I figured since it's been so long since I've written an update on my blog, I'd make a quick post on this final day of 2018. It's certainly been a crazy year, and I don't tend to enjoy writing cheesy 'reflection' posts (especially on social media where it feels very show-offy sometimes). But, seeing as this is my blog, I've written reflection posts involving animation projects, and most of my year revolves around academics and careers I thought it'd be a good opportunity to talk a little bit about it even if it's just for myself. But I'm going to try to keep it as brief as possible.
R&J - Dream/Queen Mab Texturing Test #5
R&J - Dream/Queen Mab Texturing Test #4
R&J - Dream/Queen Mab Texturing Test #2
R&J - Dream/Queen Mab Texturing Test #3
So this year I've obviously managed to graduate from the CAA course at UCA, and I am very grateful to all of the staff on the course for helping me through it as well as my peers. It was an amazing experience and I honestly missed it before it was even over. It is really great to see the current third years working their way through their final projects and I can't wait to see the results. I continue to be proud of how successful my year has been in regards to film festivals and it is very exciting to see. I'm again very grateful for the continued support and interest When has received this last year. I honestly never expected it but it makes me happy that all of that hard work was worth it. New Designers now feels like it was so far away, but I look forward to attending ND 2019 to support the course, its staff and students.
ND 2018
CAA 2018
CAA 2018
Factual Animation Film Festival 2018
I'm also very grateful that I have been able to continue working on projects with the course such as Romeo & Juliet. I admit I am somewhat disappointed with myself that I have been so busy and unable to work on it as much as I'd like to. Whenever I do get to sit down and work on it, it's like a whirlwind to get as much done as possible in the small space of free time I have, and I don't feel I absorb the visuals as much as I'd like. But, thanks to Phil and Ethan we have been making good progress and have created some interesting results. I cannot wait till I can see the final renders and what it looks like after VFX and compositing. Hopefully everything goes smoothly.
R&J - Love Scene // Scene 04 (Alive)
R&J - Love Scene // Scene 02 (Alive)
R&J - Love Scene //Scene 03 (Dead)
R&J - Love Scene // Scene 05 (Dead)
R&J - Love Scene // Scene 07 (Alive)
R&J - Love Scene // Scene 07 (Alive)
I was also lucky enough to go and see my family in America over the summer. During this time I also had the privilege of going to volunteer at the SIGGRAPH conference in Vancouver. Despite travelling to America on my own, I consider this trip to Vancouver the first time I properly travelled alone since it was an unfamiliar place and I didn't have a home and family to greet me. It was honestly an amazing experience. I had so much fun, met many amazing people (some of which I keep in contact and occasionally meet up with), and overall it opened my eyes and taught me a lot.
In addition to everything else, I recently started to get back into some traditional artwork which has been very fun and liberating. I've found it relaxing to just pick up some old paints and paintbrushes and create whatever I feel like that particular day. They may not be amazing, but I've had a lot of fun creating this series that I've for now dubbed 'Left Over'.
(Left to Right) One, Two, Three
(Left to Right) Four, Five, Six
Seven
Eight (Left) & Nine (Right)
(Left to Right) Ten, Eleven, Twelve
(Left to Right) Thirteen, Fourteen, Fifteen
Sixteen (Left) & Seventeen (Right)
(Left to Right) - Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty
And of course, I've managed to secure a job at The Flying Colour Company in London! I've now been working there for about four months and I feel I've settled in a bit more. It's very exciting being able to work on real shows...although I cannot talk about them just yet. Once I can reveal what I've been working on, I plan to! I've been lucky to have some amazing artists teach me how to use Autodesk Flame while I also work on some 3D work in Maya.
It's been scary taking the leap from education into a career and commuting into/out of central London every day is tiring and time consuming...but I'm excited to see where it goes, what I learn, and who I meet. Once again I'm grateful for all of the support I've had over the last few years and I look forward to working on more amazing projects.
So New Designers 2018 is officially over and things feel especially surreal to me. While it was strange handing in my final project in May and then graduating in June... there was still New Designers looming over the horizon. Even though New Designers was stressful and nerve-wracking at times, it was an amazing opportunity and I really enjoyed experiencing it with my peers.
I met several people from the industry, other graduates/exhibitors, and families. The response I got from those that I spoke to meant so much to me. Since When is pretty experimental and abstract, I feel New Designers was going to be a real test to see if the film 'worked'. Most people said similar things - it was difficult to watch but it made them think and feel something which is exactly what I wanted. Many said they feel they have a better understanding and can relate although they may not necessarily have the same struggles I did.
I did also have some heart-to-heart conversations with individuals that have had similar experiences...which meant the world to me. All I wanted was for this film to make a difference in even one person's life...whether that be educational or for reassurance/comfort. I'm very happy and proud to see it be successful in both aspects. I also created some pins for my project to raise money for the mental health charity, Mind. This evening I donated the money plus some extra.
When has also won Judge's Choice for the New Designers Screening Prize...which I honestly did not expect! I was admittedly overthinking the fact that 3 minutes 30 seconds was missing from my film...but I'm glad it still made an impact on the judges. I am very excited I got to meet both Jez Stewart from BFI and Alex Haley from Sky and I really appreciate and value their feedback on the film. It was very emotional for me and I admittedly nearly cried. I think this is another step forward for mental health awareness and I hope it continues to make an impact in the future. I'm also extremely proud that my peer - Rebecca Stapley - was awarded the Audience Choice Screening Prize as well. A double win for CAA!
On the flip side - one of my Art Of books was unfortunately taken from the stand. It was my own fault for probably not paying enough attention...luckily I had gotten a free extra copy since one was defective. I'm trying to look at it as positively as I can - hopefully someone from the industry picked it up or at least someone who really loved the project.
Despite this setback and disliking being photographed, I really enjoyed New Designers and the amazing work that my peers and other graduates from various universities have created. I think there were many projects that discussed a variety of important topics from mental illness to the environment. I'm excited to get into the industry, create more art, and to see everyone else succeed in the future.
Here is my film (again) with the tweaked rotting and meat shots. This also includes the updated sound design for the 'bees' entity. I'm happy with how my film has turned out with these improvements and I'm excited to see if it sparks conversations at New Designers.
I've also gotten my Art Of printed as a magazine using Issuu/Peecho. Via Moo.com I printed some business cards (with rounded corners to match my Art Of design) and some larger post cards since I enjoyed collecting the post cards when I went to New Designers previously. Overall I think/hope I'm prepared for next week and I'm excited to see what happens!
