Tedium Is My Middle Name

With every project there comes a moment where I have an idea for something, but it's going to require a hefty number of mind-numbing hours of tedious work. In each video I've made, I'v managed to dream up a sequence where a large number of objects on the screen have to animate, and they have to be hand animated. I try to find a way to automate things (and I often do), but sometimes...sometimes I just bite the bullet and do the work to get the result I want.

I thought last week had some tedious moments, but this week was a record setter. The shot in question lasts only about 40 frames, but what I did was place over a thousand cartoon leaves by hand. Each leaf was placed in a logical growth position so that they all grew sequentially in a way that made sense (based on tree branch growth, which I had animated beforehand). Each start point had to be set, and each leaf had to fill up the space so as to not leave any gaps in the image. This is probably boring. You'll just have to watch it to understand.

But anyway, that's my big story this week. I spent 3 days clicking myself into a state of pure monotony. Aren't ya jealous!? ;)

A small portion of the scene (like a 1/10 of view). There are thousands of layers (including the controllers).

Bailey

A Whole Year of Blogs

Startdate 69142.3. Blog Entry 52.

Yep, it's been a full year of weekly, Friday blog updates. And over this year I've rambled about everything from project updates, art philosophy, business ethics, experiments, and even the emotional struggles of this craft. This weekly commitment has kept me accountable to peel back the curtain on this journey however I can. I hope it's been interesting to somebody. If not, that's okay, because it's been extremely useful to me.

In other news, animation work rolls steadily on. I recently hand-placed 442 tree leaves and gave them all subtle, stylized animation. It was a way to give the background elements of Scene-D a little extra life. I hand-placed them because I wanted them to look a certain way. Typical. ;)

I wonder how many times I clicked my mouse working on these puppies.

Things could change, but I feel comfortable continuing the weekly Friday updates. Onward!

-Bailey

Animation Aspiration

Currently spending most of my days animating and trying to figure out ways to push myself. Some of these scenes are taxing my brain, which is a good thing. Lots of inter-dependencies with 3D and 2D stuff. The next month will be be spent making boatloads of key frames, so expect more of that. And if I think it's worth it, I'll post a clip later to show you how things are progressing. For now, enjoy a screen cap. Not much to see, but the careful observer can pick up clues! ;)

I like curvy stuff.

Bailey

The Skill Paradox

This week saw a ton of look development on the commercial project I've been working on for weeks. It's tough trying to find something that fits the company's vision, the music, the story, and ultimately my taste. I am continually reminded of how difficult this process is. Oof!

Still just a concept, but getting closer to something that I don't hate.

Oh hey, I also added a section to the site where I recommend my favorite books on business. Go here and read those books (if you haven't already).

Art Troubles

I recently saw a tweet from an artist named Dave Kellett. He made a comic strip that captured a feeling I've been having for some time now. You can check out his work here.

Art http://t.co/zdb5ZcUiy9 pic.twitter.com/Y3sI4qDftN

— Dave Kellett (@davekellett) August 21, 2015

With each new project I embark upon, I have found that it becomes more and more difficult to feel like I'm creating something worthwhile. I have happy accident moments, but I was expecting my career to remain just as difficult as time goes on. Instead, it seems to be getting more difficult as I get better. So, perhaps the comic strip above explains this?

It's as if my increasing standards inhibit my ability to get excited about most of the stuff I create. I've always been hard on myself, but I remember past projects feeling more energized, like I was riding the edge of my skill set and everything was new.

I still push myself, and I always do as many new things as possible with each project. But it feels like when I understand how to do something, I'm no longer interested in making stuff like that again. Basically I worry that if I do something that I already know how to do, I risk making something that is too same-y, and ultimately uninspired. I fear making art that is soulless, so I'm constantly attempting to create things that interest me and are genuinely "me."

It's a tough business, I'll tell ya. I'll figure this out eventually (I hope), but these are my thoughts at the moment. Let me know if you have any insights? How do other artists create things that are similar over and over again, but are still genuine?

Bailey 

Poster For Sale

Work progresses as usual. I've been doing some tweaking to a storyboard and designing the art style. The meat of the project is in full effect now. So very much to do!

In other news, the Shop now has a 20-Mile March poster available for purchase. It's an upgraded version of the poster I posted a while back in the 20-Mile Marching article I wrote. Hang it on your wall and remind yourself to work consistently, but not to overdo it. Check it:

You can purchase it here. Or you can print your own version here. Whatever you want! :)

Bailey

The CG Argument

Over the past few years, I've heard a lot of criticism of computer generated visual effects in movies. Some people talk about how practical effects are better than modern movie magic techniques. And, overall, there seems to be a lot of nostalgia for a time when props were the thing. But this insistent love for practical effects is often misguided. Pretty much every movie has computer generated imagery in it nowadays. And when visual effects artists are doing their jobs well, no one even knows it was made digitally. On top of that, tools continue to advance, and people continue to get better at their craft. This means that at the top level it's getting harder and harder to spot what's practical and what's not.

So, for years I've been frustrated whenever someone confidently tells me how CG effects are worse than practical effects. It's such a broad and dismissive statement that, as a digital artist, I've felt the need to educate them on the facts and calmly explain that computer generated images in of themselves aren't bad. Digital tools are just tools, and it's up to the artist to deliver something good. However, my words don't always properly convey what I want to say.

But the fine folks over at RocketJump Film School have just released a new video that breaks down this argument. And they do it beautifully:

"Are computer generated visual effects really ruining movies? We believe that the reason we think all CG looks bad, is because we only see "bad" CG. Fantastic, beautiful, and wonderfully executed CG is everywhere - you just don't know it. Truly great visual effects serve story and character - and in doing so are, by their very definition, invisible."

Thanks again to Freddie and company for entertaining and educating. I've been a big fan of their work for many, many years. Check out their work if you haven't already.

Bailey

Animatics and Answers

In a continued effort to make what I do more understandable to prospective clients, I added an FAQ section to the site. People can also request more answers if they want to too.

I also updated the About section to now show what services Forma Pictures provides. Forma Pictures works with both companies and individuals. Big and small projects. :)

As for work, this week saw a bunch of storyboarding for the MatterHackers project! Boy, like I've said before, boarding really pushes my brain. It's tough work trying to do so many things at once, like staging, flow, and visually understandable compositions. The storyboard basically defines what the movie is going to be, so no pressure, right? :)

Here's a screenshot of the animatic I was working on, in the editor:

Bailey

The Pipeline

In an attempt to shed some light on the process behind what I do, I created a brief overview of the video creation process for potential clients. It's my hope that this will show not only what they can expect throughout the course of development, but also so they can see just how much goes into creating a video. Very laborious indeed! Check it out here.

Bailey

What do YOU want?

So, I've been writing this weekly blog for 10 straight months now (haven't missed a Friday!). Sometimes I write about changes to the business, sometimes I show what I've been making. Other times I ramble about art philosophies of mine. But what do YOU want to know about?

I heard in a podcast that a well known business used their blog to post interesting analytics about their product to drive traffic to their site. The posts (and I've read them) are genuinely interesting and insightful. They contain lots of data too, so that's fun.

As an artist, I feel like showing art should be the primary focus of this, but I don't always have stuff to show. And sometimes I can't, because it's not mine to show (contracts...etc.).

Anything you'd like to see or know more about? Comment below!

As for an update, I'm knee deep in an ambitious client project. Super excited about it. It has the potential to be very good. Just gotta work my arse off to get it there! :)

Bailey

Forma Turns 1

Wow.

I can't believe it. Forma Pictures is officially 1 year old.  What was once a crazy dream is now entering a new year of existence.

When I started this thing last summer, I didn't know what the hell I was doing. All I knew was that I had to do it. It's hard to explain unless you've felt what I'm talking about. I just had to go for it.

One thing I can attest to is that I have no regrets. This past year was the happiest year of my life. I'm pretty darn grateful that I got the opportunity to live it. If I can manage to keep this crazy train going another year, I will almost feel greedy.

I've learned a lot this year too. Like, I'm surprised by how much I didn't know about running a business last year. Still, the greatest takeaway I've garnered is this: go for your dreams. I was terrified when I decided to do this, but it was worth enduring that fear. The joy outweighs whatever cons crop up from time to time.

And so I march on. :)

Bailey

A Whole New Project

I've got some cool news. This week I began working on a new animated video project with the good people at MatterHackers. The last video I made with them was so fun to make. And it came out a year ago...

Well, we're excited to be working together again. It's going to be a difficult one, but it has the potential to be good. The mission that they have is special and inspiring. It gives these video projects real meaning. They also have a mature understanding of the artistic process and we trust each other to do our jobs well. I couldn't ask for a better situation.

So far I've been looking for the music and writing the story. As of now, I've listened to over 1,200 potential (and relevant) songs. It's really tough when I find a song that's almost right, but not quite. The story is coming together too, but it still lacks a certain feeling. Writing is hard!

Lastly, I'm going to do my best not to kill myself working on this project. I have a 20-mile marching schedule in place. Slow and steady, baby.

Bailey

The Crucible

I'm in still in a metaphorical crucible right now. I was having lunch with a friend and former colleague of mine and it dawned on me this stage in my career is what I'll later consider to be the dark times. But there's no way around it. I have to go through this to get where I wanna be.

This isn't complaining, it's just an acknowledgement of how much more I have to experience and learn. It's not like I'm a baby to this industry either. I've been working for years and years. But it really just takes that long, or it can, depending on luck.

The thing that I'm "waiting" for is when I'm at a level in both skill and presence where I don't have to struggle so hard each day to work on the kind of projects that satisfy my heart. More than anything, I just want to work on meaningful projects. And high quality ones too.

The following may sound braggadocious, but believe me, it's not. I sometimes wonder what it would be like not to care so much about the stuff I work on. Maybe I would be happier overall? While passion has its benefits, I think that the negatives should be discussed too. Here's how I break it down: Passion means that you want things to be a certain way, you want them to be what you envision. This means that you have expectations about how things should unfold, and therefore happiness is conditional. And when situations don't fit this, frustration naturally arises. In my experience so far, it has been very difficult for me not to be affected by this sequence. Passion is a double edged sword. That said, I'm grateful for it.

My new thought this week is that each hardship I endure (of varying degrees of pain) is toughening me up. I've noticed that I can better handle things that used to cause me a lot of stress years ago. Every embarrassment, failure and mistake I make create opportunities to learn. So as long as I keep at it and continue to work hard, things should get easier.

Or so I hope.

Bailey

Music Addict

Music is my muse. I can't imagine a life without it, and I can't imagine running a business where music isn't an integral part of the creative process.

Besides the really high end projects that are out there, I feel like music is underutilized in most videos. It often plays the role of a filler element.

Forma Pictures is all about creating music-driven storytelling. At the start of all of my projects, I like to spend as much time as I can with just the music. It's more than something nice to have, it's essential. It's the voice of a video, and as such it deserves lots and lots of attention.

The visuals are important too. I'm a designer working in this time-based medium, so I believe deeply in visual storytelling. But the cool thing about this medium is that it unifies visuals and sound. So, I think more people should take advantage of this wonderful union.

Think of it like this. A painting can be beautiful. One can gaze at the brush strokes of a master and appreciate the beauty of design. Next we have animation, and that's like pure magic. It's when designs are given life and a whole world of possibilities open up. Lastly, when you add music to all of this, the results can be heavenly. It elevates the art to dizzying heights. Multiple art forms, working as one. Delicious.

So, to all of you visual creators out there: don't forget about music! Composers are our greatest allies in our quests to make great works of art. Take care of them, give them cookies, and keep them close. Then go out and make things that are greater than the sum of their parts.

Bailey