Payback - Short animation film

The task of this assignment was to make a short film with a mix of minimum 2 methods; the final work should demonstrate an understanding of the process. For my film I combined After effects, with hand-made paper models. During the production I have expanded my knowledge about animating and time management. I have learnt how to create characters out of paper with the help of paper clips and tape and with the help of After effects, turn them into 3d rigged models. I have also learnt the limitations of what the models and estimated how long it would take me to animate; if one scene included the character running, it may take about three hours to animate and another three hours to do touch-ups.

This learning experience has made me aware of my limits in animating. I was initially going to make posable paper character models for my animation. It took twelve hours to create the first model for my Lion character, Eddie. I decided to make the rest of my cast out of paper and then scanned digitally, which saved me time. I have noticed later into production that I have bitten off more than what I could chew. I was not aware of how many times I had to change the character poses; this ended up taking up a lot of my time as the deadline drew closer. I solved this problem by making the finale entirely drawn, creating a motion comic which made the final scenes feel impactful. Despite having many troubles during this project, the valuable skills that I have learned had made me aware of my limits and what I could do to cut time. Next time, I will need to consider the deadlines and how much time I have available.

This mixed media project experience has been fun, and I am happy with the skills I have learned, regardless of the hardships. These new skills can help me plan more efficiently in the future and assist me on coming up with a practicable project that I am able to complete within the deadline.