Animator here. I love this little animation! Your sister has a lot of natural talent! If you are looking to encourage and inspire her, THIS BOOK is the Bible for animators, and can help put her on a creative path that could include a future in animation! Tell her to keep at it; art as a career can be tough, but creativity is a lifelong companion that is always worth embracing.
Bruce Block teaches this at USC and on various weekends at the Production Designer's Guild.
Highly recommend reading his stuff for the science of how to express visual progression through converging lines from shot to shot vs. within the shot or how depth cues of flat and deep is the most basic visual separation but most often used, and much much more on shape, rhythm, and color.
ET is the best I can think of off the top of my head how this whole thing actually works. The scene where Elliot and ET are trying to escape the police. Watch how each frame dances between flat space and deep. It becomes rhythmic. In conjunction with that, Spielberg also has the "lines" of the boys on the bikes in the upper frame while the police cars remain in the lower, creating visual division. The police stay on a rigid singular line that speeds up and slows down while the boys remain small but fluid. It's visually showing the agility vs power of the two. After the boys are almost caught, right after the scary surprise your not safe arm grab, watch how the bike stays center frame in deep space whole police cars intersect the path of left and right frame in a horizontal vs vertical line. That's not even close to describing all the elements going on here. Color, tone and shape have a huge discussion in this moment as well but it's difficult to discuss without visual aids.
Sorry to go off on a tangent, this is something I actually have a strong understanding on and it's not too often that we talk about the visual narration happening to express the films emotional layer. Too bad the medium is only seen with a narrative intent, but if may I recommend films by Stan Brakhage, Maya Deren, Kenneth Anger, and Bruce Conner. Might help to see images/light/sound used holistically in this manner.
This one and Rogue One need a "making of" book like these.
If access was given on that level, we might find out the truth.
What's interesting is that he likely couldn't make this kind of splash without having accumulated the following he did via quality content.
This kind of in-and-out joke content (which is funny... but absolutely incompatible with thoughtful content like dunkviews or the TLOU2 vid) would burn out a huge chunk of his audience eventually. Still, you're right: his point would stand. He make more money getting *half* the views of the quality stuff if he chugged out stuff like this everyday.
For anyone interested, <em>Creativity Inc</em> is a solid book that spends a fair amount of time ruminating on this trade-off (from Pixar's former lead, who talks about the logistical balance they had to create between $$$$ sequel movies and the artistic and less financially rewarding films)
Gonna share an older comment I wrote about this. This is just a guide; everyone learns differently so don't feel like you need to follow this exactly!
>Here's a rough outline of the basic steps to getting into animation:
>1. Research the animation basics. Specifically, study the 12 principles of animation. Buy/borrow a copy of the Animator's survival kit. This book was pretty much my only textbook at uni and is something industry professionals still reference today. (Don't worry, there are lots of pictures).
>2. Pick a type of animation you want to do. 2D (drawing on computer or paper), 3D (CG, like Pixar), or stop motion (real life objects/puppets). Look up what materials, software, and skills you need to start doing that type of animation.
>3. Obtain your materials/software and learn the basics of how to use them. (for example, flipping frames and onion skin for 2D, or manipulating a rig and the graph editor for 3D).
>4. Try your hand at simple, basic animation exercises. Otherwise you'll be trying to run before you can crawl. I recommend starting with the pendulum, then the bouncing ball, waving flag then the flour sack. Look up tutorials and ask for help/critique if you need it!
>5. Once you've got the hang of that, move onto stuff like head turns, walk cycles, object interaction, and weight shift. Keep looking for ways to improve your skills and get critique, if possible. Don't forget to have fun! Hope this helps!
Actually, thank you sir, this is that exact type of feedback I was looking for! Thanks for really reading carefully and walking through the book.
As for to the critic, it's quite straightforward, but I don't see any rudeness.
Clearly the book is more like a pure idea now, there is a long way to go (and I'm clearly settled to walk the walk). I always keep in mind the Pixar movies that are absolute crap at the beginning (according to https://www.amazon.com/Creativity-Inc-Overcoming-Unseen-Inspiration/dp/0812993012) and have to walk through multiple sometimes painful transformations until they finally become the masterpieces they are.
I also have to say, that I need to keep my audience in mind. If I wanted to be pedantic I could just as well print out the :help manual. What I want instead is to create something pragmatic and practical, lite and simple, something people outside of the Vim community could grasp and be productive.
The idea is get more people familiar with Vim, so that they can then go deeper after that, maybe join the /r/vim/ and learn from people like you ;)
Anyway, thanks again for the fantastic feedback!
See EL MARIACHI made for 7000 and read the book https://www.amazon.com/Rebel-without-Crew-23-Year-Old-Filmmaker/dp/0452271878 Robert Rodriguez continues to make movies his way.
Heck, if you've ever seen a movie by a company called Pixar, like Toy Story, you've seen seen Ed Catmull's work. ;)
His book is a good read too: https://smile.amazon.com/Creativity-Inc-Overcoming-Unseen-Inspiration/dp/0812993012?sa-no-redirect=1
The Jim Clark credited here also co-founded Netscape, which popularized the World Wide Web we know today.
So many pioneering advances, one after another.
I suppose Gumby was a natural choice for this matter, since the original clay stop-motion slides around. And years later, they could convincingly simulate the impections of organic media in the digital domain. How far we've come.
He teaches at USC and produced What Women Want, and consulted on films from what I hear from the producing faculty. He wrote a book on visual storytelling and his ideas in the book are the foundation for his class. It's not what's shown in video, those composition guidelines feel so laughably arbitrary. Bruce's idea was moreso here are all the elements at your disposal, pick a few and use them well—like for instance how The Shining is practically entirely shot with one point perspective right smack in the middle of the frame. I swear his class is the most debated class we've all had to take, but I think it's still valuable, and way more applicable than that video. Here's the book in case you wanna check it out. If it helps, woot! If you already known the stuff, wouldn't be surprised. It's just nice to have it all laid out.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0240807790/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_jDkUFbYGDMAXM
You can read the full information about what it is at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Studios-Definitive-Behind-Blockbuster/dp/1419732447/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=the+story+of+marvel+studios&qid=1621286605&sr=8-1
It sounds pretty comprehensive and it took so long that it makes sense it'd be new stuff we hadn't seen before. But I'll probably wait until reviews just to see since it's a lot of dough.
It's going to include Avengers 4 and Captain Marvel, so it wasn't likely to turn up this May. Still worth the wait though? Looks a hell of a beast.
God do I despise the mods of this subreddit. The reproduced below apparently is a duplicate post that is not permitted, presumably because it could be placed here instead:
​
BioWare what's your mailing address? I'd like to donate ten copies of Creativity Inc.
Link here to the amazon page for this book. Written by Ed Catmull, the head of Pixar from before it was even Pixar, Creativity Inc. is essentially a story about Pixar's history and how Ed and the other leaders of Pixar tried to first make a successful animated movie, and then maintain that success. It talks about how one movie they made required a lot of crunch and burned people out, and they resolved to never do it again, and haven't. It talks about growing a company where two different projects are worked on by different teams, and ensuring nobody feels like there is an A team or B team. It talks about making sure the driving force of a movie is the experience, not the technology or pleasing some shitty executive. It talks about giving responsibility and accountability to a single person who owns the project and makes decisions.
It basically talks about how Pixar tried to navigate every god damn pothole BioWare tripped on, and maybe if you read it when it came out in 2014 we wouldn't have this dumpster fire of a game.
In the Blink of an Eye (Walter Murch): https://www.amazon.com/Blink-Eye-Perspective-Film-Editing/dp/1879505622
Basically if you need a book on editing, this is it (also read about Walter, he's amazing).
Hi! here's a rough outline of the basic steps to getting into animation:
Research the animation basics. Specifically, study the 12 principles of animation. Buy/borrow a copy of the Animator's survival kit. This book was pretty much my only textbook at uni and is something industry professionals still reference today. (Don't worry, there are lots of pictures).
Pick a type of animation you want to do. 2D (drawing on computer or paper), 3D (CG, like Pixar), or stop motion (real life objects/puppets). Look up what materials, software, and skills you need to start doing that type of animation.
Obtain your materials/software and learn the basics of how to use them. (for example, flipping frames and onion skin for 2D, or manipulating a rig and the graph editor for 3D).
Try your hand at simple, basic animation exercises. Otherwise you'll be trying to run before you can crawl. I recommend starting with the pendulum, then the bouncing ball, waving flag then the flour sack. Look up tutorials and ask for help/critique if you need it!
Once you've got the hang of that, move onto stuff like head turns, walk cycles, object interaction, and weight shift. Keep looking for ways to improve your skills and get critique, if possible.
Don't forget to have fun! Hope this helps!
Oh no dont worry about my backup, Im a Financial Economics Major with a minor in Information Systems also im in the states so I can hop into the banking sector whenever.
This quote comes to mind when we are talking about this. " We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. "- John Keating.
Also highly reccomend watching Desparado and reading Rebel Without a Crew
Robert Rodriguez's book Rebel Without a Crew has some good info on indie filmmaking in it.
You can find it on Amazon.
I preordered it from Amazon, but it’s no longer available for preorder. My order no longer has an estimated delivery date.
https://www.amazon.com/Marvel-Studios-Definitive-Behind-Blockbuster/dp/1419732447
https://www.amazon.com.au/Animators-Survival-Kit-Richard-Williams/dp/0571202284 this is the book that every course suggests to read. It's pretty much got all the principles you'll need . Other than that, there's some good tutorials on using blender 2D at the moment. Opentoonz tutorials are pretty good as well. Just set yourself a project . Like a storyboard, drawings and plans for a 2 minute music video . And then do it like a school project. No pressure to show it then do another one. It's all they did at my uni, and it was cheaper to stay home and learn online
Wouldn't hurt to read a few books on screenwriting to get the lay of the land. https://www.amazon.com/Screenplay-Foundations-Screenwriting-Syd-Field/dp/0385339038
Decide if you want write features or television pilots.
Learn the structure of a screenplay (which is different for a feature and a television pilot)
Read scripts that are similar to what you want to write about. (i.e same genre) or any script that's highly recommended.
Some people start with a character and build a story, some people start with a story and add characters. Find what works best for you.
Dialogue will come with practice. It's going to be on the nose and full of exposition right off the bat. But it gets better as you write more. And no one every really masters it. I compare aired versions of shows to written screenplays and at least 10% of the dialogue overall is always cut.
Know what you're talking about. Want to write about cop? Read how a police organization works and how investigations work. Want to write about doctors? Know the medical terms and procedures you will be exploring. This also goes for areas of expertise such as science. For example, I am sure Vince Gilligan did some research into chemistry before writing Breaking Bad.
Well my position is that your lighting fixtures, gels, diffusion tools and rigging knowledge are your creative tools as a dp and a gaffer akin to paintbrushes and different kinds of paint without which there is no art or creativity happening.
But that aside this book is a staple of the industry and will serve you well
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0240810759/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_X2wrFbF7ARJGJ
Adobe Premiere Pro and Apple Final Cut are the most widely used editing programs.
DaVinci resolve is free for your purposes and is a good editor as well as a world-class color grading program. It will take some effort to pick it up but it's well worth it.
Video editing is very resource intensive for both CPU and GPU with modern editing programs. Pay attention to minimum and recommended specs for your edit machine. There are lots of blogs about building and optimizing computers for editing.
You might also want to check out some general editing theory books like in the blink of an eye by Walter Murch
First of all, don't call it "the grip," that's like your mom calling it "the Facebook."
> nothing important only c-stands
Arguably one of the most important stands on a set.
I recommend Set Lighting Technician's Handbook by Harry C. Box. It includes a ton of information about lighting, power, and grip on set.
The Making of Star Wars is a fantastic read. Even if you think you know the majority of the story behind the making of the first film, there's a ton of stuff there I guarantee will be new to you.
The short answer is you don't have to be good at drawing. Of course this means you would be focusing on 3d animation. But, you'll still have a lot to learn from 2d animation.
No matter what you're animating, you're going to want to learn the 12 principals of animation. You can probably find some youtube videos or something, but I really recommend this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Animators-Survival-Kit-Richard-Williams/dp/0571202284
It's been a standard in animation schools for ages. It's what I learned on ages ago, and still holds up. If you can afford this, I would start here.
You don't need a degree. Going to school is great, but you can maybe split the difference and find a few decent paid (maybe on sale, not too expensive) courses online. There's free stuff on youtube but you may have more confidence in a properly structured course. Stuff like this goes on sale a lot, google around a bit and see if anything stands out to you.
I studied 3d animation in school and I'm not good at drawing. When school started, we only did 2d animation in order to learn the basics. This is fine, you can do basic animation with bad drawings. You can probably skip it and go right to 3d, but just keep in mind it'll be a good idea to study a lot of classic 2d animation.
Regardless of what you do, it'll be a lot of work. Whatever you produce early on probably won't look good and you'll get discouraged. Just keep practicing, keep learning. Take affordable courses when you can. Spend a lot of time watching tutorials for your chosen software, because 3d animation can be pretty complex.
Get a few friends together and start filming short films, just have fun with it. They don’t have to be super serious or submitted to festivals just something to get a feel for editing, writing, planning, and camera angles/movements. This can help you find your style and get you comfortable with the elements of filmmaking. One thing I found super beneficial to my storytelling was reading a lot of fiction, and short stories. Along with fiction I recommend reading a book on screenwriting, my favorite one is: Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting This book offers tons of resources with the three act structure. But honestly right now my best advice is do it and just have fun. Some of my favorite films were in my backyard with my iPod touch and editing on iMovie. Hope this helps, Good luck!
According to this post, there are apparently at least two versions of the book; the initial version with the timeline and a revised version that removed the timeline.
Also, Marvel Studios: The First Ten Years is official but not "official" official. The "official" official one is The Story of Marvel Studios: The Making of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
I hype this book a ton, but I feel like its just a great basis for making better, more engaging films without over thinking all of it. How To Shoot Video That Doesn't Suck But some bits in there that I like to reiterate:
People are entertained and engaged by stories. So think about everything with that lens. Everything! Sure you're whole movie is a story. But keep breaking it down. Every scene in your movie should be a mini story. And a story has a beginning, middle, and end.
(You could even think about a single shot as a story. Which is a really good recipe for engaging single shots)
Think about it like a comic strip with 3 panels. First, something gets started and established. Second, things get heightened, or stressed, or blocked, or weird. And then, finally, things get resolved.
So when you're thinking about that boring photo, how does that photo fit into 1 of the 3 parts of that mini story you're in. Does that establish the scene you're starting telling us where you are, just before you go into how your team is at their biggest game yet in this town? Great. That sounds like part of a story, that's moving things forward.
But if you find yourself saying, it isn't part of the story at all. It's just pretty. Cut. Cut mercilessly. Great editing is the ability to cut so much stuff you really really liked at one point. But able to realize it isn't right for a particular story.
I wouldn't fear filming your own stuff if that's keeping you back. "Editing in camera" is a great thing to learn. Meaning: thinking while your shooting on how this shot is going to look, time its going to roll, so it's not all in post production.
Great book to checkout if you're new to filming yourself: How To Shoot Video That Doesn't Suck Also really hits the basics of editing that will get you making videos with your own stuff that you'll be proud about without getting to deep in the details of editing tools.
Lucas is a petty, jealous, bitter person, but Marcia must have the best PR team of all time for this myth of her “saving Star Wars” to have spread so far and wide.
She did do a small amount of editing work on the initial cut of Star Wars, but left the project altogether after a disastrous test screening. It was GL who then personally put thousands of hours in the editing room—all uncredited because he didn’t officially belong to the professional editors guild—and saved his film.
The academy awarded Oscars to the editing team, but left out GL—again, not a member of the guild—which I believe Lucas took as a huge slap in the face after putting in more work cutting and splicing celluloid than virtually the entire editing staff combined.
Should mention that despite GL’s resentment of her work and recognition, some of her influence on Star Wars persists. Most notably, Leia kissing Luke “for luck” as they make a daring escape from the Death Star was 100% Marcia’s suggestion and exists in all cuts of the film today.
source: film historian J.W. Rinzler’s excellent The Making of Star Wars: The Definitive Story Behind the Original Film