A still, drew this like one years ago maybe longer.
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todays update is a simple color study on the city that FRANK lives in. A few different city concepts with some different mood exploration.
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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
early draft for animatic usage
first draft, done on animation paper with pencil and ruler
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todays up date is a color study for our big lovable green guy FRANK
i knew from the beginning of my film that FRANK would be green. for many reasons, one being his design influence is the incredible hulk. also his connection to his plants made it natural to go with green. so below is a fun little spread i put together of a few different green shades. im pretty certain about the final color selection but which one do you like best?
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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
old color test
old storyboard
old storyboard with emphasis on the inside of the apartment
single frame of current clean up scene. the lines are for placement and continuity
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todays update is some more MOOD BOARDS!
below is a different page of some old mood boards from a long while back. these being old i will not be using the colors you see here. the film palette has evolved into something different, but i do love the look of these
colored version
black and white version
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todays update is a oldy but a goody, MOOD BOARDS!
A mood board for those who dont know is a study of the films mood. through the exploration of color one can set the mood of the scene. I made this about 2 years ago, i think i have uploaded these before but they are so good that they deserve a second mention.
old mood board study
old boards
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todays update is some really old concept art
i think i did this about 4 years ago, i think i was actually on a plane from Europe when i colored these. furniture design is something i actually really enjoy. below that is some early pot color palette. this film has a heavy muddy color palette.
old concept art
old concept art
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todays update is about backgrounds!
rather a specific BG (as it is usually abbreviated) or rather a few versions of the opening pan.
i just wanna say thank you to anyone who ever reads this, i appreciate that you took the time to look at my art and read a few of my words. my goal is always to inspired and educate so i don’t mind sharing my process, i like the open source community and i feel myself drifting into that for when it comes to my work. much of the work i share will be spoiler stuff for most and while im trying to not share enough that the project will still leave an impact, i also want to be open and give people a reason to come back to the site, any who thank you enjoy!
1st draft
the above drawing is the 1st draft of the pan background, these were digitally done about 4 years ago in photoshop.
the below drawing was the next version of it and a bit more elaborate. i did this one a long with the rest of the 1st batch in pencil. i really enjoyed drawing this version.
2nd draft pencil and animation paper HD size
3rd draft
the above draft was done about 2 years ago using TVPaint, my main animation program. FRANK will be my 3rd project using it since i bought it why back in 2012. couldn’t find a good version of the pan, so this mock up will have to do.
and finally the latest version of the pan. a more cleaned up and closer to final version. the one we will see in the final project will be a bit different still, these thing never end you just run out of time and have to leave it, such is animation for me.
4th draft almost final!
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todays post is about animatics! this is the 1st time im posting any animation for the film on this blog. its something i look forward to doing more of especially after i start coloring the cuts. below i have FRANK smelling his roses and walking towards the window.
this cut is one of the opening shots of the film, this is the 2nd pass of animation with one more final pass left to do
a 3rd draft animatic from FRANK
this was the 1st pass of animatic edits for this scene, these are not the original boards, these where a more updated design to the boards, maybe the 2nd pass instead of the 1st. the 1st pass was done in green pencil, but these are just boards and no animation
a short cut from the 1st animatic draft of FRANK
this was the 2nd pass of animatic edits, but its actually the 1at draft of animation for the scene. i think this is one of the 1st scenes i animated about 3 years ago on what is possibly the 2nd cintiq ever made, ancient piece of tech but it served me well. FRANK smelling his flowers and walking off
a 2nd draft animatic from FRANK