Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting

So did this test a while ago, but hadn't uploaded it because I hated it. But over time wounds heal and you get over it :P It's fun to look back and see how my work has gotten stronger. The reason it has been quiet on this blog is because I have a new job working on an action show, and it's been getting my full attention. I'll start to post work here again soon though, but for now here's a test from 3 months back:

Sketches

Some figures from imagination drawn on the tram to work:

And some sketches while watching Gantz 0

Studies of dynamic leg shapes:

Legend of Korra : Storyboard study

So, first of all here's a great resource! The actual animatic of episode 3 (book one) - great episode btw!

I picked a scene at 13:15 for a breakdown. Again there's not much I think you can learn from looking at my thumbnails, it really is about the exercise of looking through scenes shot by shot. The draughtsmanship of the board artist here is fantastic, so a real treat to examine.

Anyway things I have learned:

- Mix action coming towards the camera (for real immersion) and 2 shots or wide shots to see the action play out between the characters.
- Try and think of the pacing, Kick, punch, jab, jab, jab, RoundKick....pause....Even looking at these words. Words like Roundhouse take longer, jabs are really quick and snappy...it creates an energy, but if you go at a constant pace, people will get bored.
- Respect Screen direction. The first shot shows the placement of all characters, and it is respected throughout. When characters change position we see it from a 2 shot or wide. It's very clear.

Figures ipad

These aren't very good but they are just about keeping the mind on drawing figures :P These are no reference doodles on ipad.

Korra doodles

Drawing while watching something...super chill and also kind of productive :P

Legend of Korra Scene Study

I started to copy boards from a clip from Korra online here.  But I really have just concluded that this might be a good way to study composition or just how to technically draw a board (like the use of colors on the characters, etc..). But if you want to look at how the action flows and how it cuts, it's better to just take screenshots and analyse with words.

Storyboard pipeline

I'm talking to graduates on Wednesday and I wanted to give them something personal  to look at in regards to the pipeline of a storyboard with a list of resources I recommend for anybody learning storyboarding.

Doodles

I was sketching out some simplified faces last week

STUDY: Legend of Korra

I am still figuring out how to get the most mileage out of studies. This time I took screenshots of a sequence and then analysed the shots. I am looking at what shots are being used and why.

Why shoot wide? Why go in for a close up? most of the time the answers lie in the following :
- CLARITY (Can we tell what's going, do we know where the characters are, who is doing what action?)
- IMPACT(drama) (Are we feeling the hit, are we seeing the expressions of the character when we need it).

Very important is always to know where the characters are before you start putting your camera in action. Draw a map, it's one of the first things that helped me out the most!

This is a scene in episode 1...I actually forgot how good this is. The draughstmanship in this season is just superb! The set up for this scene is quite nice, but I'll skip over that. But basically Korra picks a fight with a couple of hoodlums

So if you want to analyse these things, ask why this is shot and staged the way it is. What are they communicating with this shot.

-> Bad guy fires off some water bending.
What do we need to see? The bad guy and the water bending. Both are accomplished here. They could've shot it from the side more, but acting to camera feels more personal, gets the viewer involved.

Then Korra takes that hit and sends it right back. Same type of shot, we are in wide to get the most out of character acting and seeing the power clearly.

Water hits the bad guy in the face and Korra turns it into ice, awesome! This time the camera is closer! So why is that? We just need to see him getting hit in the face, so we need to see his expression clearly, they stayed far enough to give enough context to the shot.

Cut wide and the bad guy stumbles forward towards Korra.

The above shot is great for clarity, but for the next move when Korra kicks him in the face, we need to be closer so we can feel the impact and see the expressions.

At the end of the day though, no matter how much you study. The only way to really learn is to storyboard. We all like different things, so there is no good or bad (well there is :P).

JULY/AUGUST = ACTION BOARDS

I started a bit late in July I decided to do this over the next 2 months. I'll be studying action boards, and perhaps doing a board in the last 2 weeks of August to put it into practice. My main focus for July will be Legend of Korra and the Dragon Prince.

In the meantime here's a page of doodles from Dragon Prince:

And some random doodles from imagination:

Dragon Prince Storyboard Study pt2

I'm still just figuring out how to best use my time to do studies for storyboarding. I'm not sure if drawing them is the best use of them, since you're not really focussed on the drawing, composition or the camera cutting specifically. So it feels like you're dividing your attention between too many things.


Here are my findings though from this sequence:

1) Even though this is a 3d show, the camera work was very much like a 2d show. I'm not sure of this is because of the board artists' background coming from 2d, or if this is a decision from the director. But when they run in the hallways, there is opportunity to track the character and so move the camera from shooting one side of the hallway to the other. But instead they cut.

2) The characters are expressed in their actions. Callum is not a fighter, and he just runs like a normal person would, and uses his wits instead (when he pulls the curtain over Rayla, and when he knocks down the armor to slow her down). Rayla on the other doesn't just run through the hallway, she zips and dashes and runs along walls, showing her assassin training background!

3) Dutch angle shots for intensity! The dutch angle was saved for 2 moments at the end of this sequence to up the intensity. It's always important to know where the climax of your sequence is and save your dynamic shots for when they are needed.

4) Low horizonline. The camera is kept low for dynamic shots, it allows depth when the characters rush towards cam.

5) Screen direction. I've noticed that in those hallways, every hallway looked pretty much exactly the same, yet it doesn't get confusing because the screen direction was respected. As long as the characters are moving a certain direction, we understand they are moving forward, so they pretty much reuse the same background for every turn :D

Dragon Prince Storyboard Study pt1

Using ipad pro doing a reverse by creating a storyboard from the final animation as a way to look at how things are staged and cut.

Dragon Prince doodles

I am watching dragon Prince, so going to be doing some storyboard breakdowns for it, here are some doodles in the meantime: