EVALUATION
For my Computer GFX and Animation module I had to create a finished 1-2 minute long film using
chosen 3D software to show off the animation skills I have learnt over the past two years. My film
focuses around a watchmaker whose stopwatch is built piece by piece for him by a number of
miniature construction vehicles while he sleeps.
The animation is built almost entirely within Cinema 4D, with the exception of a few pictures/
textures mocked up inside Photoshop and the final pieces put together and rendered out in After
Effects and Premiere.
Originally I created a simple animatic for the film, meant to demonstrate camera movement, give a
rough idea of where the vehicles will be moving and partially indicate the quality of the final piece.
Although the rest was rendered out in fairly low quality and the scenes were un-textured, the
vehicle models and first few scenes had been created to final standard and could be used as a
point to start my final piece.
The first 5 scenes of my animation revolved around different angles from inside the watchmakers
bedroom. As these scenes had already been created for the animatic, they only needed texturing
and re-rendering, so I could quickly move on to scene 6 where the vehicles entered.
As my ideas for how the watch could be built changed, I realised I needed to model some more
assets, in particular more vehicles. I began by adding a boat and a train that could transport the
various watch parts to the other vehicles. Each vehicle needed an entrance and exit animation so
that it looked as if it was growing out/in the watchmakers desk respectively. The movement of the
vehicles was similar to my animatic, so did not require much change other than small refinements
to make the motion look less linear.
First came the bulldozers which cleared the area so the cement lorries and rollers could lay the
foundation for the watches base. Then the mobile cranes fixed in place the watches outer-casing
before the static cranes were erected and the flatbeds could deliver the different cogs and parts.
The cranes then put in place the parts inside and build the watch before the ‘lid’ or glass casing is
lowered down on top by a helicopter. The animation ends with the watchmaker waking up to a little
present on his desk containing the watch that has been unknowingly built for him.These scenes did
not need any other attention or assets added in Cinema 4D as the vehicles and the watch were the
main point of viewing focus, so could be rendered and sent to After Effects.
Here I did some touching up of the colouring and sorted the clips in the right order. I then rendered
it out and took it into Premiere to overlay the music and sync up the relevant sound fx before
rendering out one last time to the final product.
From the animatic and where the project was at that point, to the finish product, I had to add
several new things. First off I wanted to create a more realistic way for some of the vehicles to
enter the scene. Prior to improvements, the cranes and bulldozers would appear to grow and move
through the ground plane as if it wasn’t a solid object. To combat this I created individual dynamic
planes around the areas each of the vehicles would grow out and attached a transparent dynamic
cube to the top of every vehicle, giving the illusion of they were breaking out of the table/plane. I
also added dynamic rope/hair objects for use as wires, to give a more authentic feel. I also added a
better skybox, so the lighting better matched the mood of the piece.
There was also some elements I needed to remove. Originally I was going to have little people or
workers dotted around the scene, intended to drive the vehicles and act as the watchmakers little
helpers. I soon realised I didn’t have time to animate this much and felt what I could create in the
time would be detrimental to the overall final look of the animation, so decided to discard it.
I also decided against going with a totally white colour scheme. It is a personal preference of mine,
but as I did an animation piece last year in the same style and out of fear it would be considered
un-finished to the viewer, I opted instead to add in some flat basic colours.
From making the animation I have not only refined my modelling and animation skills but actually
learnt a number of other competences and new methods for existing ones inside Cinema 4D. I had
never really worked with using the hair tool as a rope object before and would have normally used
a plugin to crack the floor for the vehicles to grow out of, so it was nice to learn an in-software
alternative to that.
Overall I’m very happy with my animation. I’m pleased with the visual style and feel as though I
kept this consistent throughout. I’m happy with the apparent notion of gravity and objects in the film
seeming to have their own weights and spaces, giving the feeling they are interacting properly
within their 3D world. I also think the soundtrack I chose compliments and adds to the animation
and what’s happening on screen.
Of course there are elements i’m unhappy with, such as the slight feeling of rushing. Certain parts
of the film appear slower or faster than others, which is due to fact I had edit the speeds as I had
too many shots to fit into the 2 minute time frame and left myself in a position where my final shot
was not within that threshold. Thus everything needed bumping forward.
This too affected how much of the watch I could show getting built and unfortunately I feel like
enough time in the animatic wasn’t actually showing what was meant to be the main point of the
film.
I also feel I could have made it more detailed, in regards to the modelling. My vehicles and watch
parts could have been of a higher standard all round, which in-turn could have allowed me to
texture them in a different style, perhaps using real-life textures as opposed to clearly computer
generated ones.