Through looking at current products of the entertainment media industry a few things have recently become clear to me. In saying 'entertainment media' I am referring to television animations, games development and film. Firstly I believe good solid original ideas hold unquestionable value. Secondly, I believe that no matter how good I may be in the practical aspects digital artistry, there will always be those that are better than myself, on my current pre-industry amateur skill level. I state this in light of visiting countless digital artist and animation forums and sources on the internet which host thousands of pieces of work created by amateur artists just like myself. These pieces all tend to be of an excellent standard, and are often at a level that I neither have the time nor the current skill set to achieve at this point. Sufficient training would only be gained under industry employment, which I do not have yet. So, for my final major project, the piece that I shall be using to hopefully get a job in some area of the entertainment media industry, I have chosen to show how I can develop an original idea from conception to finished product, a skill I believe would be highly attractive in the industry. This original idea will come in the form of a small production script, complete with characters and environments, all tied together under a simple plotline. I will be focusing on documenting all stages of development, and will be mirroring industry practice as much as possible. I am, in a way, taking on the role of a producer, with only myself as the production team.

Brief

For my final major project I will be translating an original production script into a 5 to 10 minute long animation. With the emphasis on conveying an original story, the production script will contain a simple adventure themed plotline, set within a fantasy/medieval world that I have devised. To accurately convey this story the final animation will be broken up into environmental systems, character animation systems, lip synching, texturing and modeling.

Aims

My final animation piece will focus on conveying a story based around the adventures of two characters. To achieve this I have broken down necessary production elements into development systems, which should help to keep the overall look and feel of the final animation consistent and workflow organized. These elements are:

- conceptual development
- modeling
- texturing
- animating
- atmospheric effects