Week 7: Wait, how is this only week seven? It feels like I've been doing this way longer..

It feels good when you can translate reality to paper. I've definitely learned a lot this week. Maybe more than those prior.

What I loved the most was getting to really put creative freedom in my exercises of physics. When you know how to use the software, it's pretty great to go at more leisure and have a little fun.

Frame by frame has become love hate for me now. Which is actually good considering it was all hate earlier. I think I just need a little more conditioning. 

I learned that to keep moving at a good pace I need to keep fresh with ideas and concepts. I know the skills required, but if I don't have an idea to test them with, I'm holding myself back. 

I definitely want to learn how to effectively bend physics in animations. Doing something with distortion of gravity, or landscapes would be pretty schweet. 

So what do we have to show for a video? How about an independent dude who's got some noticeable talent in using Flash! Even better is he knows the troubles we go through with it. He knows them all too well as seen here. There may be an explanation as to why. 

New Old Cartoons: Just Like Back in 'Nam

Creativity is far from uncommon over at Disney studios, but an idea like their new Mickey Mouse short "Get a Horse" isn't something you actually see people try to pull off. Sure, it's cool, but when you think about it, how would they really get it to work? It's kind of like a back massaging Snuggie. 

So, here's how they did it. 

-Seeing is pretty much believing. 

The whole basis behind this short is illusion. The animators are tricking the viewer into believing that this short is, just short of a century old. How do they do this? What do you think of when you think of old animations? Rougher quality? Film grain? Stained film? Well it's all here, more or less. It's through these visual tricks that the animation does its job into making a grand illusion.

-Even your ears are fooled. 

Old audio is something that's not all too difficult to fake. I mean, there's a boatload of bands that go for a retro style in their music and make you feel like you're in the 60's. It's just a little different here though. Engineers basically copy and paste sound effects from the true old films and throw them in the new one. And what if you don't have audio for a certain one? You go straight to the actual tools that made them! This method took a bit more resource, but in the entire scheme, you get impressive results. 

-Correct aging is most recommended. 

The staff needed the right music. The right colors. The right actions. This all had to be time period specific, which required a lot of studying. You want those arcs to come out smooth? You gotta get your hands on the source material. All said and done, they stuck to the original work most impressively. 

I think this may honestly be one of Disney's most original ideas to come to the screen. To see an idea like this put into action is really inspiring. 

Going back to the old stuff really should give Disney a new viewpoint though. I truly hope it helps them with future works and maybe even giving a little homage to what started it all. 

But animation is only one option of many in media. We've seen things like this done with video games and movies too. Can we expect any new surprises to take a retro look?

VFX: The Field That Keeps Expanding

The visual effects industry has been with us in more or less some form since we first started performing plays, operas, and musicals. The transition into film and animation would be a clear one, but this transition changed VFX as much as it changed movies. This is of course a field of practice that is held deep in the arts, and therefore one must be somewhat in tune with their artistic side to get proficient, but as years progress, this is less and less the case as new innovations and implementations bring the artist closer to the technician. The result? An explosion of new ideas and career opportunities.

-Film was only the beginning.
Back when movies were one of the only few peaks of visual entertainment, VFX was a smaller and more concentrated department, mostly due to the fact that good movies required the best. This left opportunities extremely slim for those wanting to get involved. Not so as we've moved to the modern age. Movies still require an impressive job of effects, but now we've got a lot more people at the helm, and not just artists! But on top of that we've moved into using VFX more extensively for television, and now making insane progress, video games.

-The work is very demanding, but getting in isn't nearly as impossible as one might think.
To put it in a realistic lens, not everyone can do VFX. This is a field that still requires people who can do all and do more. You need passion like no other and dedication for excellence. This is a job to get because it's the job you want. But that's a bit dramatic considering how it's not extremely difficult to gain the skills required for such a career. Technical and artistic values are key, but you need not be an expert at either to get somewhere. If you can carry yourself well in one or both, you've just made the first step. The challenge comes from how hard you're willing to push yourself.

-There's a lot of options once you're in.
The involvement of tech and art varies, but there's elements of both for the wide selection of jobs you can take part in from just entering the professional zone. The deal is these jobs must work together. Lighting, color, editing, final touches, and digital enhancements all work together. And that's not even close to summarizing all the individual positions.

As far as animation and effects go, I'm happy entertainment coexists with the industry. However, I do feel the intensity of this field is partially due to how much today's media relies on it.

On top of this, while I do love the amazing career openings happening as a result of this industry's gradual expansion, it's a bit of a shame that the skillsets needed for it are a bit narrow. I feel like there's still room for other talents outside of art and technology.

Are we ever going to really see the end of visual effects?