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MDMA effects on Serotonin

Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 11:42 pm
by madrobot
http://bluebelly.com.au/howtheywork/art ... px?aid=188

Here's another animation I just finished for work
You'll find it's broken into 2 parts

Again, I find it a bit hard to look at now it's done, but it's finished and that's good.
Adrian

Re: MDMA effects on Serotonin

Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 9:39 am
by Rhoel
madrobot wrote:http://bluebelly.com.au/howtheywork/art ... px?aid=188

Here's another animation I just finished for work
You'll find it's broken into 2 parts

Again, I find it a bit hard to look at now it's done, but it's finished and that's good.
Adrian
Madrobot ... you have no idea how close thi came to being sent to the spam bucket - that title is soooo close to the Viagra spammers tag line :-)

Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 8:06 am
by madrobot
Haha, sorry Rhoel.

So, all the feedback I get is that it's "nearly spam"?
Lucky I'm thick skinned you guys!

Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 9:32 am
by Rhoel
madrobot wrote:Haha, sorry Rhoel.

So, all the feedback I get is that it's "nearly spam"?
Lucky I'm thick skinned you guys!
Good work - any reason for the use of 4:3 and not 16:9?

Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 11:48 am
by slowtiger
Interesting. I've seen dozens of visualizations of especially synapse mechanisms, done in any style from cutout to cartoon drawing to CGI. Yours pretty much looks like CGI, but I missed some of the benefits of that style.

I didn't read the synapse as "space between two neurons" as it should be, although you introduced the blue neurons in the beginning. I think I have "learned" that neurons are the light parts on a dark background from those other films. The shading of the blue ends of the neurons doesn't work for me as well: I'd expect darkness in the middle and not at the borders.

The receptors distracted me: the looked too much like a cross between cannons and warts. Too detailed. I think my personal taste in this kind of illustration prefers more abstract, very simplified elements, with only a hint of 3D or perspective.

Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 11:07 am
by madrobot
Rhoel and slowtiger, thanks for the feedback.

Rhoel, I asked the dude at work did he want it 4:3 or 16:9 and he asked for 4:3. Turns out the template he used for the web page has widescreen "place holders". I think he's planniing to change those soon, (assuming he remembers.)

I was excited about doing Duggy's Krew in 16:9. The problem was I didn't really know much about it. We have since got a widescreen Tv at home, and now I understand 16:9 safe area for 4:3 tvs. Something most people probably take for granted. Anyway that seems to be how I've learnt most things in this caper - I never know what I'm doing, and learn by trial and error.

We got more funding for Duggy's Krew, at least one episode more, so I'm thinking i'll go 16:9 again (just because I like it so much) but properly frame it this time for cropping on 4:3 tvs.

Slowtiger yes this animation was done as an addition to a CGI series which was purchased outright. (with rights to revoice the narration, hence the choice au accent of the lovely admin girl Jane.) So the brief was for something reasonably consistent with the style of those other episodes.

But excuses aside, I appreciate your feedback.

Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 3:47 pm
by mental!droid
Awesome, you r a Pro here :wink:

Mental!D.

Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 7:16 pm
by Rhoel
madrobot wrote:I was excited about doing Duggy's Krew in 16:9. The problem was I didn't really know much about it. We have since got a widescreen Tv at home, and now I understand 16:9 safe area for 4:3 tvs.
I have a 16:9 4x3 safe png guide i add to the camera, then make it immune to camera movements - really handy. if you want a copy, I'll put in back on the server for you. Somewhere I have a CinemaScope template with 16:9 safe ... the result of some test work ... CinemaScope is a challenge but my god it looks good when it works.

Personally I love 16:9 and feel really lost when I have to go back to 4:3.

Rhoel.

Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 1:03 am
by madrobot
Rhoel that sounds fantastic mate, I could definately use that guide. Thankyou.

Initially I asked a friend what 16:9 would play back like on a 4:3 tv. He thought it would play letterboxed. Of course, it didn't, it cropped the sides. Doh! Not his fault though, I should have researched it more.

So for the final Duggy DVD which went out I made a menu page where you choose what TV (16:9 or 4:3) and the 4:3 clips I letterboxed myself.

mental!droid thanks mate, but I am far from a Pro. :oops:

A friend who does work in the animation industry told me I was lucky, I get to make up the characters, write my own series, and have a lot of creative control. Which is true, but as I told him, my work doesn't translate to the professional animation world. It's nowhere near good enough. If I took my work to an animation studio they would be disinterested, it's a whole different league.

But the beautiful thing about doing it all myself (instead of working in a pipeline like you might in an animation studio) is that I am learning so much so quickly - and that's what I'm really excited about.

Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 10:25 am
by toonbomb
madrobot wrote: I am learning so much so quickly - and that's what I'm really excited about.
same here -_^

Posted: Tue Nov 10, 2009 11:56 am
by Rhoel
madrobot wrote:Rhoel that sounds fantastic mate, I could definately use that guide. Thankyou.
Try here. Import it as an image, and in the layer properties, make it immune to camera moves. You have to have the display quality set to high or preview (otherwise the png doesn't render properly). The green areas are transparent and you can see what is behind it easily. The red box is the 4:3 action safe.

I have added this to the start-up file as I need it for 99% of the work I do: In the UK, we had a similar guide added to the Animo workstations and all the compositors found it really useful.

if you have any problems, just yell.

Rhoel

Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 4:26 am
by madrobot
Thanks heaps Rhoel. Much appreciated.