Introduction:

Digital Media+English

This phase of learning included a lot of new things and experiments. We used a lot of different Adobe applications, including Premier Pro, Audition, Photoshop, and several camera modes to create a variety of works. Even though we had all the same projects, we were encouraged to look at in our own way to create something completely unique to us, and begin developing our own personal styles.

In this first quarter, the conceptual part is a huge part of what influences the kind of work we do, and experimental part of it makes it a lot of fun. We’ve tried many new applications and learned so many different ways of creating art already that we wouldn’t have learned anywhere else. Although there were some projects I was nervous to do, like singing the parody song, I was able to overcome it and not only learned a lot, but also had fun in the process.

Art Reflection: sony tape poster

At the very beginning of the year, Freestyle Academy took a field trip to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. We were assigned to find a piece that inspired ‘awe’ and reflect on the different elements of awe we felt about the artwork. Then, we made a video using both our digital media and English skills to express the awe we felt in video form. In English, we wrote a script that captured and abbreviated all of our initial reflection into just under 60 words. In our digital media class, we created a video using Adobe Premier Pro, using a recording of our English writing and added the text onto the screen. We used a combination of visual and audio key frames to edit the video, and other nifty tricks. It was a really fun first project that where we could combine our the techniques from digital media, and the content we created in English.

I saw many, many artworks in the museum that invoked awe, but one that stood out the most was Sony Tape Poster by Milton Glaser. I thought it was so cool how he drew on top of sheet music, combining two completely different forms of art. I would have never through to combine music and visual art by doing this. Although I wrote a very lengthy reflection on my thoughts on this piece, with the help of our Freestyle English teacher, I was able to get it to fit into the word limit in order to best summarize my thoughts. In turn, I created this video using my writing and digital media skills.

Behind the scenes! Above is a peek into how I edited the video using Adobe Premier Pro. There are many different keyframes and “layers” to adding the different effects I wanted, especially with the text.

Parody Project

In order to learn about and practice using Adobe Audition to edit audio, we were assigned to create our very own parodies. We started by selecting a song and new topic, then rewriting the lyrics. We were allowed to do this in a group, so my friend Cade and I rewrote the lyrics to the original Pokemon Theme song, to be a Kirby theme song instead. After the lyrics were finished, we went into one of the designated recording booths to record our parody. To do this, we recorded directly on Adobe Audition, with the original version of the Pokemon Theme song playing through headphones so we could hear it without it being in our recording. We took several takes, and recording some parts separately in order to layer parts on top of each other. After recording, it was time to edit. While editing, we used various techniques we learned in digital media to make the song and music sound professional, despite being a fun parody. I added reverb, normalized the different audio tracks, faded some parts in and out using keyframes, and made some parts louder or quieter. Similarly to the Art Reflection video, there were many layers the entire process. Once editing was done, it was exported, submitted, and put onto the official Freestyle Website, and here!

The Art and the Artist Statement:

This is a parody of the Pokemon Theme song inspired by Kirby! Cade and I used Adobe Audition to add our recorded lyrics on top of the instrumental version of the Pokemon theme song, and to edit all the different takes. We decided to make the parody something fun and silly, and thought that since a lot of people mistake Kirby for a Pokemon, doing a mashup of the two would be fun. At the beginning, we had a hard time recording the lyrics. It was important to get some of the timing right, even if we could edit it. But we ended up practicing multiple times, and listening to the music with lyrics through headphones so we could time most of it right without hearing the background music in the recording. This way, we only made minor mistakes that were easier to edit out. However, looking back, something I would’ve changed was recording the chorus separately, so we could pan each of our voices to the left or right. Instead, we only recorded certain verses by ourselves so we were only able to pan those parts and not the main focus of the song, the chorus. During this project, I learned a lot more than I was initially expecting. More advanced applications like Adobe ones used to confuse me a lot, however, I was able to push through the confusion and create this project that I wouldn’t have been able to create just a few weeks prior to its finish. In a way, I got over my fear of using more complicated ways of creating art through technology, especially to make better pieces. Not only did I learn the technicalities of using Adobe Audition, but I also learned what makes a song and recording good or not. Upon reflection, I’m very proud of how this project went, especially the way I was able to add effects like reverb to make the voices themselves sound better than just the raw recording. Until this experience, I listened to a lot of music, however, never truly considered the work that’s gone into making all of the different elements sound good together. Now, I’ve come to appreciate music a lot more thanks to my new knowledge on the process of creating it, and what makes a good piece, a good piece. 

Lyrics:

You may just see a harmless puff

But I will prove you wrong

To absorb them is my real test

To save Dream Land is my cause

I’m alone in the forgotten land

Saving Waddle Dees

Defeating all my enemies

With my abilities

(Kirby! Gotta eat it all)

It’s food and me

I know it’s my time to eat (Kirby)

Oh, you’re my comfort food

In a meal we must devour

(Kirby, gotta eat it all) 

A puff so pink

Our hunger will push us through

You eat me and I’ll eat you

Kirby

(Gotta eat it all)

Gotta eat it all

Yeah

Every obstacle along the way

With hunger, I consume

I will mouthful every day

To claim my rightful shape

Come downstairs, it’s dinnertime

There’s no bigger beef (Steak!)

Om and nom we’ll eat our way

To always save the day

Kirby

(gotta eat it all!)

It’s food and me

I know it’s my time to eat (Kirby)

Oh, you’re my comfort food

In a meal we must devour

(Kirby, gotta eat it all) 

A puff so pink

Our hunger will push us through

You eat me and I’ll eat you

Kirby

(Gotta eat it all)

Gotta eat it all

Gotta eat it all

Gotta eat it all

Gotta eat it all

Yeah!

(Kirby! Gotta eat it all)

It’s food and me

I know it’s my time to eat (Kirby)

Oh, you’re my comfort food

In a meal we must devour

(Kirby, gotta eat it all) 

A puff so pink

Our hunger will push us through

You eat me and I’ll eat you

Kirby

(Gotta eat it all)

Gotta eat it all

(Kirby!)

Here’s some more behind the scenes!

Introduction:

Animation

Animation has been a lot more fun than I expected. To be honest, I thought the projects would get really repetitive, which is something I struggle with but want to improve. But even though some of them are a bit repetitive, it’s so much more fun than I thought. Creating these moving drawings is also so much more fulfilling than I’d previously realized. I’ve only dabbled in animation in the past, but actually creating longer and more complicated ones is a lot of fun. Plus, we try so many different types of animation – from older methods, like zoetropes, to more advanced methods, like stop motion animation. Overall, I’ve learned so much even from only a quarter of class, and I’ve already improved and come to enjoy it so much.

As an Animation student at Freestyle, I value being able to create not only characters and drawings, but being able to develop a way to bring these characters and other drawing to life. By being able to animate, and knowing the best or proper ways to do it, I can take my art to another level by making my drawings not only move, but move well. Like I said earlier, it’s so fulfilling to watch artwork that I’m already proud of begin moving and go through a story of it’s own with motion.

History of Animation

There are many different methods of animation, some much older than others. Here, I wrote a brief essay on the history of how animation techniques have evolved over time to improve and become more advanced or efficient.

Praxinoscope + Zoetrope

A praxinoscope and zoetrope, consists a long strip of paper with different frames on it that, when spun, create a moving animation. It’s placed into a round, carousel-like contraption, praxinoscopes having mirrors, while zoetropes have slits to look through at the moving frames. These are much older, traditional forms of animation that aren’t often used today, especially digitally. Unfortunately, it’s hard to photograph and film what it’s like when the zoetrope or praxinoscope is actually moving and animated, so here is a photo of just the frames, as they would be inserted into the contraptions.

Phenakistocope

A phenakistoscope is another older form of animation, where you look through slits in a circular piece of paper with drawn frames and watch the animation in the mirror. This is a unique technique, because it requires the frames to be in sectors, almost pie slice shaped. Thanks to applications like photoshop, we can now animate it without having to spin it by hand and look in the mirror thought the slits.

To create an animated GIF, we created an animated timeline in photoshop, as seen at the bottom of the screen. For each frame, we turned the image of the paper frames 16 different times. We had a total of 16 frames, and to add them to the timeline we added a frame, then turned on the visibility for the current frame layer, and turned off the visibility for the last frame. So each time we clicked on a frame in the timeline below, the layer with the current frame of the paper, the background layer, and the layer with our names on it were visible, but layers of all the other frames are hidden.

Flipbooks

After exploring older forms of animation, we began experimenting with a newer method – flipbooks. This was a huge transition, going from 13-16 frames to 90 frames. Nevertheless, it was a lot of fun, and much more satisfying seeing a longer animation come to life. During the animating process, we used light boxes to trace previous frames, and screws to hold all of the paper frames in place when we finished. Then, we filmed them, creating an analog form, and later individually photographed each frame to create a digital version.

In addition to doing individual flipbooks, we also created what’s known as an exquisite corpse flipbook. This is where each person in the class created a portion of a much longer animated flipbook. We created 70 frames, and connected all of our shorter animations with different shapes. This was a lot of fun, because we were able to collaborate with our classmates but also create our own unique stories.

Paper Cut Out Stop Motion Animation

After analog and digital flipbooks, we moved on to stop motion animation. To start, we did simple paper cut out animations, creating 2-D shapes and characters from paper and animating those. For this kind of animation, we created moveable shapes and moved them ever so slightly for each frame to create moving parts. I did the Pokemon character, Slowpoke.

Object Stop Motion Animation

After trying stop motion animation with 2-D shapes, we moved on to 3-D objects. To to this, we got already made objects or simple clay sculptures to create a short stop motion animation. Similarly to the paper cut out animation, we would move the objects slightly for each frame to create movement.