SYLLABUS
Catalogue:
Each student's individual effort will be assessed as well as the overall teamwork and professional success of the team. As in a professional work environment, student teams will be allowed to fire non performing members based on a strict protocol pipeline. The faculty alone will retain the right to make the final decision to remove a team member for failure to perform.
Rationale:
Animated film or game production is all about teamwork. Consequently, PRJ400 (and by extension, PRJ450) provide the essential experience that each student needs prior to entering the industry, where collective effort and cohesive teamwork is everything. PRJ400 (and PRJ450) is where a student will confront creative and problem-solving issues. Here they will contend with the need for supportive interaction through developing social skills, allied with responsibility and constructive collaboration. Production is all about pressure, both personal and collective. Deadlines have to be met and – most important of all – the project HAS to be completed as planned and produced to a high professional standard. Production in the industry is all about limitations and parameters. These will also be imposed in PRJ400/450, to give each team the challenge of working within creative boundaries and within schedule and resource limitations.
Specific Learning Objectives:
By the end of this course, you will…
1. Demonstrate that you can follow a production pipeline in a team-based environment.
2. Demonstrate your creative and technical skills in CG / traditional.
3. Demonstrate you can collaborate with fellow team members to overcome production challenges and demonstrate the kind of social skills and responsibilities that are essential to make a serious team-based production possible.
4. Demonstrate the ability to tell a clear, entertaining story and have all the creative elements of the production support that story.
5. Demonstrate professionalism – personally and within the team dynamic.
6. Demonstrate the ability to produce work to the highest professional standards on a deadline.
Project Requirements:
PRJ400 and PRJ450 have a combined objective of realizing a completed, professional-level, team-based production in a set period of time. The subject matter of the production will be in the form of an animated short. The maximum time allowed for animation is 2 minutes. Ideas that are too ambitious, or fall outside of the class parameters will not be approved. Approvals will be a two-tier process – first initial ideas will need to be approved before midterm and then a final, professionally presented 3D animatic of the final idea with blocked-in environments, and characters modeled and rigged, will need to be completed by the end of the semester. If a project does not receive faculty approval at the PRJ400 midterm 2D animatic stage, the project idea will be abandoned and team members may be reassigned. Any team that does not deliver the final 3D animatic milestone, will not be allowed to continue to PRJ 450.
Projects will be approved on the basis that:
* The storyline is complete and well founded.
* The creative requirements of the production are not deemed too ambitious for the two-semester production period.
* They conform to all the production guidelines laid down in this syllabus.
* Everything is to the highest professional-level standards and each team member is seen to be fully committed to the project.
Projects should also be entirely original and not contain any material that is copyright protected or is in any way or form outside of the DigiPen moral or aesthetic guidelines. To detour from any of this will be entirely subject to prior permission being given by the appropriate faculty leader.
Film Project Parameters:
It is of fundamental importance that film projects are completed to a high professional level of accomplishment and are also completed on time. Consequently, the following production parameters are…
· The story must be a complete entity in its own right – i.e. with a definable beginning, middle and an end punch-line and credit/logo shot.
· Acceptable ideas must embrace concepts and characters that provide well thought out entertaining content that will offer some kind of emotional reaction from an audience. (Bottom line: audiences must care about and identify with the character or characters presented.)
· Individual team members are each encouraged to focus on an area of production that most suits their career objectives. However, once that facet of the production is over, ALL team members will be required to help out in areas other than their chosen specialty.
· Teams are always encouraged to pursue ‘quality’ over ‘quantity’.
· Every team member will be required to complete a personal log at each milestone. This log will detail the specific work done by that student for that milestone. These logs will be uploaded to Moodle, along with the art for that milestone. For team members who do not turn in a log, the faculty will assume that they have done nothing, and factor that into their grade accordingly. It is entirely possible for a single member of a team to Fail the course, even if the Team Project passes.
· Teams will be required to establish a team ‘leader/producer’, who will be responsible of all administrative aspects of the team’s work. This will include (but is not limited to) organizing the team schedule, the successful completion of milestone presentations, the posting of milestone material onto Moodle on the day of presentation, the upkeep and submitting of Production Report on a weekly basis and the creation of (and adhering to in PRJ 450) the Production Bible at the end of PRJ 400.
Technical issues regarding computers, network, programs, SVN, or any other tech issue will NEVER be an excuse for missing a deadline. Things happen, at Digipen and in the real world. You must find solutions. You must hit your deadlines early enough to give yourself time to find solutions to inevitable problems. This course is being run like a professional studio. You must deliver the product on time, no matter what. The responsibility is yours. Find a way to make it work. Period.
Class Requirements:
1.Teams must meet twice a week for an aggregate of 6 hours. In addition team members will be expected to devote a significant number of hours outside of the projects class to ensure the project is on schedule and up to the expected (professional entry-level) production standards demanded of a senior DigiPen student.
2. Class starts on time! All announcements, demos, lectures, screenings, attendance taking, etc. will occur at the start of class, therefore - ‘snooze and you lose’. Attendance sheets will be distributed at any time throughout each class however and students can only sign themselves in. Students must attend every class, unless given PRIOR permission not to do so.
3. Turn off cell phone ringers and do not answer calls (voice or text) during class time. Also remove headphones/ear buds. The same applies for non project-related web surfing etc.
4. For animation reference/production purposes checkout all camera/lighting/sound equipment during weekdays, overnight and on the weekends. These will however be issued on a ‘first come, first served’ basis… so make sure you book equipment well in advance when you need them. You of course take fiscal responsibility for all equipment while you have it.
Submitting Work:
Each student's individual effort will be assessed as well as the overall teamwork and professional success of the team. As in a professional work environment, student teams will be allowed to fire non performing members based on a strict protocol pipeline. The faculty alone will retain the right to make the final decision to remove a team member for failure to perform.
Rationale:
Animated film or game production is all about teamwork. Consequently, PRJ400 (and by extension, PRJ450) provide the essential experience that each student needs prior to entering the industry, where collective effort and cohesive teamwork is everything. PRJ400 (and PRJ450) is where a student will confront creative and problem-solving issues. Here they will contend with the need for supportive interaction through developing social skills, allied with responsibility and constructive collaboration. Production is all about pressure, both personal and collective. Deadlines have to be met and – most important of all – the project HAS to be completed as planned and produced to a high professional standard. Production in the industry is all about limitations and parameters. These will also be imposed in PRJ400/450, to give each team the challenge of working within creative boundaries and within schedule and resource limitations.
Specific Learning Objectives:
By the end of this course, you will…
1. Demonstrate that you can follow a production pipeline in a team-based environment.
2. Demonstrate your creative and technical skills in CG / traditional.
3. Demonstrate you can collaborate with fellow team members to overcome production challenges and demonstrate the kind of social skills and responsibilities that are essential to make a serious team-based production possible.
4. Demonstrate the ability to tell a clear, entertaining story and have all the creative elements of the production support that story.
5. Demonstrate professionalism – personally and within the team dynamic.
6. Demonstrate the ability to produce work to the highest professional standards on a deadline.
Project Requirements:
PRJ400 and PRJ450 have a combined objective of realizing a completed, professional-level, team-based production in a set period of time. The subject matter of the production will be in the form of an animated short. The maximum time allowed for animation is 2 minutes. Ideas that are too ambitious, or fall outside of the class parameters will not be approved. Approvals will be a two-tier process – first initial ideas will need to be approved before midterm and then a final, professionally presented 3D animatic of the final idea with blocked-in environments, and characters modeled and rigged, will need to be completed by the end of the semester. If a project does not receive faculty approval at the PRJ400 midterm 2D animatic stage, the project idea will be abandoned and team members may be reassigned. Any team that does not deliver the final 3D animatic milestone, will not be allowed to continue to PRJ 450.
Projects will be approved on the basis that:
* The storyline is complete and well founded.
* The creative requirements of the production are not deemed too ambitious for the two-semester production period.
* They conform to all the production guidelines laid down in this syllabus.
* Everything is to the highest professional-level standards and each team member is seen to be fully committed to the project.
Projects should also be entirely original and not contain any material that is copyright protected or is in any way or form outside of the DigiPen moral or aesthetic guidelines. To detour from any of this will be entirely subject to prior permission being given by the appropriate faculty leader.
Film Project Parameters:
It is of fundamental importance that film projects are completed to a high professional level of accomplishment and are also completed on time. Consequently, the following production parameters are…
· The story must be a complete entity in its own right – i.e. with a definable beginning, middle and an end punch-line and credit/logo shot.
· Acceptable ideas must embrace concepts and characters that provide well thought out entertaining content that will offer some kind of emotional reaction from an audience. (Bottom line: audiences must care about and identify with the character or characters presented.)
· Individual team members are each encouraged to focus on an area of production that most suits their career objectives. However, once that facet of the production is over, ALL team members will be required to help out in areas other than their chosen specialty.
· Teams are always encouraged to pursue ‘quality’ over ‘quantity’.
· Every team member will be required to complete a personal log at each milestone. This log will detail the specific work done by that student for that milestone. These logs will be uploaded to Moodle, along with the art for that milestone. For team members who do not turn in a log, the faculty will assume that they have done nothing, and factor that into their grade accordingly. It is entirely possible for a single member of a team to Fail the course, even if the Team Project passes.
· Teams will be required to establish a team ‘leader/producer’, who will be responsible of all administrative aspects of the team’s work. This will include (but is not limited to) organizing the team schedule, the successful completion of milestone presentations, the posting of milestone material onto Moodle on the day of presentation, the upkeep and submitting of Production Report on a weekly basis and the creation of (and adhering to in PRJ 450) the Production Bible at the end of PRJ 400.
Technical issues regarding computers, network, programs, SVN, or any other tech issue will NEVER be an excuse for missing a deadline. Things happen, at Digipen and in the real world. You must find solutions. You must hit your deadlines early enough to give yourself time to find solutions to inevitable problems. This course is being run like a professional studio. You must deliver the product on time, no matter what. The responsibility is yours. Find a way to make it work. Period.
Class Requirements:
1.Teams must meet twice a week for an aggregate of 6 hours. In addition team members will be expected to devote a significant number of hours outside of the projects class to ensure the project is on schedule and up to the expected (professional entry-level) production standards demanded of a senior DigiPen student.
2. Class starts on time! All announcements, demos, lectures, screenings, attendance taking, etc. will occur at the start of class, therefore - ‘snooze and you lose’. Attendance sheets will be distributed at any time throughout each class however and students can only sign themselves in. Students must attend every class, unless given PRIOR permission not to do so.
3. Turn off cell phone ringers and do not answer calls (voice or text) during class time. Also remove headphones/ear buds. The same applies for non project-related web surfing etc.
4. For animation reference/production purposes checkout all camera/lighting/sound equipment during weekdays, overnight and on the weekends. These will however be issued on a ‘first come, first served’ basis… so make sure you book equipment well in advance when you need them. You of course take fiscal responsibility for all equipment while you have it.
Submitting Work:
- All gradable Milestone
Presentations will occur at the beginning of class with the quality of presentation
expected to be at a professional level.
- Teams should pre-test
their presentation material to ensure it is viewable.
- Teams should pre-test
their presentation material to ensure it is viewable.
- All digital files
should be pre-loaded before the presentation begins.
- All files used for the presentation must be uploaded to the class Moodle folder before the start of the critique class.
- Naming conventions for
all posted files:
- PRJ400F11A_Lastname_Filename.fileformat
- Example for a
submitted QuickTime movie:
- PRJ400F11A_Gates_Animatic1stpass.mov
PROFESSORS
Leaders:
Pamela Mathues - [email protected]
William Jarcho - [email protected]
With:
Alain Schneuwly - [email protected]
Suzanne Kaufman - [email protected]
Peter Moehrle - [email protected]
Faculity Consultants:
Jim Johnson - [email protected]
Chun Lu - [email protected]
Mark Peasley - [email protected]
Office Hours:
Schedule by Appointment anytime via email
Pamela Mathues - [email protected]
William Jarcho - [email protected]
With:
Alain Schneuwly - [email protected]
Suzanne Kaufman - [email protected]
Peter Moehrle - [email protected]
Faculity Consultants:
Jim Johnson - [email protected]
Chun Lu - [email protected]
Mark Peasley - [email protected]
Office Hours:
Schedule by Appointment anytime via email
MILESTONE #10 (12-12)
1. Second Pass 3-d animatic
You must have done a blocking pass on at all of your scenes.
A blocking pass would mean:
· Environment: All scenes set with final camera angles and current final model environment.
· Animation: First pass blocking for all of your scenes. This would be the major storytelling keys of each scene. Essentially, the animatic keys. Also any passing/contact keys that you need to establish overall movement of the scene. Push the poses for maximum clarity and strong silhouette. This pass will be your starting point and will give you a better idea of the project as a whole. Issues will come to light in this stage that were not apparent in the 2d animatic. You will be able to go back and refine these poses once all the scenes have been blocked in. You will not throw away this work. You will use these base poses as what they are, a first pass at the scene. You will refine these same keys in future iterations before you move on to lesser keys/breakdowns.
Submit: updated version of the 3d animatic
Please name file:
film_blocking2_animatic.mov
3d animatic must be at render resolution 720p
No Flash files! Must be playing back at 24fps and open in QuickTime.
2. Sound
Place the current soundtrack on the 3d animatic.
3. Character: Texture, Final
This should be the current final version of the character texture.
1. Use the same setup you created last milestone to render and light a nice turnaround QuickTime or Avi of final model, rig, skin with material colors and second pass texture from render resolution 720p.
Please name file:
Charactername_final_texture_turn.mov
2. Submit at least 2 jpegs Final Texture sheets for each character sheets with final material/shader with final texture. (Remember, your workfile will be an organized PSD and you will use a Targa file for your 3d package) We are using jpegs for ease of portfolio and critique.
Please name file:
Charactername_body_final_color_map.jpeg
Charactername_face_ final_color_map.jpeg
Charactername_body_ final_spec_map.jpeg
Charactername_face_ final_spec_map.jpeg
4. Environment
This should be the current final model of the environment, with shaders. Place in rough lighting so that it is easy to see if the animation is clear. This rough lighting is a step that you will have to redo when you go to final lighting, so only spend enough time to get clarity for the animation. Do a render test with Light/Shaders/Materials.
Submit renders at resolution 720p of the main establishing shots for each environment. This is a good time to see if you will have long render times at final resolution.
Please name the file:
film_environment name_shotnumber_ final.jpeg
5. SFX Design
Submit updated and revised tests of the key effects for your short at the resolution of 720p. This is a good time to see if you will have long render times at final resolution.
Please name file:
sfxtest_object or effect name_version2.mov
6. Personal Portfolio pieces
Each student will submit at least one new portfolio piece. Feel free to submit more. Animators may submit in-progress scenes, or strong portfolio quality planning. Show us the best of your current work. We understand if some students do not have a finished polished piece yet, but all of you should have something of quality in progress. And if you don’t, you should really be asking yourself why. I mean really. You’ve been working for a semester. And getting good portfolio work from this class is sort of the point.
7. Personal Log
Each student must submit a personal log of what they did towards this milestone. At the top of the log, include the date, the milestone number, and your name. Detail all the work you have done since the last milestone. Include the approximate number of hours you have spent on the work. If you have worked in tandem with another artist, be specific about your contribution. Submit the document to Moodle.
You must have done a blocking pass on at all of your scenes.
A blocking pass would mean:
· Environment: All scenes set with final camera angles and current final model environment.
· Animation: First pass blocking for all of your scenes. This would be the major storytelling keys of each scene. Essentially, the animatic keys. Also any passing/contact keys that you need to establish overall movement of the scene. Push the poses for maximum clarity and strong silhouette. This pass will be your starting point and will give you a better idea of the project as a whole. Issues will come to light in this stage that were not apparent in the 2d animatic. You will be able to go back and refine these poses once all the scenes have been blocked in. You will not throw away this work. You will use these base poses as what they are, a first pass at the scene. You will refine these same keys in future iterations before you move on to lesser keys/breakdowns.
Submit: updated version of the 3d animatic
Please name file:
film_blocking2_animatic.mov
3d animatic must be at render resolution 720p
No Flash files! Must be playing back at 24fps and open in QuickTime.
2. Sound
Place the current soundtrack on the 3d animatic.
3. Character: Texture, Final
This should be the current final version of the character texture.
1. Use the same setup you created last milestone to render and light a nice turnaround QuickTime or Avi of final model, rig, skin with material colors and second pass texture from render resolution 720p.
Please name file:
Charactername_final_texture_turn.mov
2. Submit at least 2 jpegs Final Texture sheets for each character sheets with final material/shader with final texture. (Remember, your workfile will be an organized PSD and you will use a Targa file for your 3d package) We are using jpegs for ease of portfolio and critique.
Please name file:
Charactername_body_final_color_map.jpeg
Charactername_face_ final_color_map.jpeg
Charactername_body_ final_spec_map.jpeg
Charactername_face_ final_spec_map.jpeg
4. Environment
This should be the current final model of the environment, with shaders. Place in rough lighting so that it is easy to see if the animation is clear. This rough lighting is a step that you will have to redo when you go to final lighting, so only spend enough time to get clarity for the animation. Do a render test with Light/Shaders/Materials.
Submit renders at resolution 720p of the main establishing shots for each environment. This is a good time to see if you will have long render times at final resolution.
Please name the file:
film_environment name_shotnumber_ final.jpeg
5. SFX Design
Submit updated and revised tests of the key effects for your short at the resolution of 720p. This is a good time to see if you will have long render times at final resolution.
Please name file:
sfxtest_object or effect name_version2.mov
6. Personal Portfolio pieces
Each student will submit at least one new portfolio piece. Feel free to submit more. Animators may submit in-progress scenes, or strong portfolio quality planning. Show us the best of your current work. We understand if some students do not have a finished polished piece yet, but all of you should have something of quality in progress. And if you don’t, you should really be asking yourself why. I mean really. You’ve been working for a semester. And getting good portfolio work from this class is sort of the point.
7. Personal Log
Each student must submit a personal log of what they did towards this milestone. At the top of the log, include the date, the milestone number, and your name. Detail all the work you have done since the last milestone. Include the approximate number of hours you have spent on the work. If you have worked in tandem with another artist, be specific about your contribution. Submit the document to Moodle.