"Kara"

Absolutely amazing!



by Quantic Dream

Future of Game Graphics: VFX Tech Demo

Inspiration

HEREAFTER Featurette: Visual Effects Shot Breakdowns Reel

Unreal Engine 3: Official Samaritan Demo

I love you!

Beautiful animation and poetry that touched my heart. Sorry, no translation.

8 bits

Good night!

Wonderful animation from french animation school Supinfocon. Nostalgia.
p.s. No meaning, but still lovely - everything in performance

Lip Sync

Here is my Lip Sync, I didn't know that it is so fun to do, especially when you see the result. I enjoyed doing it, really. I still think that I can do better than this, therefore, I definitely will do another one. Anyway we all be doing another one to 11club competition.

Spirited Away

Spirited Away (千と千尋の神隠し, Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi?, literally, Sen and Chihiro's Spiriting Away) is a 2001 Japanese animated film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and produced by Studio Ghibli.

The film received many awards, including the second Oscar ever awarded for Best Animated Feature, the first anime film to win an Academy Award, and the first (and so far only) non-English speaking animation to win. The film also won the Golden Bear at the 2002 Berlin International Film Festival (tied with Bloody Sunday) and is among the top ten in the BFI list of the 50 films you should see by the age of 14.

Spirited Away overtook Titanic in the Japanese box office to become the highest-grossing film in Japanese history.


The animation film “Spirited Away”, which was orientated towards Japanese audience in the first place, was accepted and became loved by other viewers. This is not an adaptation of the classic novel, neither an action film or fantasy, but rather half fairy tale – half parable, directed towards specific audience. Something of “what is good and what is bad” from the man of elderly age, who observes how his familiar world begins to change and how unshakeable things turn into memory. He made not a fantasy quest, which can be understood by anyone in the present days. Miyazaki filled the film with national and temporal colour story. The film is not only about growing up (like in “Totoro”), but finding your inner true.

Beneath rust there is hidden a shining blade. The same way the good and the true essence of every human are hidden beneath cowardice, laziness and greediness. Principal denying of evil in Japanese culture is based on belief that every man must have his own place and can be judged by his status and duties. It is possible to clear yourself from every mistake and fault. This is the secret of real magic, which can turn the stink spirit into the great master of rivers and remove the most terrifying curse. Evil is dirt which must be removed, cleaned, scraped off and thrown away – and then there will be goodness and beauty. Famous Japanese cleanliness and accuracy are based on this belief.

It is useless to guess who is bad and who is good in this animation: terrifying Yubaba, the twin-sister of “good” Zeniba, who is modest and caress. However, she tried to kill the thief without any hesitation. The true treasure for Yubaba is not gold. It is not by accident that Yubaba’s business serves a worthy cause.

Good and evil are no more than reflections of each other. In some ways they are different, but both are equally strict to “lazybones”. The world behind abandoned railroad station – this is the ideal Miyazaki’s Japan, where everyone can live only by working and occupying a proper place. Otherwise you can disappear, become soot or turn into a pig.

It is cruel, but fair. Traditional, however too didactical in some places: even tiny animated dust creatures called susuwatari from Totoro are working; Chihiro signs a true treaty, a true gift for her is a hair tie – which was made not by spell, but in the result of cooperative labour. The gifts like this are more expensive than gold, which was offered by “no face”. Even “No face” wasn’t released from a spell and did not become a good person – he just found his own home and home duties. He found himself and his place in this world. Isn’t it a main goal in our life?



I must admit that there are many nuances in the rules of “universal work”: to do a work for someone is not right. The sequence in boiler room: Chihiro’s sincere pity turns into a real problem for her and for the common cause.

Realizing his own ideal-disappearing Japan Miyazaki traditionally opens visual magnificence of visual environment: the soft contrast of day and night; sky, water and grass are pliable and smooth; detailed precision in surrounded world. Some kind of “candy for eyes” is very similar to a child’s perception – many spirits and deities in the bathhouse remind of toys and pictures from childhood. Doll-like and colour creatures who inhabit this world arouse associations with bright flags of national holydays, filled with saturated colours of Ukiyo-e’s ("pictures of the floating world") engravings, costumes and Kabuki masks. Only for this reason alone the viewer can love “Spirited away” – as many people fell in love with many-sided and eternal beauty of Japan and Japanese understanding of beauty.

The loss of this world-view does not mean growing up, but forgetting yourself. To lose one’s own difficult Japanese name and change it on something short and comfortable. To lose a skill to see the beauty of hills which are covered by grass. Not regret that you didn’t take bread and butter for picnic, how did Chihiro’s mother. The attitude towards food in this animation is a mockery to modern cook programs which became popular in Japanese.

There are lots of details in “Spirited away”, so it is hard to call this animation film a fairy tale. There are many sad notes, even difficult moments, and sense of loss of something important fills this film from the beginning to the final titles, when sunlight plays with the dust in the desert interiors of abandoned rail station and everything that happened is perceived as a dream. This is a different Miyazaki, he is tired rather than old – but able to save this child’s desire to change the world and make it better.

The whole animation is filled with different characters. Every character in this film deserves a separate story. Even that one leg lamp, which we can see only for few seconds, does not leave our minds. Miyazaki does not give explanation to some characters and he leaves you with your own guesses. This is incredible and opposite from Disney animation where everything is clear.

After all these magic adventures Chihiro has got only memories, hair tie and own name – the real treasures. Will she meet the master of river of amber again and what will happen to her in the new school? Who knows? But she already saved her parents. She convicted herself that without hard and dirty work you can not clean river spirits, can not calm down greed and self-interest spirits, you don’t find your own place and don’t save those who need to be saved. She doesn’t forget her name and doesn’t become someone else. Even if the train goes only one way and it is forbidden to look back – she will definitely meet the dragon which she saw in the childhood. These moments are not be to forgotten.

This is truly a masterpiece!

The Way - Animation

This beautiful and unique animation was created in 2003 in Maya by Qing Huang.
"The animation reflects an ancient Taoist view of the world as a constant changing process or metamorphosis of forms rather than seemingly isolate entities. And the law of changing is rather seemingly chaotic and spontaneous and yet under an elusive deterministic order which somewhat matches the notion of fractal in Chaos theory."
Chinese CG: 气韵生动 (The Way)

Animation Theatre 1

I could not understand the Norman McLaren's animations. Probably, I was on the different wave and couldn't catch the mood or I have different taste, which discord with these animations.

Norman McLaren Begone dull care 1949

And ?

The Pas de Deux(1968)


I am not telling that these animations are bad. They are good, especially The Pas de Deux - beautifully made and perfectly delivered to the audience.
I just didn't like it.

Fantasia is a 1940 American animated film produced by Walt Disney.

Fantasia - lo schiaccianoci

Fantasia - Russian flowers

Fantasia - Night on Bold Mountain


The brilliant atmosphere: from dancing psychedelic mushroom in chinese style to demon from the mountain. And the musical illustration is delightfully performed by orchestra.
Back to childhood.

Final Pre-Viz

This is my final pre-viz. I know there are mistakes that need to be polished, especially camera work and montage. I disagree with Phil, that there are a lot of cross dissolves. I think, they give smoothness to the story. In my opinion, it is not good pre-viz, however I know it works. Because, audience feel the emotional message of this story and understand its sadness and beauty. Of course this is not Hollywood and I am not Spielberg.

If you have something to add, please do it.

This project was difficult. I had many problems with character design, which was not successful. But I think, after practice and understanding of human anatomy I will be able to draw normal characters. No matter how difficult 'unit 4' was I am pleased with it, because I have learned something new: storyboarding, editing (theory), camera work (theory and practical part)…

Thanks to our tutors: Phil & Alan.

Pre-viz

How to train your dragon

How to train your dragon. March 26.

The adventure comedy is set in the mythical world of burly Vikings and wild dragons, based on the book by Cressida Cowell. The story centers around a Viking teenager, who lives on the island of Berk, where fighting dragons is a way of life. Initiation is coming, and this is his one chance to prove his worthiness to his tribe and father. But when he encounters, and ultimately befriends, an injured dragon, his world is turned upside down.

Mr.Freeman, part 0

Are we prisoners or free to follow our own path ?

Maya

Bouncing Ball

Graph Editor

Sebastian's Voodoo

A voodoo doll must find the courage to save his friends from being pinned to death. The heroic sacrifice theme is not new, but this animation is really good. I'm just wondering how many time and patience it requiers.