Okay - slowed down from the havoc Christmas brings, but I am now caught up to where I was before the crash! I'm still doing storyboards on the computer, but am now saving to 2 seperate files and uploading all the final images of the day through Celtx.

I'm finding inspiration in the strangest places lately! Most recent is this quote from 'Dead Souls' by Nikolai Gogol:
"And across the old fellow's wooden face there suddenly flashed a ray of light, which expressed, not feeling, but the pale reflection of a feeling: an apparition, similar to the sudden appearance of a drowning man, which appearance elicits a joyous shout from the crowd assembled on the shore. But in vain do the rejoicing brothers and sisters cast a rope from the bank, and wait to see whether he will not rise once more; whether his hands are exhausted with his struggles or not, the apparition is the last. He is not seen again, and the calm surface of the unresponsive fluid seems still more terrible and more desolate than before. Thus Pliushkin's face, after the momentary feeling which had flashed across it, became more unfeeling and expressionless than ever."

Not saying it's cheerful - but it's beautifully put, and there are parts of the animation where I want to be able to express similar sentiment; I feel like I'm collecting sources and references in anticipation of actually filming!

not really stop motion related...

But this is just crazy cool! Had to share it on here

http://projectaiko.com/

Someone in Ontario built this in their basement - it's been getting alot of flak in the media (mostly playing up the fembot imagery) but really it's an incredible achievement and aside from being so advanced - was done by someone in their basement!!

It's going to be interesting to follow - even to see what method will be used for the facial movements. So many of the facets of craft cross over with each other (casting, working with silicone, creating artificial movement, beit stop motion or live-action animatronics) that it's really inspiring to see alternative applications of things. Plus it's just cool :P

Planning Ahead

So I've still got a ton of storyboarding to do before I even begin set building let alone props... but... when can that stop anyone :D
I'm really excited about this new project, and keep thinking about it. One decision - admittedly largely influenced by Coraline - is to venture into miniature knitting - eeks!
I've been knitting since I was little, and this has been my most ambition project to date:A 4x8' 'Castle in the Sky' blanket made from a pattern I created in TVPaint. So it'll be good to work smaller this time ;)
Will be awhile until the needles get here (special order off ebay) but I can't wait to get started on making his gloves, hat, scarf, a sweater or two, etc! Get them going and work on them on bus rides so I'm not losing time later on.
Can't wait to start - has anyone here tried working with the tiny needles - any advice?

The Good and The Bad

Time to update - now with good and bad news!
The good is that I was accepted for a fund! I'm very excited - it covers some props/material costs, as well as free training of some very cool equipment, as well as the use thereof. I'll still be working full time a regular job (which I've been at for about a week and a half now - I have energy to animate when I'm done which is all that matters!) and will be filming at home, but the extra training and equipment will be invaluable! Aside from learning more about things like Final Cut and how to use their recording programs, I'll have access to very nice recording booths, and new editing suites, and can do all my wire removals on TVPaint at home or in After Effects there! Really excited about it. I have to commit to finishing the new piece in 1 year, which is a little terrifying, but also a good kick in the butt to get in gear!
The bad is that a file error must've occurred while saving my storyboards I've been working on. It looked like it worked properly, but opening the file the next day everything was gone.... a bit of a setback to say the least. I'd exported some of the images, but will have to re-do a number of them as well. Back to saving everything in triplicate! On the upside I'm sure it'll be better the second time through.
I've also started using Celtx for storyboarding once the images are drawn, and really advice checking it out if you're at that stage! (Not the program that crashed btw!) It's very organized, and is keeping my notes, images, and free to boot. Having loaded some images into there is the reason I didn't lose everything when the file was lost. www.celtx.com
Still getting used to this bed-before-1am and getting-up-before-7 deal, but work is going well and allowing me the time and energy I need to animate, so all is good in the end!

Sweet Coraline....

Just about two weeks ago I got an email that's kept me pretty excited since then - the promise of something special in the mail! It arrived and special doesn't begin to describe it. I can't describe how excited I was unpacking this package, and it lives up to every bit of hope! From the upcoming movie 'Coraline' (that every stop-motion fan is already a fan of from the trailers) this is a unique box sent out through the mail.

The outside of the antiqued box, numbered 11/50.

Opening it is magic! Inside is a key and the password 'PUPPETLOVE' to the www.theothercoraline.com website which unlocks a clip about the world from a puppets point of view - and great teasers for the puppets for the film. The letter is sealed with wax and, appropriately, a black button.
Inside the envelope is a letter from the Coarline Team.
"Since ancient times, strangers who work on feature films have sent strangers with great websites mysterious gifts in the hope that they can connect over a mutual interest and come to love each other. Some people think that receiving random gifts from strangers in the mail is illicit. Not when the gifts are awesome, right?"
A detail of the included photograph. Pay attention to the Other Fathers arms/hands...
Because here they are! They're 'JOINTED/WIRE/SILICON' and include the metal square tubing at the end where they'd join onto the puppet. An actual part of the film! I know stop-motion is so tactile but being able to touch a part of the puppet used is an amazing experience! Seeing the tubing on the end, and feeling the resistance of the wire in the fingers is a learning experience in itself, I feel like x-raying them to see how the finger wires are joined inside ;) I'm incredibly thrilled to have this part of movie history, and this box will find a prized place for display!

To quote from the letter: "Led by Henry Selick, the director of The Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach, this team has created the first stop-motion feature shot in 3-D. Based on the beloved best-selling children's classic by Neil Gaiman, Coraline is a fairy-tale nightmare steeped in classic storytelling, craftsmanship, and the old-fashioned art of moviemaking magic. That means everything is handmade. Every leaf, drawer pull, and roast turkey. Even the rusty shower water."

I was looking forward to this movie already - now I can't wait!! C'mon February, and c'mon IMAX to show it here in 3D!!

Winter

Winter is official, evidenced by the deer standing 6 feet away from me on the other side of the window, eating all of the bird seed out of our feeder. As long as I stay still, she doesn't seem to care that I'm here.
The downside to this (aside from -40C weather, blizzards and trudging through piles of snow) is that foam latex is now much much harder to procure! Having finally decided to take the plunge... well, putting the toe in the water at least, going for the 2 part no-bake to start with - I now find it's much more difficult in winter (due to that lovely below 0C weather). Hopefully the newest company I've emailed will have some good shipping news!

Storyboards are now about 60% done and going well. Much more work than I'd anticipated, but I know how much it's going to help to already have a feel for my camera setup of each shot before I started filming. In the meantime I've been researching the SMA forums for ways to animate the face -I can spend hours re-reading old threads there, very addictive! Hopefully late this week I'll be able to start testing and posting attempts. Can't wait to post photo's again!

baseboards and jobs

Progress has been very slow! I was drafted to re-do all the baseboards at home (always a tradeoff for not paying rent!) On the upside, I have a shiny (though not horribly accurate) mitre saw out of the deal.
Job applications have been killing alot of time as well - filling out applications, faxing, emailing, dropping off in person, attending 1 hour interviews only to find out they've already filled the slot! It's a big time investment and I can't wait until I have a job I can tolerate, and maybe even enjoy every other Thursday. In the meantime the frustrations are fueling my need to get storyboarding done more efficiently. Yay for inspiration, however it may come about.