Showreel

So here is my first ever Showreel! I've already had some great feedback on it, loads to change, but not before my interview tomorrow. Once Project Duplicity is done I shall make a new one with the the feedback I have had. Anyway enjoy!


Showreel 2011-2012 from Amy Carpenter on Vimeo.

Rough Showreel

So I have a rough version of my showreel up and ready for feedback. We have interviews on Thursday so it is imperative that I get it looking good before then. So far feedback is positive, but I kind of feel its not snappy enough. It's almost as if by making it more montagey, I'd loose the information I'm trying to convey. I think I may add some chilled out music to it, and make it feel like it should be slower. It's a shame we haven't got a shot in the bag for Project Duplicity yet, as that would go great in the showreel. I can not wait to start putting those shots together!

Feedback, is as ever, wonderful and incredibly useful. 

Shutter Speed, F-Stops and ISO Settings

I have experimented with the dSLR considerably over the last two projects trying to find the middle ground between depth of field and grain. Sadly I have yet to find the perfect settings for a green screen shoot. As discussed in the previous project the issue with the F-Stop and ISO settings are that you are stuck between blurry lines or grainy footage, neither of which are particularly suitable for keying and compositing.

This project three in another aspect which created more problems. Shutter speed. When working in slow motion it is important it is important to increase the shutter speed to prevent motion blur, allowing for a clean crisp image at the point of standstill. However, this also reduces the amount of light entering the camera making the problem of depth of field vs grain worse. At the end of my film shoot I walked away with perfect for slow motion footage... But pretty much impossible to key without stepping and thick grey lines around the edges.

I consider everything I have done up to this point as practise for my final major project, and walked away learning an important lesson. The dSLRs produce gorgeous footage for on location shooting, but in the green screen they are less reliable. However the Z7 produces much more usable footage and this is the avenue I will go down for green screen shoots in the future.


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Final Edit

I have finally finished my project. I have to hand in a few days early due to personal commitments, so there are still a few tweaks that I would like to work out but I feel I don't have the time. There was also a great idea for a falling shot, to fit between the leap of faith and landing shot.  I opted however to spend my time trying to clean up the flaps in the opening shot, as this is the hero shot of the piece and ultimately the shot I am most proud of. I have also gone back through each shot cleaning up keys and colour grades where possible, and trying to carry out the advice of my tutor and the guys on concept share.

There are a few things that I did not do however. The general consensus seemed to be that lengthening the camera move in the opening shot would have been an improvement, however, without refilming this was incredibly fiddly. After experimenting for a short time in Maya with some static footage and extending the camera move, I decided that there was no way I could do this and make it look good in the time remaining and I preferred to spend my time fixing the shots I already have. I am keen however to return tot his project for my showreel, as the opening few shots would look really great if polished.

I have also added some Assassin Creed style interference/static and echo. Though this film has a more orange and green colour scheme (Heinz Salad Cream colours) as opposed to blues and purples (Assassin Creed colour scheme) I have tried to emulate the feel of the games adverts at every opportunity. Hopefully it works!

Assassins Cream Rough Edit

This is the first complete rough edit of my Assassins Cream commercial. A lot of the fight scene was cut out due to the sheer amount of post production required. It already has 20 shots and I felt I didn't need another 20 of much of the same. I look forward to feedback and will make a list of alterations to work on over the next few days.

Alterations:
Shadows in Shot One.
Roto tunic flaps in Shot One.
New rock texture in Shot One.
Colour matching jumping shots to shot one.
Improve key on struggle shot and last shot.
Colour matching sauce spray shot.
General colour grading.

Something needs to be done with the music. Suggestions are welcome.

I also want to get in there some cool Assassin Creed style static edits, and obviously I need a tag at the end. A lot of work to do in a week, but I'll get there!

So Close To Completion!

First rough edit nearly complete! Next step addressing issues in each shot and creating cool Assassins Creed static edits.



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I actually thought the the matte painting on the street would be easier to put together than the landscape for the opening shot. I had a clear idea of what I wanted it to look like, and took inspiration from images such as:

I loved the bright colours, and hanging drapes that would cast all sorts of shadows once comped with a sunset. 

However, thought would be aesthetically pleasing, I feel someone being mugged in the fashion that she was would not be carried out in a busy market place, and so I changed my idea so it looked more like a side street. I therefore came up with the following.

This is a first render, and there are some focusing issues. I was trying to make it look like depth of field and the camera focusing on the fight at the end of the street. However it hasn't quite worked and looks a bit blurry. Also After Effects has dropped all the clipped layers I had in place and so there are some colour issues that need to be fixed. 

Leap of Faith and Costume Secrets.

A very iconic part of Assassins Creed is the "Leap of Faith." This therefore is an important shot to get into the sequence. Here is my latest version of this shot.

There are some obvious colour grade issues with this shot that need to be addressed, but this is perhaps something to be left until the editing so all the shots are consistent.

I've has some question about the costume, people want to know where I bought it. I did not buy this costume from a shop, it was mostly made by me.

It consists of brown leggings, white long sleeved t shirt, grey hoodie and knee length leather boots from Primark. The cape came from a children's Dracula costume, the sash from a pirates costume, the tunic I made from a white bed sheet, and the rest (the jewellery and belts, wrist cuffs etc.) are kind donations from (mostly) my mother and the actor himself.  A lot of work went into getting this costume looking good, and was ultimately cheaper than buying either an Assassins Creed costume, of the substitute English Knight costume mentioned elsewhere is my blog. 

Opening Shot Revamp

So I dealt with a lot of the issues with the initial project, in this version. I have noticed that I missed a track marker in root, and will go back for that at some point, however it is time I moved on to the next few shots. I will return to this shot however as it is the hero shot of the piece.

Pre-Roto Render Shot 1

I haven't updated for a while, this shot has required quite a bit of roto to get the shadows back in the feet area. This is a pre-roto render to see how the shot works with the matte painting. I have had a list of things to alter on this shot which I am working on now. Nearly there now!

The most notable problem is the stone platform. I have produced a better texture for it, but it always seems to pixilate. Still awaiting feedback from my the Maya Lecturer before I push on too much with this aspect, though I intend to upload a new render to Concept Share to see if they have any ideas. I have been experimenting with UV texturing, which has helped but not perfected the problem.

There is still a lot to do on this shot, and many other shots to get working, so I fear if I have not finished with this shot before too long I shall have to leave it and come back to it at the end.

With filming now finished, I'm onto the post production side of things. Much of the work on the matte paintings has been done, though still requires a lot of work.

The shoot underwent a lot of issues. Primarily one of the actors failed to show up to pour costume meeting and so I had to improvise with a bed sheet on the day. This was a real shame as everyone else looked really good in their costumes and he stood out. This however could not be helped and hopefully won't be held against me when my final product is complete.

The shoot took longer than expected, and though the major shots were completed, my camera battery went flat before I could finish, and when recharged my memory card malfunctioned and required formatting. This put an end to my filming.

Unfortunately, due to the business of the studio, it would be impossible to get in there to reshoot with enough time to carry out the post production. I had to book this studio several weeks before Christmas just to get a full day in there!

The footage however is good. I've spent the day working on the planned opening shot, which has keyed and tracked.

The plan is to build the platform the Assassin is sitting on in Maya and track in a matte painting. This video is just a basic ket and track to see how the shot would work.

I aim to have a rough edit uploaded by the end of tomorrow.

Update and Teaser

Not posted for a while, it's been hectic with Christmas and what not. Finally got into the studio today with my new storyboards. Footage so far looks good. I'm a bit tired so won't say anything more, but here is a teaser!

Matte Painting: Rough Version 1

So I've been working on a matte painting for my opening shot. It is a panoramic view of the city below, with our hero crouched on some sort of high up platform or rooftop like in the computer game. This is pretty much how I want the layout, though the comping is still quite rough. Noise and grain are issues due to the quality of some of the images I am working with.

I have also put together a sketch for a market place type setting which I hope to use for the fight sequence on the ground. However more on that later.

Currently I am researching 3D projection and camera moves in After Effects. I feel I have a pretty good grounding on this already due to a very comprehensive lecture series we had last year. However it never hurts to go back over these things, and after watching a few tutorials I feel I've picked up a few handy tips which will help me on my way with this. My one dilemma is tracking the camera move. I am keen to do a camera move in the studio, and track this to a digital camera in After Effects, however I have yet to work out how to pull this off. 

Update and Research

It's been a while and a hectic week with organisation and planning happening for both this project and the Final Major Project next year. I've been looking at camera angles and scenery in both the Assassin Creed games and also in similar hero style films and TV shows. I've broken this project down into two main matte painting, an eagle view from above of the entire city, and a street view. Perhaps a few smaller paintings will be required, but I'm hoping the bulk of the green screen shots can be composited into these scenes. One thing for certain, is that the images will need to be big high resolution paintings, allowing me the scope to zoom in. I am also considering the need for lots of extras, as the town sequences are always busy, and the idea of a crowd parting for this battle to commence is appealing.

The fight sequence should happen in the same sort of environment that is within the games to connect the two concepts together. I have been looking at images from both high level and street level to get an idea of the sort of scenery I will require.

I really like the idea of the sandstone buildings with wooden stalls and hanging flags, though it may be difficult to source some of these images it is the sort of look I am going with. I also plan to play quite a bit with light, the contact lighting in my previous project worked really well, and I am keen to attempt to use it again. Setting this sequence at sunset will allow me to pull in the oranges and yellows which will contract the greens and whites of the salad cream bottle very nicely.

The leap at the beginning of the story board is a major factor, and getting that looking right is very important. I've already carried out tests using the slow motion and I am confident that I can get the effect, but I've been giving it a lot of thought as to how this needs to be framed and edited together. Obviously my actor will not be jumping off anything incredibly high (most likely a table) and so I really need to get a sense of height.

This Batman/OnStar commercial uses a similar idea to what I intend, fast cuts from different angles making it seem that he is falling a great distance. I particularly want a shot from under my actor as he jumps, however, I am not entirely sure how safe this will be in the studio. All I can do is bare all this in mind and get as much footage as I can on the day.

It is safe to say however that one of my matte paintings is well underway and the second in planning stages and looking hopeful. I'll keep you posted.

Interestingly, on my travels through cyber space, I discovered live action filming for Assassin's Creed.

It's definitely interesting to see!

Camera Move Test

Working on a camera move which uses the bursts of speed and slow motion.

Pitch

Tomorrow is the day of the pitch, so I have been working hard on my presentation. Hopefully it will go ok. I'll post feedback when I get it. I'm looking forward to being able to get going on this project.

More Slow Motion tests

Today I've been working on my pitch and slow motion tests. After the results of the previous test being too blurry due to the motion blur, I refilmed with a faster shutter speed to lower the motion blur. This proved to be a good idea, and significantly reduced the blurring at the point of the frozen moment.

I have also been researching fight scenes using this sort of editing. As much of my idea revolves around a fight sequence, I think it important to look at how this method fits into such scenes, and also how they are edited together and framed in camera. I have choreographed fight sequences before, but not for camera. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6y2r_uZNXA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmmXO8-P9N0

After some research I put together a quick test to see if I could pull off similar effects. Looking ok for a first fight sequence test.

My next course of action is to storyboard the sequence, particularly the fight sequence, paying attention to composition and editing. I also need to put together a schedule. The green screen studio is so full even after Christmas, so it will be difficult to get the time in. Once the studio is booked everything will have to be organised around it.

Slow Motion Tests

With the pitch days away, I have been working on some tests. Though I have yet to complete storyboards for this project, I know that I want some slow motion action, and so I thought it necessary to work out how to do this before I moved forward. If this proves too time costuming and problematic, it might be worth rethinking the idea completely.

So after some stress I managed to book out the green screen studio for two evenings to work on some footage for the tests. A small team of us went in to do some jumping shots, which I could then take into After Effects and work on doing a frozen moment at the peak of the jump.

Using the following method on Twixtor, I produced a reasonable slow motion shot.

Obviously, this is not the costume for the real shoot, it will be creams and browns, however I wanted to see how Twixtor dealt with the flowing cape. There are a few issues with this however, most notably the motion blur which means the point of stand still is slightly blurred. My only option it seemed, was to go back into the studio and film with a faster shutter speed to see if I got a sharper image. I shall keep update you on my findings later today.

We also took the opportunity to audition some actors. For this project I require a peasant woman/girl to be saved by our hero. So we met Nicola, one of the actors to answer our advertisements and do some work with her on the green screen.

She was very easy to work with, a great actress and I think would work well as a "damsel in distress"type character. We had some male actors also coming in to audition the following day for the male positions, however due to the strike transport was difficult for most of them and we called it off.

Watch this space for more project updates.

Slow Motion Fight Scenes

I've been browsing Vimeo, looking for some nice methods of doing slow motion fight scenes. It seems there are three different methods.

1. Film at a frame rate and then do magic on Twixor. Having looked at some of the speeds out there is seems I would need to film at about 2000fps to achieve the look I want. My camera shoots at 50fps. This does allow to slow the speed by half, and maybe with the use of Final Cut Pro, half it again without it looking to jittery but I will have to experiment with this.

2. Take photos to hold for several frames. Really not sure if this is the look I am aiming for, but again experimentation is key.

3. Take still images and map it to a 3D and add a digital camera move.  Almost certainly not.

Tests will ideally follow, to experiment with the first two methods. Though having read about the method for the third film, which was really clever, but over complicated for the look I want to achieve. I'd like to be able to get into the green screen studio before the pitch date to see how some of this will work. Unfortunately, it seems it is pretty much fully booked for the next two weeks, so that may be optimistic. 

Another Day Another Project

This week we received a new assignment brief. Effectively it boils down to us producing a competition entry for one of the design awards on D&AD or YCN. Most of these are motion graphic/advertising briefs which isn't really the direction I wanted to go towards as my showreel needs to be catered for the VFX industry. Because of this I decided I needed a cool way to get VFX into an advertisement. The first example of this that springs to mind, is the Star Wars/Currys adverts.

I love these adverts, and using blockbuster film style VFX, combined with humour to make a brand seem cool really appealed to me. The brief that would allow me to produce something like this was the one for Heinz Salad Cream. This requires a quirky advertisement to make Heinz Salad Cream appeal to the 18-29 year olds. What I wanted out of this brief, was to be able to produce something with a fight sequence, green screen/compositing and matte painting.

When considering the things that appealed to 18-29 year olds, my mind instantly went to computer games, night clubs and fashion. The latter two seemed to lack the possibility for VFX so computer games became the obvious choice.

After looking at some trailers for popular computer games, I decided I really like the slow motion fight scenes in the Assassins Creed trailers.

This gave me the idea of an Assassins Creed style advertisement, starting with a lone hooded figure standing atop of a tall build looking over the city (matte painting). It's a typical Assassin Creed style landscape, hot and exotic city surrounded by mountains. He hears a scream and leaps down to the streets below to find a woman being mugged by several men. A close up fight sequence ensues combining slow motion and bursts of speed. Instead of a knife, he's using a squirty bottle of salad cream to take out the attackers.There's no blood, only salad cream across faces and on the screen. When the attackers are all flat out on the ground he turns to the woman holding her sandwich protectively to her. He offers her the salad cream and she smiles.

Heinz Salad Cream - Your Secret Weapon.