art

FRANK production blog 54

Todays FRANK update is a few color frames. The first frame is what im currently coloring, its about 17 frames long. The next two frames are older color test, with pen lines and with outlines. I want a lineless look and i have done a few color test inorder to see the movement in color.

I continure to color daily, I have roughly 33 scenes and im about 4 or 5 scene into color

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todays update is a continuation of the last two updates. its the scene im currently working on. its a updated animatic version, it has some updated animation but still a ways from being final.

as i’ve mention previously, this version of the film is closer to the original animatic and boards, it was not the route i was taking but i recently starting questioning if i was happy with the direction i had settled on months ago. i will animate the scenes and play around with the editing but i wont know which way it will go until the very end.

FRANK production blog 40

todays update is about the scene i been currently working on. the video below is taken from the original animatic put together about 4 years ago. it is very raw and is probably the truest expression of FRANK that i have done. since then i made cuts in order to save time, however i have currently gone full circle. as i continue to refine the film i have decided i do not like the updated version and started thumb nailing this version. i have roughed out the animation and put it together in order to improve my options for the final edit. next post will contain the updated version of this scene.

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todays update is a concept page for the game that our main character plays. I have not decided what the scene will look like, its been on my mind for a long time, I haven’t started the actual animation yet, I just been playing around with what it could look like and why. Obviously I want to convey all the right emotions (repetitive and time consuming being two of the big ones) but I’m currently chipping away at some other scenes.

concepts for the game FRANK plays

concepts for the game FRANK plays

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Todays update consist of the current scene i’m cleaning up. Below are a few variations on the scene.

The first one is from a more profile angle. He drops the flowers and walk off to the right.

The second is a 3/4 over the shoulder angle and the one i decided to go with. He drops the flowers turns around and walks off screen towards the camera. This was original idea but I did board one other angle just to explore the scene. This angle won due to the fact that while I do want a linear visual style I didn’t want to fall into a hole and lose the audiences attention.

V1BG2A.png
V2BG2A.png

Below are some of the boards from both ideas. Blue is the original with the first version of the character

FB_walkinA.png
FB_walkinB.png

Below are some color variations on the background

color BG2A.png
bg1bJULY.png
pencil and paper, first draft of backgrounds

pencil and paper, first draft of backgrounds

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today update is about the evolution of a scene

below are three different variations of a scene. Only the first one is different. the bottom two only have updated animation but the cuts remain the same.

the scene is the introduction of the device into FRANKs life. It wasn’t a slap in the face for him, and the story was it came from his neighbor, who had himself just experience the device and was over it. I liked the idea that it was being passed down from one person to another. this was from the first draft which was a longer story.

this variation had a reduced number of cuts. as the project evolved I started to remove things from the story. I am fascinated by directors who can tell a story with very little. part of the reason for doing this was to experiment with the story telling and to shorten the film and it’s production.

this third animatic variation has updated animation but the cuts remain the same. at this point I have decided that I will keep it this way. I feel as though I have stripped away everything that can be removed without telling a different story. I removed the neighbor because in the end I felt he wasn’t that important. FRANK and the device are the stars and how they come to meet is something I hope I have done a well enough job on.

At this point all these scenes have been fully cleaned up and are ready for color. I have not updated the animatic yet, but I will soon enough. I feel great with where I am in production and how the scenes are turning out. I do miss the old story a bit, but this being a solo project I have had to make decision that have trickling effects. I am however very excited with what the final will look like.

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today update is a back ground and a few of its versions.

below is one of the wide shots of FRANK’s apartment. it is also the first time the we see his brick wall and window. this was one of the first backgrounds i drew when coming up with the story, its concept is pretty simple. i have always loved brick structures for many reason, one reason being brick will last a really really really long time signifying strength and endurance. its many small pieces fitted together to prop up one large structure. all the metaphors a side brick is made from the earth and have many color variations, these two things alone where enough for me to select it. i also dated a girl who lived in an old Brooklyn apartment with a brick wall…(there is definitely something subconscious there)

almost final version, done in tvpaint

almost final version, done in tvpaint

early draft for animatic usage

early draft for animatic usage

first draft, done on animation paper with pencil and ruler

first draft, done on animation paper with pencil and ruler

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todays update is some background comparisons on a scene i am currently cleaning up. not much more to say but that this scene was one of the first scenes i worked on when i started production a few years ago. this is one of the scenes that have not change much since the original boarding of the film. the brick patterns and layouts have evolved but the pots, plants and animation are still the same.

color studies

color studies

old color test

old color test

old storyboard

old storyboard

old storyboard with emphasis on the inside of the apartment

old storyboard with emphasis on the inside of the apartment

single frame of current clean up scene. the lines are for placement and continuity

single frame of current clean up scene. the lines are for placement and continuity