Tag: maya angelou

Words Hold Power – Final Video

I have really enjoyed this semester of MoCap, last year I don’t think I truly don’t think I got it, but having the freedom to create a piece of art that means something really captivated my imagination.

As an artist, I never know when my next bit of inspiration will strike, so it was really serendipity when I glanced at the poster on the bus stop. One thought really changed the direction of my idea, and I am glad I did, as I am proud of the result.

I have learned a lot this semester that will not only aid me with my future MoCap endeavours but also supplemented my knowledge and skill for my Major of Animation. I found the tutorials especially helpful.

I still feel like I need to improve upon so much, and wish that my skill level matched my visions. If I could improve upon this sequence then I would have to say that I would do something more creative when swapping between rigs. I did experiment with nCloth, but in the end decided to keep it simple so the message was preserved.

I would like to explore particle effects more in the future; however, they just did not fit with my vision for this project.

Below is the final version.

And This is the ‘making of the video’, I quite like watching it along with the video of Mel’s live dance.

Mocap – Research WHP

I have no idea what I should be calling these titles, so this one has WHP as a shorthand for Words Have Power, which is what I think my sequence is starting to be called, it’s like my sequence is starting to take on a life of its own, it’s one of my art babies. One I am hoping is cultivated and grown, not the kind you have to retire to the place all your old files go to collect dust.

I have scoured the internet in search of inspiration for what my character is going to look like, and although I still haven’t got it nutted out entirely here are some images that have inspired me.

group of inspiring images

So many images here are leaving me feeling inspired, in particular, the one on the top right. I like the combination of lines of the face, hair, arms and legs, and the text making up the dress. Although the one on the bottom right appeals to me too. These are both options I intend to explore while creating my sequence.

another group of ideas to inspire my work

the second set was supposed to focus more on what the area my character is going to dance in will look like, but I was also drawn to a mixture of ink lines and font used for clothing. I rather like the 2nd to top image on the left of the 3d words jutting out of the walls. In the video, Dr Angelou talks about how words get into your things, into your walls, your carpet, your floor, so I intend on incorporating words either I this manner, or by using a texture map.

This is just a small collection of the images I have collected during my research. Stay tuned for my next post which will show you some of the concept art works I have been working on.

Mocap experimental movement and the ideas.

The first half of my Motion Capture Minor for the 2nd year of uni is dedicated to creating a 30-second sequence which explores alternative, non-figurative, abstract and/or experimental visualisations of movement and the body in motion.

This project is leaving me excited and nervous in equal measures, and the possibilities I could explore are seemingly endless. The first idea that popped into my head was to use a combination of live action and motion capture to create a bubble man, that would float up and away from the Trouble Monsters (my twin girls) and start a dance sequence in the sky that would end with the bubble man popping. A quirky funny idea that I’d love to create and the first few weeks were devoted to coming up with ideas on how I could accomplish that.

pster on the bus stopThen, a few days before we were due to film in the motion capture lab I spied a poster on the wall behind the bus shelter and a new idea took place. This idea was so strong that it eclipsed all thoughts of bubble men and compelled me to change direction completely. I hadn’t actually spoken to Greg, our MoCap teacher before our filming session, so I wasn’t even sure if it was possible, so for prudence’s sake, I took footage for both ideas, so I could always come back to my dancing bubble man later if I wanted too.

Thankfully my dancer could understand what I want to communicate in my piece and I got my footage in one take. The idea that I have in my head has been a bit tricky for me to draw out, concept art is a skill I am still developing. However, I have  the words spoken by Dr Maya Angelou called “Words have power” in an interview with Oprah as the backdrop of the sound, and my figure dancing is made from words, the words on her body will either by Dr Angelou’s poetry, or perhaps (and I’m just thinking this right now as I glance over at the bus stop poster) words that empower people, in particular woman. to create not exactly the bus stop poster, but a form that looks like a person in form only, but it’s words.

I still haven’t quite figured out how I am going to build my figure yet, currently I am still completing tutorials, however, I am thinking I could use a combination of the Toon Shader in Maya, the ink outlines, and the text builder.

See my next blog post for more on the development of my idea. Below is the Dr Maya Angelou video that I am using to base my sequence on. I am using the powerful words of Dr Maya Angelou, the human form, and words themselves to create a sequence that show that words really are things.