P3 Initial Planning

Form : The form of animation I am creating is a children's TV programme.


Animation Type : I am mainly creating this animation in Adobe Photoshop; this enables me to upload images of characters easily, and it is a software base that I am familiar with. It is a hand drawn cell animation, meaning I make the characters move by manipulating their body parts; there is also some stop motion animation as well.

This style of animation is appropriate for this animation, as it is user friendly, and allows me to create animation that is fun for children and not too complicated.


Selection of Genre Style : I would best describe the genre of animation as action/adventure/comedy; it's action/adventure because it involves ninjas fighting, doing Karate and such, but also contains humour to make it funny and interesting for children.


Storyline : My animation 'Ninja High' consist of a rookie ninja apprentice looking to be trained in the art of Karate; this character (Dante) meets other young apprentices at a Dojo in China and they train together alongside their master (Master Hakiru). Throughout their adventures in the Dojo, these apprentices encounter many endeavours and ordeals that test their ability and fighting skills, but also is a lot of fun.
  Basically in summary, my animation 'Ninja High' is the story of young budding Karate apprentices, training to become ninjas; it is a fun, action packed old ninja movie cartoon spinoff, ideally aimed for children aged 5-12.

Rotoscoping test

Here is a little bit of rotoscoping test footage I made in Photoshop; I shot a short video of Reece kicking around a football, I then imported the film into photoshop as frames, then traced over each frame. This created a cool little bit of animation.

Voice Talent / Dream Casting

Dante:

Personality - Friendly yet aggressive, intimidating, deep.

Vocal Performance: low tone, a slight rumble light the voice of Optimus Prime, energetic and fun.

Dream Casting: Bryan Cranston

Most famous for playing Walter White in 'Breaking Bad', Bryan Cranston's voice has subtle overtones and low end rumbles in his voice that would really bring out the character of Dante

Cheaper Alternative: Jason Biggs

Famous for his role in American Pie, Biggs also has the ability to create a deep voice with a friendly touch







Master Hakiru

Personality - Rather plain in character, but deep, wise, and full of humour.

Vocal Performance - Old man Chinese accent.

Dream Casting - Ken Jeong

Most famous for his role as Mr Chow in 'The Hangover' movies, Ken Jeong's voice would give personality and character to Master Hakiru. With his Chinese accent and funny voice, his voice would be perfect for the part.

Cheaper Alternative: Yung-Fat Chow

Famous for his role in 'Bulletproof Monk', Chows voice would also provide the accent, and some humour.

Final Character Design / Process

Dante

This is my final design for Dante, the main character of my TV series 'Ninja High'. I chose to make his shape rectangular to show his confidence, strength and his leadership. I gave him golden hair to make him look young. Dante has a beard to show off his manliness but also to assert his wisdom.

The main objective when designing this character was to make him look as strong as I could, while still keeping him cartoony. He has broad shoulders and chest, a slim waist and a broad head to show this.

When designing Dante's clothing, I wanted to make him look like part of the team, but also have his own qualities to it as well; Dante has a red stripe along his vest and belt to make him look intimidating, and he wears a golden ear ring.

In this profile, I wanted Dante to look cool, and badass. I make the tails of his headband fly, as if they were in the wind. He needs to look cool, as he is the driving force and main character of the show.

Target Audience and Design

Target Audience


Age : 7+
Gender: Male
Media Consumption: Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles, Legend of the Dragon etc.

Typical viewer:

Name: Connor

Age: 8

Basic description: Connor lives at home with his mum, dad, and younger brother.  goes to a primary school. He likes to play games with his friends where they pretend to be ninjas. He enjoys playing video games, and card games also. Connor is a very fun, bouncy 8-year-old.
Connor wakes up at around 8 o'clock most days, and goes to bed at around 7 30.

Typical media consumption: Connor watches Cartoon Network every day after school with his little brother for about an hour and a half; this includes shows such as Ben 10: Omniverse and The Amazing World of Gumball. Connor also likes playing the Cartoon Network games online.


Why will the animation Appeal?

 The animation will appeal to Connor as it fits his preference; he enjoys action packed cartoons with fighting ninjas, so it should be right up his street.

BBFC

The BBFC or British Board of Film Classification is a British non governmental organisation, funded by the film industry. They have the role of categorising films with each licence they fall under. BBFC classify films in terms of violence & gore, sexual content, drug use and profanity.

There are several different certificates which the BBFC categorise films under:

- Suitable for all

- Parental Guidance

- Cinema release suitable for 12 yeasrs and over

Video/DVD release suitable for 12 years ad over

Suitable only for 15 years and over

Suitable only for adults

Adult works for licensed premises only

Animation tests

These are the first two shots of my opening credits scene. I animated them in photoshop; I used my storyboard picture to help me.

Legal and Ethical

Animation Treatment

Animation treatment from Ben Harrison

Animation in Current Trends

Like my tv series 'Ninja High', there are many other existing franchises that have similar themes, and are of a similar tone. The TV shows/Films are all similar in some way to 'Ninja High':

Legend of the Dragon (First appearance July 29th 2005)

Legend of the Dragon is an animated series consisting of 26 episodes followed by 13 additional episodes for a total of 39.
Ang and Ling ar fraternal twins; a conflict broke out between the two when Ang was chosen to be the Golden Dragon, and received the Golden Dragon Power Band. This infuriated Ling, and drove her away from the Dojo in which they train. She joined the Zodiac Master and became evil. The series shows their constant battle. It involves martial arts, has themes of respect and Master Chin's character is a heavy influence on Master Hakiru.



Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (First Appearance May 1984)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (often abbreviated to TMNT) is a popular cartoon series about a team of highly trained anthropomorphic turtle named after four renaissance artists, trained by their anthropomorphic rat sensei Master Splinter, in the art of ninjutsu. From their home town in the storm sewers of New York City, they battle petty criminals, evil overlords, mutated animals, and alien invaders, while attempting to remain isolated from society.





Kung Fu Panda (2008)

Kung Fu Panda directed by Mark Osbourne and John Stevenson, is the story of Po, and his struggles as a fat panda in China. He finds himself chosen as the Dragon Warrior despite the fact that he is obese and a complete novice at martial arts. He becomes part of a team with other aspiring ninjas. This is very similar to Legend of the Dragon, in the fact that the main character is chosen by a higher calling to become something greater.

Jump Cycle

This is a very simple jump cycle that I made in Adobe Flash. I took 7 still images of a cartoon character jumping, and put them into 7 separate frames. I then added the ball, and used the motion tween tool to move it across the screen.

Animation Comparison

South Park (Created by Matt Stone and Trey Parker)

When creating an episode of South Park, the first stage is always creating storyboards with character designs. Every joke and idea is thought about carefully, and the position of the characters in the shot also. A script is then written which will also contain camera angles and shots. Character designs will be finished, and sent to be lip synced to the characters. Then the animation process takes place; characters arms, legs, heads and eye and such are animated according to the script. The animators make an animatic first to get a sense of what the episode will look like

Dot (Created by Aardman Animations)

This short film was shot completely on a Nokia N8 smartphone in order to promote the product. It was shot under a microscope, as it is the smallest animation that has every been created. The character Dot was a 9mm tall resin model. The animators had to use 50 of these small models in order to compensate for damage, which was likely happen due to the size of the models. Each of these resin models was printed using a high tech 3D printer and thousands of layers of resin. A 2D drawing was made first so that accurate models could be printer on the 3D printer.

The type of animation use was stop-motion animation, a favourite choice in Aardmans case. The team had to take a compilation of pictures on the smartphone to make the stop-animation; A Dot model was placed in the painted setting, then a picture was taken, and then a different Dot model was put in place. This created a walking effect. The smartphone stayed in its mount for the entirety of the film, but the setting moved in order to create the illusion of movement.

Peppa Pig (Created, Directed and Produced by Astley Baker Davis)

The animators first come together and talk about ideas for episodes, and then start making storyboards, this makes it easier to create camera shots. The team then discuss colours, and set design to see what fits best on screen. The animation the takes place, using the computer programme Celacton 2D. The animators get the animals moving in the way that the director wants. Preciously recorder voice recordings are used so that the animators know how to move the characters mouths. When an episode is finished, the animators talk with the director, and discuss improvements that may need to be made.

Animation Product Research - Animated Advert

Animated Advert

The Bear and the Hare John Lewis (2013)

This advert was released just before Christmas last year, Directed by Toby Howell, and created by Laurent Simon and Aiden McClure. The main purpose of this advert is to advertise John Lewis, in order for people to shop for Christmas presents in their stores. Another purpose of the Advert is to advertise Lily Allen's cover of 'Somewhere Only We Know' by Keane; this song was made specifically for this advert, and fits well into the video.

The use of colours and the whole Christmassy feel of the advert really fits the subject and the point of the advertisement. It is also nice how the advert has a story to it that you can follow

Animation Product Research - Music Video

Music Video

Breakbot - Baby I'm Yours (2010)

The music video for Breakbot's song 'Baby Im Yours' was released in June 2010; created by WIZZdesign, the rotoscoping animation in the music video was created using Adobe After Effects and Flame. The director for the music video was Irina Dakeva and it was produced by Matthieu Poirier.

This music video is aim people who listen to Breakbot. The purpose of the animation is to entertain the viewer and also provide a visual representation to the song. It also shows that this kind of animation can be used in many ways. The song is very catchy, and the animation used in the video is very cool. The use of colours and transformations are nice to look at in this video.

Animation Products Research - Web Series

Web Series

Lego Star Wars : The Yoda Chronicles (2013)

The first episode of 'Lego Star Wars : the Yoda Chronicles' was released in May 2013. The series was created by Lego themselves who create the toys. Directed by Michael Hegner, the Lego Chronicles is aimed manly at children, but also can be enjoyed by anyone who takes an interest to Lego or Star Wars. The purpose of the animation is to entertain the audience.

A good thing about this web series is that the animated characters closely resemble the character in the Star Wars film franchise. Many other things from the films such as sound FX also resemble those in the films. This allows the audience to connect with the web series more.

Animation Trends

Television

'Cartoon Network' is a very popular children's television channel, with a target audience of children aged 7+, With shows such as 'Ed, Edd n Eddy', 'the Amazing World of Gumball' and 'Ben 10: Omniverse'. The top rated show is 'Adventure Time', but there are many other popular shows on the channel.

Film

The most successful animated feature at the box office in 2013 was 'Frozen', Directed by Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee.

Web

The most watched animated video on Youtube is 'Eye Piece' with over 2,000,000 views. It shows the incredible capabilities that modern day technology can do with animation.

Character Development / Mood board

Master Hakiru - Master Hakiru is the leader of the group. He is full of wisdom, and
aims to help the team progress.
There are many many stereotypical old, wise, Chinese martial arts people in cartoons, like
Master Splinter from 'TMNT', and Master Chin from 'Legend of the Dragon'

Megan - Megan is the attractive female heroin, and love interest for main character
Dante. She provides elegance and beauty for each episode.
Characters such as Kim Possible, and Daphne from Scooby Doo were influences on this characters look.

Rufus - Rufus is the member of the group who is an outsider. He is very lazy, and
laid back, skinny and unconfident. Usually he has no idea whats going on, and
he never wears shoes.
Characters such as Shaggy from Scooby Doo and Sideshow Bob from the Simpsons inspired
this character.

Rufus in mid air high kick

Dante - Dante is our main character in 'Ninja High'. He is a well built ninja
with a very wide skill set. Despite his great size, he is not intimidating; he is
a very friendly individual with a deep heart, and he also has a great
understanding of respect.
Many other cartoons similar to Dante inspired this characters, such as Jonny Bravo
, Mr Incredible, Ang from Legend of the Dragon, Superman and Leonidas from 300.

Animation Time Scale

Character Design Theory

Barney Gumble - The Simpsons

Characteristic of Barney Gumble:


- Head viewed from the side, but both eyes visible

- Front facing eye is bigger than the other

- Thin black stroke around the body

- Thick colours of clothes and skin, including under front        iiifacing eye

- Goofy Mouth

- Messy hair

- Three teeth showing.

The outline of Barney shows that he has messy loose bits of                                  
 hair, showing he is messy. His posture leads with his hips which shows that he is lazy















Eric Cartman - South Park

Characteristics of Eric Cartman:

- no outline colours, just pure colour

- over exaggerated eyes

- no nose

- simple mouth with three teeth

- few details such as eyebrows, eye lashes or shading / colour fading

- curved black line under chin to assert obesity

- simple clothing

- wide waist and feet








Spongebob Squarepants

Characteristics of Spongebob Squarepants:

- Black stroke around his body

- Spongebobs face is largely exaggerated, this shows how happy
he is all the time

- Rectangular in shape

 - Two large front teeth

- Large smile

- Face covers most surface area of his body

- Slight shading to give 3D illusion

- Big eyes

Idea Feedback

Expressions Sheet

This is an expressions sheet for Dante, the main character in my series Ninja High. This shows various expressions that he may show throughout the series.

Character Design / Shapes

The way in which characters act, move and just generally look, gives the audience an idea of the nature of the character:

Characters leading with Chest:

            Superman

Batman   

If a character sticks their chest out, it shows them as a strong and confident individual. Here 'Superman' and 'Batman' both lead with their chests to promoted that they are strong and confident.

Characters leading with knees:

This character leads with his knees; this shows him as being a coward, as he is trying to get his body away from the action.

Characters who lead with their pelvis:

Characters who lead with their pelvis are considered lazy. Here, Homer from 'the Simpsons' is shown leading his body with his pelvis, showing he is laid back and not bothered

Characters who lead with their head:

Characters who lead with their heads, or who have big heads are considered intelligent. This works as people assume cartoons with big head have bigger brains, hence making them look more intelligent.

Use of shapes in Character Design

Circle

 - Fun, bouncy, jolly, round, no sharp edges, soft, worldly.

Circular or rounded shapes are considered to the friendliest as they have no sharp edges or corners. In nature, most circular shapes are soft and harmless; the evoke friendly and likeable characters

Square

 - Strong, stable, structure, even-handed, rigid, stiff

Square like shapes relate to straight vertical and horizontal lines. Communicates strength. They can be large and scary or small and nervous. Depicts steadfast characters which are dependable. 

Triangle

 - Sharp, pointy tall, accented, evil, quick, direction, sharp

Triangles have strong, angular lines; they are the most dynamic of shapes. Typically, super-villains are based on triangular concepts or depicted as triangular to show a sense of evil about them. The appear malicious, sinister and overpowering to show aggression. Often used when depicting antagonists.

Russel

Russel from 'Up' is a chubby, bouncy, fun character, who is always full of excitement and joy.

His character shape is circular, which comes across as friendly and harmless to the audience.

Shrek

Shrek from 'Shrek' is a dominant character; he is a strong, and courageous character, and this can be shown by his rectangular shape. He may be a bit fat, but his tall rectangular shape shows that he is dominant.

Gru

Gru from 'Despicable Me' is supposed to be shows as evil. His triangular shape shows this, as his tall physique, and broad shoulders make him look dominant.