Zenith
The Zenith is Freestyle’s Senior Project, in which seniors can make any production they would like related to their elective class.
My Zenith was a 2D animated film on my Worldbuilding project, “Close Your Eyes.” I developed this world since my first semester senior year, and I envisioned a completed 2D animated short film of its contents.
However this project was incredibly ambitious and challenging, because I was a first year senior, so I did not learn 2D animation junior year, and I was not that experienced in drawing things besides buildings. Through this project I learned how to use Adobe Animate and 2D animating techniques. After the beginning stages of planning, I knew I would most likely not finish this project, but since it was something I am extremely passionate about, I pursued it in my own time, so that I could eventually have a completed, high-quality animation of my original story.
Process
I first created a proposal, including the details of my Zenith project and a schedule to pace myself. Shortly after, I made a storyboard of all the scenes I wanted to include, this was extremely helpful down the line and helped me make steady progress. Here are some pages of my storyboard.
I worked up until the beginning of Act 2 for the rest of the time period. I referenced my previously-made comic panels for character design and composition. My decision to demonstrate how all side characters are insignificant, by drawing them as silhouettes made animated each scene less time consuming. I generally approached a scene by first drawing the few layers that make up the background, then the main character along with any supporting objects he interacts with, and finally the side characters.
Final-ish Production
As expected, I did not entirely finish this production, I made it to the beginning of Act 2 while missing some scenes and sound design. I was extremely passionate about this project and will finish it in my own time. Progress will be updated on my personal website: https://thelillianczza.wordpress.com/