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| BAA Awards - Ident Challenge! |
The second year of animation studies at Escape Studios is where our students begin to focus on individual proficiency in the craft of animation.
The Specialism Module (Module Code CR5001) is a self-study module in which students select an area of specialism and develop their skills.
CR5001 runs for five weeks, culminating in a portfolio presentation. This year we are collaborating with the biennial BAA Awards to create a series of idents for next year's BAA Awards Ceremony on 10 March 2022. The final deadline for submission is Wednesday 9 February 2022.
We suggest students choose from the following:
This year Escape Studios is collaborating with the biennial BAA Awards to create a series of idents for the BAA Awards Ceremony on 10 March 2022. To see more about this unique opportunity to showcase your work at the UK's biggest animation industry event, read this blog post. The deadline for final submission to the BAA awards is 9 February 2021.
3. Games Animation
Production Design is another skill that is vital to the making of short films. The Production Designer or Art director will create mood boards, and (later) concept art and colour keys, which will establish the look and feel of the project.
Self-Study Module
CR5001 is very much a self-study module; students identify their area of specialism and find learning resources to develop their skills, with support from tutors Alexander Williams and Amedeo Beretta. Each student will choose their own individual specialism, in a field of their choice.
Tutors
This year, guest tutors include producer Steve Burch on producing animation, story artist Iliana Franklin on storyboarding, Steve Sole on Character Design, and Steve Lall on motion capture.
Portfolio
The module culminates in the presentation of a portfolio of work in the student's chosen field.
CR5001-DF2CA Animation Specialism – 15 Credits
Animation
Specialism is the third module in the 2021-22 academic year. In this self-study module, students to explore a subject specialism of their own choice.
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| Dragon animation by Shauna Ludgate |
CR5001 is an opportunity for students to find something that they feel passionate about and interested in, and specialise in that subject.
This could
be character animation or creature animation, or even a related
discipline such as storyboarding or character design.
Choose Your Specialism
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| Creature animation by Shenaaz Suliman |
- Character Animation
- Animal & Creature Animation
- Games Animation
- 2D Animation
- Character Rigging
- Cinematography
- Storyboarding
- Production Design
- Motion Capture
- Editing and Sound Design
- Producing Animation
BAA Ident Challenge
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| Why not enter the BAA Ident Challenge? |
Preparation for Studio Module PR5001
The Specialism module helps students get ready for the Studio Project PR5001 that starts later in the year, where our second year students collaborate in teams, contributing their own unique skills to the group project.
Types of Specialism:
The Specialism module helps students get ready for the Studio Project PR5001 that starts later in the year, where our second year students collaborate in teams, contributing their own unique skills to the group project.
Types of Specialism:
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| Character animation by Chan Sagoo |
1. Character Animation
This involves the creations of a short piece of character animation, with our without dialogue, 7-11 seconds long, most likely entering the monthly 11 Second Club Competition.
Maria Robertson chose character animation as her specialism; see her submission below. Maria is now working as an animator at Factory 42.
Above: Character animation for Specialism Module CR5001 by Maria Robertson
Above: Character animation for Specialism Module CR5001 by Maria Robertson
Aaron Hopwood also chose character animation as his specialism (see below). Today, Aaron is a Studio Assistant at Escape Studios.
2. Animal & Creature Animation
Students wishing to specialise in Animal & Creature Animation will create a short piece of animation 7-11 seconds long, bringing an animal or creature to life. Usually this specialism will involve the use of live-action reference. To see some examples of animal and creature animation, follow this link to our YouTube Channel Animals & Creatures Playlist.
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| Dinosaur animation by Edoardo Sartori |
Students wishing to specialise in Games Animation should animate around 7-11 seconds of a character doing some kind of physical action, or a series of physical actions. Games animators tend to animate looping cycles and character actions, such as stunts, and combat moves.
4. 2D Animation
2D Animation can be done in Adobe Animate (formerly Flash) or Toonboom Harmony - we have licenses for both. Students wishing to specialise in 2D Animation should animate around 7-11 seconds of a character doing some kind of physical action, or perhaps delivering a line of dialogue, most likely entering the monthly 11 Second Club Competition.
5. Character Rigging & Product Visualisation
Character rigging is an important skill and vital for any project that seeks to create bespoke character rigs. We have a number of videos on character rigging at our Vimeo Channel. For some examples of character rigging, see this link to our YouTube Channel. Below is a submission for Rigging and Production Visualisation by Escapee Jack Thompson.
6. Cinematography
A Cinematography Specialism also encompasses 3D Layout and Previsualisation. To see an example of what a submission in Cinematography might look like, see the video by Sebastian Kuder below. Cinematography is all about the art of animating movie cameras, using the camera to tell a visual story.
7. Storyboarding.
Storyboarding is one of the most important skills needed for the creation of out short films. A submission in this are will include the creation of a storyboard animatic, including sound effects, narration (where needed) and music. To see an example of a successful storyboard animatic, watch Brodiaga by Anastasia Gurova below:
"Brodiaga"
8. Production Design
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| Concept Art by Xu Xing |
Is the style realistic or cartoony? Graphic or stylised? What is the colour palette, and what is the camera style? The deliverable for this specialism will include an Animation Bible. To see more about design at Escape Studios, follow this link.
9. Performance Capture Animation (MoCap)
MoCap is a large and growing part of the animation pipeline. The deliverable for this specialism would be a finished, polished piece of motion capture animation around 7-11 seconds long. For more on motion capture and how to specialise in this area of animation, read this blog post about our new tutorial by Amedeo Beretta.
10. Editing and Sound Design
Every short film needs an Editor. The Editor is responsible for cutting and timing the edit, working with the director to tell the story. A good editor gathers up the animator's shots at the end of every day and cuts the new shots into the reel, adding sound effects, foley, narration and voice over to bring the project to life.
11. Producing Animation
Producing Animation is about project management, including the use of software such as Excel and Shotgun. Producers have to manage the team stay on schedule, and make sure the project gets over the finish line. This specialism might suits students who are well-organised with good people skills. To see more detail on what might be involved in the Producing Animation Specialism, follow this link.
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| Concept Art by Francesco Leoni |
CR5001 is very much a self-study module; students identify their area of specialism and find learning resources to develop their skills, with support from tutors Alexander Williams and Amedeo Beretta. Each student will choose their own individual specialism, in a field of their choice.
Students should not expect that the classroom teaching will necessarily map directly onto their chosen area of specialism. Most likely, it will not.
Tutors
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| Iliana Franklin |
Portfolio
The module culminates in the presentation of a portfolio of work in the student's chosen field.
Experimentation
Specialism Module CR5001 is a great opportunity to try out different ideas, learn from a variety of guest tutors from industry, and explore a wide range of creative choices. It's where the focus of the course starts to change from "top-down" (do what you're told) to "bottom up" (learn to become a creative artist).
Vimeo Tutorials
We have hundreds of tutorials at our Vimeo channel to support our students. For example, for Motion Capture, Rigging and Dynamics, we recommend the following:
Schedule
Teaching starts on Monday January 10th 2022 and the module lasts for five weeks. See the calendar below for week-by-week details.
Specialism Module CR5001 is a great opportunity to try out different ideas, learn from a variety of guest tutors from industry, and explore a wide range of creative choices. It's where the focus of the course starts to change from "top-down" (do what you're told) to "bottom up" (learn to become a creative artist).
Vimeo Tutorials
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| Character animation by Paloma Zhu |
- Using and Adapting Motion Capture Animating with Motion Capture data by Steven Lall https://vimeo.com/album/5605446 For more on the Motion Capture tutorial by Steven Lall, read this blog post.
- MoCap Retargeting. MoCap retargeting with Amedeo Beretta https://vimeo.com/356232162. Formore on MoCap retargeting, read this blog post.
- Technical Animation & Dynamics Dynamics, Particles, NCloth and Hair by Michael Davies
https://vimeo.com/album/5399143 - Character Rigging Introduction to Character Rigging
by Michael Davies https://vimeo.com/album/5399149
Schedule
Teaching starts on Monday January 10th 2022 and the module lasts for five weeks. See the calendar below for week-by-week details.
Assignment Brief
The Module Descriptor states: “The student will present a portfolio of evidence showing development in their specialisation in the context of the team studio project and established theory and practice. They should highlight where specific learning outcomes have been met. The Portfolio Review with a tutor will support this.”
In practice, this assignment involves submitting a short piece of work based on your chosen specialism. If the final piece is fully animated, it should be around 11 seconds long. If it is a storyboard piece, it should be around 30 seconds long. If this is a character design piece, it should include designs and turnarounds for 3-4 characters, a small Art Bible.
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| Sabre Tooth by Paloma Zhu |
In practice, this assignment involves submitting a short piece of work based on your chosen specialism. If the final piece is fully animated, it should be around 11 seconds long. If it is a storyboard piece, it should be around 30 seconds long. If this is a character design piece, it should include designs and turnarounds for 3-4 characters, a small Art Bible.
Focus on your chosen area of specialism and produce a piece of work that helps you develop your skills in this area.
Assessment Criteria
Creativity - 25%
Creativity, inventiveness, Imagination, Innovation
Development and Pre-production - 25%
How well was the project developed? Planning, exploration, design, storyboards, thumbnail sketches, animatic (where appropriate)
Production - 25%
Were appropriate techniques used, and to what standard? How well is it realised, does it meet the brief? Overall quality of animation or of the project work.
Post-Production - 25%
Texturing and Rendering, Music, Audio and Sound Effects (where appropriate)
Submission Deadline
The submission is due on Wednesday 9th February 2021 at 11.59pm. Presentations and Peer Reviews are at 9.30am on Thursday 10th February at 9.30am. Submission is via email to your tutor, along with a link to your work at your Vimeo Channel, website or blog. Note that there is no Retrospective due for this module.
The Escape Studios Animation Blog offers a personal view on the art of animation and visual effects. To find out more about our new BA/MArt, now recruiting for September 2022, follow this link. To apply, visit the official page here.
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| Character animation by Jamie Floodgate |
Creativity - 25%
Creativity, inventiveness, Imagination, Innovation
Development and Pre-production - 25%
How well was the project developed? Planning, exploration, design, storyboards, thumbnail sketches, animatic (where appropriate)
Production - 25%
Were appropriate techniques used, and to what standard? How well is it realised, does it meet the brief? Overall quality of animation or of the project work.
Post-Production - 25%
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| MoCap by Steven Lall |
Texturing and Rendering, Music, Audio and Sound Effects (where appropriate)
Submission Deadline
The submission is due on Wednesday 9th February 2021 at 11.59pm. Presentations and Peer Reviews are at 9.30am on Thursday 10th February at 9.30am. Submission is via email to your tutor, along with a link to your work at your Vimeo Channel, website or blog. Note that there is no Retrospective due for this module.
The Escape Studios Animation Blog offers a personal view on the art of animation and visual effects. To find out more about our new BA/MArt, now recruiting for September 2022, follow this link. To apply, visit the official page here.
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