Saturday, 30 June 2012

Another bash...

OK, here i'm trying to make something that looks a bit like the 'I met the walrus" animation (see below)
but right now, I think I have to just make a storyboard and stick to it... we're running outta time!!!!! yeeshhh!

Friday, 29 June 2012

Class Feedback

I also had class yesterday...

My tutor liked the simple colourful info-graphic style, but there's too much to take in.

He likes the nerdy introduction.

He said I should try to bring all the different styles together.

Post show

OK, so yesterday was the show. I think it went more or less well. There was a shaky start trying to set up all the equipment, where the audience had to witness me scrambling about taping up an old sheet for a screen and trying to plug in the projector and the PA to the laptop with out the projector falling over and breaking!

I think everyone seemed to enjoy the animations. I'm really happy to have shown them to my course mates and other members of the public.

For the DNA video I got 15 people filling in the 'feedback form" so I think that's quite good.

Wednesday, 27 June 2012

New Video- black and white drawings and video footage.

On reflection, I think I would really like it if people talked to each other about the philosophical questions. So I think I will encourage this on the feedback form.

Here, I have tried to put the drawings and video footage elements together.

In this one, I traced the DNA translation in Illustrator.

In this, I just adjusted the contrast and brightness of the illustration with photoshop. I think I prefer this one, because the rougher-style suits the video collage bits more.

Trial-run feedback reflection

From the feedback I received (although I guess 4 people isn't really statistically valid) it seems:

-Maybe the facts were not so new to the viewers.
-However, it seems they were reasonably interesting.
-There seemed to be some feeling of 'awe/cosmicness'
-No one really seemed to think about our fate being already decided.
- that idea didn't seem too depressing or seem to make any one feel like responsibility is removed.
-There seemed more support for the idea that the outside world gets in the way of fulfilling potential.
-More people liked the video footage.
-They didn't seem to like the introduction so much.
-They didn't like the repetition

Trial-run feedback

Tuesday, 26 June 2012

Trial-run of film screening and survey- Nerdy introduction, black and white moving illustration and video footage

I have invited some friends round and bribed them with curry to take part in this 'focus group'.

I will show the film below- the nerdy introduction, black and white moving illustration of DNA Translation and the video footage, philosophical music video....

Feedback form

DNA Translation/Gene Expression Video

All answers will be anonymous- so feel free to speak your mind!

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Agree Agree Neutral/Indifferent Disagree Strongly Disagree

1. The video taught me some new facts about the DNA translation process

1 2 3 4 5

2. The facts I learnt were interesting

1 2 3 4 5

3. The video left me feeling quite 'in awe' of nature and "cosmic"

1 2 3 4 5

4. I didn't really get it and felt a bit bored.

1 2 3 4 5

5. It made me think about some things… if our actions are carried out because of the genes we carry, that must mean that our fate is already decided.

1 2 3 4 5

6. I don't like the above idea- if we can't change our future, that's depressing.

1 2 3 4 5

7. I quite like this idea- it seems to take responsibility off my shoulders!

1 2 3 4 5

8. It made me think about 'gene expression'. How many of us really express our full potential?

1 2 3 4 5

9. I think the outside world gets in the way of us realising our full potential a lot of the time.

1 2 3 4 5

10. Which was the most successful part?

Introduction Black and white drawings Video footage

11. Please add any other comments! Remember you will be anonymous!!!!!!!

Gene expression illustration but moving and with narration

3 films in 1

OK, I think the best thing to do is put the 3 styles in 1. Try to shorten and simplify the explanation.

But I realise this is a bit rubbish and doesn't really make any sense.... More to come!

Monday, 25 June 2012

Hannah Richards

I love this illustrator. I kind of wish I was her. She's like a lighter version of David Shrigley I think.

http://www.booooooom.com/2012/01/13/drawings-by-artist-hannah-richards/

I'm trying to be her here...

Sunday, 24 June 2012

DNA Illustration Illustrator

I traced this in Illustrator. It's not finished.

Now it is finished.

I converted this into a vector with 'live trace'

Musc videos to show next thursday- music by alpha60

I Need Love- I made this film ages ago, just with paper, a pencil and istopmotion. I re-edited to go with the song. I also changed about the curves with After Effects, and added some distortion with Avenue Resolume.

Cathode Ray Mission- Some videos from Naim June Paik, and some footage of an early synthesiser. I messed about with it with Resolume.

Soft Touch

A few different video collages.... distorted with some demos from Resolume.

Black Magic- Mostly cheesy 80's videos (by Shanon, The Gogos, Donna Summer, Ruins, Donna Allen) plus scenes from Lucifer Rising by Kenneth Anger and Wildstyle (an 80's hiphop movie).

+ Resolume distortion

Monorail City- Scenes from/of monorails/trains- plus scenes from videos from YMO, Grace Jones, John Foxx, Midnight Star

+ Resolume distortion

Feed back form

Feedback form

DNA Translation/Gene Expression Video

All answers will be anonymous- so feel free to speak your mind!

1 2 3 4 5

Strongly Agree Agree Neutral/Indifferent Disagree Strongly Disagree

1. The video taught me some new facts about the DNA translation process

2. The facts I learnt were interesting

3. The video left me feeling quite 'in awe' of nature and "cosmic"

4. I didn't really get it and felt a bit bored.

5. It made me think about some things… if our actions are carried out because of the genes we carry, that must mean everything that our fate is already decided.

6. I don't like the above idea- if we can't change our future, that's depressing.

7. I quite like this idea- it seems to take responsibility from my shoulders!

8. It made me think about 'gene expression'. How many of us really express our full potential?

9. I think the outside world gets in the way of us realising our full potential a lot of the time.

10. Please add any other comments! Remember your name will be anonymous!!!!!!!

What now?

So for the show on Thursday the idea is to show some British experimental animation, some backdrops for alpha60's music, and then my science stuff, for which there will be a 'feedback form' for people to say what they think.

There may also be cake to say thank you! Probably lemon drizzle cake.

Saturday, 23 June 2012

VJ Software

With inspiration from tutors Gareth and Jaygo I decided to try to use some VJ software. I've just tried AVMixer Pro... found it a bit tricky to work out how to use but I managed to get this...

I also tried out Resolume, which has some great demos!!! Very exciting...

Illustration DNA

Friday, 22 June 2012

Brandi Strickland style poster of Gene expression

Illustrator- Nose bleeds illustration

I traced this sketch with illustrator. I think it took me about one hour.

Feedback

Yesterday I had a tutorial with my great tutor, Rob.

He said I need to sort out what methodologies (ways of researching) I'm using.

E.g, Experimental research

Visual research

questionnaires

There's some good books about methodologies

Your research Investigated Edited by Deer- Richardson

Visual Methodologies Noble

I also need to work out the theory (ideas, philosophy)

Language? Wittgenstein? Chomsky?

Philosophical music video-

The mirror image use- it's a bit confusing is there a "duality" to DNA transcription (i guess not really other than the double helix)

Infographic Style

After a while he lost track of the whole thing. It was confusing. Need to cut the info down into bitesize chunks.

Always explain acronyms. Whenever it says "this continues', you have to show it continuing.

Cartoon style

Your drawing is strong. The best thing is to try to use your drawing skill

You could try to put all the different styles together....

Try to finish things in a week.

Wednesday, 20 June 2012

Cartoon style 2

OK, I had to make the narration shorter- there's no way I can animate so much in the time we have!!!

Tuesday, 19 June 2012

Cartoon Style

There seems to be some ironic humour here in the contrast with the images and the voice over.

I wonder how I can make them match.

music video style with narration

Here's the music video style with narration. Maybe this helps explain more, but I kind of think "Shut up! Let me enjoy the images and music!"

I met the Walrus/What is bionanotechnology?

James Braithwaite illustrates the coversation between John Lennon and a 14 year old Jerry Levitan, who snuch into his hotel room in Toronto in 1969

Well, I'm not sure if you could call this an 'infographic'. But it illustrates the narration. I like the drawing style and I think I could possibly do something kind of similar...

Shaun Douglas explains his work as a nanotechnology scientist.

Infographic DNA

OK well this is exactly what I want to make really- does another one need to exist????

The style of it is quite authoritative- especially the voice and the helvetica style font.

It also uses humour when it talks about being a banana or rhino.

New music video style- number 3

OK it's not perfect, but getting better I think! I really like the music, Edward Larry Gordon's All Pervading from his 1978 album, Celestial Vibration.

I'm not really sure what to do now. I might just concentrate on 2 films- quality over quantity.

Infographic DNA

OK, a lot of it is quite rough, and in general it is quit boring, despite adding in some jazzy music.

All the molecules and stuff just come in from the side or zoom in from the centre...

Information-qise, I think some parts need clearing up too. And at the end there should be some explanation of how proteins go about their business.

Also, the images need to be made in illustrator because I made them inphotoshop and they look all rouh and rubbish.

I think the scene changes need to improve and also the typography.

I don't want it to look too "GCSE bitesize"- I want it to look more like these...

This is Dare. Are you? Infographic

[infographic]The right to same-sex marriage (Thailand)

Monday, 18 June 2012

Videodrome

I watched the David Cronenberg movie Videodrome last night- quite a treat for the senses! Potential for sampling!!!

Videodrome Trailer 1

Videodrome Trailer 2

Videodrome Trailer 3

Sunday, 17 June 2012

Kyary Pamyu- Pon Pon Pon

I just found this ker-razy japanese pop video- I wish I knew how to speak Japanese!

Lyrics translated to English... (thank you http://hanjadream.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/ponponpon/)

Maybe at that cross walk, you all will start skipping
And maybe you’ll join hands and stare at the sky in the towns center
Maybe in this town, you can grasp that chance anywhere
I’m not crying so early in the day, I have no choice but to move forward, no no!

Pon pon! Go on ahead!
Isn’t it boring not to? There’s no reason!
I put on my headphones and bounce to the rhythm
Come my way way, down my path

Pon pon! Advance, all these various things
Are you beginning to listen to your feelings?
Poi poi! Cast aside whoever is the bad person
Yes, now, let us go. Aah you make me happy.

Everyday pon, everytime is pon
I want to ride a merry-go-round
Everyday pon, everytime pon
But maybe that isn’t a good idea

Pon pon! Go on ahead!
Isn’t it boring not to? There’s no reason!
I put on my headphones and bounce to the rhythm
Come my way way, down my path

Pon pon! Advance, all these various things
Are you beginning to listen to your feelings?
Poi poi! Cast aside whoever is the bad person
Yes, now, let us go. Aah you make me happy.

Everyday pon, everytime is pon
I want to ride a merry-go-round
Everyday pon, everytime pon
But maybe that isn’t a good idea

Pon pon way way way pon pon way pon way pon pon
Way way pon pon pon way way pon way pon way way

Maybe at that cross walk, you all will start skipping
And join hands to stare at the sky in the towns center
Or maybe in this town, you can grasp that chance anywhere
I’m not crying so early in the day, I have no choice but to move forward, no no!

Pon pon! Advance, all these various things
Ton ton! All your feelings coming out
Are you beginning to listen to your feelings?
Yes, now, let us go. Aah you make me happy.

Everyday pon, everytime pon
I want to ride a merry-go-round
Everyday pon, everytime pon
Maybe it’s really not so bad

Pon pon way way way pon pon way pon way pon pon
Way way pon pon pon way way pon way pon way way

the foggiest ideal with Watford Live and Mewlab

http://afilmmadebyawholetown.wordpress.com/2012/06/16/did-you-draw-a-frame-with-us-then-tell-us-your-name/

I traveled to Watford on Saturday to help out Mewlab and Watford Live to get the public to help trace 5000 frames for a film called " the foggiest ideal' made by the people of Watford, and to be screened at Watford festival.

I think it was a great idea, it was really nice to sit with random people and scribble away. A great way to get community participation (and free labour!!!)

Music vid style- a bit more sciencey- but is it better?

I don't know why it goes all weird and slow in the middle.

I think that a bit of sharpening up and it'll be fine.

Journey Inside The Cell

This video has some great 3D videos of what I'm talking about

Journey Inside The Cell

Friday, 15 June 2012

Chromosomes dancing about

Not really sure where this would fit in- info graphic? Music video? Soap Opera?

I've found that drawing things in illustrator is the way forward

New music video style with music and some moving image

Thanks to- Richard T. Heffron (Futureworld)

Mike Leigh (Naked)

I really like this and thinks it looks dead cute.... BUT is it about gene expression or is it just a bunch of pictures????

Also, maybe there's a bit TOO much going on in some bits- the beat street girl in the pink kind of obscures the sepia secretary.

To make it more science-y- have a rotating helix- but is that too cheesy???

- have some unzipped single strand helixes.

- some nice 3D protein assembling?

- I don't wanna talk over it because I think the sound is too nice.

- Maybe it could all be a bit slower

I could connect the control desk to the DNA helix.

-unzipping

-transcription to secretaries.
(show 3d molecules transcripting)

-translation to --- something!!!
(show translation in 3d)

- then show individual differentiation- a bunch of different faces exploding???
dancers???

Some Exploration of "translation'/"expression"

"TRANSLATION" -WEIRDOS WHO GO TO SECOND HAND BOOKSHOPS

I used to work in a second hand bookshop and it was great because we had lots of regular customers who would wander in and say cryptic things and me and my best friend, who also worked there would be left to decipher the meanings.

'Tugs", she always wanted to look at "Ship books" but I used to hear "sh** books" so I thought she was just being rude about the shop.

She wore bizzarre pastel-coloured outfits and matching make-up and hair accessories.

She was interested in tug boats and lighthouses, which seemed unusual.

"Protest music" Another striking dresser- wet-look leggings (the kind with the elastic hoop under the foot), over-sized bright silk shirts and huge (quite gangster-looking) gold chains. She would always comment on the music we were playing, usually in a derogatory way. I think she originally came from Denmark.

"Terrence the Deterrence" -It was discovered that he had had a high-flying job in the city, but at some point had a breakdown and now traipsed through greenwich's bookshops and junk shops all day. He was quite stingy- always wanting a discount wherever he could get it- and had some questionable views on women. He also used to caress your hand as he passed over money.

"TRANSLATION" TEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

I teach English a foreign Language part-time. I really enjoy this job- it's really nice getting to know people from all over the world and find out about their lives. It can also be very funny and enjoyable too- when people make a funny mistake or joke.

But it can also be quite awkward. For one sometimes it feels quite unfair that I get to have this great job and the students are spending a lot of money to learn a language- when i don' need to! They are also often important people like ministers or doctors and I feel like it's embarrassing for them to answer all the silly questions that you do when you're learning a language like "what's the word for a man from another planet?" or whatever...

Goth student

Elementary class

What is your dream?

"EXPRESSION"

This is not based on a real person. "Anthony" is a character I made up who wants to express himself. He gives up his reliable job in a revelatory epiphany that self-actualisation is the closest we can get to god. He takes off all his clothes and goes on a rampage through a shopping centre.

Infographic/philosophic music video

Infographic style

Philosophic music video style

I think this could be nice with some Sun Ra-type Jazz. Also, I wanna add some moving-image bits. Maybe from Futureworld...