Planning
Idea 1 - Creature Comforts Inspired Animation – Interviewing animals
Inspiration:
Creature comforts by Nick Park. -Stop start animation, based on interviewing animals.
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Midnight Gospel by Duncan Trussell, Pendleton Ward. -Podcast 2D animation shown on Netflix.
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Midnight Gospel Conversational Topics: How to Incorporate them:
The Benefits Of Mindfulness and The Meditation Process & Its Benefits
- Clancy explains how meditation helps him centre himself and better process his emotions. When describing meditation character explains that the goal isn't to silence the mind, but instead to observe thought patterns and see your surroundings.
-Have a sloth talk about meditation. Possibly teaching it to a less chilled out animal.
Why Forgiveness Helps Us Heal
- Trudy tells Clancy about the importance of forgiveness and how letting go of past grudges is healthy for the mind and soul.
– Have two unlikely animals that are friends e.g. dog and cat talking about this.
Community Spirit
-The characters conversing about the vitality of community spirit. Touches on the social natures of human beings and how having a strong social surrounding is important for a person's mental health. Solidarity and "oneness" amongst humans is a vital spiritual teaching. Every person needs support and mentions that reaching out to other people with similar feelings can equal a new outlook on life.
– I could Animate animals whom work in teams responding to this. vs animals who don’t.
Expressing Yourself Through Art – Episode talked about the mental and spiritual benefits of creating art.
- I could have animals talk about why they like art, Possible a pet cat who likes to interfere with their owners work, or have animals such as a gorilla or dolphin who just enjoy art in a very non-realistic comedic way.
Creature Comforts Interview Topics: How to incorporate them:
Life Living In The Zoo
- Compare zoo life to lock down?
Communication
- Ask animals who are family orientated/ work in teams about their communication.
Self-Image
– Could ask a well-groomed animal such as a poodle, cat, or horse.
Animal Magnetism
- Animals talking about their mate and why they like them. Or what their ideal mate would be like.
Pet Hates
- Animals talking about things that annoy them.
The Pet Shop
- People talking about pet shops and also their pets.
The sea
- Animals talking about the sea, include sea life such as fish and whales or sharks also include Penguin, seals and a seagull. – Could interview animals in Sea World Park, showing how the animals are not happy their.
Circus
- Get animals to answer questions about their opinion on preforming and the circus. Show them in small cages not happy.
Creature Discomforts: Life in Lockdown by Born Free Foundation
Animation inspired by creature comforts Interviews people talking about life in lock down as the zoo animals’ audio.
Possible rigs to use
Idea 2 - Realistic Animation Mixed With Live Action Footage
Animate a creature into live action footage, making it look like they are there. Would have to animate very realistic for it to be believable. Animal would be in a random place you would not expect, e.g, a gorilla reading a newspaper in the park.
Examples
Possible rigs to use
Final Idea: London Zoo Animals let loose Whilst Humans In Lock Down
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Whilst humans have gone into lock down, The zoo have given the animals the day off. The film will be produced by multiple shorts of these animals being interviewed on how there spending there time off. For my final animation I will have a live action background with 3D creature animation.
Real stories of animals exploring unusual places particularly in lock down
YouTube video about animals visiting strange places e.g., Alligators roaming about people gardens.
Article on Goats taking over Wales
https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/with-humans-indoors-animals-go-wild-67434
Article on animals taking back human spaces;
https://www.timeout.com/things-to-do/animals-taking-back-human-spaces-while-the-world-is-in-lockdown
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YouTube video of Monkeys taking over the streets during lock down in Thailand.
Gorilla Video Reference
Sketches
These are some sketches of my favourite poses from the video references I found.
Chameleon Video Reference
They Move Very Slowly
Giraffe Video Reference
I really like the Giraffe footage to the right.
Meerkat Video Reference
Meerkats look quite on edge perhaps I could make them nervous?
Ox Video Reference
Ox's keep very still. Big heavy head movements.
Sketches from Reference Videos- Possibly Poses to use
Sketches from Cartoon Reference Videos
These are sketches I made of watching 3d animated cartoons with the same animals I am using in them.
For reference I watched;
Giraffe;
-Melvin from Madagascar
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Ox/bull
-Ferdinand (animation about bulls.
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Chameleon
- Pascal from Tangled
Gorilla
The Gorilla characters from the movie Sing.
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Chameleon Research
I really love the Giraffe reference to the left hand side.
Referenced Sites ;
https://www.exoticdirect.co.uk/news/10-fun-facts-about-chameleons
Facts about Chameleons that could be useful for my project;
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Chameleons change their colour not just due to camouflages but also due to a number of different factors, including their mood, changes in light or temperature, or the humidity of their environment."
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They can see 360 degrees if they need to.
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Chameleons like warm, tropical environments like the rain forest.
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"The majority of chameleons survive by eating insects, and some complement this diet by feeding on foliage and fruits. Some larger species eat up to 50 large crickets every day.
Others may be a little more carnivorous, and feast on small birds and even other, smaller chameleons."
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"Chameleons have poor hearing, only able to hear noises between 200Hz and 600Hz."
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Ox Research
After listing to the audio I felt Kane sounded similar to that of Eeyore from Whinny the Pooh. So I watched some videos of Eeyore and noticed little things such as his ears being very floppy when he looks sad. He looks at the floor a lot and is also very hunched over.