Matt Frodsham : Cartoon Network

YCN Awards - winner

2010-05-27T02:58:00.000-07:00

Got directed to this a few times yesterday, great news! Thanks to everyone for the comments etc, more than a few good things came my way off the back of this so it was really nice to get the award aswell.

http://awards.ycnonline.com/news/post/09-10-ycn-student-awards-announced/

http://www.mattfrodsham.com/blog/

New Website

2010-03-20T03:09:00.000-07:00

I've just noticed there's a few people following this blog. I keep blogs like this on a per project basis so there will be no more posts here but you can find my other current ones if you view my profile here I think.

I just set up a website for when I get time to edit a reel - and will be keeping a more permanent central blog over there when I get time to set it up: www.mattfrodsham.com so keep an eye on that.

Thanks everyone!

ps. just thought, I will definitely update this blog if anything comes of the YCN competition that this was part of. Deadline is next week and results in the summer

Quick postcards for vimeo page

2010-01-22T04:43:00.000-08:00

Mini title cards for the 2 main videos on my vimeo page that add an extra element of finish

Making Of

2010-01-21T21:13:00.000-08:00

Making Of: Cartoon Network from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

"Quick breakdown of design, production and post. There's no audio except for what was output with original motion tests (so watch out if your speakers are on loud half way through), but thought some might find it interesting to see everything thrown into a chunk of video. The blog has more indepth explanation but I figured this would be easier to flick through."

Final HD Renders

2010-01-21T13:00:00.000-08:00

Cartoon Network: Rebrand Reel [HD] from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Final Colour Grade

2010-01-21T11:53:00.001-08:00

I like the aesthetic I have developed throughout the project, I purposely wanted to keep the colours from being too saturated and explosive as a change from the majority of TV aimed at children. I think the content and characters have enough personality through the animation and texture without needing to complicate things with a mass of bright colour.

I kept the background's white to draw focus to the simplistic cardboard scenes, only that matters and the rest of the world is empty - much like children's real surroundings disappear when playing a game and are imagining a totally different environment.

Having said that I've received one or two comments that the overall look might be a bit dull/cold and that the background may be blown out/over exposed in a couple of spots so I went back and ensured there was a lot of detail in the grey/white background textures and then as a final touch to add a bit of warmth and slight colour randomness I added a very subtle 4-colour corner gradient. This is a common technique to break up the tone of a very light background and just adds a little more interest to the frame (bear in mind the screenshot uploader is still darkening images on compression - the result is lighter and more subtle in the video):

Compositing - Screen replacement

2010-01-21T11:39:00.000-08:00

Clean Plate

With matted character using object buffer. This allows layers to pass behind the character in the composite.

The red solid was exported with a tag out of cinema, along with 3D data (camera position) so this can be replaced with any image or comp in after effects and it will retain it's relative 3D position in the scene.
I resized the solid and worked out it's new size based on percentage scale.

This cut to a different angle shows the red solid has stayed in position relative to the rest of the scene, it still appears as if it's in front of the TV.

Using another object buffer matte, I duplicate the clean plate layer and use the TV as a 'stencil' to overlay the red solid.

The TV screen is designed as a new composition with the same dimensions as the solid.

The position and rotation values are copied from the solid to the new comp. It is sitting behind the TV frame, but in the CU shots it is overlapping the character which should obviously be in front.

A third object buffer is used to matte another duplicate of the animation layer which allows me to drag this to the top of the layer stack and become the front most object in the scene.

A depth pass is used like the previous set of idents to add a sense of space and semi photo-realistic quality to the image and post effects are added to the TV screen to make it appear as if it is glowing and over exposed (which it would be if recorded with the surroundings exposed correctly).

Lower Third dev

2010-01-21T11:37:00.000-08:00

3D render with alpha. To help it stand out against the block bright colours I want to introduce some texture that will act as a border/background

Continuing the textures from the main ID's I constructed the type background elements from card. The white is 'painted' in photoshop to retain some subtle texture while allowing the type to be read at high speed against the clear background.

The lower third when layed against a cartoon (© cartoon network) is easy to read, the style contrasts with the background but also isn't overbearing due to the colour pallette.

Characters - favourite shows/types

2010-01-21T10:59:00.000-08:00

Dumraar: Action - Batman
Squig: Comedy - Chowder
Cal: Sci-fi - Dexter's Lab
Paul: Adventure - Flapjack
Rif: Cool, comedy - Johnny Bravo

To demonstrate their favourite characters/shows the characters will wear elements of 'costume' also made from card. This will hint at CN's existing franchises that the audience will pick up on without using them exclusively or completely transforming the base characters into them in the way that Capacity did with their vinyl toy rebrand.

Beam construction

2010-01-21T10:18:00.001-08:00

Rendered a seperate plate for the beam out of cinema and used a combination of blend modes and effects to create a glow/volumetric look in after effects.

Using 32bit mode allows for 'overbright' or natural blown highlights to be created, looking more like realistic light.
A turbulent distortion effect at the end creates the 'vapour' effect as the beam is shut off and disappears.

Beam Final Render

2010-01-14T20:14:00.001-08:00

CN Beam from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Zoom Final Render

2010-01-11T16:45:00.001-08:00

CN Zoom from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Tower Final Render

2010-01-10T18:13:00.001-08:00

CN Tower from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Glide Final Render

2010-01-08T00:37:00.000-08:00

CN Glide from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Rather than post previs edits and wireframes for each video on my vimeo account I will wait until I have all the scenes completed and create a more comprehensive making of video to show all the behind the scenes work so as not to waste time and clutter my accounts.

I was correct in thinking the rest of the scenes would render much quicker than the sea scape because the scenery is a lot less complex, this took little over 3 hours and because the after effects project is now set up with colour correction adjustment layers and audio I just need to tweak each shot and add the post effects like motion and depth blur.

Float - Final Render

2010-01-07T10:53:00.000-08:00

CN Float from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

While animating the next bumper I wanted to setup a workflow for the post production. Render time was just 4 hours approx. with the Sky sampler GI. The only grain was eliminated from the sky with the DOF blur. Looking forward to the new plugin Nick Campbell at greyscalegorilla.com is working on to utilise this technique by building lighting rigs and custom HDRI maps to use.

Depth tests

2010-01-06T11:58:00.001-08:00

Before any final render because of the amount of cameras I render a frame with multi pass from each shot and take them into after effects to ensure the shots are all ok. The depth of field for each camera must be set, with a focal distance, rear and front blur. In the screens above the black areas are fully in focus and the white fully blurred with gradient inbetween.

The depth of field blur is then added in after effects where the colour can also be boosted to give a richer image.

HDRI Rendering Test

2010-01-06T04:55:00.000-08:00

So I can plan the last stretch of the project I rendered out an 80 frame sequence using full Global Illumination settings using the HDRI lighting 'sky' to get an estimate of average render times per frame. 80 frames with varying amount of detail took a little over an hour, averaging less than a minute per frame is great for the quality so each bumper should take less than 5 hours. Some of the shots in the other bumpers are much simpler such as the space ship so will take considerably less, and the waves in this are the most complex in terms of rays to calculate so this should be the longest but if I use 5 hours as an estimate to render overnight and while at work then I should have plenty of time over the next couple of weeks.

Full quality screens from HDRI GI test (final image will be treated in after effects to make the colour and contrast pop, depth of field and motion blur will also add a lot of quality to the image):

Float - Previs

2010-01-05T19:13:00.000-08:00

CN : Float - Previs from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

First animation mainly finished. Will block out and tighten up the other 4 later in the week before adding any extra details (ie. seagulls and extra fish in this one) to add subtle character. Pleased with how the edit is turning out inside of C4D using the stage object. Can tweak edit and animation at same time to get the most out of shots and render in one pass.

Wireframe renders

2010-01-03T10:29:00.002-08:00

Using HDRI lighting, global illumination and ambient occlusion to achieve the lighting shown in the storyboards takes between 20-60 seconds per frame on medium settings, so for animation tests this wireframe cell renderer takes between 0-2secs so for pre-vis renders I will be using this from now on.

Animatic

2010-01-03T10:29:00.001-08:00

CN Rough Animatics from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Storyboards

2010-01-03T10:16:00.000-08:00

Using the character rigs and modeled props in a virtual studio set up I was able to create storyboards that will look pretty close to the final output before starting to animate. Creating some simple poses and setting camera angles allowed me to take screenshots of quick renders into after effects and time the rough edits to a soundtrack (royalty free) to keep everything to a solid 15 seconds.

When animating I can refer to the animatic to ensure the timing will be as planned.

(Animatic in next post)

Logo building

2009-12-31T04:41:00.000-08:00

The logo is supplied in an EPS format so the vector forms can be extruded but in order to use the logo as an object within the animation it needs to have real 3D depth to it and be a functioning object that could be built. I used Capacitt's extrude as a starting point and modeled the 2 cubes to appear correct when viewed from the front but have depth when rotated.

Tractor Beam texture

2009-12-24T13:36:00.000-08:00

'Cell Render' Wireframe projections allow me to create a design for the blueprint to be used in this scene. This is just a mock up, the final design will be much more detailed.

Boat Texture

2009-12-24T13:34:00.000-08:00

Glider Texturing

2009-12-24T13:32:00.000-08:00

Rocket Texturing

2009-12-24T13:26:00.000-08:00

Boat Modeling

2009-12-23T09:31:00.000-08:00

Tractor Beam modeling

2009-12-23T09:28:00.000-08:00

Glider Modeling

2009-12-23T04:46:00.000-08:00

Space Rocket Modeling

2009-12-23T04:01:00.000-08:00

From the sketches I made in my sketchbook I'm starting to model the props and objects outlined in the rough storyboards. The rocket was a simple process, as the rest will be as I am building them as if out of cardboard (i.e it would be possible to construct them from card)

Primitive 'capsule' shape, reformed to make basic body shape.
Cylinders and tubes positioned with mograph (radial clone) and window cut out (this will be filled with an 'acetate' material)
Fins extruded from an illustrator spline and again positioned with a radial clone to ensure angles are correct
Final model wireframe
Test render, pre-texture

Animation test - Merry Christmas

2009-12-23T03:56:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

I spent a day playing with the rigs and creating a short animation to bring to light any issues. As you can see in this, the long bendy arms have some skinning issues as they are quite stepped and the bones are affecting sections too specifically. There is a similar issue with the long ears near the joint so that has been smoothed out also.

(Smoothed arms)

Blinks set up

2009-12-19T13:04:00.000-08:00

XPresso setups for all characters: I couldn't figure out how to duplicate the nodes between project files and all the materials were different anyway so I had to go through each one individually.

Jump Test

2009-12-19T13:00:00.000-08:00

Deformers for small character 'rigging'

2009-12-19T12:56:00.001-08:00

Because this final character has no limbs or ears there's no point in setting up a tiny IK chain for the body. Instead I will use variety of 'deformers' which can be used in conjunction with each other to simply bend, twist, melt, explode, bulge etc geometry.

Bend deformer set up, Y axis is clamped so it doesn't 'grow' with the bend so it looks more realistic.

Twist deformer applied, this can be used if the character is to walk, it could bounce and twist gently as if it were skipping between its feet twisting its body.

The shapes look really good when bend and twisted, the eyes will deform with the mesh as they are part of it so I will have to be careful not to go too extreme with the deformations if I don't want the eyes to stretch too much. I think they look fine in this context though.

Bulge: This can suck in or blow out, which is obviously great for jumping and landing using the disney principles of animation stretch and squash to add dynamics.

Card Texture tests

2009-12-19T11:04:00.000-08:00

I have collected my own card that I will create textures from but there are some royalty free ones to use while testing that I can use.

Building a texture for the edges in illustrator:
Quick model of bent card
Applying textures
edges look fairly realistic with the created corrugated texture, it's not photoreal but the roughness and curves sell the idea:

XPresso - Blinking

2009-12-19T08:16:00.000-08:00

One thing I've learned from previous character animations (in after effects) is that as soon as you add subtle movements like blinking the characters spring to life. It's not the first thing you think of but it's very noticeable if it isn't present. In fact I'm currently reading a book on editing by Walter Murch called 'In the blink of an eye', which likens the entire process of editing film to a human response blinking when it sees a natural break in action or sentence so it's a very important aspect of animation.

The obvious problem I have is that my eyes are just 'buttons'. If I leave them constantly staring it will create quite an eery sense, but they have no eyelids to blink with and because I've never modelled or rigged before properly I connected everything in my models to create one solid mesh so it's too late to go back and change how things work.

I decided that quickly flicking the colour of the eyes to the face colour would look really effective and make more sense, however this isn't as easy to set up as it sounds and some expressions must be used to connect data.

Using 'Xpresso', C4D's node based data editor, I have set up a switch, which switches in this case between the black eye shader and the pink face material using a user data slider which I set up to have a min/max value of 0/1 (on or off), but this can be done with as many materials or switch options as you need which is useful to know for in the future.

Test objects, cube switching between red and green materials

Test renders using face and eye materials. This switch can obviously be keyframed and if I had the expertise could be driven automatically every few seconds randomly using XPresso, although as I mentioned before the blinks could be placed more subtly to help the edit and action along.

Rigging Last character

2009-12-19T08:13:00.000-08:00

Spline IK setup for spine, lots of joints driven by one long spline with a few handles.

There's a 'Bendy IK' that I would like to learn how to use in future that incorporates both spline and regular IK that the maxon tutorial teaches but it looks far too complex for what I need so I use spline IK also for the arms here which need to be more flexible than regular elbow joints like the the other characters as they are so long.

Regular IK leg chains and spline IK arms are set in the spine heirarchy so controllers affect correct areas.

Once again, the bendy shape weighting took a very long time to get smooth when the controllers were moved around. The smooth tool within the weight tool had to be painted around the whole body for each joint to ensure it doesn't crease or pinch in places.

Pose tests

Test render

Rigging

2009-12-18T16:24:00.000-08:00

Today I feel as though I have learned an incredible amount, rigging is a huge subject and I'm only just starting with these simple characters but they have given me a base to build on and things that I coulnd't understand a few days ago have now clicked and I feel ready to push this aspect of animation in the near future. I've been watching a number of tutorials and will hopefully have time soon to go through the official maxon rigging tutorial properly and rig a full character with feet and hands etc using that, rather than just picking up what certain tools do.

There is only one more character to rig which is the very tall one so I want to try out some more advanced techniques such as bendy IK to hopefully make the animation more dynamic with that so I will have to rewatch some training and learn the new workflow, but so far 3 of the 4 characters that need rigging are now fully animatable with clear controllers and heirarchy that I can reproduce with confidence

Spline IK weighting

2009-12-18T16:19:00.000-08:00

Because there are a lot more joints to affect the mesh I found it tricky to get a smooth curve on the ears, though moving the controllers and painting onto the mesh made it clearer to see the results in effect. Often problem areas were caused by very slight deformations from joints quite far away (example the crease near the bottom of the ear may be slightly affected by residual 'white' not painted away from the tip joint.

I eventually got the ears to a fairly smooth curve, so the splines can now be used to bend them around. I won't be animating them too vigorously but I wanted that control over movement aswell as to learn another technique in rigging, as I'll need to use this spline IK method for the tall character.

Test renders

Spline IKs

2009-12-18T16:01:00.000-08:00

Learning from the Maxon 5hr rigging tutorial that came with r11.5 I picked up that joint IKs can be controlled via splines (Spline IK). The joints are drawn, then a B-Spline is set up to fit along, and handles at various points on the spline control the curvature of the spline. The joints then fit along it, either retaining the original length or stretching and squashing depending on the desired result.

Circle controllers set up so angles and positions are visible in viewport.

Full IK rig with controllers
A

Re-purposed IK's

2009-12-18T15:59:00.000-08:00

For this character I figured out if you disable the IK between the joints, then the nulls and joints themselves can be moved around with no harm done to the setup.

Previous rig resized and fit to new mesh

All controllers remain in place and funtional once the IK is turned back on.

Rig dev

2009-12-18T11:23:00.000-08:00

I thought I might try a more advanced rig with joints in the 'ears' while they are slightly longer, but decided it was probably more control than I need for this character but will try on the one with very long ears.

Same rig as 1st character rebuilt with similar controllers

The mesh is a lot chunkier which looks nice when bent into shapes as it looks like it has volume

The character can be deformed quite extremely with no harm done to the mesh, this will be good to animate with as I can make dynamic movements without worrying about the characters becoming out of shape or proportion (unless I want them to be)

Rocket and Laser reference

2009-12-18T07:15:00.000-08:00

Cardboard model research

2009-12-18T07:11:00.001-08:00

Quick jump motion test

2009-12-18T05:01:00.000-08:00

Posing

2009-12-18T04:56:00.000-08:00

Pelvis controller moves IK rig, knees bend and arms move with body. Foot and Hand controllers remain seperate.
When moved upwards in jumping motion, hands and feet are dragged down
Quick pose - knees bend outwards using poles and arms can be positioned in any way with elbow and wrist joints angled with the arm poles.

Quick pose
Object Manager with heirarchy's of joints and controller nulls.

Skin Weighting

2009-12-18T04:38:00.000-08:00

Head joint: painting mesh where to affect

Controller null can then be rotated and moved to affect painted areas

'Belly' joint, affects most of body to retain solid shape.

Rigging Dev

2009-12-18T04:35:00.000-08:00

Simple joint 'skeleton' setup

Position joints within model

Null controllers and poles can move the joints around with IK

Yellow ring in centre is constrained to 'belly' joint so body can be rotated as one

Character set up with joints and controllers ready for skinning

Rigging test 1

2009-12-14T08:23:00.000-08:00

Before attempting a full body rig using different types of controls and setting the characters up with visual selectors for full animation I did some trying out of the tools today.

I made a simple skeleton of a crude spine and legs IK and used the bind tool to attach it to the character mesh. It's a tricky concept to understand how the heirarchy's work and how to control each joint with a number of null objects (goals and poles) but I think after some experimentation I should be able to attempt a full rig on a character.

The hardest part technically is getting the weight map correct so the joints affect the desired part of the mesh, once more joints are added and the skeleton has more detail the 'auto weight' tool should go a long way to helping and only tweaks should be made. As the first image shows the leg joint is trying to control areas of the mesh as far away as the arm because it is the closest joint, giving it a huge falloff.

I've then adjusted the weight map by painting with the weight tool around that joint and fixing the affected area to buckle where it would on a sewn toy made of soft material.

Learning to Rig

2009-12-14T08:18:00.000-08:00

The hardest part of getting a character from a model to an animation is rigging it properly so you have complete control over it's actions. I've never rigged anything successfully before so I have been watching a lot of training to try and get an understanding of how it works.

The IK systems can get quite complex and I need to keep it as simple as possible for the time being for my first attempt so want to pick the basics of joints, IK, controls and skinning to create a simple rig for each character. This will work well with the simple characters' movements as the sock characters don't have complex joint systems to try and recreate so simple bends and twists should be sufficient.

I have been watching the 5hr training DVD included with the C4D r11.5 DVD purchase, as well as a great simple tutorial at C4D cafe, using the tool tutorials from cineversity to explain anything in more detail that aren't covered in the workflows of the project based tutorials.

'Float' further research

2009-12-13T12:45:00.000-08:00

Because of the way I am going to put this together mainly in after effects, the water will be card cutouts placed in Z-space and undulated. I remembered a great title sequence that makes use of this technique in a really effective way (right at the start) by Jamie Caliri for Lemony Snickett's A Series of Unfortunate Events:

Simple Boats

I like this crude cardboard boat shape and the fact that it actually works, I will probably keep everything as crude and simple as possible as if the kid characters could have made it themselves as I am implying.

Recent relevant work: 5 second projects

2009-12-13T12:29:00.000-08:00

Modern Monkey v2 from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

A few months ago I started taking part in Nick Cambell's bi-weekly motion design project. He sets a theme and you animate something in 5 seconds, to build up skills, styles and pieces for your reel. I got a lot of good feedback and help with this one which I feel is really relevant to what I'm doing now picking up simple character design and short form stories again.

I've obviously got a longer timescale to set the new bumpers in which will make things easier in terms of establishing and showing some detail in the models and animation but the key thing I took from the feedback from Nick and others was the composition in the shots are paramount. Inparticular the end shot where the character falls in front of the camera I tightened up and it made the piece so uch more dynamic so I need to bear this in mind when setting up the shots for the CN project.

Aside from the crit on the animation and composition I did get a lot of compliments on the visual style of the piece, which I had just kept as simple as I possibly could while still giving and impression of place which is the inspiration for keeping this project quite scarce in terms of location detail.

When kids use their imagination and are playing games etc. with surroundings they create then the day-to-day objects seem to dissapear or are transformed into something within the world they are imagining so by dropping everything out of the scenes but the bare minimum props and assets (such as a few cardboard clouds to give a sense of scale to the sky) I am trying to recreate the imagination of the audience.

Very Rough Boards

2009-12-13T11:36:00.000-08:00

Because of all the new technical skills I'm learning while doing this project I need to get on with the practical side asap, so I've kept the boards really rough for the time being so I can plan asset production and plan how everything is going to be composited. I think for a lot of this I will be using after effects rather than straight renders out of C4D to save a lot of time and allow greater control, this will also allow greater control over the inclusion and compositing of photographed made elements.

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Tower

Characters have built a tower of card, tall character lifts and throws the others up to the top to reach the CN logo. The tower bends and teeters back and forth before the smallest character jumps onto the logo.

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Rocket

Group have built a spaceship which takes off, travels past clouds and into space where they land on a CN planet.

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Glide

Run along rickety card runway then take off on cardboard glider, leaping from glider to CN logo and floating down.

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Float

In the sea, characters are fishing for CN logo which leaps out and lands on the boat.

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Beam

Blueprint reveals real (card) tractor beam which is turned on and brings the CN in the sky down to the ground

Audio

2009-12-13T08:42:00.000-08:00

Starting to think about audio and looking for free sounds to download. The site freesound.org is usually useful for sfx but I need more complete loops or ideally clips the right length with endings. I just found this site: http://www.partnersinrhyme.com/pir/free_music_loops.shtml which looks really promising and have found a few clips to download that would be ideal.

I will keep looking for more, but a lot of stings I notice use the same recurring audio to tie the brand together, and while I won't be composing or making the music myself it's probably best to use the same clip rather than break it up using different audio sources for each bumper.

Character fly test

2009-12-13T06:09:00.000-08:00

CN proj characters test from Matt Frodsham on Vimeo.

Finished Character Modeling

2009-12-12T08:11:00.000-08:00

Box Modeling workflow

2009-12-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

Start with one box in a symmetry object, extrude faces and make as few cuts as possible to extrude legs and ears.

Putting square objects into hypernurbs makes them smooth, important to know what the smoothing is going to do to your geometry.

Start moving points to fit roundness to reference BG image
Final shape identical to illustrator template

Modeling

2009-12-12T07:29:00.000-08:00

Modeling

2009-12-12T06:22:00.000-08:00

Modeling dev

2009-12-12T05:17:00.000-08:00

Because the structure of the characters is fairly similar (as they would ideally be made out of socks.. probably not got time to make these physical mockups in time to do motion tests but would like to make them at some point).. they can now be modeled more quickly by using the original structure and tweaking parts to push and pull into the right shape.

By using a previous editable version of the blue monster, because I box modeled it using as few cuts as I could (could probably be even less by someone more skilled) I can clearly see what points and vertices are doing what to the model making it easy to edit.

I am currently in the process of storyboarding the spots, but need to keep the 3D modeling going and start rigging asap (as I need to watch tutorials on this and learn a new skill) so the blog for now will concentrate on the digital work. The sketches and ideas will be documented in my sketchbook running alongside this and the boards will be posted early next week.

(Note: the image uploader/compresser blogger uses appears to be over-saturating my screenshots making everything look a bit candy coloured. The colours I am using a bit more muted and worn looking)

Initial Modelling

2009-12-11T05:27:00.000-08:00

Box modeling: extruding, cutting and tweaking points from a single box to create a symmetrical mesh using a background image in a front view to make sure proportions match designed characters

Subdividing model - inside hypernurbs object to smooth then making editable again for rigging (smooth single mesh so it is deformable)
Quick texture test

Concept dev

2009-12-11T05:09:00.000-08:00

After working through some ideas in my sketchbook I came up with the concept that the group of characters would have a goal of reaching 'CN' logo, which would embody the channel. much like the logo plays a part in Meindbender's short where Greta doesn't want any other present than 'CN':

Gifts for Greta - Cartoon Network ID shortie from Meindbender on Vimeo.

The group will use their imaginations and cardboard to build and create ways to reach the logo that will be out of reach, for example building a space rocket, flying glider machine, canons, tractor beams etc. This will allow every bump to have a complete resolved miniature story and because of the simplicity of the stories an reccuring theme the 15 second bumpers will be an ideal platform.

2009-12-10T16:09:00.000-08:00

Initial sketches

Vector outlines/template for models

Texture mock up psd.

Concept

2009-12-10T16:00:00.000-08:00

After research and brainstorming I've decided that I'm going to develop a series of bumpers featuring a group of new characters. The emphasis will be on the activities they create themselves, taking part in adventures in a playground of cardboard. The characters will be in a similar style to 'sock monsters' to sit with the textural background but also stand out with block colours.

I will create physical mock up versions of the characters to do some quick motion/anatomy tests before building and rigging them in 3D to give me unlimted control. It would be nice to be able to do everything in stop motion but as the shots will be quite action orientated I don't have the skills or time to be able to animate in that way for the subject matter. Recreating the scenes in cinema 4D will allow me control over every aspect and the ability to tweak animation and edits/pace etc.

I will use textures to create a fairly realistic looking material for both the characters and backgrounds/props made of card by using scans/photos, and will be building some 3D elements physically out of card to composite which will also save time 3D modelling and add an element of realism and tangibility to the piece as a whole.

I will now develop the characters from a number of sketches and develop the short narratives that will take place during the bumpers, creating treatments before I start storyboarding this week.

Ronald Kurniawan

2009-12-10T11:29:00.000-08:00

http://www.ronaldkurniawan.com/new%20frameset/frameset.htm

I like the simple use of colour and bold shapes that appear like they're made of 'card'

Cool unfolding animation

2009-12-10T06:24:00.000-08:00

Fox Redesign Pitch from Dan Fine on Vimeo.

Raving Rabbids

2009-12-10T06:20:00.000-08:00

Proyecto final training maya DDF: Rayman Raving Rabbids from David Lopez on Vimeo.

This looks like a 3D student's work based on the video game, what I like is repeated action at the end of each scenario, but also the way each scenario is set with cutout photos and then transitions into the actal scene by just pulling away the solid background and revealing the rest of the shot.

NASA - "Spacious Thoughts" NASA feat. Kool Keith & Tom Waits

2009-12-10T06:12:00.000-08:00

"Spacious Thoughts" NASA feat. Kool Keith & Tom Waits from Fluorescent Hill on Vimeo.

The compositing of 3D characters and 2D detailed illustration is amazing, as is the editing and camera moves. The smoke cloud is a personification of Tom Waits' voice and the spherical character works really well despite his simplicity. The complexity of the detail in the background makes everything feel very lush but throughout it is mainly fairly simple AE layering and camera moves. The pacing and fluidity make the piece what it is and beyond my skill level but there is definitely a lot to take from this in terms of contemporary animation and style. It is aimed obviously at the band's audience but I think this fresh 3D/hand drawn visual would appeal to younger children also as they are so used to a range of media and animation now.

How-To

2009-12-10T06:01:00.000-08:00

http://www.monster-munch.com/how-to-make-a-sock-monster/

Nicky Gibson Handmade plush toys

2009-12-10T05:49:00.000-08:00

These characters are great:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickygibson/sets/72157603677222761/
I particularly like these really simple ones. I think a few different characters like this working together would be really nice and work with a cardboard surrounding:

Canon EOS (student work) Quentin Vien

2009-12-10T05:41:00.000-08:00

Canon Eos from Quentin Vien on Vimeo.

I really like how the objects build up with simple box geometry then reveals into a photograph. I assume the rotation in the photo is using projection mapping which I've not looked into but it's used very effectively here

Audi Unboxed

2009-12-10T05:37:00.000-08:00

Audi Unboxed from Quentin Vien on Vimeo.

1st Ave Machine and Passion Pictures

Were any elements shot or was it all 3D? What software was used?
The final spot is a combination of live action (filmed) environment, 3D animation and 2D cel animation. Nothing in the final product was shot practically. However, I did shoot a lot of little stop-motion tests along the way to figure out how to manipulate the cardboard properly.

Computer Arts Proj. Character Design Issue

2009-12-10T04:45:00.000-08:00

BOX - character design

2009-12-10T04:33:00.000-08:00

Got this book a couple of weeks ago and it has some nice character design in:

A

penpencilstencil

2009-12-10T04:24:00.000-08:00

http://www.penpencilstencil.com/pencil.html

Simple colourful characters made from recycled lathe turned wood

Juliana Pedemonte

2009-12-10T04:20:00.000-08:00

http://idnworld.com/creators/?id=Colorblok

bold geometric character design, I like the use of colour in the illustrative work

Ffffound.com

2009-12-10T04:11:00.000-08:00

I keep some of the images I find on www.ffffound.com in a folder for inspiration (so as a result no credits) but here are a few I liked from my folder:

Little big planet

2009-12-10T04:02:00.000-08:00

The premise of the game is to create the levels from different objects, scale doesn't matter and everything has quite a textural look, many things are made from card like the cutout houses. I think the combination of card surroundings and slightly more detailed characters like the 'sackboy' made out of material (wool/sack/twill). This is quite easy to achieve in 3D and replicate in real life as merchandise or even for use in the animations if mixed media is a possibility.

Fuzzy felt game characters

2009-12-10T03:59:00.000-08:00

http://technabob.com/blog/2009/09/19/woolygeeks-fuzzy-felted-video-game-characters/

psyop - happines factory

2009-12-10T03:03:00.000-08:00

Interviews about the concepts behind the coke happiness factory:

The Making Of Happiness Factory 3 from Open Happiness on Vimeo.

Psyop - UPS "Storm"

2009-12-10T02:51:00.000-08:00

Psyop: UPS "Storm" (Final spot) from Motionographer on Vimeo.

Amazing 3D animation using cardboard as a vehicle. This is obviously far beyond my 3D skill level but the concept of everything being constructed from card is really strong and they don't deviate from it at all. Even in the tricky motion like the waves the card structure seems to work perfectly.

Making of:

Psyop: UPS "Storm" Making Of from Motionographer on Vimeo.

recycle invaders - Thiago Maia

2009-12-10T02:43:00.000-08:00

Recycle invaders from Challenge Your World on Vimeo.

Part of 'challenge your world' project

Lovely 'imaginary' world constructed from card elements, the texture means the simplicity of the objects has a lot of detail and looks really nice. The concept of this imaginary machine that creates new trees when fed by human hands is a really nice and the reveal at the end with the trees being planted by the same hands in a large bare field completes the cycle.

It's this sort of naive limitless imagination that children have that I want to capture, and I'm beginning to see a way forward using cardboard - physical/3D/2D animated/mixture of all 3? You can make anything out of cardboard and kids often do and are encouraged to by most recycling campaigns aimed at them so perhaps the CN campaign could encourage that without preaching in a more subtle way.

Coke 'swelter Stopper'

2009-12-10T02:38:00.000-08:00

The depth in the background is actually made of very few elements, while the action is very simple frame by frame (with very few frames) but the editing and camera moves add a lot of motion to add to the action. This could be a great way to make a lot of animation in a failry short time while concentrating on the aesthetics and story

More Nick Idents

2009-12-07T11:24:00.000-08:00

Nickelodeon nordic idents from JonasK on Vimeo.

Cool mixture of rough 3D animation and photographic backgrounds, adds a lot of details and interest to otherwise very simple subjects.

NICKELODEON // GRAPHIC PACKAGE 06 from totuma on Vimeo.

"Mischievous mutant characters change into Nick's logo. Using a non traditional and rebellious illustration approach, we appealed to the playful and imaginative nature of kids, creating a modular system that would allow our ID battery to grow and change, adapting itself to every new thing in a fun and cheerful way, just as kids do."

NICKELODEON_IDENTS from ruffmercy on Vimeo.

Great use of illustration and simple animation tied together with After Effects 3D camera

YCN endorsed:

THIS IS Studio - Nickelodeon from YCN TV on Vimeo.

Nice use of 2D and 3D, subtle colour palette and texture but not a lot of character or personality.

Kids Choice Awards:

Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards 2008 from dlew on Vimeo.

Lush depiction of hollywood with great animated type and 2D cell elements

Nick 'verdito'

2009-12-07T11:21:00.000-08:00

Nickelodeon - Verdito from Leonardo González on Vimeo.

Nice simple 3D character and a simple message aimed at kids

Nick idents

2009-12-07T11:20:00.001-08:00

Single mischievious characters, great use of 2 and 3d elements with photography/video:

Nickelodeon Idents from Lutas on Vimeo.

Peppertoons

2009-12-07T11:05:00.000-08:00

Obviously inspired heavily by Julien Valée...

MTV-One from Julien Vallée on Vimeo.

...These bumps by Dalmiro Buigues use the popular 'paper toy' vehicle in a similar way to the KR Noods by Capacity. By using a single style of figure the room for expansion is infinite and works nicely. The colour scheme is nice and clean, but even the blue and pink used by Valé in his MTV spot are present, slightly detracting from the originality of it, though it is really nicely rendered in 3Ds Max, as the paper looks very convincing (perhaps the background is physical, but he states he used 3D Max + AE)

E-Bump_Peppertoons from Dalmiro Buigues on Vimeo.

This one showing the process of them being 'constructed' is nice, and shows how the brand could extend to online, encouraging children to print off their own paper toys or print templates to design themselves using imagination and creativity

Opening_Peppertoons from Dalmiro Buigues on Vimeo.

Meindbender CN ID's

2009-12-07T10:21:00.000-08:00

Audition - Cartoon Network ID shortie from Meindbender on Vimeo.

The aesthetic of this is amazing, everything has a very tangible look to it yet it is created in Maya using a high end render engine. The slapstick humour of the series (more within vimeo) suits the CN shows I remember like cow and chicken, ed edd and eddy etc. that had a silly yet slightly dark edge to it. The characters are so simple in terms of structure and personality and are very flexible, reminiscent of old rubber hose animation (pre-disney) where no thought is given to the physical skeletal structure of characters: These are made out of 'clay' and behave as such using squash and stretch, anticipation etc. to a really heightened extent to emphasise the animation.

The editing in this one really adds to the suspense and drama, the reveal at the end is nice too:

The Duplicators - Cartoon Network ID shortie from Meindbender on Vimeo.

Foster's home for imaginary friends

2009-12-07T10:13:00.000-08:00

Nice concept of 'imagination' and slick 2D animation

Cartoon Network: Foster's from victor newman on Vimeo.

Student Work

2009-12-07T10:04:00.000-08:00

Found on vimeo: school assignment by 'ragetape'. The idea is quite simple and almost obvious in terms of a logo animation and doesn't seem like it would appeal to kids but the personification of the cube is great nonetheless:

Cartoon Network - logoanimation from ragetape on Vimeo.

Capacity: CN Rebrand

2009-12-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

http://www.capacity.tv/motion.html#/cnreface

This is probably one of the best examples of a rebrand, tapping into a few key elements that broadens it's appeal. Featuring on a lot of online motion graphics magazines/bogs, the concepts and execution of the work was praised highly.

By using 'Noods', a new vinyl toy by Kidrobot as a vehicle for graphics and slick simple 3D (created in Cinema 4D) they have created a bright fun brand that is extendable. The halloween spot shows how they can be used in a seasonal way, they can be 'painted' like characters from shows or left blank/abstract to take part in more general activities. The way they react to each other as friends in groups is quite nice.

The fact that the Noods exist means the characters are collectible which is always a positive when creating a brand for children, and because they are customisable it encourages kids to use their imagination (as in this brief) and make their own, creating their own adventures.

“It was the strongest idea because it was rooted in an icon that the network could own,” says Michael Ouleween, senior vice-president and creative director of on air at Cartoon Network. “It immediately seemed like a visual shorthand that our audience would get.”

“The alternative would’ve been to create 10 highly produced station IDs that would just air over and over again,” says Capacity co-founder Ellerey Gave. “This was about creating an environment for the brand so it becomes more of an experience while you’re watching.”

The rebrand’s modularity suits a children’s network, Ouleween says, because kids nowadays are used to seeing their favorite characters expressed in multiple ways... Our kids are coming out of the womb and being exposed to a 100 different iterations of their favorite characters at once. You’ll get the Lego version, the Wii version and the original version.”"
Boards Magazine 09

They also break the spot down on their site here: http://www.capacity.tv/process/cartoonnetwork/

It is an interesting point about the Wii, as the characters used here have been likened to the 'Mii' characters used on nintendo's console as simplistic avatars of the user. The Nood's are used in a way that they could be, and are anything, and the audience will understand that as the familiarity of the characters and freshness of the rest of the elements works well. Another nod to nintendo could be the old computer game 8-bit style music used throughout which works really well mirroring the simplicity of the visuals.

The concept in its broadest sense is perfect for my brief: It's bright, colourful young and exciting. Will appeal to a range of children, encourage them to collect toys, make their own using their imagination and can be extended upon for a period of time because the key vehicle is so simple and effective.

Sections from the spot feature in their reel here (or in full at the link at the top of the post):

Capacity 2009 Showreel from IkzZ on Vimeo.

CN Spain: Halloween

2009-12-07T04:01:00.000-08:00

http://motionographer.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/halloween_cn_spain-h264.mov

Amazing 2.5D (After Effects camera) moves through mainly static environments, characters and set pieces. The detail in the camera moves and hand held feeling make the pace and motion fit the style perfectly. The audio is very voice over driven, so the 'still' images are seemingly described (in spanish).

There are characters present but re purposed to fit the dark halloween visuals, the techniques used are technically very simple, the layers are positioned and the camera moves through but the detail and scale on which it is done makes it really exciting and interesting to watch several times.

CARTOON NETWORK SPAIN HALLOWEEN from Maroto on Vimeo.

Freestyle Collective

2009-12-07T03:54:00.000-08:00

http://www.freestylecollective.com/#/project/?category=view%20featured&id=13&pageStartNum=0

Cartoon Network - ID "EXTRA" from Entae Kim on Vimeo.

I like the colour palette and simple flat shading yet the animation is clearly modelled in 3D as it has a great sense of depth in the motion

Hand drawn illustration : AE animation

2009-12-07T03:52:00.000-08:00

The Amazing Adventures of Kid Cole & Klay from Stephane coedel on Vimeo.

Quote from Creator's Vimeo:

"©Turner Entertainment Networks International Limited
A title sequence I directed for the pilote of an unproduced TV series created by Pete Candeland and writer Stu Connolly for Cartoon Network.
I worked with Kevin Dart who designed the creatures and some backgrounds. Lionel Marchand animated the characters and Ben Locket composed the music.
It's all made with Photoshop, Illustrator and After Effects.
As you can see, it's a tribute to all the Sci Fi/Horror movies from the 50's.
It was so exciting working with such talented people and being so free and trusted!
A great memory! "

Shilo

2009-12-07T03:41:00.000-08:00

Spot/Profile:

http://www.shilo.tv/#/work/elijah/

Making Of screens and vid:

http://wemakeitgood.com/article/live/Elijah

Shilo also allow quicktime downloads from their site which is great. Following from their Guinness spot for export featuring a spoken word artist and subtle flowing animation, they produced this typographic led animation/film with Elijah.

Cartoon Network - Elijah Rap from Evan Owen Dennis on Vimeo.

Montage of all Shilo CN Design/

Cartoon Network - Re-Design Montage from Evan Owen Dennis on Vimeo.

(Nickelodeon) Mainframe

2009-12-07T03:23:00.000-08:00

Article

http://motionographer.com/2009/03/23/mainframe-rebrand-nickelodeon/

Video

Nickelodeon rebrand compilation from Jimmy Johansson on Vimeo.

(Full montge: http://motionographer.com/theater/nick-jr-rebrand/ )

Obviously Nick' is CN's biggest competitor, sharing the same market aiming programmes at children. Nickelodeon is not limited to cartoons but the biggest shows like spongebob obviously are.

This massive series of spots all have different visual styles but are all tied together by format, colour and a similar feel. The environments are very busy and lush, a sensory overload that need to be watched over and over to pick everything up, and as the bumpers will be played many times a day before, after and during programming this gives the audience something new to see even if they've witnessed the bumper before.

The colour orange is very prominent throughout, in the background, subjects and details to reinforce the Nick brand.

Selections from interview on Motionographer:

"It was never the intention to create something for other designers to marvel at; it was always about something that would blow the kids away. Akin is a very exacting guy to work with, but I really think the results merit all the hard work everyone put into the project.

Technically, working for so many markets was pretty challenging with each ident having to be reversioned with kid, without kid, Nick branded + Nickelodeon branded, HD, SD 4:3, SD 16:9, PAL and NTSC frame rates. That’s quite a number of variations for each ident."

"Originally there weren’t going to be any of the Nickelodeon properties in the idents at all but in the end Nickelodeon felt that a subtle nod to the characters was the way to go. The clients wanted to connect with the audience and entertain them rather than sell to them."

Peppermelon

2009-12-07T03:13:00.000-08:00

http://www.peppermelon.tv/projects/cartoon.html

(Quicktimes on the website)

Mixing keyed footage with hand drawn animation, the content, style, colur pallette and music remind me a lot of old sesame street sections. The lyrics in the 'song' are illustrated by simple hand drawn type integrated with the fun characters and footage of the kids. The message is obviously to get them to be more active, eat better and be more healthy and using humour and characters as well as a contemporary sound track is a nice way of getting that across without being too 'preachy'.

GoTeam

More retro visuals incorporating 3D/cube 8 bit looking graphics with live performance. Obviously not aimed specifically at young children but the visual style is great.

Peppermelon's GoTeam video from micael klok on Vimeo.

Bent Image lab - Samurai Jack cutout promo

2009-12-07T03:07:00.000-08:00

Samurai Jack Cutout (Cartoon Network Promo) from Bent Image Lab on Vimeo.

DIRECTOR Chel White
STUDIO Bent Image Lab bentimagelab.com
CLIENT Cartoon Network

Animated using Chel White's signature cutout style, this spot shows us Jack and Aku, the shape shifting master of darkness, locked in eternal battle, but as construction paper.

The process of morphing paper puppets is always a challenging one, but this spots displays a seamless transformation as Aku comes out of the mountain.

--------------------------------

Centering around a character from CN, this is a drastically different visual style to the actual show. I think this was used by CN as it was featured on motionographer but it may be a spec spot by the creators. Assuming it was used, looking even at just the 2 styles looked at so far it shows CN are willing to broadcast more experimental work that might interest children.

StarDust

2009-12-07T03:03:00.001-08:00

Stardust's site allows you to download each spot as a low res QT so that will be great for analysing techniques used going through them with ease frame by frame.

Cartoon Network - "Action" from Stardust Studios on Vimeo.

Initial Research

2009-12-07T02:49:00.000-08:00

Before I start looking at what I might do myself and gathering research & visual inspiration from other sources I feel I should look at what other motion graphics studio's have done for CN and their competitors that will help me get an idea of what they thought was exciting for kids. I've already found a few amazing spots, most notable the Capacity rebrand earlier this year that I will profile here, but I will search around for a wide variety of styles and concepts by different studios.