P6- Create and edit the animation content in line with the plan.

Create and edit the animation content in line with the plan.

I created the animation in Adobe Animate. It took approximately 10 hours to complete. After the planning stage, the first thing that I had to do was to create the character in animate.

The character is a man with a music note (quaver) for a head. The character is made out of several; different vector shapes on different layers so that they could be individually moved. One layer being the head, another being the body, one the left arm, another the right... The different parts of the body were created on separate layers so that they could they could be moved if I desired them to. The different elements of the man were created with vector shapes such as squares and circles and lines. Some parts of the body, for example the hands and the area of background that is seen between the legs, I drew with the brush tool as the vector shapes could not give me the shape that I wanted.

 For the background, I used a copyright free image from 'Vecteezy'. But the whole picture did not fit in the stage, so I positioned it how I wanted it and used the 'Clip Content Outside of Stage' tool so that I would only see the part of the background that I wanted to use. Which made animating easier as I did not get confused about what part of the background was on the stage and that bit wasnt.

 For layers of the animation that don't move for the duration of the animation such as the background and the man with a music note for a head, I copied and pasted each individual frame for that layer for the duration of the animation (just over 31 seconds) which is about 372 frames of exactly the same thing on the stage for that layer.

 For the music notes that crawl up the stave, each different colour of notes had to be on different layers, meaning I had one layer for all the blue notes, another for the pink notes, etc... Each time I needed to input a new note of a particular colour, I had to add a new keyframe and copy what I had drawn for the past bit of the note and draw on top of it. The average number of frames it took to complete a music note was four.

When animating the juggling balls, I used the onion skins tool, so that I could see where the ball was in the previous frame so that I could judge where it could go in the next frame. For each ball, I animated the balls moving at different speeds as a real juggler would have the balls moving at slightly different speeds. To do this, I used a fewer number of frames to get from one hand to the other for a particular ball. Another thing I did to increase the believability of the juggling was to have the balls turn as they flew through the air to give the illusion that they were spinning. To do this I rotated the balls in a specific way so that they would like like they were turning.

For each new frame, I would copy the frame from before it, and would then position the duplicate ball with the arrow tool so that it is in the position that I want it to be in. Then copy this frame and paste it into the next frame and repeat this until I had the ball flying through the air.

When it came to creating the musical wind, I used a similar technique to animate it, but it was slightly different. I would copy each frame, and paste it into the next frame, But instead of using the arrow tool to move my object to where I wanted it, instead, I used the brush tool to continue the drawing that I was drawing so that I looked like the wind was growing and wrapping around the man with a music note for a head.

I did the same thing when I was drawing the Steve, copying and pasting the frames and then continuing the drawings that I was creating with the brush tool.

When it came to creating the music notes, I used the brush tool and drew one part of the note per frame so that it took me about 3-4 frames to draw the note depending on the type of the note.

P5- Create the content for the animation.

Create the content for the animation.

I have created the animation and exported it in two different file sizes, one for a mobile device and one to fit on a website. I did this as the brief specified that I needed to have the animation be compatible on a mobile/tablet app as well as for the website. I also included an easily recognisable character as the brief specified that I needed to have a character that would be able to be on all the other promotional material for the festival. As the festival is for street performers, musicians and circus performers, I made sure I incorporated all of these into my animation through different elements of the animation; for example, I chose for the background to be in a park as this would be a location in which street performers would perform. 

P4- Create a pre-production plan for the animation.

Gantt Chart:

Mood Board:

Production Schedule:

Risk Assessment:

StoryBoard:

P3- Develop concept ideas and sequence for an animation to meet a client brief.

Concept art for my animation that I created as a response to the client brief. 

M2- Complete a SWOT analysis for the intended animation for the client.

D1- Compare the different styles of animations across global cultures.

Compare digital animations from two different countries around the world. You should reference animation styles, characters, themes and narratives.

'Monsters, Inc' is an animated feature length film made by Pixar in 2001. It was produced in the United states by John Lasseter and was directed by Pete Docter. The film is about two monsters, 'Sully' played by John Goodman and 'Mike' played by Billy Crystal, who find a human child called 'Boo' and their adventures in trying to get 'Boo' home. 'Howl's Moving Castle' is a Japanese animated feature length film made in 2004. It was made by the animation company Studio Ghibli, and was directed by Hayao Miyazaki. The film is about a young women called 'Sofie' who is cursed to look like an old lady by an evil witch, and her adventures with a young wizard called 'Howl'.

'Monsters, Inc' is an a 3D computer generated animation film, it was important that the animation was 3-dimensional as it allows for more detailed set locations and to give a better indication of texture. The more detailed texture allowed the animators to make the characters look as impressive as they could. Fur on characters such as 'Sully' were rendered in more detail and allowed for more lifelike looking humans like 'Boo'.

Western audiences often prefer computer generated animation as it is more fashionable and often prefer more detailed animation. Eastern audiences generally prefer traditional 2-dimensional animation as it is what they are used to. 'Howl's Moving Castle' is  2D hand drawn animation. The backgrounds are drawn it lots of detail but the characters and objects in the foreground are in less detail. It is obvious that the characters are human but they are not as lifelike as some 3D animation. The characters and objects that the characters interact with are drawn using basic shapes and lines and the colours and shading is not blended but distinctly separate, whereas the backgrounds look like paintings and are in great details.

In 'Monsters, Inc', the main characters are 'Sully' a large blue and purple monsters who has the physique similar to a bear. He works for the company 'Monsters Incorporated' as a 'Scarer', meaning his job is to collect 'scream energy' to power his city by scaring human children. At the beginning of the film, we see him as a tough character, however, the audience later learns that he is not as tough as he seams as not only do we see him scared and panicked, but we also see him compassionate and loving. Another important character in 'Monsters, Inc' is 'Mike Wazowski', he is a green one-eyed monster who has the approximate physique of an egg. At the beginning of the film we see him untrusting and unreliable, however, as the film develops er see him become more reliable and caring of 'Boo'. The protagonist in 'Howl's Moving Castle' is a young girl called 'Sofie' who is really insecure about the way she looks and who she is. As the film develops, 'Sofie' is magically transformed into and old lady and begins to lose her insecurities. With the help from 'Howl', as her spell is broken and her youth is returned, he insecurities disappear completely. The other main protagonist in 'Howl's Moving Castle' is the character 'Howl', a young wizard. He appears to be confident and unafraid, but we learn that he is actually terrified of people controlling him and that his fear comes from still having the heart of a child. The characters in western films are all driven by the plot and have a character arc, but the arc is a result of the story rather than what leads it. However, it is clear that in eastern animated films, the character arc is what drives the story through to its conclusion.

In 'Monsters, Inc' the narrative is character driven. All of the events occur because of decisions or actions that the characters decide to make. For example; 'Boo' gets stuck in the monster world because 'Randall' (the antagonist) decides to kidnap her and experiment his new machine on her. Whereas, the narrative of 'Howl's Moving Castle' is event driven. For example, 'Sofie' wandered into 'Howl's castle because she was cursed to be old and had to leave her home. 'Howl's Moving Castle' is very fast paced and doesn't fit easily into the three act structure, whereas 'Monsters, Inc' fits really easily into the three act structure.

Both films have themes about friendship, familial love, and not all monsters are horrible. Overall, the themes in 'Monsters, Inc' are simpler than the themes in 'Howl's Moving Castle' as it they are easy to spot and are simpler to explain to children and are good morals for children, whereas the themes in 'Howl's Moving Castle' are complex, but all based around love and how to love a monster. 'Monsters, Inc' impacts the audience through teaching the audience a lesson whereas 'Howl's Moving Castle' impacts the audience though asking them questions of love, and how to love. 

M1- Assess the suitability of animations for the target audience.

‘Toy Story 3’ is a Pixar animated film released in 2010. ‘Toy Story 3’ is the third instalment in Pixar’s debut film series ‘Toy Story’. It is a 3D computer animated film starring Tim Alan as ‘Buzz Lightyear’ and Tom Hanks as ‘Woody’. ‘Toy Story 3’ was originally released in cinemas June 18th 2010 and then released to buy on DVD/Blu-ray later in the year. Since then it has been available on streaming site such as Netflix. The film has previously been on streaming site, this makes it easier for 21st century children to be able to watch it as using smart tablets and apps as children seem to be naturally fluent in using this sort of tech, much more then learning how to use a DVD player.

For this film, I would suggest that the target audience is children and their older siblings or parents. I would say that this is the target audience because of the age rating being Universal and suitable for all viewers. Also, the whimsical nature of this film being about children’s toys who come to life is the perfect narrative for children as it would be almost a dream-come-true. It plays with the ideas of what the children imagine when they are playing with their own toys and therefore, it becomes easy for the children to relate to the film. The film is also aimed at older teenagers and adults, as older siblings or parents would take their children to watch the film. This is shown through sensitive themes like maturity and outgrowing their toys. This is a theme that adults will be able to relate to, more especially older teenagers as this is something that would have happened to them more recently. Another important factor to consider when determining the target audience for ‘Toy Story 3’ is that it is a sequel for the film ‘Toy Story that came out in 1995, fifteen years before ‘Toy Story 3’. This would mean that any children who watched the original when it came out in 1995, would be fifteen years older, and would be a similar age to the now grown up Andy.

‘Toy Story 3’ is a feature length animation; it is 1hour 48minutes. This is a good length of time for a children’s film as it is not too long that it would bore them. As well as this, the time of the film is a good length as has enough time to get the story across in a suitable amount of detail without having the film go on for too long.

In this eye level two shot, we can see Buzz Lightyear light in the moonlight. The use of lighting in this shot shows us that he is of importance. However Jessie, who is in the background, is in shadows which tells the audience that she is no longer though of as important and is to be treated without dignity. This is solidified by the bars separating her from the person she used to trust. As well as this, the bars solidify her lack of freedom; she has been locked away and has practically no power. This is shown through her taking up a very small amount of space within the shot, whereas Buzz is taking up most of the room in the shot which tells the audience that he is the one with all the power.

In this low angle shot of Lotso, the audience an tell that he has all of the power over the other's fate. This is shown by the low angle as the audience are physically looking up at him. As well as this, we can see he has all the power as he is standing next to the button that will free the others from a certain death, but the distance between Lotso and the button show the audience that he will not free them. Within the shot, there is a red glow (from the incinerator) which not only is a reminder of the death that awaits the others, but also makes the audience think about the bloodshed, and the love that the friends share that will die along with them as these are what is associated with the colour red.

In this high angle wide shot, we can see that the toys who are about to die, are ultimately insignificant. This is shown through making them seem small against the size of the fire. Although to us and to Andy the toys mean a lot, within their world, their absence will not make a huge difference. This makes their death even more emotional and important to the audience.

In this medium shot, the focus is on Buzz's hand which is being reached towards Woody, however the hand is reaching towards the camera and the audience behind it. This makes it as though Buzz is reaching out to comfort the audience who are also preparing themselves for the death of these characters. For audience members who have watched all of the films in the franchise since 1995, it is as if he is saying to them "we're with you to the end".

In this high angle wide shot, Woody is centred in the middle, this shows he is the main character to focus on as he was Andy's main toy. An important thing to note is that not only is he in the centre but he is also alone in the centre. In this moment, while everyone else is clinging to each other, he is without Andy and has nobody else to turn to. Also Woody is stretched out. This shows us that he was the glue that binds all the toys together. It could also show the internal conflict about loosing Andy that has been troubling him throughout the film as he is physically being pulled in to directions. This sort of scene is important in children's films as it helps prepare them for events in the future of loosing a loved one and introduces them to the idea of death.

In this low angle over the shoulder two shot, we can see Andy who is physically towering over Barney and the audience which shows us that giving up Woody is entirely his decision and he has all the power in making that decision. In this shot, we can see that Woody is completely surrounded by Andy, this also tells the audience that the decision over Woody's fate entirely rests on Andy.

In this shot, we can see the final stage of Todorov's theory of equilibrium as all is good again for the characters. In the first scene of the film, Andy is playing with his toys, and in this shot, we can see Barney playing with her new toys. In the foreground we can see the satisfied faces of the toys whist they are being played with, and in the background we can see Barney playing with her new toys. This shows that there will be a new equilibrium where the toys get played with regularly again. This is emphasised by the pathetic fallacy in the shot, the weather is a beautiful sunny day which shows us that all is great again.

This shot also shows us the final stage of Todorov's theory as it is replicates the opening shot from the original film, this tells the audience who have seen the original film that this is a new beginning for these toys and that this is not the end.

‘Spirited Away’ is a Studio Ghibli animated feature film originally released in July 2001, and then rereleased in English in 2003. ‘Spirited Away’ is a Japanese anime that has been translated into over 17 different languages. The English dub was supervised by Pixar animator John Lasseter. ‘Spirited Away’ was released to buy on DVD across the world. The international viewership meant that the film became incredibly popular with audiences around the world. In 2003, ‘Spirited Away’ became the first non-English language film to win an Academy Award. ‘Spirited Away’ is a hand drawn animation, meaning that each individual frame was drawn and painted by hand. 

 
‘Spirited Away’, as a coming of age film is aimed at children and young teenagers. Despite the lead protagonist being female, the film is not aimed at one particular gender, but for all. The use of practical humour in events like the giant baby being turned into a mouse, or the three bouncing heads that act like jesters or fools. However, some theorists believe that though on the surface this is a film for children, there is a much deeper level of meaning that makes this a film for adults. These theorists suggest that the film is a metaphor for child prostitution. In the Japanese Edo era, bathhouses (where this film is set) were places where men would go to meet “Yuna”. This was the name for female attendants of the bath house that were also prostitutes. “Yuna” is also the name of the race of spirits who work in the bathhouse within the film”. In the theory, the character ‘No-Face’ is supposed to represent a man who is constantly asking after a young underage girl, after being turned down repeatedly he tries to bribe her with tokens. Other indications of this theory include ‘Chihiro’ having to sign her name away and becoming ‘Sen’ and then forgetting her real name, this represents the idea of women signing their lives away and forgetting who they are outside of their work. This theory is something that would be completely missed by children and young teenagers watching, therefore director Hayao Miyazaki is able to create a film suitable for children, whilst addressing an important political issue to the adults watching. 

‘Spirited Away’ is a feature animation with a running time of 2hours and 5minutes. This is quite long for an animation as the average length for a feature animation is 1hour 30minutes-1hour 40minutes. However, ‘Spirited Away’ is the perfect example of children not being bored by long films as it is captivating from the first frame through to the last. The story does not drag on, nor does it move on too quickly. It is the perfect ratio of plot to time.

In this high angle shot, the high angle and the irregular positioning of how the girl is sitting in the car shows the audience that something is wrong. From the dialogue talking about how the family is moving it is easy to understand why she may be upset. The high angle shows us that she is feeling down as she is beneath the audience.  

In this low angle wide shot, we can see how vulnerable and innocent Chihiro is as she is tiny in comparison to the large buildings and the tall tree. Trees are very tall and important and the taller they are the older they are. This is a really tall tree which shows that it and the places that are around Chihiro are very old and important.  

In this shot, Chihiro has been thrown upside down, this represents how Chihiro's life has been turned upside down. As well as this, in the shot, Chihiro is the only person in the shot, this shows the audience that she is all alone and doesn't have anyone to help her.

In this shot, Yubaba is shown to have all the power as she is taking up the most space in the shot, Chihiro is tiny in the shot and therefore she has less power. 

In this shot, Chihiro is being squished by the other ladies, this shows the audience that Chihiro is finding it difficult to fit in and is being oppressed by her other workers. 

This high angle shot is of all the people in the bathhouse working together to achieve the same goal, this represents how Chihiro is finally fitting in at the bathhouse. 

In this wide shot we can see Chihiro as small and alone, this shows the audience that Chihiro doesn't have anyone to help her. It can also be seen that Chihiro is climbing a ladder. Climbing ladders is often used as a way showing that a characters are having their status raised or are becoming stronger. This shows us that Chihiro has perseverance. Perseverance is an important lesson to teach children and young teenagers, as this is the target audience for the film, this is a great shot type to be in the film.