Week Six - Maquette Design

Another assignment for my teaching internship is to devise the Assignment sheet and lesson for Project 4 - Conceptual Maquette design. The following is the link to the material delivered on Oct 16, 2007.

Download material here.

Grading for Assignment 1 - Character Design & Development

Apart from the grading rubiks, these are the points that were taken into account in grading the assignment.

Character Model Sheet Grading points:

1. Construction Lines requirement - purposed to make indications to animators
2. Shape breakdowns
3. Turn-around sketches - to maintain consistencies
4. Prop design - to maintain consistency throughout model sheet, any inaccuracy may be miscommunicated as design element rather as flaws
5. Construction lines to show relationship between limbs and body of character
6. Visualization of elements in different views, eg. shape of eyes on front and side views
7. Use of Perspective to show props form, shape and dimension in different views
8. Action Poses to indicate the motion at which a character would take
9. Correct notations for scene number and panel number - eg. change for scene for a background change
10. Presentation - size requirement, organization within the model sheet

Professor has emphasized that the model sheet should look professional, and should be seen as a useful and effective visualization tools to facilitate work flow among the animators as well.
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Review of Week Four

Class Evaluation - Classes by other Faculty member

Class: Conceptual Marquette Design
Professor: Professor John Larison
Location: Norris Hall Rm 304
Time: TR 2pm-4.30pm
Dates Attended: Oct 2, 2007 (Tue) & Oct 4, 2007 (Thur)

The Tuesday that I attended was a submission and critique session. I had the opportunity to see what the students have done for their second project - a 12" realistic maquette basing their design on a favorite celebrity of theirs. During the critique, the students have to present what they think and feel about his/her project, express what they most like and most displeased about, and what they would do to make it better. After that, the other students would chip in to express their views on their fellow students' projects as well. Finally the professor would present what he likes and dislikes about their work and so forth. Strong emphasis was placed on what the students have done right and well, and what they could improve. The atmosphere of the class was both encouraging and positive. Professor John was altogether affirmative in giving criticism which was most of the time constructive, practical and optimistic.


Critique points that I gather during the sessions were:
1. Muscles weight, proportion, form and shape.
2. Detailings such as folds on clothing, textures and etc.
3. Balance and weight
4. Proportion on the overall design
5. Body language utilized on maquette
6. Final finish
7. Consistency in details, features and other elements, eg. shoe type, shape and etc.

The following surmises Professor John teaching mode:

1. He maintains a loud (not over0bearing) and clear voice throughout the class. He expresses his teachings with clarity and concision.
2. He re-reemphasized what he has said before, but not sounding annoyingly repetitive.
3. His train of thoughts was organized.
4. He maintained contact with the students.
5. He solicited feedback from students all the time to keep them engaged with the class.
6. He paused for question at each interval when he finished a certain lecture point.
7. He recap the important aspects of his lecture at the end.

At the same time, I have the opportunity to sit-in through one of his in-class demo on making telescopic armatures for detachable limbs. It was indeed an eye-opening session.
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Class Evaluation: Paul Hudson's Concept Illustration

Class Evaluation: Classes conducted by other Faculty member

Class: Concept Illustration
Professor: Professor Paul Hudson
Location: Norris Hall Rm 101
Time: MW 2pm-4.30pm
Date Attended: Oct 1, 2007 (Mon)

Briefly describe the class's atmosphere
The class was carried out in a very lifely and light hearted way, due to Prof Hudson's charisma and enthusiasm shown throughout the class. Students were eager to contribute and did not shy away from speaking up in class.

Activity carried out during the class The first part of the class was question and answer which is a great way to evaluate the progress made by the students, and to be aware of the problems faced by the students while they are carrying out their projects. Most students would not have any questions not because they are not thinking but they are on a route of self learning and would prefer to find out the answer for themselves.

However, the professor would reiterate that the question and answer session is purposed to allow students to learn from each other, and to encourage team work and cooperation among the students. This essential since the work environment is always involving people and working in teams.

Describe Professor's attitude and enthusiasm during the class
The professor was very encouraging and understanding of the subjects has actually stimulate the class to have more thinking into the subject matter. At one point when the projector broke down, the Professor Hudson brought the students on a field trip to his studio, where he is working on his new book on anatomy. The students were then exposed to how he works in his studio, and the collection of references he has. At the same he showed the students how he conducts his research and the way he keeps everything organized and retrievable.

I am fortunate enough to get to see his studio as this is an unusual practice among many professors.

Internship Assignment: Preparing Lesson Materials

Assignment: Preparing class materials & assignment sheet for Storyboarding

I was also assigned with the task of preparing a class on Storyboarding - see attached document. Click on logo to download or click on the link below to read the lesson material.

http://www.mediafire.com/?4w1fukv4gmy

Assignment 3: Storyboard Assignment

Review of Week Three

Evaluation of Assignment One - Grading Criteria

The task given to me for Assignment 1 was to provide the students with extra help during the class by giving them a one-to-one evaluation. I would be picking on any one student at random to see their progress in their project, and to answer their questions. Most of the students were shy to speak up initially, but as they warm up to me it was much easier.

One of the most common difficulty they were facing was to create a character turn around. Creating a model sheet does not only allow the students to have a hands-on experience in creating one but also allow them to put the characters into different views. A great way to assist them is to make them see shapes in different perspectives, while drawing contour lines to help them place the details.

I benefited from this experience because I was given the same problems the students were facing as well. I have to decide how much assistance to provide the students. The balance is between showing them just enough so they could continue with their project, and presenting a whole new solution so they could see an alternative.


Grading and Review of Assignment One - Character Model Sheet
This is a great opportunity to see how Professor Troy evaluate the quality of the students' work.

The rules have been set in day one of the class, and these have been used to grade the students' work. Professor Troy has been very consistent in what he wants and requires for grading purposes:

Most requirements are more technical than aesthetics.

1) The use of shapes, and breakdown of these shapes into constructing lines.
2) Turn around - all character views have to coincide with each other.
3) Consistency of prop design - everything in the model sheet is a design lock. Students have to be aware that flaws in the model sheet will contribute to misunderstanding and bad production drawing down the pipeline.
4) Indication of hidden lines - eg. to show relationships between body and limbs.
5) Depiction of facial details in different views - eg. eyes. There should be a discernible difference at different views.
6) Depiction of props in different perspectives.
7) Action poses - required to show how a character should move or stand with props or otherwise.

According to the grading rubik, the grading criteria is given to the following items:
1) Character concept
2) Consistency (Volumes and Shapes)
3) Suitability to Animation
4) Overall Aesthetics (Drawing Skills)
5) Punctuality in submission
6) Fulfillment of all criteria above

More emphasis is given to fulfilling the technical aspects of making a character model sheet. Bonuses can be given to students who show exceptional drawing skills, professional presentation, and the willingness to push their skills further.

Review of Week Two

Week 2: Production Work Week

Students are given time to develop further on their character design project. One-to-one guidance is given to assess how the students are progressing in their work. This is preferred over demonstrations and lectures as any student who has difficulty would be given extra help, while more attention is given to students' work.