To start the ‘Three Sides’ Project, I first made a Miro board exploring my ideas. I was initially drawn to a scary theme, due to my own interests as well as an opportunity to showcase some effective lighting. However, there was a story idea I had in mind which I thought could be communicated in three shots well.
Miro board link: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lrYRxz8=/
I composed a story about a man taking his big, black dog to the park for a game of frisbee. What looks to be an innocent scene quickly turns dark when the owner runs away from the dog while he’s chasing his toy. This big, black dog is actually a symbol of the man’s depression, which he desperately wants rid of.
I thought that this would be a dynamic and impactful story to use, because I can reflect the dark meaning through the lighting and and composition. As the brief only permits us to use one pre-made rigged character, I will be attempting to sculpt and rig the dog myself. Although this will be challenging, I think it will be a good opportunity to practise using z brush, as well as making my own rigged character.
I drew the following sketches in class when constructing my idea:
I then developed this into a short storyboard:
Although my first thought was to portray the dog as very fluffy, I quickly realised that animating fur would be very tricky and potentially too time consuming, so I looked at various dog breeds that I could draw inspiration from.
I really liked the shape and look of the dog in this digital model, and decided I would base mine off of a similar breed.
In order to fill some of the open space that would be in my scenes, I decided to have an empty playground in the background of the shot. I think that abandoned playgrounds create a very eerie atmosphere in film, and it also represents the loss of fun or child-like joy that people experience with depression.
I really liked the mood conveyed by this animated playground setup: