Wednesday, December 7, 2016

I'm Stuck :(

I have currently been stuck in my modeling progress for a while, as the homes are not coming out in the style that I have been imagining them in, so I am just trying to focus on other things, and hopefully that will help me get back up to speed and get over this hump I have been having. As of right now I am looking up music to help with pacing for the mail truck to follow in these short animations. I am also looking at just creating looping GIF sets of each home. Due to my poor college-student status I am currently looking at music on Royalty Free Websites.

I regards to the homes, one of my classmates definitely gave me a push in the right direction. I spent so much time this semester imaging what the homes will look like in 3D that I foolishly never really took into consideration the 2D way they were drawn. I have since tried pushing and pulling vertices on the models to create the similar disported shapes shown in the drawings of the original homes, the results are looking much better! I will however still be adding certain elements that the homes may not have originally had but keeping the same color scheme and overall shapes of the homes is important.

One Sentence and Paragraph(Revised)

Now that the semester for Thesis testing and Documentation is coming to an end I will be revisiting the one sentence concept description, and the one paragraph concept description, and all my other studies to re-evaluate what I have done so far, researched, and discovered in this process.

One Sentence Conceptual Description(Revised)
My thesis is to recreate 3 different traditional 2D homes using a 3D medium to challenge my ability to create a cohesive world that these homes can share, while at the same time studying how the change in medium effects the feeling of the homes.

One Paragraph Conceptual Description(Revised)
My thesis is to recreate 3 different traditional 2D homes, from 3 different TV networks that I enjoyed as a kid, and incorporate them into a cohesive 3D world, where they can co-exist. The reason for this is not only to study the feeling these homes have in taken out of their stylized 2D form and put into 3D. My goal is to not only enjoy the feeling of creating homes I once had so much fun pretending to be apart of, but also to maintain their stylized appearance with slight alterations, and high detailed texturing.

Monday, October 31, 2016

Camera testing

Here is the first camera animation test using all of the homes. This is just to help me be able to tell a more interesting story without just still images. I am by no means a skilled animator or director so my inspiration for these camera angles is a quite rough, but they will improve.


Thursday, October 27, 2016

Research Planning


This is my updated research panning, I change it from the previews schedule because I felt that I needed more structure to help me keep moving forward with this thesis.

Sunday, October 16, 2016

Videos

Here is a schedule of the videos that I need to watch in order to be able to properly and effective execute my thesis. The hours(per week) will be split between studying the videos,  then implementing the skills I learned from the videos using the models that I have already created. More videos may be added to this list as I continue to go through my process.

Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Camera Positions

These are the work in progress photos, these are suppose to help me determine the position and the camera angle for the renders. The next steps for the end of this week is to have the first level of detail added to all the homes. 

Powerpuff Girls
Hey Arnold
The Proud Family

Friday, September 23, 2016

Research/Inspiration



Another student linked me to a  3D artist named Sergio Raposo, the work he has uploaded onto his CG Society account really helped me visualize the style that I'm looking to achieve with my homes. He uses very complex and sophisticated textures combined with a cartoon flare to give the scene that juxtaposition of real-world imperfections and stylized character. Below are just  few pieces that I really enjoyed:
Street (Sergio Reposo)





Vintage Living Room 
Cartoon Paris

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Research + The updated homes

  So, recently I was on Youtube(which is pretty often), and I found the Cartoon Network commercials that very early may have inspired me to decide this project for my thesis well before I came to RIT, in the 3D Design major. For those that do not know, Cartoon Network used to show these really fun commercial breaks of all of their animated shows interacting in one world. By doing this they basically said that all of your favorite shows were happening at the same time, in the same world, effecting one another, which was something that I loved thinking about.

  You have Dexter nerding out over some fancy new electronic(0:10), Ed Edd & Eddy drooling over candy(0:14), and the Professor buying groceries at the local Grocery Store(0:26). Cartoon Network as long since stopped doing these commercials but with my thesis I wanted to link back to that theme of the one-universe that they portrayed on a smaller scale.

  Before I had 2 Cartoon Network homes and one Nickelodeon Network home that I wanted to do, but I decided to change it so that it was on home from each network I watched as a kid,in doing this I can, in a small way,  infer that same one-universe theme that Cartoon Network had done.


Here are the clips for the Cartoon Network Commercials:
The first one is basically what one commercial looked like:One Commercial (1min)

This one is a compiled version of all the commercials Cartoon Network made with that one-universe theme( for those that want to spend almost a half hour living in 90's nostalgia with me):
Compiled Commercials (22mins)



  So the final line-up is as followed: Powerpuff Girls (Cartoon Network), Hey Arnold (Nickelodeon), and The Proud Family (Disney).
Powerpuff Girls (Cartoon Network)
Hey Arnold (Nickelodeon)
The Proud Family (Disney Channel)


Wednesday, September 14, 2016

My Knowledge

Korean Market (Inspiration)

Things I know:

Woodson (Korean Market,2016)
I have experience with both Maya and Mudbox, which will allow me to create the models and high-poly normal maps I need to add layers of detail. I also know what is needed to make each of the Homes stand out using their elements from some of my favorite episodes. In the past I have had experience in creating a highly dense and detailed scene. For my Project Planning and Production class I designed and created a Korean fish market, based on a photograph:

Things I Understand/ Need to Improve:

I understand how Substance Painter and Designer works in terms of how the software is meant to help me create high quality textures( Designer) and apply them to the UV's(Painter). However in order to use the Painter side of this software, I need to improve my UV's skills so I can create proper UV's for a smoother workflow when it comes to texturing.

Things I Need to Research:

Even though I really enjoyed the level of detail I was able to achieve with the Korean Market, with this assignment I want to challenge myself even more, and really push myself out of my comfort zone. In order to do that I need to research Real-World aspects (Architecture), and adding those in a way that will complement the stylized drawings of the 2D homes. I also need to focus on understanding Unreal lighting and possibly adding the 360 VR of a well-known space in the Homes that I plan on creating.

My Class Blogs

David's Thesis Class Blogs:

Ali, Anthony:                       http://alianthony6103.wixsite.com/anthonyali
Aran, Dan:                          http://danaran117.wixsite.com/danaran/blog
Blum, Lilly:                         http://lillyblum3dthesis.blogspot.com
Fantauzzo, Derek:               http://www.derekfantauzzo.com/senior-thesis-blog/
Kearns, Danielle:                 https://dragongirlstudiosthesis.wordpress.com/
Kwiatkowski, Damian:         http://www.damiankwiatkowski.com/blog.html
Newburgh, Seth:                 http://sethrnewburgh.tumblr.com
Peng, Ziyun:                       http://3dddziyunpeng.blogspot.com
Pietras, Martin:                   http://martinpietras.weebly.com/
Satriale, John David:           https://satrialethesis.wordpress.com/
Smith, Devin:                     http://dimensionzexceed.tumblr.com/
Woodson, Deja:                  http://woodsonseniorthesis.blogspot.com/









Wednesday, September 7, 2016

The Matrix

During my research I found that it's no surprise that 2D cartoons are being translated onto a 3D format. Whether it be with the purpose of creating a film, much like Dreamworks "Mr.Peabody and Sherman"(2014) was a 3D re-imaging of a much older series of shorts titled "Peabody's Improbable History"(late 1950's - early 60s):


"Mr.Peabody's Improbably History"(Animated Short)(1950's - 1960's)
"Mr.Peabody and Sherman"(3D Animated Film)(2014)

On the other hand the purpose could be to test and challenge the artist to re-create a favorite show in a completely different way than the show was intended to be seen. A 3D artist by the name of  Miguel Meranda, re-imagined the characters of the sitcom "Futurama"(1999-2013) in a realistic yet caricaturist way. Completely changing the feeling of the character in a kind-of nasty and weird way( It creeps me out a little, honestly.)

Phillip J. Fry(Original cartoon style)
Phillip J. Fry(3D Re-Interpretation)

Friday, September 2, 2016

The homes (Old)





These are the 3 homes that I plan on re-creating in 3D, I plan to add little clues about my favorite episodes from the shows to represent the actual spirit and personality that these cartoons had during the time I watched them.

Monday, August 29, 2016

My Ideas

One sentence Conceptual Description:
            My thesis is a re-creation of traditionally 2D cartoon homes re-imagined using a 3D medium in order to study if a transformation in media changes the feeling of the home and the characters that live there.


One paragraph Conceptual Description:

            My thesis is a re-designing of my favorite 2D cartoon homes and exteriors using a 3D medium instead of the tradition 2D. These homes will either be created in the stylized theme they were originally designed in, or in a real-world setting of high detail in the texturing and modeling however still maintaining a certain level of that fun and stylized personality. This thesis is a study of the limitations and liberations one can take in the world of 3D design.  

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Introduction

Hi this is Deja Woodson, I am a 4th year 3D Digital Design major. This blog will be an incremental documentation of my senior thesis. I am excited to be sharing my progress and production with everyone. Please follow along if you would like, and I can't wait to hear any constructive feedback!