Transition Piece (W.I.P)

This will act as a transition between a couple of the paintings.  Needs another colour in it somewhere.

Hell again!

I'm adding blue to increase temperature contrast, but I'm trying to find the right type of blue to use.  It is difficult!  The man needs more work...at least a shadow!

Hell colour change

This is still in progress, but I'm happier with dramatic colours on this version.

First Layout- Cave

At this stage the layout is still a bit rough and there aren't currently any layers to it.  This will be a problem for me when I come to animate it, so I'm taking steps to cut some layers out.  Another problem arrises when I do this, as there will be cut out shapes all  over it, so I'll have to fill them in afterwards.   Below is the image as it is now.

To be able to cut out the layers fairly quickly and accurately, I duplicate the channel which shows the greatest level of contrast between the lightest area (the back of the cave) with the darkest area (the front).  In this instance it was the red channel, so I duplicated it and then went into the curves level editor and increased the contrast to gain clear definition between the background and the foreground.  All though not perfect,  it creates a mask I can use to separate the major layers 

Now I'm left with this:

I have to fill in the background again.  

Post Production and update on confusion

Since January I have managed to get a couple for great bits of useful feedback from Neil and Peter.  I've feel slightly more on track and confident about what I'm doing...but still feel disappointed about not getting as far as I'd hoped to.  It's a shame the year got off to such a bad start, but think it's resolving now.

I am now going to start cutting out any layers that I need to animated the layouts.  Some already have them, but there are a few more to add.  I'm also using this post production stage to had details and clean up the layouts.  I'm also thinking about not putting much of a storyline in and it just being paintings.

I think I will possibly have a few different layouts after now, as I'm not too happy with the ones I have at the moment.  I'm also spending a lot of time coming back to older paintings to improve them.  I have found it interesting how when I've not seen painting for a while, how easy it is to see what I can do to improve it.

Hell and tree

New interior environment

This isn't finished yet!  I'll keep posting updates...with demons.

Images to support painting development

I've found some interesting images of some demon-like mummies!  I think I may just have to place some similar looking creatures in my paintings :D.

http://wtf.thebizzare.com/offbeat/science-and-technology/monster-mummies-of-japan/

http://wtf.thebizzare.com/images/monster_mummy_10.jpg

http://wtf.thebizzare.com/images/monster_mummy_2.jpg

http://wtf.thebizzare.com/images/monster_mummy_6.jpg

http://wtf.thebizzare.com/images/kappa_mummy_3.jpg

More inspiration

I think I've been at a loss for inspiration, or at least I felt as if something had sapped it at the worst time.  However, I'm not one to wallow in self pity...too much, so I've been thinking of themes I can use.  I am now creating images of a hell, changing the previous image to add more colour because I think it looks washed out and isn't what I like.  Below is what it looks like so far:

I'm interested in myths, folklore and religious iconography such as the concepts of Angels and Demons.  So the next few paintings will be something of this sort.

Finished layouts

 For now, I am happy with saying these layouts are finished, albeit I am going to come back to them in the post production stage to polish them.  I realise there are a few things I could add to them to enhance their quality, like more detail on the rocks and perhaps adding some small light bounces on the front of the rocks in the cave to break up the darkness slightly.

 

Outside layout update

Updated storyboard

This is the updated storyboard...however I'm still slightly clueless as to what to put at the top of the tree.  Plan is to have something by the end of the day.

Formative

layout changed

Below is a painting I've changed, to help improve perspective, colour and layout.    

Original 

more layouts

Stage one

Current layouts

Production

Confusion, Edits and Pipelines


I've been battling with myself whether to write this or not, but unfortunately, I feel I have to as it is affecting my work.  Before Christmas and at this stage my confidence is fluctuating constantly and quite often don't feel I'm receiving enough support from tutors.  I ask for help/ask for a tutorial and PROMISED and it's cancelled or put off, mainly because the same student is being seen and seems to get priority over everyone else or it's forgotten about even though I remind them through out the day. It has happened for around 3 months now.  Also, in the least pathetic sounding way possible, for some reason on a Tuesday even when a tutor is going round the 3rd year to help them, register order, I'm walked past and ignored..the only one in the room, why me?  I shouldn't take it personally, but it's beginning to get very difficult not to.  At this stage I'm  even starting to think they've been told not to help me and I don't even think this is an impossible scenario!  This has happened every single time so far, so I'll have to jump around in front of them next time, whilst everyone else is casually approached.  Mean while,  I tried to ask for help several times and  I've been told I'm "too talented" and therefore don't need any help... I don't know how else to write this, it sounds awful but those are the words.  Instead I've been asking for more advice from friends in class and this has been quite helpful.  I feel very frustrated and alienated as I don't feel like I'm doing as well as I could be, and I want to discuss the direction of my film with the tutors who have said they specialise in certain aspects.  I'm not exactly the most confident of people and I just don't know what to say to get the input from them.  I don't want to have to dance around for attention,  to get a good grade and I'm not going to. I guess there are still about 4 months so I'll see what happens.

I'm now in production and am going to take the concepts and change the perspective a bit.  I'm also going to think about colour, temperature, tonal-values and scale in more detail.  I'm posting updated edits, colour pallets and references.


Colour and Temperature


At the moment I'm looking at the Cave layout and deciding what kind of element I want the rocks to be made out of.  I know I want there to be a clash in colour, in order to show a change in temperature; the heat will obviously be from the sun and the coolness from it being a cave, underground.  So, I could use a yellowy-orange, I guess a Champagne kind of hue, to represent the sun beaming in from the cave entrance. Then I'll use shades of Blue and perhaps Purple for the rocks and body of the cave.  I want it to be icy cold, in fact, frozen.  I'm still unsure whether to put a human figure in somewhere to help with a sense of scale- I'll think about that in post-production.

Showing perspective and value test

Rough test compositions

Animatic Submission (with sound)

Submission animatic

On reflection, I'm not that happy with it because all I actually want to do is concentrate on the environments and not the film making.  I might take out the bit with the roundabout!

More concepts

New Concepts- W.I.P
Woodland (oldest to newest)

Set Extensions
I haven't finished this part of the illustration yet, but I'm thinking in advance about how it will fit in the composition.  I don't have enough space to produce a decent amount of camera movements, so I'm going to make the scene wider.  Below is an image of a rough idea of how it might look.

I want the vanishing point to be over to the right and create a perspective, as I want the main area (painting to the right of the scene) to be approached from close up.