Animate a character you designed in Adobe Animate for 10 to 30 seconds. You must use nested Symbols(loops) and Adobe Animate’s Camera tool. Your animation should also have sound (not necessarily dialogue, but sound effects and/or music). You can create more than 1 character if you’d like.
The movements of the character, its action, the environment it interacts with, the way you reveal certain details with the camera etc. are all storytelling tools – use them wisely.
The project will be divided into several steps. It is crucial that you complete each one by the stated deadline.
The grading rubric for the entire project can be found here.
Step 1 – Character design (due on week 5)
Brainstormideas for your character – write down ideas on a sheet of paper and gather visual references/sources of inspiration.
Sketchideas for your character. These sketches can be rough but there should be plenty of them. You will be working with this character for several weeks – don’t settle for the first idea. Explore different possibilities before making a final decision.
Write a biographyfor your character. This doesn’t need to be long – just a short paragraph including its name and essential traits. Here’s an example:
“Agnes is a distinguished older cat. She walks on two legs, like a human, and is very smart. While her bones are frail and her vision a bit blurry (she has to wear thick glasses) she loves to stroll around the city with her pet snail. Her artistic disposition is reflected in her choice of clothes and unique haircut. She is on the shorter side and a bit round.”
Once you’ve decided what you want your character’s essential traits (design and personality) to be, create a character sheet: this is a document often used in animation showing different views of a character on a single sheet of paper. Make sure you include its front, side & back (tip: start with the front view and draw horizontal lines at the height of each important elements (i.e: top of head, chin, feet, hands etc.) across the width of the sheet of paper to align all views). I recommend using pencil and paper, but you may also use your favorite Digital Imaging software (i.e: Adobe Photoshop) and a tablet.
Deliverables (on Blackboard):
- (At least) 5 sketches (scanned)
- Your character’s biography (in Word or PDF format)
- Character sheet (scanned)
(Scan your drawings at home, or in the LRC)
Step 2: Storyboard (due week 6)
Create a storyboard for your animated short. Use this template. Make sure you include all the information needed to clearly outline your plan:
- In the panel: Environment/props, action of the character, camera movements, movement within frame.
- Under the panels: Sound effects and /or music, description (clarify anything that may not be obvious from what you drew in the panel)
Make sure you use a variety of shots (close-ups, long shots etc.) and pay attention to staging (what is the focus of the frame) to keep the viewer engaged.
The length of your storyboard may vary depending on the pacing, type of action etc. Since your short film should be between 10 and 30 seconds long, you’ll probably need at least 3 panels. If you have more than 6, you might be overly ambitious for the time you have to complete this project.
Deliverables (on Blackboard):
- Sacnned storyboard (scanned at home or in the LRC)
Step 3: Animation (due week 7)
It’s now time to launch Adobe Animate and to translate your storyboard into an animation. Use the principles we covered in class to make your motion engaging and convincing (squash & stretch, exaggeration, timing, spacing etc.)
The settings for your .fla document should be:
- Width: 1920px | Height: 1080px
- 24 fps (frames per second)
Deliverables(on Blackboard):
- Your animation should be at least 70% complete. Submit your .fla file.
Step 4: Completed animation with sound and presentation (due week 8)
Add sound effects and or music to your animation. Use sound to enhance your piece (i.e: make the actions of your character clearer/more dramatic, to add emotion, humor etc.). Freesound.org, Internet Archive: Audio Archive, and Creative Commons tracks on SoundCloudare good resources for CC licensed audio. Don’t forget to keep a list of author’s name to credit them.
Finalize your animation and export it to Quicktime.
Deliverables(on Blackboard):
- Completed animation in Quicktime format (.mov)
- Finished .fla file
- A short statement (use this template)
Each student must come to class and present his/her work. Ideally, prepare a post with all your assets accompanied by text that explains your process on your Open Lab portfolio (something like this: https://openlab.bmcc.cuny.edu/example-portfolio/2019/03/14/animate-project/ )Points will be deducted for failure to do so.
