
Over the Christmas break, I was able to use my family home as a reference for my subject matter. As so much of this project is from personal experience, this was an important chance to delve into where the idea came from and review where I was in keeping with the initial journey and whether I had gone too far.
At the start of this term, I am doing another pass of the storyboard I had finished at the end of the last term. Upon reflecting on the first pass of my storyboard I don't feel like it quite gets across my initial ideas and I have always viewed it as a first draft. So now is the time to refine it so I can identify how best to proceed when it comes to learning what I specifically need for each scene.
My ideas and notes for the final storyboard:
must better show the idea of a mental block in motivation
could this be done with a personification of motivation?
Manifestation creatures that I explored in my undergrad?
Objects that trigger the character?
How to show memories, and what are the memories to display?
Dust particles, how can they be used to show memories and emotions?
Use of different colours and shapes
Adding a Character?
Many personal situations much like this have been helped with the idea of another person joining the fight however animating another character would be too time-consuming
How can I display this in a different way? The idea of another presence supporting the character?
The character could be inspired by an object - subject that connects to another character, perhaps a photo - then that presence is seeming with the character, supporting them for the rest of the fight against the boxes
The idea of growing up.
The character has a memory of an object that they find, the object however is completely different in the characters memories to what it looks like when they find it.
Growing up and seeing the same treasured object as a whole new person - not worse, just different.
Notes from 1:1 with Susan:
Refining the storyboard
take out first shots - context can be introduced as the story goes
Start - the shot of the door opening
Keeping refining story to a more cohesive short
Boxes falling out of other boxes - things get too overwhelming as more is unpacked
Watch the Little Matchgirl
Animated Shorts for reference
The Little Matchgirl (2006),
Desperation for a better life
Seeing dreams or memories in the warmth of her matches
Strong contrasting tones with the "real world" blues and greys and the "dream world" warm oranges and gold.
Sonata - Gobelins, FX Exercise
Showing inspiration with fire
Mum's Sweater - Gobelins
Exploring grief
The Irony
At so many points in the process of putting this project together, I have become quite overwhelmed by the sheer amount of ideas and things I will need to do to pull off these ideas. I feel like at each point I am facing the same struggle as the character in my story, overwhelmed by choice and work, unpacking and organising so many different ideas and thoughts. The very same mental block that I want to illustrate in this short is weighing on me as I try to untangle my own personal experiences into a clear and structured narrative that can connect with others.
Whenever I see this comparison it helps me see that this turmoil, overwhelm and despair at times, must be worth completing as that is overall the point of this short story. What started as an attempt to show the process of unpacking one's life has become something a lot more reoccurring than I first thought.
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