the holidays. I'll texture my knight during the holidays so I can switch between animating and texturing

Preparing to Rig

2011-12-11T12:44:00.000-08:00

After tweaking the geometry of my Knight figure, it's finally time to put in joints ready for rigging as well as laying out the UV's. Below is where I've roughed out the joints using the horse anatomy tutorial Alan put up (below).

Rough Renders

2011-12-06T02:39:00.000-08:00

Though it time for an update. Plus I've been meaning to do a sheet like this with the objects I've got so far in my scene (though now looking at it I've realized I've missed out the flag and swords). Just some rough renders to show how far my knight has progressed (and with a temporary texture which Tom put on). Aim to have this character ready for rigging by Wednesday or Thursday at the latest so I have a week to use incase of problems.

Test Renders

2011-12-01T14:39:00.000-08:00

Some more renders of the scene I textured for the crit. A lot of work yet to be done in terms of texture experiments and lighting experiments but for now i'm happy wit how they're looking.

The Mappa Mundi: Crit Presentation

2011-11-29T16:52:00.000-08:00

The Mappa Mundi

Knight Model: Horse Edited

2011-11-23T07:08:00.000-08:00

With some help from Alan I've gone back and added in more detail to my horse figure. It now looks more like something carved from wood where I've added in 'cut' strokes. I aim to have it completed by Friday so I can start laying out the UVs and texture it.

Pre Vis Update

2011-11-21T06:05:00.000-08:00

Pre vis updates.

Pre Vis 3

Pre Vis 4

Pre Vis 5

I rather like number 4 out of all three. Though some sections I feel need a little more work

To be edited

2011-11-18T06:02:00.001-08:00

Problems for future
• Rigging- Getting the correct rig
• Skinning
• Blend shapes (If I use them)

Thing still needed
• Buildings, one for hell and one for heaven
• Ring of fire
• Book
• Book stand
• Tree and Bushes (these can be duplicated and tweaked to look different)
• Servant? Basic silhouette outline.

Interview With Bill Lewis

2011-11-18T05:27:00.000-08:00

It’s about time I wrote something up here based on my dissertation. Below are notes which Jackie took after I met up with Bill Lewis on Monday.

Bill Lewis is English artist, story-teller, poet and mythographer. He is a member of ‘The Medway Poets’ a group dedicated to stuckism artwork. A few weeks ago he did a lecture called 'Kissing the Minotaur' in the Pentagon. I couldn't attend this lecture and so Jackie suggested that I email him, to see if he'd be happy to send me some notes about what he was talking about. It turned out he didn’t have any notes and said he'd meet me at the university (as he lives localy) to talk about what I wanted to know. Below are the notes that Jackie took down from my meeting with him.

One of the things TV programmes like Dr Who do, is to give people a sense of being part of a family - you become emotionally involved and invest emotionally in the stories.

We live in a post-religious age - religion is replaced by other things such as football, pop music etc.

Our minds have a natural mechanism that makes us 'live' stories, making our lives into a drama.

Look up Joseph Campbell - developed the idea of the heroes journey. Believed that all stories and myths have the same themes and come from a collective memory.

Carl Jung - worked with Freud - but whereas freud thought that the unconscious mind was a dumping ground for things we did not want to deal with, Jung thought that there was a collective subconscious, with people sharing common images brought about by the fact that we all share common ancestry.

Jung said there were 3 ways of dealing with the shadow -

1)Deny the shadow belongs to you and say it belongs to someone else, so pass the blame to someone else. Then you become the shadow.

2)Deny the shadow exists, then the shadow becomes all-powerful.

3)Embrace the shadow, then you can control it.

Need to be able to read visual imagery in film and tv, as a way of being able to read modern myths - use of light, shadow, placing of characters etc.

The ancient Greeks knew that if a truth is too close to you, then you can't see it. Things need to be further away to be able to see them.

The only way to deal with logic is through metaphor, as logic cannot explain everything.

Rene Descartes - 'The Father of Modern Philosophy'

Myths, poetry and art are the only ways to portray the truth.

Many of our myths are left over from more ancient ideas - so for example, 25 Dec is celebrated as Christmas, when originally in North-western Europe we had a midwinter festival called Yule, when Odin was a gift-giving spirit that was worshipped.

The Bible is a collection of myths, written by different people at different times. Many of the stories tie in with ancient Greek myths.

All myths are true in a way that facts cannot be. Myths are useful because they inform us on a spiritual level.

Some ideas that we take for granted these days, such as Heaven and Hell, could have been misinterpreted and lost in translation from the Norse or Viking ideas for the places where normal people went - downwards to Hel...not a bad place, just where everyone that wasn't a hero went (became what we know as Hell). Heroes went to Valhalla which was upwards.

Pre Vis: Version 2

2011-11-18T04:52:00.001-08:00

Changed the camera angles. It now looks like the camera's looking down on a board game. However need to edit the angles a little bit. I'm also aware that the pre-vis clips are the wrong side. Didn't realize until it came to exporting. Also included the voice over and a rough soundtrack. Sound effects will be added in later, with reference back to my animatic and the sound of crows.

Knight Model: Update

2011-11-16T08:12:00.000-08:00

Almost finished. Just some small touches now such as an eye for the horse. Other than that here's the first rough draft of my chess piece. Also added in an image background to try and make it stand out.

Knight Chess Piece: Model

2011-11-15T09:53:00.000-08:00

Figured it was time for an update. I have been modelling my knights in Maya since the end of last week. The above screen shot is my first attempt at a rough model of my knight. However I was told to consider adding in detail after getting the basic shape. Below is the up to date version of my figurine.

Voice Over

2011-11-11T02:58:00.001-08:00

Managed to get a voice over for my animation. Below is two different versions of my script, both by Max Howarth

Version 1

Version 2

Knight Chess Piece Turnaround:Final

2011-11-09T08:10:00.001-08:00

Finally finished my knight chess piece character. Above without the stand (knew I forgot something important) and below with the stand. Now onto modelling in Maya :D

@ Phil

2011-11-09T04:12:00.001-08:00

An edited version with some corrections recomended by Jackie

The Mappa Mundi is a map created in 13th century which depicts the world as it was imagined in those days. Not only does the map represent the world but it also represents life and death and how they are connected to each other. After a terrible battle, the spirit of a knight rises from the ground onto his horse. Upon his horse he prepares his journey towards Judgment Day. As he passes onwards he glances back at his servant who calls to him ‘passe avant’, pass on. The knight continues towards the realm of St Peter to be judged. The book of St Peter holds all the names of those who are blessed and who will spend eternal life in heaven. If the Knight’s name does not appear in the book he will descend to hell.

Concept Update 2

2011-11-08T03:58:00.000-08:00

Went back and re edited this one to look, I'm hoping like my world should. The base for my chess piece will be made from wood. Figures such as props (trees and buildings) will also be made from wood with inked on details. The ground will also have details inked on as well.

Also. as recommended by Phil I looked at Michele De Lucchi's wooden models for inspiration.

@Phil

2011-11-07T07:48:00.000-08:00

Hi Phil

Below is a rough draft of a script I'm preparing to send to a voice over to see how much they would charge me. Could you read through it and recommend either something else I could put in or what I could improve upon.

The Mappa Mundi is a map created in 13th century which depicts the world. Not only does the map represent the world but it also represents life and death and how they are connected to each other. After a terrible battle, the spirit of a knight rises from the ground onto his horse. Upon his horse he prepares his journey towards Judgment Day. As he passes onwards he glances back at his servant who calls to him ‘pasaval’, pass on. The knight continues towards the realm of St Peter to be judged. The book of St Peter holds all the names who are blessed and who will spend eternal life in heaven. If the Knight’s name does not appear in the book he will descend to hell.

Concept Update

2011-11-07T01:54:00.000-08:00

Been revamping my concept art as well as working on my Knight character. I've taken elements from tapestries in terms of buildings and tree leaves etc to get the elements I need. The middle one depeicting heaven needs to have the texture I overlaid ontop toned down. It looked less obvious on my laptop screen.

Character Design: Knight Chess Piece Update

2011-11-04T09:23:00.000-07:00

Changed the knight's back a little as suggested by Jackie. I'm hoping it now looks like the knight and horse are one rather than two separate elements.

Character Design

2011-11-04T05:44:00.000-07:00

After talking to Alan he said I needed to push my character further. I n eeded to make the knight and horse look like one 'piece' as well as if they'd been carved into a piece of wood,metal or stone. To help me get a btter idea of how to make them looked carved I've combined them together. i've also tried to keep their limbs out of perportion.

After getting some feed back, it was recomended that I make the horses legs longer. This was to loose the look of the horse bowing down and that the knight will be dismounting. The second round of feedback also agreed that the legs needed to be just a little longer as well as having the head smaller to make the horse look proud.

I was also told to take a look at 'Noggin the Nog' for style influence. The show from 1959 was created by Oliver Postgate. Postgate also created animations such as Ivor the Engine, Bagpuss and the Clangers. The show Noggin the Nog has a strong use of the style I need, characters and props looking like they are one (like my chess piece).

Mappa Mundi: Judgment Day Pre-Vis

2011-11-04T04:23:00.000-07:00

Some scenes are a lot faster than I thought. The battle field scene is a little too quick for my liking. I tried to stick to my animatic timing but discovered that it was still a little bit quick.

Character Turnarounds

2011-11-03T03:40:00.000-07:00

Here are the turnarounds for my knight and his horse. both will be in silhouette and are designed to represent chess pieces. Had a little trouble trying to draw them in the turnarounds. I keep wanting to revert back to drawing them in proportion.

Knight and horse sketches

2011-11-01T02:58:00.000-07:00

As recommended above are examples of 3D board games which will help me push my animation into a ore 3D space.

Below are images I've sketched out of the knight and his horse for my character. Out of the horse designs (influenced by the images on the influence map at the bottom) I think for the horse I lean towards either 1,3 or 5. I did have a little trouble with these for it was hard to draw them 'out of proportion'.

Jackie also sent me an email recommending the documentary below. It has a wonderful map scene towards the end.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/i/p00jjjyz/

London MCM Expo- Post Modern Experience

2011-10-31T05:51:00.000-07:00

Once again one has had a Post Modern experience by going to the MCM Expo in London. Not only have I killed the Author by dressing up as a character I’ve also been a part of a hyper realistic setting. To the second years who read this, this could be a good subject for your Postmodernism essays. I’ve killed the author because I’ve taken the character and placed them in a setting which the original Author never intended (the Excel centre). As for hyper reality, some people take the costume seriously; therefore they see the world differently and hyper reality is where different worlds appear to be real for one person but not real for another. This year my costume was a lot better :). I went as Bloom in her Enchantix outfit from the TV series WINX.

My friend Eleanor as Kairi from Kingdom Hearts

Esmeralda and Belle

The new Just Dance 3

Gandelf and I'm not sure who the other person is.

R2D2

The cast of the Torchwood crew came and answered questions for an hour or so.

The Lady Lady Amalthea from The Last Unicorn

Ren Tao and Faust from Shaman King

Ichigo from Tokyo Mew Mew

Ariel from The Little Mermaid

Mario

Final Fantasy 13 character

Portal

Mappa Mundi Animatic Version 3

2011-10-28T04:09:00.000-07:00

Animatic Sections 4

2011-10-25T06:01:00.001-07:00

Another scene for my animatic. I'm also working on an experiment scene in maya to try and understand how my world will look and work.

@ Alan: Refined Story

2011-10-22T15:34:00.000-07:00

Hi Alan

I've (hopefully) refined my story of the knight going to Judgment Day. I've decided the ending. The knight will go to hell but will at first appear to be going to heaven.

The edited story is as follows:

Starts off with the end of a battle

Tattered flags and swords in the ground everywhere, bodies in the background, crows flying around as well

See the knight lying dead on the ground with servant

Knight's spirit rises above and gets on his horse

Holds his sword in front of him as a symbol of praising God

Looks around to his servant who tells him to 'go forth'

As he travels to Judgment Day goes to show that the battle was in the City of Jerusalem represented by the crucifixion (as 3 crosses)

Spirit goes through the clouds

Gets to Judgment Day

The book of judgment rises up and opens and flips through pages

This is to show that the knight must be in the book to get into heaven
The Knight meanwhile has started towards heaven

Gates open to reveal what could be behind (my house scene) etc

Suddenly the knight's sword shatters as he and his horse are pulled back down to hell

This is to show that God does not approve of war no matter who it is fighting

Am I on the right track now or does it still need anything else?

Animatic Sections 3

2011-10-21T08:57:00.000-07:00

Animatic Sections 2

2011-10-21T08:25:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure why it's cutting the bottom of the clip off. Everything seems to be ok in After Effects. I'll replace them with better versions, these are just going up so it's easier to show them to Alan.

Animatic Sections

2011-10-20T09:56:00.001-07:00

As Phil sugested I've used After Effects to make my world 'feel' more 3D.

Creating Space

2011-10-20T09:18:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the entrance of Judgment Day. The first one is the first attempt at getting a spacial feel. The second one is where I went back and evened out the tone a little more. The back of the image now has more white to show it is further back.

This is the scene depicting heaven. I cheated a little with the building and used the image below with filter on it. This was so I could get a better idea of what the structure would look like. Though I think I've gone a bit far by placing it in the image.

These have been transferred into After Effects where I'm putting together an animatic which will hopefully show movement through a 3D environment.

Mappa Mundi Animatic Version 2

2011-10-17T07:38:00.000-07:00

A slightly edited version of the privious animatic. Not a bug difference. The main difference is the beginign is shorter. Also after talking to Phil I now have a long list of things to focus on during this week

Need to make shots more 3D

Move further back to get idea of space

Motivated shots (i.e. the view of the gibbet should be presented from the height/angle of the huntsman so relationship of shot-to-shot makes sense).

Real world modelling for open scene?

Views of castles/structures etc. consider lower pov and tracking shots

How small details- flowers etc will look

Music

Gibbet- crows cawing etc

Put and create in AE

Textures? Scan in fabric textures etc

Mappa Mundi Animatic Version 1

2011-10-17T06:42:00.000-07:00

Mappa Mundi Animatic Version 1 from Levalin on Vimeo.

First draft of an animatic. Not that pleased with this for I can see and hear so many mistakes and where things can be improved greatly.

Judgment Day: Story Board Second Half

2011-10-17T03:55:00.000-07:00

The second half of my storyboards, tidied up and now ready to be put into Premiere to join the first lot.

Story Board Update

2011-10-15T03:22:00.000-07:00

An update on my storyboards. I've got a little further than this in terms of having them ready to tidy up ready for the animatic. The animatic has already been started. I just need to add in these images and some sound effects etc.

Judgment Day: Updated Sketches

2011-10-12T16:04:00.000-07:00

A tidier version of the previous sketches I did yesterday. Rather pleased with how these turned out. Also it was a help to make them more presentable as I came up with more ideas with which to not only improve the intro but also of what to draw for the second half of the storyboards.

Judgment Day: Rough Sketches

2011-10-11T15:48:00.000-07:00

Just some sketches I whipped up today. I've been trying to get down any ideas I could about what my world could look like as well as trying to get a feel for the camera angles to. These need a lot of work as not only are they not in order but also I need to add in the end where the Huntsman arrives at Judgment Day and what he sees there.

What a Day in London

2011-10-10T02:22:00.000-07:00

After Jackie pointed out the exhibition for 'Treasures of Heaven' which was held at the British museum I managed to rope Tom into accompanying me to it on Friday. The exhibition contains relics from medieval time period.

More info here

Treasures of Heaven

The exhibition was pretty interesting; however it wasn't relevant to my work. Although it contained religious items, they were too focused to be used in my project.

Despite the fact the exhibition was unhelpful; the entire trip wasn't a waste of time. I also went to Victoria and Albert Museum to look at the tapestries and medieval display there. This proved to be far more helpful and useful. There were building structures which would be helpful should I need to model one. Also I found a tapestry with horse on which (as Jackie pointed out) I can use with stylizing the Huntsman's horse.

Medievil Structures and Objects

Refined Research

2011-10-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

After narrowing down my ideas, I was advised to research more on the areas I'm doing. More importantly, I had to decide what they were teaching. The paragraph below is form a book called 'The Hereford World Map: Medieval World Maps and Their Context '

With this information I am now able to form a narrative in which to base my animation. Next week will be experimenting with painting techniques etc to gain the rules which will govern my world.

@ Phil: Knowing the 13th Century

2011-10-04T01:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, to 13th Century I go. After speaking to Alan on Friday, he said I needed to get together a 'recipe' for my animation. Combining this with research I hope I've got it now, or am getting closer.

To gather thing together:

I'm doing Judgment Day, which will include the Huntsman who can be found in the bottom right hand corner.

There are different types of medieval art, mainly wood cut, stained glass windows, Tapestry and metal work. However after returning to viewing the map, I can see Tapestry would be the best type of 13th century art which would fit into the theme of the Mappa Mundi

Phil, below is a sort of collage of things which represent the 13th Century. I’ve even discovered that, although people associate the word ‘Gothic’ with the Victorian era, it was actually created in the 13th century.

As the 13th Century started religious buildings etc took on a ‘Gothic theme’

The word Gothic came from France and was adapted in England.

Hammer beamed roofs was a new style for building.

Ribbed Vaulted ceilings

As well as coarse lime stone, red stone and dark green Purbeck

Flying buttress was also new and a popular feature on any respectable building

There was very little glass, only the rich had it and even then it was used only for the bedrooms.

Yellow was seen as the colour represented one betraying God. It also was associated with a dead corpse, mainly the colour of the skin.

Red- sacrificial represents Christ’s sacrifice.

Blue-Represents the spiritual world.

The images were a way of telling stories for very few people could read and write.

Images aren’t in correct scale. Buildings are out of perspective

Ivy- represents eternal life because of how it grows on dead pieces of wood etc. Also represents resurrection.

I also have some key points which will help me understand what was happening in the world at such a time.

Edward I on the throne at the time

Lots of battles in France

Barons made him give up a number of rights, enforcing the Magna Carta

Lords has castle

Most by this time had glass in windows- though not as lot, still pretty expensive

Living mostly carried out in the Great Hall

Generally bedrooms divided by hanging curtains

Church – by this time the Archbishop had stopped King from allocating Bishoprics to favourites (there was a lot of money in being a Bishop)

Priest were generally commoners or second / third sons of Lords etc

Serfs had to work the land and could not become priests

Monasteries were attached to monasteries where they led a simple life in church like buildings – or in theory

In reality they were thought to be lazy and the idle rich

They were one of the few sets of people who could read and write and were producers and readers of books

Friars were roving monks who mixed with the common people and begged to survive.

These were far more popular as priests and monks were seen as the idle rich

About 3 % of the population were Nobles

Clergy about 7%

Remaining 90% commoners

Not all poor as there were merchants and the like that were almost as rich as Lords

25% were serfs – one step up from slaves

Remainder were free – to one extent or another

During the 13 Century weather had been good and the harvest was good

Entertainment was storytelling and gossip

Lived in villages and hamlets of between 100 – 1000 people and seldom left

Few compasses at this time and dry compass only invented 1300 – at the time of Mapa Mundi

At this time the world was thought by most to be flat – people like Drake who navigated the world wouldn’t be there for hundreds of years

Only educated people ‘knew’ the world was round

Believed no one existed on the other side of the world

This was because God did not come to the southern hemisphere.

Navigated using stars – hugging to coastlines and occasionally floating compasses

Had no real idea as to where countries were

Because of the religious significance in the Mapa Mundi Jerusalem in the centre of the world

This was created in a monastery, where books and learning played an important part in everyday life

This would have been a scholarly work – the map being created through reading and even maybe 1st hand accounts of travellers

The people who created this map are unlikely to have travelled far from their town / village to produce this map

They would have accounts from Crusade and because we were conquered by Normans – would have known all about France and Europe

Suspect lot based on great conquerors like Romans and Alexander the Great

Factual mixed with myth – biblical and Greek / Roman myths

Also some seven wonders of world – Pillars of Hercules, Lighthouse at Alexandria
Intellectual exercise and scholarly work – no real bearing on reality or of use to the traveller

Mappa Mundi Influence Map

2011-09-28T02:03:00.000-07:00

To get on the road to creating my environments I first have had to look up Medieval ideas on what Judgment day would look like. Above is an influence map which contains images of a mixture of Medieval architecture, which is to be from around the very late 1200's (1290) as well as different version of Judgment day. The only small downfall to some of the images is they're a few centuries later than the time era I need to work with. However I feel that this shouldn't matter too much as all of the images will help me develop ideas for my environment. The image in the top left hand corner is a painting by Memling about Judgment Day and is a depiction of a famous Latin hymn 'Dies Irae'.

Dies Irae

The Last Unicorn Part 1
The Last Unicorn Part 2
The LAst Unicorn Part 6

To also help me get an idea of what the architecture around the Medieval time period looks like, I looked at a few films which are set in the same time space in history. The first one (and although slightly off track) is the film 'The Last Unicorn'. The buildings in this film are a starting place to help me understand how in the time period I'm looking at built their castles etc. The same goes for the Disney film 'Sleeping Beauty'

As well as looking up images on buildings etc I was also advised to look up the meaning of different things in such an era. Below is a link to a list of different items and creatures and what they represent.

Symbolism Library

Mappa Mundi Notes

2011-09-26T04:08:00.000-07:00

After re-watching the Mappa Mundi Documentary,

I've taken down some notes on phrases which I could use to create a script, should I need a voice over. My main focus is to create environments for a Documentary but to focus on something other than the obvious facts the map gives. Seeing as 'Life and Death' is a major, yet underrated theme on the map I aim to bring these subjects to light.

History of the world

Events of the past, some 1000’s year apart

Events such as Cesar sending out people to map the world before Christ, crucifixion of Christ and Noah’s Ark

The whole world is like a book written by the hand of God

As seen in Judgment Day- heaven on the left, hell on the right, Crucifixion, Horseman, Latin word for Death around the outside.

‘Here is the World’, says the Map ‘enjoy it for you will soon leave it’

Though teaming with life the map is more about Death.

Life in the next world was the only certainty.

Notes from Meeting with Alan

2011-09-26T02:34:00.000-07:00

After having my first Tutorial with Alan, I’m glad to finally be able to focus on one strong idea and get started on my minor.

At first I had two ideas, one for a games trailer for the Mappa Mundi. The other was to create enviroments for a Documentary.

Out of both ideas Alan thought the trailer idea should be put to one side for now, as this would demand a certain language. He also thought that the Documentry had cklearer boundries rather than the trailer.

He thought that the documentary idea has much clearer boundaries.
You might want to pick one place or image and focus on something interesting about that, rather than attempt too many different areas.

To help the idea of the Documentry working he suggested that the main thing to concentrate on initially, is finding something contentious or debateable in the map, something that can spark a debate - so, is it a map of the world or of life, for example...this will then take your subject to another level and make it so much more interesting. It will also allow you to think about different interpretations.

To help in terms of research he also recommended that I take a look at something called the ‘Phaidos Disk’. The disk as displayed below:

is a complete mystery because of the way it was created. The symbols are pressed on using a technique which was not invented by the Chinese until years on.

Project Proposal + Timetable

2011-09-23T05:50:00.000-07:00

The Mappa Mundi Proposal

Right time to restart updating my blog frequently. Above is my project proposal for my minor project.

I've also created a timetable for myself so I can see what I'm supposed to be doing over how many weeks.

Dissertation Book List

2011-09-02T04:47:00.001-07:00

Bit of a boring post but it's more for me to make some notes on books with which I could use for my dissertation. One of them was also suggestion made to me by Chirs Hunt after I asked for a book which might be good for quotes on 'Hyper- reality'. He suugested I take a look at the America book by Jean Baudrillard

America

Faith in Fakes: Travles in Hyperreality

How to Travel With a Salmon

Travels in Hyper Reality

Confession of an Ugly Stepsister The Film (2002)

2011-08-14T11:19:00.000-07:00

Well this was a pleasant find and a most welcomed one. I'm using 'Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister' by Gregory Maguie in my Dissertation to answer why people write Fanfiction. What I didn't realize was that his book was made into a film in 2002. After watching it, I've realized I was very disappointed. The plot of Confessions is to show that both Iris (one of Clara's step sisters) and Clara herself were both forced into something they didn't want to do. The book shows that the only reason Clara (the Cinderella character of the book) goes to the ball is because Iris asks her to. Where as in the film they have reverted back to the original Cinderella story. They even involved magic (though thankfully very little) of a rat being turned into a pair of shoes.

I could go on about the differences between the book and the film (of which has rather annoyed me). Either way the film, although starts of like the book doesn't follow true to it.

@ Phil: Dissertation Book Help

2011-08-13T11:01:00.000-07:00

Phil, are there any books on hyper reality you could recommend for me (that I can buy from Amazon) for my dissertation?

So far I've looked at these

Faith In Fakes
How To Travel With A Salmon
Travels in Hyper Reality

But any recommendations would be good, thanks :-)

Map Exhibition and Ideas

2011-08-04T04:07:00.000-07:00

As suggested by Phil, I went to Hereford with Tom for the day to go and see the Mappa Mundi. I'd arranged, upon arriving at the Cathedral to meet up with a Hereford Map expert, Rosalind. She showed us around the Mappa Mundi exhibition and explained what certain parts of the map were. Rosalind also showed us the English translation of the map as well as a new digital restoration of how the map would have been coloured. To also help me understand more about the map she took Tom and I up into the Cathedral's private library.

The library was full of what looked like old books as well as information on all the ancient artefacts found around the Cathedral. Rosalind showed us a books called 'Mappa Mundi: The Hereford World Map' as well as a book containing a list of all the text from the map which had been translated. The Mappa Mundi book I was able t purchase from the shop as well as a poster of the English translation of the map to help with my work. I also need to email Rosalind back to let her know what parts of the map I would like enlarged.

Tom said I needed to come up with an angle in which to base my animation. He pointed out that the Mappa Mundi looks like it could be a board game of some sorts. With this in mind I looked at different sorts of games. The main one which spring to mind was an interaction DVD board game called Khufu the Mummy

I had the idea of designing some environments for such a game to put into an advert of some sorts. I would also aim to add in one or two of the creatures as the pieces used for the players to move around.

Another idea I had was similar to a Harry Potter game I have. In the game, the player is given 3 locations they must reach on the board before racing back to their common room.

'As a student you will visit famous destinations in and around Hogwarts collecting House Points as you go whilst trying to avoid the hazards along the way. The object of the game is to be the student who earns the most House Points.

From the Start position you must plan your route around Hogwarts without losing all your House Points or getting expelled. But watch other players' moves carefully: if they land on one of your Destinations you can knock them back to the Start and relieve them of their House Points.' More info here

With this I would again create some 3D environments to be shown as well as add in characters for game pieces.

Why People Write Fan fiction: Dissertation Intro Quotes

2011-07-17T04:05:00.000-07:00

Just a few references for my dissertation. Above is some examples I will be using of different Doctor Who fan stories.

'the Mary-Sue is associated with writers who have trouble distancing themselves from the source text enough to write about it rather than write themselves in it.' (Hellekson and Busse, 2006, P90)

'And I feel it is time to introduce ourselves. Thay moves forward. 'I am Dalek Thay.' Thay, the celebrated warrior of Kaled legend.Now it is my turn. 'Dalek Sec.'Sec, the lord of the gods, all-knowing and invincible.'Dalek Jast.'Jast, the philosopher of old, wise and loyal.'Dalek Caan.'Caan, the healer and teacher of the gods. The Time Lord looks at us, his curiosity warring with hatred and admiration. 'So that's it…at last! The Cult of Skaro. I thought you were just a legend.'(Maxwell, 2011)

Maxwell, M.(2011) Rift, Fanfiction.com http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3103353/3/Rift
(accessed on 17/07/11)

'Jast and Caan, they were my brothers in the sense of camaraderie, of unity. But Thay… Impulsive, brash, youthful Thay...the genetic material that Thay and I had been cloned from was identical. No alterations barring the age of the material. Cloned and the resulting embryos hatched at different times, yes. I was precisely nine solar cycles in age when Thay was hatched. He was my younger brother.'
(Maxwell, 2011)
Maxwell, M.(2011) Rift, Fanfiction.com http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3103353/3/Rift
(accessed on 17/07/11)

"No!," Sec whispered "No, please?," Sec choked holding Katie close to him. "I promised nothing would happen to you," Sec cried. "I wished I told you this sooner," Sec sobbed.
"I...I love you Katie," Sec said kissing her lightly on the forehead. "I love you so much." A small smile spread across Katie's face, then she slowly opened her eyes and looked at Sec.' (Pearce, 2011)

Pearce,V. (2011) Warth of Caan, Deviantart.com http://alondra-chui.deviantart.com/art/Wrath-of-Caan-Chapter-6-78684536?q=gallery%3Aalondra-chui%2F993026&qo=26 (accessed on: 17/07/11)

'Martha, just one trip.' He breathed, still in his trance like state. I felt my smile widen. 'Doctor?' 'Hm, what?' He snapped out of it. AAARGH! WHY! 'Nothing, sir. You just… went a little quiet.' 'Did I really? How interesting.' I sat on my knees, ignoring the cloth and bucket on the floor. 'Sir, if I may have the rudeness to ask, but do you see any other companions in your dreams?' 'No I… Actually, now that you mention it I do. Quite a few in fact. But there is one in particular…' He leant back in his chair and looked thoughtful. 'A woman. Rose.' 'Anything else, sir?' 'I… I think I love her.' I hung my head and smiled so that he couldn't see me. Good. As long as he could remember her, he was still the Doctor. (Mongoola, 2011)

Mongoolda,M.(2011) Team Who, Fanfiction.net http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3613865/18/Team_Who (accessed on: 17/07/11)

Just a few references for my dissertation. Above is some examples I will be using of different Doctor Who fan stories.

Tester

2011-07-07T15:24:00.000-07:00

Experimenting with redesigning my blog. Any feedback will be welcomed. The banner will be changed as well to fit in with the theme. :-)

The Mappa Mundi

2011-06-09T09:07:00.000-07:00

As mentioned before, the idea I've had for my minor project would be to create an animation for the Mappa Mundi. the Mappa Mundi was a map created in the 13th century. It was created using inks, black for writing and colours for things such as rivers and seas etc. however due to neglect the colour has been lost and now the map is only in black and white.

The Mappa Mundi

The Mappa Mundi is unique in Britain's heritage - an outstanding treasure of the medieval age which reveals how 13th century scholars interpreted the world in spiritual and geographical terms. The map is undated but bears the name of "Richard de Haldingham e de Lafford", whom some historians have identified as Richard de Bello, Prebendary of Lafford in the diocese of Lincoln during the late 13th century. Together with evidence interpreted from the content of the map, a date of around AD 1290 is considered reliable.

The Mappa Mundi

The animation would be stylized and I imagined it to be something similar to how these two videos are created. That 2D illustrated look in black and white and maybe a little colour here and there.

Harry Potter: The Tale of the Three Brothers

Sorry about only having a link for this, but the embedded option was only available on request.

Minor Project Idea

2011-05-31T10:25:00.000-07:00

As the title suggests, here's an idea of what I was thinking of creating for my minor project.

The Mappa Mundi

The Mappa Mundi is unique in Britain's heritage - an outstanding treasure of the medieval age which reveals how 13th century scholars interpreted the world in spiritual and geographical terms. The map is undated but bears the name of "Richard de Haldingham e de Lafford", whom some historians have identified as Richard de Bello, Prebendary of Lafford in the diocese of Lincoln during the late 13th century. Together with evidence interpreted from the content of the map, a date of around AD 1290 is considered reliable.

The Mappa Mundi

Apologies for not finding a better quality image but I have to get going back to Brownie Pack Holiday. But before I go Brownie head count. 1,2,3,4,5,6...where's the other 4?

Maya Tutorials

2011-05-31T09:47:00.000-07:00

Time to quickly upload what I can for the tutorial deadline. Unfortunately I haven't fully finished the entire body model, but I'll have it up by the end of the week.

Here's what I've got of it so far as well as the other tutorials.

The static match tutorial I struggled with. I had to go back and re do it for the first time I attempted it all my objects were in the wrong place and looked awful.

Auto Tracking from Levalin on Vimeo.

Target Tracking from Levalin on Vimeo.

Masked Tracking from Levalin on Vimeo.

Riged and Soft Bodies from Levalin on Vimeo.

NCloth Tutorials from Levalin on Vimeo.

NCloth Tutorials 2 from Levalin on Vimeo.

NCloth Tutorials 2

2011-05-25T03:02:00.001-07:00

NCloth Tutorials 2 from Levalin on Vimeo.

Masked Auto Tracking

2011-05-19T06:58:00.001-07:00

Masked Tracking from Levalin on Vimeo.

Target Tracking

2011-05-18T10:49:00.001-07:00

Target Tracking from Levalin on Vimeo.

Motion Tracking Autotracking

2011-05-18T04:07:00.000-07:00

Attempted the first auto tracking tutorial today. Turns out that using MatchMover is not very reliable. It's pot luck as to when and weather or not it will track the footage properly or not. After speaking to Alan, he instructed to upload these images and to move onto the next tutorial. However thanks to Tom, I have been able to complete the tutorial. He gave me the exported scene

Auto Tracking from Levalin on Vimeo.

Riged and Soft Bodies and NCloth

2011-05-18T03:09:00.000-07:00

Riged and Soft Bodies from Levalin on Vimeo.

NCloth Tutorials from Levalin on Vimeo.

Thought it time to upload some maya tutorials. There are others which I've been working on, but these are the complete ones for the moment.

Cotton Club

2011-05-09T01:43:00.000-07:00

Here is the work I was working on last week. This particular event was based at a posh London photographers and was to follow the theme of 1920's New York. The theme was based on the Cotton Club and the idea was that the images would be projected onto the walls whilst the gusts socialized. The tone and tempo of this project had to be slow and elegant and it couldn't be too distracting or kinetic. We weren't allowed to have things suddenly appear/disappear or shoot on and off the screen. My ideas were based on 1920's object as well as the music at the time. The music used for the first video is not the music which was used at the event.

Coton Club Mix from Levalin on Vimeo.

Cotton Club Clip from Levalin on Vimeo.

Back and New Work Experience Project

2011-04-27T04:04:00.001-07:00

Thought I'd update, seeing as the last time I did was just before I left for Scotland. As the title says, I'm now back from the Highlands and feeling like Julie Andrews up in the mountain, Ben Nevis XD. I'll do a separate post for what the tip was like later. Now time to get back and knuckle down. For work experience we've been assigned a new project whilst awaiting feed back from the other clients.

Work Placment Days 2-3

2011-04-14T01:10:00.000-07:00

For the past few days I've been working on projects for Butch Auntie. I can't really say a lot for obvious reasons, however the project has given us a lot of freedom in terms of what to create. There's also a strong style for us to follow to help us work. I've also used an FTP client for the first timwe. Although not complicated to use, I'd not really ever encountered such a thing before.

Work Placement

2011-04-12T01:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got some info on what I'll be working on along with others for work placement. Looks rather exciting and I look forward to learning new aspects of After Effects. I don't know what I can say or can't just yet but I've got to create 3 pieces of work to send by Tuesday evening

Maya Tutorials 2

2011-04-11T04:04:00.000-07:00

Gosh this tutorial made me feel sleepy. Not because it was boring but because I coudl imagine being on that island, with a warm breeze no other souds but that and the waves and birds etc XD.

Dynamics_3 from Levalin on Vimeo.

couldn't remember whether or not I'd posted this one and I can't sem to find it anywehre on my blog so I'll post it again to be on the safe side.

Normal Maps 2: Using Photoshop & Nvidia

2011-04-10T05:24:00.001-07:00

Mental Ray: Caustics

2011-04-10T04:38:00.000-07:00

Maya Help Needed!

2011-04-09T14:49:00.000-07:00

Why won't it let me choose 'Fine' from the drop down list? I've followed the tutorial closely and even gone back and redone it just to make sure I didn't miss anything.

______

Mental Ray: Motion Blur Methods

2011-04-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

Mental Ray: Optimisation

2011-04-08T15:18:00.000-07:00

First Render: 5: 12 settings unchanged
RCI 0.3 info : main bsp tree statistics:
RCI 0.3 info : max depth : 40
RCI 0.3 info : max leaf size : 191
RCI 0.3 info : average depth : 34
RCI 0.3 info : average leaf size : 7
RCI 0.3 info : leafnodes : 531104
RCI 0.3 info : bsp size (Kb) : 25648

Render 2: 5:53 settings 50 bps depth
RCI 0.3 info : max depth : 50
RCI 0.3 info : max leaf size : 66
RCI 0.3 info : average depth : 35
RCI 0.3 info : average leaf size : 7
RCI 0.3 info : leafnodes : 646803
RCI 0.3 info : bsp size (Kb) : 30337

Render 3: 5:29 Settings 45 bps depth
RCI 0.3 info : max depth : 45
RCI 0.3 info : max leaf size : 66
RCI 0.3 info : average depth : 35
RCI 0.3 info : average leaf size : 7
RCI 0.3 info : leafnodes : 632987
RCI 0.3 info : bsp size (Kb) : 29772

Render 4: 5:28 Settings 60bps depth
RCI 0.3 info : max depth : 60
RCI 0.3 info : max leaf size : 66
RCI 0.3 info : average depth : 35
RCI 0.3 info : average leaf size : 7
RCI 0.3 info : leafnodes : 648704
RCI 0.3 info : bsp size (Kb) : 30422

Final Render

Render 5: 4:36 bps 60 sample 1

The render times are high, however this is because I did this tutorial using my laptop, which isn't very powerful. Plus I hope I have done this right. Looking at what other's have put and what is said in the tutorial, I still only semi understand it.

Maya Tutorials 1

2011-04-08T05:37:00.000-07:00

Making Of Journey to the River Sea

2011-04-07T09:57:00.000-07:00

Making Of Journey to the River Sea

Journey to the River Sea: Demo Reel

2011-04-07T09:51:00.001-07:00

Theatre_Demo_Reel from Levalin on Vimeo.

Final Animation

2011-04-07T05:18:00.000-07:00

The one I had hopped to of shown in the crit. Here is my final animation

Journey_To_The_River_Sea_Finle from Levalin on Vimeo.

Painterly Effects Technical Document

2011-04-06T09:29:00.000-07:00

Painterly Effects Technical Document