Sarra Hornby

British Animation Awards Nominations for 'The Day Pilsen Struck Gold"

2012-01-22T18:25:00.000Z

'The Day Pilsen Struck Gold' nominated for Two British Animation Awards 2012.. A proper 'HomeGrown' animation.

Production Company: Second Home Productions

Director/Producers: Chris Randall and Jim Turner

Nominated for the Categories of : Best Commissioned Category and Public Choice Category

Fingers Crossed for every single member of the team that made the whole production experience a fantastic one..

The Last Day : Contemporary Art of Walking (Walking as a Methodology)

2011-06-16T12:03:00.005+01:00

This day was to be the final step in a journey that was becomming impossible to continue. Nothing was expected, only that the frame had been set as a research methodology...What did that imply ?

Walking is part of the rhythm of animated-filmmaking. The space in which the process of thinking and feeling are allowed the space to evolve. Walking with an awareness of the original intent whilst only being able to make out signs in the distance. In the practice and in research the horizon shifts, sometimes reaching a landmark, other times it transpires, this is merely a point of commencement.

Walking from Camera to Set, walking from screen to camera, walking from Camera to object, from broad landscape to a droplet of water; William Kentridge refers to this as,"stalking the drawing". The obsessive act of moving from shoot to shot.

I understand, "stalking the drawing", referring to the act of walking, as a critical part of the process in which the internal thought process is paced out. It reveals the internal rythmn, a repeated process. It may be that through this process Kentridge is able to access the mind of the spectator whilst engaging his own vision.

In my practice, "walking space", provides an orientation in an expanded world view and allows for an expanded point of view to arise without losing ones orientation. It is landmarks, both small and large which provide the parameters of the work. It is the establishing of these co-ordinates that allow the work to operate as a multi-layered construction. This may be aligned to research, the frame allowing for the mining of new knowledge. A method of research.

Walking through the landscape of this part of the Pennines, I adopted an acute awareness of "keeping your orientation" in a new landscape. The acts of setting the compass, observing the landmarks and to a certain extent following ones nose, as metaphor, as the act of research.. a methodology.

However, this event extended beyond the obvious. Of course there was the alignment of research projects, potential collaborations and the extending of networks.

The day also allowed for another step to be taken, to reach that illusive horizon.

YSP : Jaume Plensa

2011-05-23T23:15:00.000+01:00

Jaume Plensa is an amazingly insightful artist. This was one the greatest exhibitions attended in recent years. The use of tactility and sound was an intriguing debut for Plensa; first exhibition in the UK. The work included large typographical sculptures placed in the landscape (much like my own, but obviously much more impressive in many ways), Heads in conversation, lit from the interior and glowing with silent words, curtains of tactile poetry and vibrating sound gongs. It is the intention to look deeper into this artists work.

Summer Sucks

2011-05-23T23:04:00.001+01:00

A quick ice - melting experiment led to a short fun animation.. "summer sucks". Iced Lolly drunk by dandelions whilst the slurp originated from a small child. It is hope this embraces the sight and sound of summer.

BCU : Specialist Studies

2011-05-23T22:59:00.000+01:00

In working as a visiting lecturer for Birmingham City University, it has been a satisfying process to be able to give back something of the support and kindness shown in my own development. I have given a lecture and demonstrated a couple of really nice techniques with the students such as the Kentridge erasure technique and the Lotte Reiniger Cut-Out Animation Technique. I hope also to give a lecture on getting started as a Freelancer, whilst talking about Tax and Financing.. without completely scaring the students ! I may also be able to shine a small light on social and personal networking to identify specific opportunities.

I would sincerely like to see the students thrive long after they leave the grounds of the University to start out on their new Education. It will be a pleasure to see them go forward and conquer the creative world. They are a genuinely lovely group of professional people in the making.

Educational Animation Project : Cirque (provisional title)

2011-05-23T22:50:00.001+01:00

It is always more effective to have two projects in development concurrently. The reasons for this are generally to allow time for both projects to develop and potentially inform one another. The conceptual work seems to progress much more quickly this way. It was decided to develop a science education animation project aimed at 11-13 yrs. It is intended that Cirque will be conceived, developed, created and produced in-house for the education market. This is in the very early stage of development at the moment. Research and development into japanese print making, armature building and concept design is under way at present. It is the intention to produce a pilot for this market. It is understood that research will be necessary to establish a clear understanding of the audience, although having two children in the age bracket, having taught at this level and having access to a number of science teachers certainly helps. It is also important to understand how this work may be commissioned.

sarra.tv : Commercial Website

2011-05-23T22:36:00.000+01:00

For a while it has been under consideration as to whether the commercial animation and illustration work should be separated from the experimental and research work. In having a portfolio review from Jelly London in 2009 it was suggested that a separate identity for the Illustration work alone may may sense. At the time it was decided that the main focus would be on commercial animation. This is when the studio was commissioned the music video for Verity pabla. The work grew and more commercial animation was undertaken. It is only recently, following a year on commercial projects has it been decided to expand into Illustration work whilst also growing the developing body of work : Interconnection. This has been growing since 2007, but not many works have been published since 2009. It is now felt that dividing the two disparate streams of creativity will allow for a more tailored representation to the different audiences.

www.Sarra.Tv : New Commercial Website

Transfer from MPhil to PhD and Location A

2011-05-23T21:03:00.003+01:00

Following a few months spent in the commercial studio, a certain amount has been achieved under some quite difficult circumstances. The commercial ident work was completed at the same deadline of the the interim research report. It received a very complimentary response, and following a joint supervisory meeting in which the potential to move the research forwards to the PhD was discussed, it is now the intention to transfer to the PhD programme in October. This may entail bringing the final report forward and will also require the removal of several projects from the proposed project, as it seems there is enough content there for 6 PhD's...

Work on Location A is almost complete, well, at least as complete as an organic model can be. A short film is on the drawing board.A brief outline of entails the creation of 12 projection Trees. There is no deadline on this however, it is decided that this project is to be suspended in favour of the research report.

New Work

2011-04-06T20:28:00.002+01:00

The weather has changed and the urge to create personal work has never felt as important as it does today. In putting away the books, switching off the electronic multi-media distractions and stepping outside the feeling is freeing. Yes, it is true that many uncontrollable events seems to be revealing themselves at this time, however, there is a philosophical calm in the air.

Time to try something new.

Landscape Poet Mark Goodwin

2011-03-30T08:11:00.005+01:00

For some time it has been considered that writing is the basis of "good" animation work and it was this element of creative practice which arose as a love of poetry many many years ago. The poetry written by myself, although not particulary very good by many standards,was a way to express thoughts fairly fluently and easily.

So when a call went out to join Landscape artist Mark Goodwin writing poetry in the natural and urban environments, the opportunity arose to improve the poetry skills, and maybe even the general writing (important to the research).

Mark Goodwin: http://www.shearsman.com/pages/books/catalog/2010/goodwin.html

It was also delightful to meet another writer of the group, who as artist, writer, educator and actress in her time is now researching her PhD on "love after 65". Her wonderfully rich life and time spent working and travelling as a translator was a particular highlight. At 83 it was well understood that we were in the company of a wise young lady.It transpired as we spoke that on mentioning that in my next career I would like to be an actress taking roles as a feisty old lady when she laughed and said " I actually play that role in the next scorsese film" ... much laughter ensued !

It is intended that three locations will be visited during this collaboration. Poetry inspired by the natural environment will be written, collaged and then published over the spring/summer months.

The British Origami Society

2011-03-29T14:58:00.003+01:00

The British Origami Society meeting was attended on Sunday. This was a delight. With copious amounts of chocolate (as it was held at Cadbury in Birmingham), generous amounts of paper and most importantly a fun and extremely friendly cohort of ,talented paper folders the meeting was fun and informative.

Several new patterns were kindly demonstrated. A special attendance form David Brill and his marvelous tales of his travels to meet Master paper folders was a particular highlight.

David Venables has been a life long folder and he himself is currently in possession of fifty plus years of origami patterns from all around the globe...and all this happens in Birmingham. Amazing.

Mobbs Wood Studio work

2011-03-26T23:21:00.005Z

The ident work has completed this week and after a short break, work resumed on location 1. Four species were examined and catalogued. A number of puppets are in construction on this at the moment.

A temporary lecturing post has been commenced and this has been very satisfying in a number of areas. This assignment completes on 31st May, and then it is off to Annecy Festival camping near the lake ...Bliss.

Today I joined a talk given by Chris Bowden from Mckinnon and Saunders. He was generous to share his skills and experience in the art of model making... The work is outstanding in this field. He has generously offered an invite to visit the studio in regards to the potential archiving work being undertaken, in the course of creating a British Animation Archive. Further details on this will be posted shortly.

At MobbsWood Studio a number of projects are underway relating to the gaining of a number of craft skills. These include oil on glass, linocut and screen printing, and the brazing of a new spider armature (images to follow shortly)

In addition a number of enquiries are being made into the role of Producer within the film and animation Industry. A number of contacts are being followed up and hopefully some insight will be gained into this area.

Seems like change is on the horizon... which is always a good thing.

Strategy.

2011-01-06T19:12:00.006Z

Having taken a break for Christmas and the New Year, partly due to choice and mostly due to contracting the flu virus, plans are now underway to firm up the Research in order to start work on the production of a number of animated TV idents .The client is confidential. This is most welcome as financially funding all areas of the practice has become increasing difficult over the last few months. It feels important to be tenacious and stick to Plan A, regardless of how scary this may be. The situation will be under a review for the next six months. In regards to equipment the practice is in a good position. More investment may be required to upgrade commercially licensed software in the next year.

On 2nd February there will be a formal presentation of the research practice. This will include a short introduction to the research question and the presentation of the kinetic diagram (which will evolve organically over the next 4 years). It is hoped this will see the start of an exciting period of research after the ident work completes in March. It is the intention to have all the research for the year, neatly filed and presented formally between 20th-25th January, to my academic supervisory team.

In regards to reading, (the aspect of research that is extremely rewarding) has seen the collection of journals grow. These have been read and filed over the last three months, and a review of all published materials is routinely completed at the end of each month. The books currently being read are on the topics of sacred Geometry, Cymatics, Hollywood Flatlands by Esther Leslie, and Machine Age Comedy. The focus of the research is confidential.

It is the intention to complete the research work on Location One this summer, between March and September. This involves the deconstruction of a small domestic strip of ground. All flora and Fauna will continue to be dissected, photographed, pressed and sculpturally reconstructed. This work has been in the process of study for the last three years. The geometry of the specimens will be studied and sound samples will be taken. Location 2 may also be expanded in regards to sound and fractal pattern formation.

Location 1 and 2 will feed into the final location 3 for the completion of the MPhil which it is hoped will lead onto further development under the PhD.

The unknown quantity to this plan, however, may always be satisfying commercial contracts. There is still a great joy and satisfaction in both the commercial and experimental work at present. It may be important to "grow a pair" over the financial instability this creates, in order to see the long term gain.

Rethink

2010-12-10T10:40:00.005Z

There has been a recent setback, so a rethink in regards to immediate plans will be useful at this stage. The commercial work has been shelved for the summer, the good news is that the concept was well received and may ultimately a very nice piece of work.

The gallery's hands are tied in regards to assisting with the new Lye film proposal.. unfortunately they are unable to offer any kind of artist residency or funding. They were pretty protective of their gallery exhibition (understandably so) which is a shame as the film could be very exciting for the space. They have, however, kindly offered free use of the exhibition to obtain research material.

It has been suggested that a proposal be submitted to the UK film council and maybe Screen West Midlands. The decision has been made to make the film, even if the application for funding may be made retrospectively, it will certainly be worth it. The concept is clear and strong and casts new light on Lyes work.. so why not make the film anyway ?

Finances are difficult at the moment.. funding bodies are being squeezed, and the Animation industry may not viewed by many to be a very valuable industry...Why is this ? Visual Arts may also be squeezed in the next few years ... and obviously education.. so who will make content for the new generation of highly visual learners when all the animators have left the UK, or moved into other professions ?

Maybe things will look different tomorrow.

December

2010-11-28T22:22:00.005Z

December sees several aspects of the practice merge. The recent commercial project has been given the go ahead. The completion will be expected prior to Christmas. This is brilliant news and its expected this will build on existing commercial experience. The commercial portfolio is beginning to build slowly. The project is intended for the commercial TV market.

News on the ident should be received by the end of December. The production will commence in February 2011 if the proposal is successful. The potential to produce work as Lye and Mclaren produced for the GPO may be possible. This may allow for experimentation and research, and could lead to a very interesting project.

The research question will be presented on 15th December. A complete review of the last 6 months research is in progress. A number of potential research questions have arisen from recent reading and the attendance of a number of exhibitions.

In attending the Len Lye exhibition at the IKON, Birmingham, the curators talk and the accompanying book, interesting light has been shed on the practice. It may be that the history and process identified within the book may help in giving some structure to the practice. New avenues of research have been identified and are being interrogated. January has been reserved from commercial practice, in order to investigate the important works exhibited at the Ikon. This has been the most important exhibition attended and potentially very influential to the research. Short experimental works could be produced in examining Lyes kinetic sculpture and moving image work.

Project Tests & Stoke Your Fires

2010-11-19T16:11:00.002Z

The last week has been spent at Second Homes working on a potentially new commercial project. The details of the brief were sent and a number of experimental prototypes were constructed in order to commence shooting a test shot for the ad agency. It is hoped that the client will love the results... Again It is not possible to post images or details at this stage.

Today also saw the submission of three concept ideas for the Stoke Your Fires Ident Production for 2012. (As long as the world is still here of course, enter the Mayan Theory! )

I produced three concept ideas and brief sketches on which it is hoped that one will be chosen to promote the Festival. This is a great opportunity to see the work travel, as this festival is becoming more well know around the Animation Network. It also looks very exciting in that it is being broadened to Animation, Film, Games and Art. It is also very exciting as the project would be developed with Tilly from Red Door Studios, who is very well respected and experienced in the field.

This weekend will see a return to the production of a research document detailing the last 6 months research. This will include details of all experimental projects currently in development.

It is increasingly difficult to speak about the research or commercial work so with that in mind, this blog will contain more images and less words.

Research

2010-11-13T20:36:00.002Z

After a supervisory meeting with Paul a few weeks ago, the discussion has been transcribed into 8,500 words. The most salient points have been reflected upon and a report to move forward with the research is being written up at the moment. A presentation on the research question is due on 15th December, it is expected the report will create a solid structure for the short presentation.

A literature search has resulted in an initial 21 journals being identified. These have been printed off to be read over the next few weeks. It may be that these reports will be deconstructed and re-written as a method of practice to develop critical writing skills.

The current reading of Jan Svankmayers, Dark Alchemy, and Machine-Age Comedy are leading to a more defined research question. Dark Alchemy throws up interesting aspects of surrealism and svankmayers work. This has led to similar aspects being identified in Machine age comedy. Surrealism/mechanistic realism oppositional relationship is an interesting path to investigate.

It is still early days but it feels important to review the last 6 months research, animation practice and bring together a plan for the next 6 months. This will be discussed in the review due in January 2011.

Interesting news has been received in regards to a potential new commercial project. The work should take four weeks, and should complete prior to Christmas.

The balance between research/practice/commercial work is working at the moment but I am aware that the time will need to be managed very carefully.

London

2010-11-03T08:56:00.006Z

Yesterday was spent in conversation with Elizabeth Sivell, a highly regarded advertising professional. The original contact came through the women in advertsing group SheSays UK. She was very generous in spending time looking through examples of work which showed a broad base of skills, from tactile to CG.

I was given excellent and practical advice in regards to the commercial portfolio. Advice which ranged from, What advertising agencies look for in employing a creative, How to approach an agency as a freelance designer/animator, and advice on agents. She offered to honestly crit the commercial portfolio and suggested maybe an internship or working for an employment agency as this may help in discovering a job which fits.

She said that it may be possible to gain exposure in a particular style if the right agent was on the case. This was interesting as two agents have recently shown interest in the work. Liz advised the kind of percentage that these agents ask for and the pitfalls of having an agent.

The Tate Britain, and Tate Modern were visited on the way home. It may be that the connection between the commercial work and the arts practice is one of finding a contextual space for conceptual ideas. In the commercial work there is a strong instinct towards a zietgeist, whereas the arts practice seeks out where changes in society have influenced the visual arts, in regards to fine art practice and animation. The practice compulsively seeks out changes in theory and thought as they surface within the fields of arts and science/technology. Once located, this instinct can them be directed outwards or inwards...in an oscillating loop.

It is hoped that the the commercial work and the experimental practice combine to form a feedback loop, which when functioning well, develops a unique voice, that may echo the context of the time and place in which it is created.

Research

2010-10-22T14:41:00.002+01:00

The last few weeks have been spent in preparing for the launch of the recent animation project. New website logo, cards etc are being prepared and films being re-edited, with a few film festivals being submitted to.... It's all been a little tedious in some respects as having spent two very busy (but greatly creative months) in the commercial studio, with a great team of people... the practical making of physical objects has been missed.

So with the intention of addressing this balance, A portable dolly and commercial quality sound equipment has been hired in order to make new work. Beautiful papers have been delivered, and many plans are currently in the making to make new work...

The research has also resulted in the writing of a short analysis of supervisory meetings, which culminated in writing 8500 words in an afternoon/evening... the definition of the research is becoming more clarified & concise. It is hoped that new experimental work will be directly related to the area of research, this will stand as a separate body of work to the general experimental work.

Very busy times ahead.

Viral Animation campaign

2010-09-29T11:48:00.002+01:00

The Viral Animation is in the process of being released to Bank Ad agency. A link to the animation will be added to this blog when it becomes available. The details of the campaign will not be released here until that time, in consideration of the production company, Second Home Productions, and the client.

Yesterday saw a return to the experimental project at Grindsbrook, Edale. The small experiments made yesterday were completed in collaboration with Josephine Powers, of Mobbs Wood Studios. A number of stills,potential animation stills and small samples of stone and water were taken at the site. It is the intention to explode these samples to discover the imperceptible patterns and forms within these. The rock samples may be used to create a medium for drawing additional sequences.

Although a number of sound samples were collected it will be necessary to return to the site next week in order to create further sound. The weather conditions were too unsafe, and limited the time available for any further experiments.

Some images of the potential footage have been posted.

SheSays Picnic

2010-08-10T13:11:00.002+01:00

I am three weeks into the commercial viral animation at the moment. I am unable to speak about this, other than to say that the other guys are talented, dedicated.. not to mention fun to work with. If there were any doubts about being part of this industry they have been laid to rest through being part of this project. It is hoped that the resulting animation will truly beautiful... and hopefully make a few waves :)

On Sunday I was given kind premission to take a day out of the seven days a week schedule. I chose to spend this time in London with the children, and attended the Shesays Family Picnic. It was the annual get together of the Shesays (women in advertising) group... we finished the day by visiting Madame Tussauds and conducting our very own London Tour in the (windows open) Seat... visiting every site on the monopoly board !

The website is in the process of an update aswell as giving the practice a visual facelift for the release of the present project. This is likely to be sent to Qubra, Jelly and a few others who may be interested. A new showreel and portfolio will be produced in October this year.

Now back to making stuff :)

open studios

2010-07-17T21:04:00.002+01:00

The open studios event went well. The practice is well situated within the fine arts collective and appears to cause much interest. Although many visitors were not in a position to commission work they were interested in the art prints. Maybe next year a few prints will be enlarged and framed for sale at the event. This year seemed to be a little erratic and less planned from the practice point of view although the whole event went well, mainly due to the dedicated effort of Jo Powers and the other volunteers... which is just as well as, due to the involvement with the music video, there was little time to b truly ready.

The private view went very well and the atmosphere was mellow and vibrant.. Verity, Ben and Si played beautifully acoustic music in the studio and there was plenty of wine drunk in the the farms yard. It was a really nice end to an active summer.

In regards to the confidential project...Not too much can be said other than the prep for this is a little like a duck.. with not much happening on the surface but with legs swimming like mad underneath.

Incidentally, following the application to Queens College, London for the Artist in residency program I was amazed and delighted to meet an Aunt of a fellow of the Physics Department, Queens College at our open view evening... what an amazing co-incidence. I explained the importance of the potential research which could be achieved with this collaboration and she kindly said she would send my details to her nephew who is currently in the process of moving to Belgium. It is hoped that I will still be able to interview her nephew (one of only two specialists in String Theory) for my PhD research.

It may be a little quiet on the blog until September, although it is hoped that some personal work from the sketchbook may still be posted.

Secret

2010-06-30T10:31:00.002+01:00

I am not being bashful or shy, but there has been so much going on in the last few weeks that is so absolutely top secret that I cannot blog it... Maybe I can think of something I can blog...

The album launch went really well.. the video looked really bright and hypnotic, the feedback was very good. I am looking forward to seeing how Verity's voice evolves after her move to New Zealand, and am very excited for her.

We have an open studios event happening over the next two weeks where props, sets and sketchbooks will be open to view.. those that havent been burnt in process of the work (such as the finely sewn phoenix). Verity, Si and Ben will be blessing the studio with some great live music on the P.V and there will be plenty of food and drink to help celebrate all the work that the artists have put in over the last 9 months.

And that's all I can say :) I am off to the garden now... sunshine & freshair !

New Project

2010-06-07T21:45:00.002+01:00

Having delivered the final files and completed the Audio Visual film for Verity, it has been a long and unexpectedly rewarding experience.. however it now seems to be the right time to move on.

Why do artist agree to work for no fee ? It seems that many new creatives are happy to work for free and produce some great work in the hope they will get more paid work. They may not realise that they are undermining their own industry. The AN magazine covered this perfectly a few months ago.. How can an artist sustain their work, feed their families and pay the rent if they are undercut by people who are prepared to work for free ?

The agents who have shown recent interested in representing the moving image and the illustration work needs to be reconsidered. It may be that they can offer certain protections and benefits that may well be worth their fee. The professional practice, must be just that, and be professional in agreeing a fee which equates to the work produced.. otherwise they dont have a business.. they have a hobby.

Anyway, thoughts are now turning to the Artist in residence program within the Physics department where advances in theoretical Physics are being made, particulary in string theory and M theory . The deadline for applications is advancing and thorough thought is required.

The experimental work currently in development will help in this...mainly as it involves many walks in the fresh air, and less time in the production suite !

Step Forwards

2010-05-21T20:10:00.002+01:00

Post production is well underway at the moment. Many of the sequences have been produced and rendered as they have been shot. This has been weather dependant though and it has meant that the outdoor sequences have been given priority due to the good recent weather. There are two major sequences still to be shot on Monday with the final post taking place next week.

Saturday night will provide a well earnt break from production to see the band play live at Warwickshire arts centre. It will be good to get in touch with all the bands repetoire and not just the single "Stepforwards", which has been virtually played on a loop for the past six weeks ! and it is still great to listen to. This is a sign of a good track maybe.. if the animator still loves it and the end of production then it must be good.

Get Real

2010-05-13T14:31:00.003+01:00

Tremendous objections are being made to my choice to persue an animation career at the moment. It is expected that this may only gain momentum as financial support or funding is squeezed by the government unable to understand the creative industry, or it's essential role in providing jobs, and valuable skills to young people facing a high chance of being self-employed or working in creative/communications. It could be that this attitude may change eventually.. just as the fire bell rings, although in the short-term it seems unlikely.

It is even more difficult for funding/financial bodies to see the value of an artist.. and that is a different argument altogether. It isn't just financial support that may be needed but also recognition that the work has value. Their suggestion is to get a "real job", which is salaried and can be weighed and tested against others.

A hat maker wouldnt be asked to fly aeroplanes, a finance manager wouldn't be asked to design the new company logo ( although he may think he could have a good stab at it) ...But it seems that an Artist can be told what work they should do both commercially and creatively.

The creative person is valued by how much work they can sell... even if the world can't yet see it's value...

Compartmentalise

2010-05-05T22:26:00.003+01:00

Having been head down working full steam on the commercial work, today saw the start of a five year research program...So why pursue research ? Well it seems when deep question are asked in regard to the professional practice, further questions arise which may advance the practice which in turn may feed new experimental work .. which again feeds the commercial work.

The craft and skill of animation may only be developed through experience though.. and experience comes through making work... any work which therefore challenges and develops the craft is valuable.

It may be that the three different aspects of Experimental, Commercial and Research practice will ultimately work ameliorativly with each other and move the practice forward.. at least that is the intention from the outset, and there may be no need to compartmentalise the practice.

The latest commercial animation is being prepared and will be presented to the company tomorrow. It is very pleasing to see the experimental aspects of the work coming together to form coherent, deeply rich and colourful work.

Commercial work

2010-05-03T22:17:00.002+01:00

It may be that commercial offers the opportunity to discover original ways of working... the unexpected can still occur. The question may be that this impacts on the production schedule as you are diverted from the pitched idea.. however.. those diversions may propel the work as excitement and involvement is sustained. This may not always be the case.. but in the work of StepForwards the work seems to be evolving this way. The challenge of introducing more vibrant colour over the work has led to experimentation with glass/acetate and projection. Some examples of this experimentation have been posted.

Research

2010-04-27T19:13:00.002+01:00

Offer given .. offer accepted. It is great to be starting out on the Mphil/PhD program with Loughborough University. It looks like it will be exciting and challenging working with supervisors Paul Wells and Mark Wright... but I suspect that a great deal of satisfaction will come from working with the other researchers, and the members of the faculty as they seem like a really lively bunch! Exciting times ...

Step Forwards Development Portfolio

2010-04-23T19:49:00.001+01:00

This is a new way of posting film (Sorry about the duplicated posts!) This is the development work for the Audio-Visual Animation : Step Forwards by Verity Pabla.

More Info at Veritpabla.com and Myspace & Facebook........ album available at iTunes Store.

Time.. The most precious commodity

2010-04-23T09:50:00.005+01:00

During the last few weeks there have been events, which should have been blogged but the time just didn't seem to be available to do so.

So a quick re-cap and then onto today.. I have been working on a music video for Verity Pabla for the album and single release which is due in June.

The professional process began with a client meeting and briefing. From this a series of brain-storming sessions produced a number of roughs. These were then taken from thumbnails to a clear storyboard. A production schedule was drawn up and work began with the making of sets and props. Filming beings next week with post starting the week after.. the deadline for uncompressed avi sequences is the 7th May.. Final delivery 28th May.

There are only six weeks available to complete a four minute animated film to accompany the track "Step forwards". Initially there was some resistance which needed to be worked through in order to come to a compromise between the clients strong artistic direction and the professional practice. Simply put there was a need to create a very colourful animation with a strong directed narrative... quite different from anything on the showreel, which is mainly white work, the colour being mainly in the detail. Therefore a stronger use of colour was required. However, the client was very supportive and gave me some considerable scope to work around this.

The solution is a series of transformative sculptures onto which natural colour, taken from the natural world, collected & recorded in timelapse, will then be projected onto the work, as a three dimensional screen. There are also a series of printed acetates which are layered into a lightbox which will be used in conjunction with white cut-out animation. This seems appropriate to the practice and the work in hand. It has been exciting to approach the work in a new way and the practice has been moved forward as a result. The benefit of commercial work informs the practice and vice versa.

The client brief was so follow a series of transformation using symbolism in the form of the Phoenix, Turtle doves and New Zealand's Koru (spiral geometry)... the approach should be to communicate a feeling of sensuality and deep sunshine whilst taking the viewer from point A to point B along this magical and abstract journey.

This work has allowed for some experimentation. Approximately half of the work is being produced in the natural environment and half in the studio. Last week a number of models were produced. It is intended that all filming takes place from tomorrow and throughout next week.

Magician

2010-03-20T18:04:00.005Z

A chance meeting at the meditation class led to a chance discussion with a very interesting guy. He is an Engineer and Mathematician who has a great interest in the cross-over between science and art. Most interesting was that his father had been a Magician.. this being the case he had influenced his son to look at the world in a different way.. to see things outside of usual perception. A conversation regarding the 11th dimension & string theory as well as the strange processing which takes place within the Amygdala in times of stress was enlightening. He also mentioned that he keeps a box into which he places numerous thoughts and ideas written on any available paper...very interesting.

Verity Pabla Music Video

2010-03-18T21:02:00.003Z

It was exciting to meet with Verity today. We talked about the project and general concepts and ideas initially arising from her song "Step Forward". The first step is to ensure the relevant forms etc are completed. A phone call to Jane will clarify the necessary points that need to be satisfied for funding.

Initial ideas surrounding the concept of purity, love, passion, fire, pheonix, turtledoves, script, greyness, colour, burning, Intensity, Truth, symbolism, koru, transformation... with an importance placed on narrative adding to the song thus enabling a unique experience in itself.

Distribution is intended through addition to a music promotion pack which includes album plus three music video singles. The resulting film is also intended to be screened at film events to allow for audience engagement.

Once the forms and funding is secured a full production schedule will be agreed and work will commence in earnest.

BBC Interview

2010-03-17T18:32:00.002Z

BBC Cov & Warks radio kindly invited me to speak about my work and request a song which was particularly personal. It was great to be able to speak about the Practice. I was unsure how it came across but they seemed happy and have asked me to drop in again to take part in a discussion in relation to news & international interests.

It was useful in representing the experimental animation work undertaken but also to promote the commercial Music Video/animation work which is being established. Tomorrow there is an opportunity to work with a great singer/song writer, Verity Pabla, who has a beautiful voice. It is hoped there may be a resonance between her work and the professional practice. It may be that the artistic freedom possible in this kind of work will fit well with the experimental work being produced under the research area of the practice.

There appears to be an emerging trend in which Music is bundled with Artwork and Video in stores such as iTunes. This gives added value to purchasing music as opposed to pirating work. It also protects the creative industries in regards to giving financial stability and ensures a thriving industry.

Music and Animation is a beautiful partnership and could provide the stability for the practice to grow.

Van Doesburg & the International Avant Guard

2010-03-17T18:17:00.002Z

The main interest in visiting this exhibition was to answer a question I had. This was to the motivation behind communicating the rise of a new world view.It was also to study the approach of two dimensional painters/visual artists as they begin to explore the forth dimension of time within their work.

It was also interesting to experience the rise of the international avant guard. It seems that the desire to explore the forth dimension and the new world view arising from this is actually nothing new in todays world...Van Doesburg was ahead of his time. Could this approach pave the way for the exploration of the 11th dimension ?

It seemes that the approach of Van Doesburg to gain support through international networks and raising the profile of the movement through publication was successful in constructing the new world view.

It is intended that there will be a second trip to London to take a second look at this exhibition as, although three hours spent in contemplation of the work may seem to be sufficient.. there are still questions that need to be asked and a second view may shed light on these.

Specific works relating to the professional practice will be sought out and posted here within the next few days.

Catching Up

2010-03-09T21:40:00.003Z

Not quite sure how Time has accelerated events since my last blog so this is a brief catch-up.

The Radical Aesthetics symposium held at Loughborough University last week left a certain feeling that I am about to enter a foreign land, with a new language with which to communicate. Although the ideas and concepts were easily grasped there was an uncertainty of the language which inhibited the ability to converse or add to the dialogue in any meaningful way. It may be Mark will be able to help in the use of language within the Visual Arts. This was not particularly part of the Illustration BA...It was not all that important.. and rightly so, but in the research it may be a pre-requisite of obtaining a certain credibility and acceptance.

The second visit to The Penines was fruitful. Detailed sketches were taken of the waterfall location and a whole ridge was found complete with 9 foot Icicles frozen as water seeped through sponge-like moss. The Image is posted about.

The snowdrops and Crocus flowers have emerged from the fierce frosts and a new animation is planned around this emergence. Reference shots have been taken and will be continued on Thursday/Friday this week.

Tomorrow.... Shesays in London. It is expected that the day will be taken up with trips to The Tate Modern and Britain. Artists such as Laure Prouvost, Chris Ofili, Anselm Keifer (a long held favourite) and Joseph Beuys will be sought out.

SHESAYS a cross disciplinary Networking event ... on the links list.

Should be an enjoyable day.

PHd Loughborough Submitted

2010-02-25T09:05:00.002Z

I have spent weeks writing and re-writing the proposal for the PhD and have finally submitted. I am excited to be starting out on a new and exciting journey. I hope to learn, grow and create great work under the supervision of two great supervisors, Paul Wells and Mark Wright.. I feel very fortunate and hope for a very productive and fulfilling five years.

Attention s now turning to the Practice open studios week in July. I am cleaning up the professional profile with a new showreel and animation & Illustration portfolios. I am updating the website and making sure the online presence is clean and unified. Part of the process is the creation of a promotion video for the collective.

Grindsbrook Waterfall

2010-02-16T20:00:00.007Z

The weather conditions in the peak district were perfect today. On reaching high peak it was a good climb to Mam Tor. Some 360 degree stills were taken along the line of the horizon as the cloud cover was pretty spectacular, also the peak was completely covered with snow. It was interesting to see how, across the patchwork of the landscape, snow remained on the north side of the walls, hills and rocks...a remnant remaining from the passing of time over the land.

Then a short trip northward to Edale to a point where the Pennine way commences, a small waterfall was found. It seemed important not to look to the larger, more powerful waterfalls in the area ( such as Kinder Downfall ) as these would be far too powerful for the fragile paper to survive very long. Interestingly, after speaking with a friendly guy at the tourist office in Edale, Kinder Downfall froze a few weeks ago and became the site of many ice climbers wishing to climb the frozen wall of ice. He believed that the ice was still frozen, however it would take about two and half hours to walk to, and it was already lunchtime.

Photographs and sketches were made of the waterfall at Grindsbrook. Sound and detailed shots of of the location were taken. This included noting where the curtain of water meets the pool and where spray and bubbles were formed. These will be posted shortly. It was quite amusing that while sitting sketching the waterfall a family approached asking if I was taking part in a nationwide treasure hunt... they actually found a hidden box of treasure just behind where I was sitting...

PhD Proposal Draft 2 & Tuesdays expedition.

2010-02-15T12:14:00.003Z

Today has been put aside to purely focus on the PhD Proposal redraft. Paul has given his insight and I am re-reading the first draft with a fresh viewpoint. It is the intention of the second draft to address context and make reference to others in the field.

It is still exciting to visualise the body of work which may be produced through this extensive research. It feels that this process of redrafting is unearthing important and relevant work. It shows promise in creating a substantial body of work which extends the boundaries of the artform of Animation.

It is an evolving organic process, informed by reflection and advanced with each new insight. It is a very enjoyable process.

It is hoped the second draft will be formed before the trip tomorrow. According to the forecast, tomorrow will be the best weather of the week. The pack is ready and the intention is to explore and make record of the intended sites.

Inside

2010-02-12T20:56:00.001Z

Feeling suffocated as have been indoors too long. It is essential to get out next week. Long hikes in the Peak District planned.

Getting out

2010-02-10T15:50:00.002Z

Just waiting for decent weather to check out 6 sites across the peaks... Cleaning up showreel in the meantime.

Weaving : Animation Collaboration

2010-02-08T16:40:00.004Z

Todays meeting with Jan Bowman covered alot of ground. I am going to detail some of that meeting here in order to document the meeting for future reference. It felt that our professional practice conceptually mirrored one another but had some exciting contrasts which could lead to new experimental practice.

The weaving looms are beautiful. It became apparent that both the warp and the weft can be dyed to reflect the colours within the location. Many of the location elements could be incorporated in the artefacts. Colour/light/sound/dimension....

Jan experiments with a number of natural materials within the weft such as willow, wire and paper. I found this amusing in the sense that my own work utilises paper as a screen with sewn threads pulling the paper into form. Our practice has similar idealogies but alternative perspectives.

In regards to the movement of light, shadow and translucency of form there is a remarkable similarity to my own practice. It was explained that her practice embraces the ideas of cycle... I could associate with this in that the professional practice, the films loop in a cyclical narrative, with each work informing the last. I feel this forms a perpetual motion of loops , as if spiralling into a linear narrative in an ascending direction.. which could as easily spiral in a decending direction. This forms the structure of the sequence of films I intend to make whilst undertaking the research programme at Loughborough.

There certainly appears to be an opportunity for a collaboration with Jan in terms of creating a location construction. This may be filmed as a performance with aspects of the making of the structure being an important component of the final work. An example could be the process of hand weaving.

Jans work is very labour intensive, with some screens taking several months to complete. It was tentively agreed that initial work could be undertaken on an experimental/micro basis. Filming and animating this work in Macro to exploit the actual movement of thread and expressing the tactile nature of the work would actually work much better than on a larger scale.

LUSAD also has a jaquard weaving machine which may be used in conjunction with photoshop imagery. The machine moves extremely fast. It was suggested that this may be photographed on a high speed shutter and could contrast with the hand woven work. This may make for an interesting experiment to contrast mechanistic process to the hand-made process. This could be used for typeography and film titles...

Jan is keen to expand and experiment with her work in a more sculptural sense and in regards to exterior locations. She has been cutting and burning shapes into her screens. Her use of light forming threads was very interesting as my practice followed this research a few years ago and it has been an intention to incorporate it at some point. There is no question she actively embraces a form of motion in her work and is seeking ways in which to work within the natural environment. She has a really great perspective on the role of nature within her work.. the uncontrolled fortunate happenings that occur when working outside. This is deeply embedded in my practice and could be further expanded upon when working in collaboration.

There may be an opportunity to explore the materiality of the work and its deformation/deterioration when placed in the natural environment. Jan has experimented with this and I was delighted by the birds playing their part in her screen deterioration!

I am going to spend some time thinking about a collaboration project for this summer, It is the intention to visit the Peak District this Friday and will spend some time with the camera and sketchbook contemplating the project. It feel certain that a project working with Jan would be very exciting indeed.

A fleeting realisation

2010-02-07T21:53:00.003Z

Today I caught myself smiling and I realised something... I am simply happy to be here.

Loughborough tomorrow.

2010-02-07T19:12:00.003Z

I am seeing Jan Bowman at Loughborough University tomorrow. It is hoped that I will be able to speak to her about her practice, her technique and particularly about her exterior screens , her exhibitions and her commission for the Chelsea Flower show. It will also be very interesting to hear about her exhibition "British Crafts in Japan", as I have a keen interest in exhibiting work in Tokyo. I feel it would be very useful to speak to Jan about her research in view of the impending PhD/MPhil application. It should be very enjoyable her work is truly beautiful.

It is intended that the showreel will be complete by the end of this week, unless the research proposal deadline is sooner than expected. (This is being confirmed)

It is hoped that a trip to Snake Pass in the Peak District will be this Friday. This is dependent on the weather conditions. The intention is to find a beautiful location near an accessible waterfall. Photographs and sketches of the site will allow for a small scale model to be made and storyboard drawn up. Specific noted will be made on the sound within the space and camera positions. The complete project will be drawn up and detailed before approaching people to help complete the filming.

So, filming if the weather is good /Editing showreel if Bad .. either way the work will get done.

RCA & DECODE

2010-02-06T15:21:00.005Z

The RCA interim show was interesting yesterday. The presentation was highly polished and professional, the work interesting with a depth of research which was clearly apparent. In some ways the exhibition was less experimental than expected. Previous visits earlier in the year had implied the exploration of proto-animation and experimental techniques. I had also witnessed the creation of a kinetic model mechanism demonstrating a simple walk cycle. I had also seen beautiful direct film animation. None of this was exhibited so one can only conclude that either the work is being developed for the final show in June or has been sidelined by the rigour of the course demands on gaining the standard animation techniques of lip syncing , walk cycles, story boarding etc. It is hoped that the final show has an element of experimental animation.

I noted two films with the familiar aesthetic of "Please speak to me", and "The Pearce Sisters", to name just two. It is difficult not to be influenced by the practice of other artists and may be particularly difficult to recognise it on ones own professional practice. I have had this earlier in my development and am constantly on guard in order to try to create original work.

Decode challenged the perception of the application of technology in the medium of animation. Many exhibits exploited the media to make beautiful and poignant impressions on the viewer. Simply stunning work. The group FABRICA (supported by the Benetton Group) may be one to watch.

The V&A has an artist in residence who has completed an animatic called GLOVER by Jo Lawrence. This was an exciting animated film created from an enviable position within an inspiring museum. A link has been posted to the artists blog

The V&A has an inspirational and amazing collection which is overwhelming in its beauty. The exhibits are exceptional. The work sets the highest benchmark for in ones own practice. (RODIN sculpture is stunning) . I expect to revisit in a couple of weeks and will also make The Tate Modern and Britain as time ran out to visit these familiar but essential spaces...

Collaboration Project

2010-02-03T13:11:00.003Z

Yesterday and this morning was spent editing together timelapse footage for a collaborative project which has been ticking over since last summer. The work has been produced to support an application for funding from the Arts Council. It will be a large project and may involve a large number of artists/animators/filmmakers across the UK. The work is currently password protected on Vimeo.

February

2010-01-30T18:26:00.003Z

I am taking the next two months out to play with ideas and materials. This is partly because of spending too much time "in focus" and partly because the weather is changing.

So now is the time for making...to be ready for the clear nights and kinder days.

It is intended the showreel be ready Mid February. The offer of a small kiln to create an embossed logo for the paper packaging has been readily accepted and will be designed and created over the next two weeks. The packaging design itself is finalised. The showreel titled are underway and the sound is being recorded on Tuesday. The disk design needs to be drawn out and printed on the showreels once they have been edited but that is a quick and easy job.

Once production on the showreel is complete, it is intended that this will be sent out and published on the Website & social networks.

After the middle of Feb it is intended that the materials/play may result in a complete portfolio re-design. I realise that the illustration work is incomplete as it stands at the moment. I have intended for some time to create more strong pieces for this and hope to re-connect with this for the next couple of months. I have a new approach to the work which may be fruitful.

There are still many sculptural works to make which have been on the back burner since last year.. but it now feels right to make these... Awareness of the cyclical changes in time allow the work to emerge in a natural space in time... a completely different approach to the Illustration Practice naturally!

Mobbs Wood Studios

2010-01-25T00:04:00.002Z

This is the where my practice is situated. I have posted the logo and a few pics which may give you an insight into why I love it so...

Sew paper and thread Orchestra

2010-01-23T10:43:00.003Z

I walked into the studio the other day and whilst my thoughts began to wander I found myself touching the threads of an Illustration I produced last year. A I moved my finger across the threads I could hear music (in my head of course) ... I could see in my minds eye a complete sheet of paper covered in sewn forms and shapes which could be played as you may direct an orchestra.

It was beautiful. The colours and shapes could indicate changes in tone on violins, harps, etc

I then began to think of the sound of plucking strings which led onto using the Musical Box as a simple start to this process. A magical and simple instrument which may be perfect for the work in simple form.

Since I have stopped doing things and started playing.. many of these kind of ideas have been forming.

Caffeine

2010-01-21T10:25:00.002Z

I have been working hard sorting out my tax return and I.T systems over the last week and have noticed that I have become super sensitive to caffeine... I get anxious, shake internally and go a little hyper. I am now drinking only herbal tea.. camomile actually. I am curious as to what causes the calming affect of this tea...

Anyway, I have a networking event tonight and am in the process of drawing out a logo for the collective. I am working on a few ideas for this at the moment. I am turning my attention back to the showreel. Further sounds being recorded next week hopefully.

The next 8 weeks are dedicated to serious play...mainly making with one location shoot planned. I will post the work as it evolves.

Growth & Diversification in the Animation Industry

2010-01-15T08:48:00.003Z

Just some thoughts on the subject of the potential for growth and diversification in the Animation Industry.

It may be that Animation as an industry identifies itself as process and generally does not recognise its roots as an artform. This leads animation as a process to be hijacked by other artforms who see the animation process as part of their arts practice.

The formation of an Experimental Animation community may act as a promotion of these roots, feed into the industry thus avoiding stagnation while supporting new growth in experimental practice, this may aid in keeping the industry fresh and alive, leading to growth and ultimately more financial stability... to feed more experimental work etc.

New Experimental animators (myself included) are led to diversify in order to access funding for experimental work and create a healthy thriving practice. I am developing another stream of finance to support my work, namely commercial Illustration. This is not unusual in the creative industries, however, it may take much longer for work to come to fruition (if they ever do) and this may be impeding the health of the the Animation Industry.

There appears to be a need for a new movement in which the needs of the avant guard are supported and promoted. Research may support the need for this and the benefits to industry, education, advertising and society, may become apparent. This movement may be formed out of a strong commitment to the artform while drawing on a strong sense of community, pooling resources, good will and integrity.

technical hitch

2010-01-12T20:00:00.003Z

The P.C melted down today right in the middle of production. After calmly cleaning the filter removing the side and checking the wires, the window was opened .. and a thought about throwing it through it came and went... The fuses were checked, the peripheries unplugged, and started it up and worked...just about just long enough to lull a false sense of security.. and then died again. By a stroke of luck It had just been backed up!

Luckily I also have a great brother who is brilliant in I.T. Only a couple of weeks ago I had been looking at the new iMac but it was a little out of the price range at the moment. So I did the next best thing, I cross-graded CS3 to CS4 for Mac.. for the macbook. Now I have a completely portable editing and production suite in my rucksack.

Which just goes to prove I am able to make a silk purse out of a sows ear... and that, actually, I have a basic technical knowledge which appears to have transferred, as if through a form of osmosis, from my brother.

I have just read how to upgrade my ram.. screwdriver to hand I will have a look inside my mac....

Kit Bag

2010-01-10T13:57:00.003Z

Finally received the Lowpro 17" laptop & camera bag. It packs two dslrs,small compact, usb microscope, and canon hv30... small compact lightweight kit. I have a gorillapod & 2 tripods plus small mic plus laptop & passport hd backup .. oh and a place for my sandwiches and club biscuit !

So I am ready to go out to start taking some provision location shots at the end of this month. I am taking time out to read alot of books I want to read, finish my tax return and generally catch up on all the promises I havent had time to fulfill. I am dropping in to see Francis next week as he has some questions to ask me about my experimental practice and how it has been starting out.

I re-watched some work by Michael Dudok de Wit yesterday. The first film I came across of his was Father and Daughter. The narrative is beautiful and univeral. The Animation pure and simple... Tea is no exception The movement of a simple drop through an abstract landscape to the wonderful music is timeless.

I am reading Animation in Process in quiet moments and cant believe quite what a gift this book is. Each artist's work is uncovered and laid bare to the reader. Each work is detailed in such a way that it offered golden advice to a newbie animator ( as myself) and is inspirational. I find myslef making mental notes such as "if I could do that.. or If I was able to approch my work in that way".. and also "I do that!".. kind of thought. The book also has a DVD which has, amongst the great animations the "tale of How", it also has great instructional films which really uncover the process of animation.

I also found it interesting to hear how these respected animators see their own craft of Animation. It seems that within the industry there is no absolute clear definition. This may suggest that the fluid boundaries of the artfrom are its greatest strength. But why exactly ?

Deleted paragraphs.. (insert "nuggets of wisdom")

2010-01-08T11:12:00.003Z

This text was deleted from the proposal...as was this image (see right)

"It could be said that Animation as an artform progresses when emerging knowledge of inaccessible worlds, growing awareness of physical limitations and altered notions of reality, reach a critical point"

"It could be suggested that Animation is a self-generating, cyclical process, evolved out of an impetus to discover new grammar with which to explore the frontiers of new scientific and technological thought, whilst utilising this advancement simultaneously."

Touching the Quantum : PhD Proposal

2010-01-07T19:08:00.005Z

Touching the Quantum: A discourse in Pure Animation and its power to connect real space in an emerging microscosm.

This is the initial title for the proposal. I am not sure it quite hangs together but it is fine for the first draft.

It has been difficult to find just the correct language to describe themes and motivations usually expressed in visual form. I have also found it difficult to define the area of research without becoming to restricted... I have also struggled with not making it too broad. I have found it very difficult to identify where the practice lies and found labeling the work particularly restrictive. This can make things difficult when trying to validate the work and find contemporary practitioners that work in the same way.

I am sure that the concepts within the proposal honestly reflect the current practice work and has integrity. I did not want the research that is the "tail that wags the dog" so to speak. I am comfortable with the area of research and that it fits with the practice work.

It is exciting to be moving forward with the experimental practice however, and hope to be making more work shortly.

Tomorrow I have to post off the festival submission disks and start my tax return !

Proposal Title & Draft Ready

2010-01-06T23:40:00.002Z

Final Proposal ready to send over tomorrow. There was a point where the more questions were asked the more arose .. and so the cycle continued for three days. I have written solidly for that last three day and feel happy that the final draft is clear and has integrity. I would like to maybe mention a few more references and will probably re-read it in the morning.

I waited to receive the bag for the camera and laptop .. it was the wrong size for the laptop. Just sorting a day out filming in the next few days. The freezing conditions can't be missed. I am still looking for the perfect waterfall location.

Hopefully the showreel sound recording will be done soon. I am going to re-edit this when I have done my tax return (which is due at the end of the month). It will be beautiful.

Delete

2010-01-02T23:58:00.002Z

I dont usually delete posts but I was going off track with my thoughts. I needed some time to relax and let stuff happen.

I am close to a final draft of the proposal. I am excited by the prospect and have decided not to apply to the RCA. My work is more exciting than I ever imagined it would be. I feel lucky to be here and cannot ignore the chance meetings with people I admire and respect who have helped move the practice on exponentially.

It would be foolish to fail to acknowledge the fact that I would not be this far on was it not for the many people I have met who have given their time and support generously. So the RCA will wait ... I intend to work with the people I have met and respect greatly. As Mr Kesseller advised... after being rejected from the RCA, he returned years later in the role of examiner... boy did they get a hard time ! This helped give me a healthy perspective.. Thanks Rob !

It is still intended to re-edit the showreel. The Audio & certain sequences need some fine tuning. The world line will still run through the piece and some shots need some exposure adjustment. I was advised to "layer on the love" ... When the reel is re-edited and repackaged the reel should be ready by end Jan - Mid Feb.

I am also in the process of sending "String Feary" to Annecy and Stoke for festival submission. I will be going regardless of whether they show the work in the graduation section as I had such a brilliant time last year. Really felt like a home to home. It would be a beautiful place to live. I have already decided on the apartment overlooking le lac d'Annecy where we stayed with the family 3 years ago on the way to Italy. Beautiful .. 6th June to 13th ... Can't wait !

The proposal is going well and the first draft should be ready in the next couple of days. Focus on experimental animation & the changing scientific perception of reality.. identifying the space between reality in 11th dimension and mans ability to access this world. Of course I will write it much more eloquently than that (it is hoped!)

I am making preparations for "Bubble", I have a second camera & rucksack ordered with extra batteries.. a car plug converter for the laptop & tripods etc. I will need to hire some sound recording equipment.. I will speak to Roger this week when we record the musical box scores.

Still working on the Film Titles too .. busy..busy..

3 Trees & spiral Sculpture

2009-12-24T17:11:00.002Z

In a very vivid dream this morning, a paper spiral was constructed within a circle of trees. Three trees supported the structure and the sculpture was held in motion. The structure was shell like in chambers which acted to capture the natural force of the wind.

There was a natural animation as shadows moved across the paper. A number of strings were attached a critical points in order to support to the sculptures weight creating a network of support within the surrounding trees.

Plans were discussed in which the nature of the materials to be used were decided along with the right people to film and record the event, a deadline of 18 weeks was agreed.

In the dream, the fragility of the work was discussed. It was clear that the work would slowly be destroyed over time as water and wind would impact on its structure but this was fine as long as the beauty of the erosion was filmed.

Near the end of the dream it felt as if the conscious mind was beginning to project meaning onto the purity of the project.It seemed strange how the conscious mind began to try to control the unconscious. It was interesting to watch.

The structure has been sketched out with as much detail as possible. I may publish an image here at some point. This could be another example of streaming consciousness... something talked about but still something that feels a little uncomfortable to write about.

The best ideas occur when relaxing and lying down it seems.

Animation in the 11th Dimension ?

2009-12-22T15:46:00.002Z

I have just returned from Loughborough University Library after having read through a number of Animation Journals. I would like to be able to access the online digital journals but these are limited access to students only. I believe I can sign to Sage Journals and access the digital library as an independent subscription though so I am going to look into this.

I found a few interesting articles... "Animating the 4th Dimension", particularly resonated with my work.I am going to re-read this and make a few notes...refine my thoughts and blog on this in a few days.

The current professional practice touches upon various fields of research, Experimental animation, Tactile & Crafts, CGI, Cognitive process and Quantum Physics. I think at this stage it may be important to write a fairly broad proposal and slowly define it. I think the primary issue at present is one of writing a very narrow proposal as I am unsure as to the flexibility of this once the work is undertaken. I continue to be excited by the field of animation as there is an enormous creative freedom in which to explore so allowing for freedom within the proposal will be very important in order to sustain enthusiasm for the work in the long term.

Interconnection

2009-12-21T16:55:00.002Z

The thoughts have been focused on animation as a process. If this is taken in another direction could the field be seen as a larger mechanism for pure creation.

It may be difficult at this stage to place this idea into words entirely although a clear mechanical diagram may be possible. So here I will type a series of words and then I will draw an image to represent the mechanism.

Matter_ forces_ formation_ projection_emotion_amygdala_man.

The interesting motion/event happens in the spaces between the words. For Example The process/mechanism between the (matter) screen, projection and man ? or In the motion intrinsic to the formation of form ?

This may be a starting point through which to enter the process of animation.

The professional practice works in tactile/real space and this may be the perfect medium with which to explore theoretical and possibly philosophical concepts. CGI may be explored as a comparison within the same mechanism.

This may be closer to the heart of the proposal but is not as clearly testible as the proposal to specifically test tactile & cgi within the field of physics.

Touching The Quantum

2009-12-20T20:41:00.005Z

Can animation enable accessibility to an emerging nano reality. As quantum mechanics describes a complex world and quantum technology offers a radical departure from the tactile... Animation may be able to offer a bridge to this world. If it can then which aesthetic would be most effective in communicating the theory ? CGI or Real-space animation ? Why and Which offers the greatest recall ? and why?

Does haptic sensory perception increase the effectiveness of visual communication ?
Is CGI at the end of its usefulness as a sophisticated tool of communication?
If so why ? Where does it fail.. where is it most effective ? Where can cognitive memory be improved ?

Would a comparible study of CGI & Tactile animation result in a clear answer... or maybe the hybrid animation evolving at present may be the most effective solution ? If so.. why exactly ?

Would research and the production of four animated films using both Tactile/real space and also CGI on the Theme of the nano world, provide the answers to this, advance the field and also advance the professional practice.

Pre-Christmas renderering

2009-12-18T10:58:00.002Z

The Open Studio event went well yesterday. The Cov & Warwickshire BBC have suggested we write up a piece on the collective... which they may be able to publish for us. We also have a contact at the Warks Radio who may be interested in raising our profile.

It is important to tie up some loose ends before the Christmas break. Rendering of some outstanding sequences is underway today. Whilst the computer churns away I am skecthing out a christmas image and maybe later I will venture out with my snow gear on and my camera. The view is stunning from the window.

There are many books and lists scattered around the desk as the research proposal receives an overhaul...It's very fortunate that research is a satisfying and enjoyable chore.. so it's no great hardship. Besides I cannot get away with working at my desk over Christmas but reading is allowed.

Open Studio prep.

2009-12-15T23:04:00.003Z

Whilst still preparing for Christmas at home the studio is taking shape beautifully. Jo has fixed the outside light and tidied up. I have dropped off the pies and non-alcho pops together with fairy lights for the trees. The Projector has unfortunately broken but will be played on the Laptops. This is better in alot of respects as slideshows and videos can be set on loops to play with separate sound tracks. It's a shame I could get a new lead for the Pico.. it's on order from China.

I am feeling happy that I seem to be in a great creative flow at the moment. I have been drawn to McCartney and the animation work of Terry Gilliam (Monty Python) and then they seem to emerge as a trend. I have other instincts on trend too and have been told to use this in my work.

I don't believe that basing your practice on a passing trend is very sound or ultimately fulfilling though. My work is tactile and illustrates with paper .. but that really is as far as the latest trend goes. I believe there is a depth of development and research to my work that will sustain it through changing trends.

The work has evolved from my textiles and engineering roots, deeply embedded in my work. It also resulted from an honest and simple reaction to digital/cgi .... Tactile placed within the natural world represents true reality... a breath of fresh air and freedom maybe.

The work attempts to reach further than physical limitations, interconnects and engages with a deeper reality... usually represented through electron-microscopic imagery...is represented with Cotton thread and paper. Forces and formation, become part of a real and tangible experience.

Open Studio Day on Thursday 17th December

2009-12-13T18:59:00.002Z

Preparations for the open studio day are underway. Today I transported a large oak plan chest from an Artist in Haseley, to our studios in Ansty. I have placed work in there from the last three years. I am slowly photographing and catalogue all my sketchbook and rough work which will enable me to build a digital resource of my own images. These will act as a resource and source of inspiration for future work. I may even re-remember some of the valuable advice I have been given...

I am working all day on Monday and hope that I will be able to combine my new showreel with the studio promo. I will download this to my ipod and link up the pocket projector to play the work on a loop for the open day. The promo is a brief intro to the studios. The plan is to develop this further for completion in June. This is when Warwickshire Open Studios takes place.

It would be great to meet and greet industry professionals from a wide spectrum of the creative industries... animators, sculptors, commissioners, musicians, artists, and many others will hopefully attend the event.

Showreel

2009-12-10T10:15:00.002Z

The sound for the showreel has been altered and is delightful as the sound had undertones of running water previously unheard in the original track. This seems appropriate for the work and especially for the present project "Bubble".

It has been decided that two disks may be appropriate for my body of work as I seek to split the work into experimental work and commercial work. I am just working on some musical box sounds to add into the two disks at the moment.

I have some packaging prototypes and have a full list of contacts to post my showreel to. This showreel will be sent out to industry and also two postgtrad courses in January... I am also going to make the first presentation to Lean Mean Fighting Machine in the new year.

At the moment I am working on an animatic for the Studio collective at Mobbs Wood.. This will happen very quickly and I will post the results when they are complete. I am also working on some a short 60 second film titles animation.

On the back burner is my most defining large work at present, I am slowly refining the idea and storyboarding.. this is taking form in my private sketchbooks. It may be that the research and sketchs will be as important as the final work for research applications so I dont believe there is any rush on this at the moment.

Sound

2009-11-13T10:03:00.002Z

Roger at born in A Barn Professional Sound Studio looked at the showreel and sifted through a few films that need some sound cleaning up yesterday. It was discussed that it may be possible to hire and purchase professional sound equipment for collecting sound. It seems that the purchase of quality mics etc will be prohibitively expensive to start with...but it's probably a matter of aquiring the right equipment over time. Portability is important for collecting experimental sound and playing with ideas.

There is also a need to look at more sensitive equipment and underwater sound recording equipment..

The aim is to start to build a box of unique collected sound bytes in order to develop a distinctive sound for the growing body of work.

It is also hoped that two musical box tracks will be recorded in the studio to add to the showreel. This will add something special to the overall feel of the work.

It is intended that the end of December will be a good dealine for the showreel and pack as it will enable the work to be presented to professionals within industry and for research/production.

FLIP

2009-11-09T12:54:00.003Z

FLIP International Animation Festival was brilliant this year ( http://flipfestival.co.uk/ ). The talented chaps "The brothers Mcleod" ...."http://www.brothersmcleod.co.uk/" Although I am sure they may have cloned a few more sets of brothers .. as I am not sure how they managed to do everything... They certainly made it a memorable one.

All I had to do was to turn up and enjoy it. Apart from the showreel presentation to the live audience (where I was told to get up there and.. well..take it like a man haha!) It was relaxed and very supportive.

As a newbie to the industry I found the showreel crit of great value. I have met some fantastically talented (and incredibly humble) animation professionals who have inspired and given support to fresh talent who attended the event. We were able to join discussion groups and get involved with the latest issues in the industry with lively debate from all corners.

If anyone really wants to know how to improve their practice, make sound friends and generally know what is happening in their own field, in their own backyard.. it would be rude not to attend their local Animation Festival... FLIP was one of the best events I have been to of its kind around.

I will be going next year.. with some improved work and a few more experiences under my belt.. Fantastic weekend !!!

Golden Stiletto & Manish Kapoor exhibition

2009-11-02T21:08:00.002Z

I love visiting London especially for exciting exhibitions such as the Kapoor exhibition at the Royal Academy. Totally brilliant. I would definitely recommend a visit if at all possible before December. I was most struck by the animation and alive-ness of the work. The slow pace of motion, the clever use of fear and sound filled the visitors such excitement and anticipation....

The Golden Stiletto awards was excellent. It was really great to be with so many successful women, allthough I didn't stay long as I was, unfortunately developing a nasty cold. I did have a great chat with the women from the Lean Mean Fighting Machine. They seemed intrigued by my practice and showed such enthusiasm and interest in my practice.. they actually asked me to present an interactive workshop one Friday afternoon... and of course I said yes!

Today I spoke with Jo about producing an animated film to showcase the collectives talents. I am making the ident this week and taking video next week... expecting the editing to take place before the end of November. Be great to produce a flyround of the buildings and google map the area for a possible website... Be great experimental work to combine CGI with Tactile and live footage...

I dont rest for long... but I like it this way...

Quiet Day

2009-10-27T23:04:00.002Z

I have no news to write about regarding the results for D&AD 30 Day Challenge... I have been catching up on a few essential admin jobs. I am just jotting down loose new ideas in my sketchbook ...the strange project I woke up with yesterday.. I am also ticking over my thoughts on the Jelly briefs...I have an aim to complete a full portfolio of new work over the next couple of months to initiate a new Illustration portfolio.

Ideas are still forming for Breathe.. It will be great to form this project over the autumn months with filming planned in February.. looking for good icy cold conditions...the deadline for applications is 9th November. I have a perfect photographer in mind to produce the stop-motion images .. I am just going to nail down the script and storyboards for the project.

Studio Day

2009-10-26T22:26:00.002Z

General admin at the studio. Installed second desk and chair for client meetings and general admin work. Polish and tidy ready for the Digishorts project. I had a really interesting idea on waking this morning. I will sketch up the engineering and designs for the project and post them up in a few days.

I also have some exciting thoughts on the PhD proposal. I am interested in the emerging trend in Tactile, departure from pure CGI and the possible connection to haptic response in taping into cognitive response, the amygdala and emotional memory. There are a number of fields the resulting research could be utilised, advertising, education and many other communications where effective communication is key.

I am taking a short break to allow for these projects to emerge. Relaxing and filling up the creative resources.

Showreel for FLIP

2009-10-25T13:12:00.002Z

New showreel posted on vimeo and youtube. The experience with the 30 day challenge has made itclearly evident that the value of publishing work in this way keeps the wider industry network, as well as close contacts, updated on the development of the practice.This has been invaluable in forging new and influential contacts as well as extending the network in positive ways. It is probably very important to ensure the updates are relevant and interesting though. The importance of not wearing out your welcome must also be respected.

I have been advised that the competitors for D&AD 30 Day Challenge will know the result on Tuesday...

First Day of new project

2009-10-23T11:11:00.002+01:00

Project "relax and enjoy" begins today.. Lots of great animation festivals coming up, Manchester and Wolverhampton FLIP, She Says Golden Stilhetto next week at Ronnie Scots, London.. going to have coffee at the Tate, Anish Kapoor at The Royal Academy and .. daydreaming...

Lovely.

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Final Days 28-30

2009-10-21T22:31:00.003+01:00

I re-edited and posted the second final day film on Vimeo and e-mailed my contacts to drive home a final call for action. I have no idea at the moment how successful the campaign has been but I know that I have gained a great deal from the experience. My online profile has been raised through the awareness of the campaign and this has drawn attention to my professional practice. I have gained some valuable contacts through the education network and have received a number of offers to submit my work to festivals in the uk and abroad.

The most interesting and exciting opportunity... Tehran Animation festival 2011. I have also had contact from the ZubrOFFvka, Poland this December. I have also entered the Golden Stiletto awards and of course there is FLIP coming up very soon.

I have completed the 30 Day Challenge and hope that this recieves some interest from Digital Art/Photography etc.. I really must write up a short peice and submit this to the magazines on my practice at some point.

The next phase of work is to prepare for the large Breathe Project .. I am happy to take the time necessary to really develop this work.

I am also completing the "Typography" Illustration work and Film as a self initiated peice and as a prelude to a small body of work for Jelly London. This work will be the next short term project as my aim is to submit my portfolio to Jelly following their help and advice at New Blood in June.

I am so very excited, waiting for the judges response to the GrOw campaign....

D&AD Challenge Day 26-27

2009-10-19T08:33:00.004+01:00

I have been making beautiful music on my musical box mechanism over the weekend. I have to say I am completely absorbed by it. I have also been speaking to a great photographer and also a writer for the Digishorts entry. This will be an amazing project if I can pull it off. It will propel my work forward and be a beautiful addition to my growing body of work. I am very excited by the thought of producing it.

I am entering the Shesays Golden Stiletto Awards. I didn't think I was going to as the women are just so unbelievable, successful and talented, and well very very established in this industry. But... well it would be a great night out in Ronnie Scotts so it would be rude not to apply :)

So, Today I am going to work hard to get all my entries in for the competition/awards/festival work and then complete the D&AD GrOw Campaign over the next couple of days. Then I am going on an expedition to the Peak District to find a perfect waterfall.

D&AD 30 Day Challenge 22 to 25

2009-10-16T15:27:00.002+01:00

I have been working on a new Illustration and Animation which illustrates the field of Typography. I have worked up some roughs and taken location shots. I have collected together the materials for prop making and have today recieved my musical box mechanism. I am experimenting with sound making which has been very interesting today. The sound echoes with a beautiful resonance in an old wooden case I have aquired.

I attended the Digishorts presentation yesterday and found it to be very useful. I am unsure whether my work would translate to a short film for digishorts. I am going to have a think about it. I also have a number of competition and festival entries to apply for before the end of October , not to mention the FLIP showreel to re-edit.

I just want to get on with the films I have planned over the winter.. so a certain amount of prioritisation is necessary to ensure these are made... as an old friend once said "The work will get made.."

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Day 22

2009-10-12T12:06:00.002+01:00

This morning I have been out to the location for my next project and taken some location shots. Although I have seen the place a few times I needed to see exactly what would be in shot from various angles. I removed some fruit from the site to experiment with and will make the props tomorrow for filming on Wednesday. Expecting to edit on Thursday and publish (date) .

The sky today is brilliant blue .. little cloud (beautiful day but poor for timelapse) I expect the clouds to form later on this afternoon.

I keep getting the lyric "yello" by coldplay running through my head so I am going to order a musical box set and paper to produce my own music. I am unsure how long it will take to get here.. no matter I can always post it up when I have it. It's not essential for the campaign but would be appropriate for the visuals.

I spoke to FLIP animation festival today regarding a showreel presentation and review. to see if they would be interested in seeing my work in their showreel review section of the festival.

I am also attending Digishorts on Thursday 15th October 2-4 to find out about funding for a short animation.

I have also called Max at Business Link WM ... he is so on the ball regarding business advice he was superb. I am doing all I can to raise the profile of the practice but now essentially need to start pitching for work.. am I ready ? Well as ready as I am going to be ...

D&AD 30 Day Challenge 18-21

2009-10-11T22:55:00.002+01:00

I realise I am catching up on my blog but I have been working extremely hard behind the scenes. I have spoken to a few contacts and am working on a second wave of contact before the final deadline of the 21st October. Today is the 11th October so effectively 10 days from tomorrow! I am re-editing Grow to shorten it. I am still working on another short and some illustrations for this project. I am taking some location shots tomorrow and sketching out the illustrations... It may be that these wont be necessary.

I have also been working on a number of other projects, in addition to this campaign. I am looking at festival entries I am thinking of applying to Digishorts funding for a short film. I am attending the Digishorts talk on Thursday which may answer a few questions I have. There's also a myriad of short film festivals coming up and I am considering which ones to send in my work.

I am also looking at the SheSays award for the coveted golden Stillhetto ... Aime (my daughter) said that if I won two I could wear them. How Sweet !

With regards to the PhD I have been speaking to a few friends in the industry who have been very helpful and encouraging. I need to give serious consideration to taking the practice forward into research and I accept this may take some time. I need to consider the resources I will need and the plan for the development of the research program. Paul Wells is undoubtedly the most creative and knowledgable Animation professional in the UK and I would be very humbled to work with him. I also owe a great debt to my Tutor and Mentor Francis Lowe, without him I would not be here.

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Day 17

2009-10-07T20:38:00.002+01:00

I am working on a "second wave" of work next week...and will probably follow it up with a third and final near the deadline. I think this is enough and will not bother my contacts too much.. besides I think they are genuinely interested in the work. Especially if I can post storyboards for the work in the commercial section of my website.. I think it could be pretty interesting for students to see the thought process behind the work too. I intend to show this in a portfolio of work. I would also like to add the Illustration work into the Commercial Illustration section.

So.. absolutely no rest for a completely dedicated creative !

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Day 16

2009-10-07T20:30:00.003+01:00

Pretty Quiet on the campaign front. There is still a steady stream of video viewings on youtube and Vimeo which is a sign Tutors and Creative professionals are looking at GrOw.

I am now working on a second wave of marketing due to be sent on and around 12/13th October to remind students and give inspiration for facebook.

The new film aimed specifically at the FACEBOOK GrOw global group is planned for Sunday. With post taking place on Monday. I would like to post up two/three further Illustrations to encourage participation in registration and to promote the Facebook group.

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Day 15

2009-10-05T22:39:00.002+01:00

I have been considering a second wave of contact which may prompt a strong response in students to register. I am going to post a few Illustrations and another film at this weekend and send it out again.

I really don't want to outstay my welcome with my contacts though so I reckon 3 times in a month is the max I will contact them.

I need to reedit the film but will post this tomorrow night on a second link.. this will go out with the next wave. I am still looking to extend my contacts abroad...

D&AD 30 day Challenge DAY 14

2009-10-05T22:35:00.002+01:00

I have spent most of the day looking for new contacts and groups to join in order to raise the profile of GrOw. The feedback I am getting from the people I have managed to get through to has been very positive.

I n my own mind, this campaign will be successful if I 1) Promote the D&AD 2) Promote my own work 3) Inspire some students to get outside 4) Make some great and lasting contacts in the industry.... 5) If I win it.

It's all good.

D&AD Challenge Day 13

2009-10-03T20:45:00.003+01:00

I have been into the Studio (I have a shared studio space near Coombe Abbey, Coventry) I am keen to get back there to work on some sewing construction work I have planned. I intend to plan a further film and illustration work for GrOw next week.

In my experimental practice, I am making a 3D Screen using movable stitchwork and paper. (The image is further down the blog). Using my body of work and research in the theories of the proposed unified field , surface tension and force I transform the sheet (matter) into shape.

I am looking at bubble formation. I am looking at the possibilities of experimenting with 3DsMax as a tool to create the perfect bubble and take this image into real space animation. The panel sometimes.. but not always follows the 3D sculpture as I wrestle to understand the process. This is then transformed into a 3D paper sculpture.. kinetically engineering to animate. At this stage I am not sure whether this will be possible...

The experimental work is interested in pattern and shape transformation which gives rise to bursts or bubbles, creating natural motion. My focus is on 6 or 5 sized patterns, shapes and symmetry breaking.

This work fed into the final GrOw animation. I am pleased that the work communicates a clear message but in retrospect I could have made it snappier. The first 3 sequences would benefit from an increased in speed, and I am cutting down the titles. I think I was a little overwhelmed by the total project in terms of campaign management.. I knew I would be stretched out of my comfort zone on this one. I just wanted to do a good job and make a great film.

Anyway I will review when it's all over.I am still spreading the word with GrOw and I will continue to steadily get it out there without annoying by contacts.. tight line to tread.

D&AD Challenge Day 12

2009-10-02T21:05:00.002+01:00

I have redesigned the website and removed the old youtube video and replaced with the Vimeo. The layout looks much more simple and clean. I have also parred back the e-mail... I think my previous one was far to long and a little too familiar. I have now kept it very simple.

I e-mailed D&AD the final film. They came gave great constructive feedback which is what I was thinking too. I can't re-edit and publish just yet as the link will be different to the advertising I have out there but intend to put it on the website in the next few days.

I said that I would probably make mistakes.. and I have but you live and learn.

Campaign management is alot more difficult than you imagine it to be... It's much easier to make films.. which is lucky for me I think.

D&AD Challenge Day 11

2009-10-02T20:59:00.002+01:00

It was completely crazy. The Code came through at 12.00 and I then needed to add this to the final film, render it, convert it and compress it to MP4 for Youtube.. which uploaded instantly and then onto Vimeo. Vimeo took forever to upload, but I really like the quality and layout for my web site.

I uploaded a pre-designed web page featuring the code and added the links to D&AD and Facebook.

I the started adding myself to groups, emailing messaging everyone on mylist...

I finally finished late into the night.

11.50pm

2009-09-30T23:49:00.002+01:00

I am just finishing the final render of the 30 Day Challenge Campaign Film. Sound effects and Titles completed apart from the Code...This first render will be a benchmark in regards to how long it will take to render tomorrow.. Vimeo takes quite a while to upload whereas Youtube is pretty well immediate.

The film is beautiful and sophisticated ... Hopefully inspirational aswell.

Everything Is ready.. full contacts/email/web/film/pdfs... dont think I have missed anything...

Now SLEEP...

D&AD Challenge Day 10

2009-09-30T21:00:00.002+01:00

Today I re-shot some sequences I wasn't satisfied with from the previous animatic. I have added these sequences in and am now in the process designing the titles and sound. The contact list is near finished and the website is ready to go. Fergal has advised that it's probably best to delay putting up too much information before feedback.

Tonight I am completing the post-production and producing a microsoft AVI & MP4 264 for Vimeo & Youtube. I just need to add these links into the marketing material and then await the code.

As long as the work is posted under a Vimeo Code tonight.. I will be relaxed tomorrow morning.

D&AD Challenge Day 9

2009-09-30T20:54:00.002+01:00

I completed the details on the New Website page. I am pleased with the concept now as it feels more fully formed since I have written it up on the Web. I just need to check out the dates with Fergal, include a few links and a page counter. I have also spent alot of time researching the contacts and hope that I will be effective.. although I suspect that it may be unknown untill the final count exactly how effective it has been.

D&AD Challenge Day 8

2009-09-28T17:00:00.002+01:00

I managed to submit the campaign PDF and Animatic after Lunch today.. I had to rewire and default the modem to factory settings as It blew the Filter late last night.

I had to drive over to Hinckley to get access to a Broadband so I could reach the deadline in time. I have missed a day filming the remaining sequences today so I hope tomorrow will be fine. Its interesting how I am able to adapt and keep calm in the most extreme circumstances.. perhaps I have just bypassed "Panic" and am into "Couldn't give a flying ...." mode !

I intend to collate a full contact attack tonight and update the Website ready for Launch ! This is crazy.. at a moment today I caught myself looking at myself from outside myself... A strange moment...

Still If I do the admin work tonight, tomorrow i can perfect the film.. and that's the work I really enjoy.

Anyway, Campaign submitted so I wait patiently for the feedback & code ...

11.45pm

2009-09-27T23:43:00.003+01:00

The Animatic is finished.. all I need to add is the Strap line.. which changes moment to moment ! I think I will go back to my original plan and keep it simple. The film is looking good.. the right length and with the right sound effects it may just be very beautiful indeed :)

I have written up the campaign but am trying to upload the Animatic under a password protected site.. this may help in the feedback and avoid having to include too many stills.. making the submission too long !

I am not sure of the deadline time tomorrow so will e-mail Fergal first thing in the morning.. I would like to read through my written submission in the morning so I can spot any errors. This is good fun .. I am feeling quite pleased at how much I can get done when I am under pressure... although I think it may shorten the lifespan quite considerably ...

D&AD Challenge Day 7

2009-09-27T17:03:00.002+01:00

Well.. Today I got up early to shoot over to the studio to collect my shutter control and favourite knife. I felt relaxed and excited to start work. Recently I have spent so much time away from my creative work, going to meetings (most of which reaped good rewards), and writing up my research plans for the future application to the Mphil and PhD programs. I was nervous about the challenge.. it was quite a shock to realise I had to conceive, plan and execute a global campaign in such a short time. But it released a block to be getting on with the work I enjoy so much.

I cant say at this stage whether this work will be better than my String Feary animation... It is different from the Micro Animation work they may be expecting but it falls in with my current experimental practice nicely.

It is now 5.00pm and I have completed most of the footage. I had lighting issues with the filming as the sun was blazing hot then shadowed very quickly. I may have to reshoot the extremes of these shots, subtly edit them or cut them altogether.

What I do have is the bare bones of a good animatic. I have pared down the animation to its purest form and am going to work hard at keeping the purity of the peice. I am now processing the images to 16:9 and editing as I go.

By the end of tonight I intend to have a near finished animatic and all Advertising files done and packaged for the submission tomorrow. I already have a document ready to add in some stills and hope that this will be enough.

I have a basic marketing strategy to implement although I am nervous about it as I have never attempted anything like this before. Still If my work raises the profile of the D&AD I can consider it a success as I do owe the D&AD a great deal. I have had interest from Illustration agents, book publishers and have had great aadvice on my portfolio etc... Be rude not to return the favour...

Here Goes .. editing :0

D&AD Challenge Day 6

2009-09-27T16:58:00.002+01:00

I worked right through the day and late into the following morning. I have to admit that at one point I was shaking and wondered why on earth I agreed to take such a huge challenge. I continued to story board my concept and felt better once I had the film in sequence. I then moved onto making props for filming on Sunday. I worked hard to design the secret send out but that was all done and has been filed for now.

At 1.00am I cleared my desk and set out my production equipment ready for Sunday. I had checked the weather and it was due to be bright all Day... that was a relief !

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Day 5

2009-09-25T10:41:00.002+01:00

I am reviewing the work I did yesterday and have decided to throw out the more complicated elements and keep it simple, and well executed !

This morning I am going to collect together the materials for the work in order to start filming ,on Saturday, the first part of the Film. I will then be able to provide an animatic and brief campaign plan for Mondays deadline. I hope to submit a clear and concise vision of my plan to the D&AD and hope for a positive response.

IF I can work experimentally through this challenge, I may make mistakes, but I will undoubtedly learn from the experience.

D&AD 30 Day Challenge Day 4

2009-09-25T10:32:00.002+01:00

On day 4 I started to design the Submission work for the campaign. I have made sketch outlines and taken initial photographs for the items I intend to send out.

It is going well but I feel it needs some refining so that I set the tone right. The Initial contact will be to the Tutors so I would like this to be very inspirational. The film I am making has a very beautiful and ethereal quality .. which I hope will inspire the Tutors and promt the Students into entering. There will be a chance for students to post and share their own animation/film and design work.

I also began collating a complete mailing list for the UK. Although when I was processing images on Photoshop, printing and uploading at the same time.. the p.c crashed ! So I carried on working on my mac until it got a grip on itself and started working again... Technology !

I am updating this on Day 5 as I was deep in work yesterday.

D&AD 30 Day Challenge : Day 3

2009-09-23T10:11:00.001+01:00

The Campaign brief is written up for submission on Monday. I am just waiting for the weather to brighten up so I can start making the film. I will include some stills in the brief.

Exciting !

D&AD challenge : Day 2

2009-09-22T20:22:00.002+01:00

I have my final Idea for the D&AD challenge ! Query a couple of things with Fergal tomorrow then onto the storyboarding...

Hint : 6 point geometry, GROW and March !

30 Day Challenge D&AD

2009-09-21T21:22:00.002+01:00

The 30 day challenge begins! I have read the brief and have a few pages of initial ideas.. Research tomorrow at the Studio.

This morning I have cleared some space to work on the challenge and helped Jo set up her Website.. very enjoyable. I am going to work on the proposal for the Mphil and start the work on my experimental research. I am hoping that the research will inform my commercial work as this appears to be the way my work evolves and was successful in m degree work.

Tomorrow I will draw out a 3D map for the 2d Screen Bubble. Bubble is a 6 sided growth pattern that may give rise to symmetry breaking and creation in the natural world.

New Work

2009-09-20T18:50:00.002+01:00

I have been on location today searching for the perfect place to begin work on a new project. I am going to be in the studio all of next week sketching out my ideas on this one. I have delayed starting this work due to Masters applications and such like and have reached a point where this work needs to begin before the weather turns into Autumn rain.

I have two bridge locations and a hedge of spiders.. very interesting. I will post the images as work begins.

Proposal

2009-09-19T21:20:00.003+01:00

I have spent all day working on a new proposal for the Mphil/PhD. Although I have a clear idea of the progress of my practice... I work in experiemental animation through tactile image makingand deal with the concept of Interconnection in the Nano New world view... but how do I honestly begin to formulate a question of research for this work ?

It appears that CGI is inaccessible to haptic sensory perception. It separates the viewer from the subject matter through incomprehension of technique and unfamiliarity with its materials.

The main theme in my work is concerned with the Unified Field Theory and especially Quantum Mechanics. This has arisen out of a desire to understand the world I occupy. The physicality of matter and space.. arriving at a point of realisation in regard to the physical limitations of the human form in perceiving the real world.

So still.. what is my actual question of research ? Why am I doing this work ?

PhD

2009-09-19T10:26:00.003+01:00

I have spent the morning updating the website with a new home page. I would like to add in more images and have worked out how to add in my own code.

I have also been thinking about funding options for the PhD. I have a few irons in the fire at the moment. I need to consider my proposal in terms of a specific question or issue of investigation.. The foundation of the study is good however it needs to be more specific.

I am going to be working on a top secret project next week.... which is very exciting. I am sure all will become clear on Monday. I will be in the studio all of next week working on this project and some new illustration work.

I am going to spend the rest of today working through a new A3 Portfolio and have a couple of prints I am going to frame for the studio. I have a huge amount of paperwork to get through but I am going to leave that until tomorrow as I simply cant face it..

Its not how good you are its how good you want to be

2009-09-13T14:48:00.002+01:00

I have been saying this to myself over the last few months and yesterday came across a book written with the same title. So I bought the book and read it. It reflects on an attitude to life.. kind of a simple modern bible for the creative arts.

I also picked up a book entitled Finding Santuary... Written by the Abbot of the bbc tv series The Monastery. In part of the book the althor talks of the habit of reading. In some monasteries reading is forbidden as it is said to be a discourse of chatter in the mind. The Abbot makes an interesting point about skim reading...

An interesting sector talked of reading something and then reading it again as in a circle.. each time gleaning something different from the text. This may explain why I read and re-read as I do and it seems to suggest yet another kind of cycle.. the cycle of thought, reflection and absorbtion of new thought.

The book is interesting in a number of ways. First it challenges your perception of the monastery and second it questions personal defined rules. I found parts difficult to read, particularly on obedience and God...I have, at times, found authority difficult to obey feeling that I know what is best for me or through having been disappointed by authority. I feel much more in control and peaceful being my own authority. I have strong thoughts concerning the control of society through religion.