Flying Fingers

Rochester Institute of Technology

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6-1-1995

Flying Fingers

Tracey Salaway

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Recommended Citation

"FLYING FINGERS"

by

Tracey D. Salaway

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements for the Degree

Masterof Fine Arts

IMAGING ARTS/COMPUTER ANIMATION

College of Imaging Arts and Sciences

Rochester Institute of Technology

June, 1995

Jack Slutzky, Professor/Chairperson

College ofImaging Arts and Sciences

Barbara Fox, Faculty Member

College ofLibera I Arts

National Technical Institute for the Deaf

Marla Schweppe, Associate Professor

Coordinator for Computer Animation

PERMISSION GRANTED:

"FLYING FINGERS"

I, Tracey D. Salaway, hereby grant permission to the

Wallace Memorial library at the Rochester Institute of

Technology to reproduce my thesis paper in whole or in

part. Any reproduction will

not

be for commercial use or

profit.

Tracey D. Sa/away

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

This work isgiven to thosewho provided comments,

insight, encouragement,and supportforthis project. _My

thesis advisors: Jack_{Slutzky,for contributing his}

patience, knowledge and encouragement with hie_flying hands; Barbara Fox,for her strong and intense Interpre

tation on this subject, and Maria Schweppe,for her _sup

port ofthe production ofthisfilm.

Skip

F3attaglia also

participated inthis committee but he later left forhis

Mexico sabbatical and wae unableto continue on _mycom

mittee. His knowledge and inputinto theworld of anima

tionwae Important to me. He contributed his "light bulb",

hiswonderful talentand his insightful critiques! _Many

thanksto Camilla Lange who showed me support and

encouragement while _makingthe piece. _Manythanksto

Andrew McPhillips who helped strengthen _myanimation

skills in _{using 3-D}Topae. Without his patience, thefilm

would never exist! _Jengy (Seller, Bill Landers, Mei Liao, and

Zerbe Sodervickwere _highly supportive and gave comments

and feedbackwhile I worked on thefilm.

A veteran conductor, Bob Mowers helped and collaborated

with meto

develop

_my original sound score_{for my} movie.A

deaf

lhard-of_{-hearing musician, Barry} Kramar helped

assemble the sound equipment and workedwith me to

makethis movie successful. Finally, I accomplishedthis

veryfirst 3-D film despitetheturmoils,thank god! _Many

thanks to _myfamily; my mother, Nora, Charles, Pete, Misty,

Kathyand three nephews. Thanksto all of_{my friends} and

colleaguesfortheirsupport!

This film was produced _using the3-D Topas Crystal anima

tion program on a Compaq, (66 megahurtz) computer.

Renderingwae done on an a Fanaeonlc Optical Disc

Recorderdevice (ODR). The original soundtrack was pro

duced using theYamaha Music _Synthesizer, SY99 atthe

Hatlonal Technical Institute forthe Deafstudio _by me with

"FLYING FINGERS"

table of contents

PREFACE Title Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS page INTRODUCTION: Vropoeal 7

Philosophical Remarksofa Topic 7 Barriers To Communication b

PRE-PRODUCTION:

Experimentation 10

Develop

Story 11

PRODUCTION:

Scriptwriting/Storyboard...Changes 12 Production/Techniques 15 The Changes/Critiques 24

The Influences 25

Other Scraps 26 Fruetratlonel/Technlqueel 27

POST-PRODUCTION:

Video _Editing 20 Soundtrack Score 28>

CONCLUSION: 29

APPENDIX:

References 32 Time Frame 34

Sketches 35

INTRODUCTION:

PROPOSAL

Mythesis began _during the Fall Quarterof1992. _Mygoal

wasto produce an animated film with a sense ofconflict,a sense of_realityversus pseudo _realityas all film stories con

tain conflict. Research on spirituality, dream, Interpretation helped as I challenged myselfto create conflict,and to make

it believablethrough _{my film.}

PHILOSOPHICAL STATEMENT

I chosethegeneraltopic of"barriers". A barrier is an obsta

cle, impedimentor hindrance. It isan enclosure or_feelingyou

are behind prison walls. It appears asan enigma. There is a feeling there is nofreedom to roam! Forexample, _looking through a glass could represent a visual barrierandthe

probabilitythat what you are_seeing is unreachable. _Breaking

through the glass represents _breaking down a barrier!

In _myexperience I have often said, "

I justwantitto be overT

or"There is _something that I want but I cannot reach

it!" It

is representative of_myspecific struggles. I can either identi fywith this emotion or not. _{Nevertheless,} I have felt suffer ing, anger, and confusion. Theseemotions caused meto

I did some researchtodefinethe word, barrier. The seem

ingly endless worde synonomous to barrierare: _{Interference,} delay,strange, hold, prevention, stop, halt, foreclosure, frus

tration, baffle, checkmate, balk, block, difficulty, hurdle,

stumbling block, stone, fence,wall, dam, mound, weight, mill stone round one's neck, curb, spoke in one's wheel, sea anchor, driftsail, _drag sail orsheet, damp, wet, Interrupt, hold back, clog, _stop up. This _listing of worde helped me to

visualize an image inwhich I developed ideas _{for my} movie.

&

BARRIERSTO COMMUNICATION

While I continued to explorethis _{challenging theme,} I _tip

toed through an _increasingly more narrowtopic,a _concep tual form of"communication". Initially, thiswas a _story

abouta constantstruggle andfearofmlscommunlcatlon. I am adeaf

lhard-of_-hearing person who has Interacted

with varioustypes of people and have often feltthefearof

rejection or embarrassment. Although I was trained to hearand speak, and have learned to sign well, when it

comesto _encountering a stranger _{(generallyspeaking} of hearing person), I feel_they have a skeptical reaction to me,

and feel that I am an alien. I sense some people reject _me, because I cannot speak perfectly. Oris the stranger

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considered an outsiderwas a painful and _frightening night

mare.The story illustrates howwe alldeal with the con stant pain of communication. This shows a problem preva lentin deafculture. Flowdo we communicate In thedark? How loudto speak isa constant struggle. _{Comprehending}

and

Up

_{reading every}word istiring. This makes it difficult because the _majorityof peopledo notrealize I am deaf. As a child I was nottaught sign language, because my

parents _{felt speaking} wasthe bestchoice for meto func

tion inthe _hearingworld. Ithought I was the _onlydeaf human inthe entire earth until I discoveredanotherdeaf

person when I was 12yearsold. Ultimately, I entered an alternative culture when I enrolled in _{my first}year college at National Technical Institute forthe Deaf. Itwas for me like _being Russian in English society. It_trulyfor me repre sented a language barrier.

I am _{constantlyhungry}forcommunication. _{My inability}to heareven though I wastrained to become a _hearing person has given me a _strong visual perception. _Eventually, I rec ognized sign language asanother typeof_learning tool. Sign language is consideredto bethethird orforth

most-used language in the United States. _{Traditionally,} within thedeafcommunity, it has been a choice betweenthose

language. _{From my}experience, the school system's philos

ophywas totrain students in theoral method. The deaf person would be ableto Interact in the dominateculture. But myconfidence wae lowand feltthat I had a broken language. In otherworde, I felt I wasan

"invisible" deaf

woman with the_capabilityto speak, pretending to bea hearing person.

To definethevisual _Imageryofbarriers, I _{Intentionally}kept vaguethe controlfactorsthatobstructed progreee and hindered success. The barrier _{in my} moviethat separates people is language. There are obstacles _standing in the way, anda communication barrierdevelops. This is socio logicallysignificant. I showthis significance _{by pursuing} the struggles andfrustrationsthatare apparent

throughout thescenes. Everyday,we see examples of bar riers. _My movie carriesthe message of struggle andfrus tration. Thecharacters mustdefend themselvesand learn to show betterjudgement. It represents a difficult journey in _mymovie. I am notthe_onlyone who is _going

through this, other people _{may identify}withthe charac ters'

feeling of_hopeless, and sharethesame pain.

PRE-PRODUCTION:

EXPERIMENTATION

virtual-ly unprepared forwhat wae Involved In animation. _During

my courseof study, I labored on the production of _my

thesis _{film for approximately} six quarters. I used a

sophisticated 3-D Crystal Topas program. The 3-D Crystal Topas program was provided _by RIT. I would go to

the studio _{literallyeveryday}when therewas equipment

available forme to use. I wasdetermined toget hands-on

experience with the process of3-Dgraphics and anima

tion. I wanted to

develop

an _{understanding} orthe 'feel'to

experience a clearer_{understanding} ofapplied 3-D compu tergraphics.

The process of_learning to useTopaswas monotonous,dif ficultand foreign _during theinitial 2quarters. Inthe

course oflearning, I expanded _{my knowledge because} I was accustomed to_{working hard.} Beforetheyearended, I beganto

develop

confidenceand felt more comfortable In

the world of computer animation. I taughtmyselfto

use the program _byreading theInstructional manual with the

help

of_{my best} colleague, Andrew,whodealtwith

me patiently.

11

DEVELOP STORY

ProfessorJack Slutzky, mythesis advisor, required his

classto make athesis proposal which wasto create a

p/

>>

M

barriers from a sociological and psychological point of

view, It had humor, a sense ofdiscontent,and stuffthat

was_completely different from what itwas outthere.

Professor_Slutzky encouraged ustocreate imagesthat

relatedto the human experience. I contemplated the

ideas for a _long period oftime. _{During my} meditation peri

ods some Ideas surfaced. These ideaswere related to

unpleasantexperiencesthat _{had actually happened} to me.

I brainstormed ideaswhile_working with the 3-D Topas

computerto enhance _myskills and togain confidence. To

be precise, ittook me6 monthsto understand the diffi

cult3-D Topas language, and to learn to usean IBM com

patible computer. Essentially, itwas a good _learning expe rience. I would have preferred to usethe Macintosh

because it was userfriendly. I nowhave expertise in

both systems.

12

PRODUCTION:

SCRIPTWRITING/STORYBOARD....CHANGES

I had some _difficultycoming-up-with creative ideas based

on _my experience and background. I realized Idid not have

the confidence toexpress myself comfortably. _Ultimately,

I began to

develop

ideas, I started _{byfirst writing} a _story

before I created a storyboard. _My storyboard was origi

nallycreated abouta mythological seahorse. The struggle

representeda physical barrier. To makethe seahorse

miraculouslyescapefrom the frustration of_beingtrapped insidethetank,the seahorse had to havewingsto

escapethe barrierofthefourwalls. This was an expression offreedom from reality. The _story was much too surreal, and, itdid not reflect _myexperience.

Although I created a storyboard aboutthis physical barrier,a _happyending wae not what I was seeking. This

particular characterhad beautiful movements which camefrom _{my sketching} in _my padbookand I created a model in Topas. But in _Topas,thewings on the seahorse were difficultto animate. I could notovercomethis obstacle, so I chose notto pursue thisfurther. The script and _storywere a flop! Barbara Fox, one of _my otheradvisors, thought the storywas notbelievable

enough. I realized that theaudience hadto beable to believethe _storywas real. I fell in lovewith the seahorse

concept, but I hadto letit go. I hopethat sometime I will beableto use this beautiful seahorseto create a future film.

13

To represent_my own innerexperience, I had to _{deepen my}

thoughts and newideas beganto surface. I chose

another Idea _usingthe barriermetaphor. _While

Topas_during the summer and fall quarters of_1993,the

barriertheme was still _veryvague. I then narrowedthe

topicto thecommunication _barrier, which was an area of

personal frustration.

I genuinelydid not know howorwhereto begin a metaphor

ical _storythat represented a communication barrier! This

became _myongoing search. I continuedto explorea

rea-eonableand _{believable story}to makethis film appear real! After _reading a bookcalled the"No Wall of_Stone", written

by severaldeaf poets and storytellers,_{my ideas} began to

surface. An emphasis on hands astools, used to commu

nicate became clear. I developed a specific metaphorthat

having no handswould _definitely represent a communica

tion breakdown.

I continuedto picture whatthecharacters could look like

as I wrotedown Ideas. I also did sketchesas a _wayto

express ideas. Yettherewas nodefinite image! Thisgave

me thefreedom I needed to think _up ideas without _being hampered _bythedesign oranimation. _{By staying}

abstract, I could go much fasterthan _drawing specific images. I began to insertwordsthroughoutthe process. I

could correctflawswithout_spending much time on devel

snow_during Novemberof1993, I discovered the story.

Myoriginal scene contained twosimilar characters _using

sign language, Itried to scriptandanimate boththese characters _{simultaneously} Intoone scene. I was unableto

create a large amount of motionsfortheir_fingers, wrists, elbows, and shoulders. In addition to those elements, the

facial expression was Important. The details oftheir

faces, eyes, eyebrowsand neck required constant adjust

ments and _{became very tedious, but}in thedeafculture,

facial expressions are a _keyelements in communicating.

Equally Importantwerethe gestures and _bodylanguage

neededto express curiosity, panic, confusion, surprise, etc. I became convinced that thecharacters would come to life _during thedesign oftheframes.

I resolved to place _mycharacters into Individual shots

where Iwas able to animatesign language andfacial expression simultaneously. It required certain harmonies

to maketheir sign language and facial expression smooth.

Eventhough I recognized that I was unableto achievethe

refined movements of sign language and facial _expression,

I worked _{very hard} to make itas successful as possible. It

takes skill toanimate people signing.

each with specific modes of communication.The skill of sign

language is performed _bya girl _bythe name of Hana. The

other characteris a lobster named Salty. The pragmatic

Saltywould create _bubbles, thebubbles will represent

images ofhands _Indicating whatthe lobster is_fetching

after. _{The storyIndicates the very}differentcommunica

tion modes ofthe two _opposing characters. This repre

sents a communication breakdown. _Ultimately,the lobster

amputatesthegirl's hands.

This _{is my}original script and it portrays a _fairytale of

good versus evil. Conflict isachieved when _Salty

confronts Hana. She signsa fewworde. _Salty responses

and nods, even _{though, Salty}does not understand Hana.

Saltycontinuesto make bubbles and _{Hana nervously}con

tinues to sign. This specific and horrific scene Indicates

my message: _{miscommunication, misunderstanding,}

and confusion.

16

I continuedto sketch and to produce charactersthat

made sense to _mystory. Forexample, a pet bird with two

large pink eyes represented a world ofvisualization. I used

thisflamboyantcharacter to

help

with this transition in

my movie. In a _living reality, a pet protects and cares fora

master. _{Subsequently,}the pet bird approached Salty's

bird dies. This movie reaches theclimax when the lobster

amputatesthegirl's hands. This is _something we can all

relate to. _{This story is}eternal and universal. I usea

dream realityto show an unpleasanttruth. The film

required that the audience confrontsthe illusion as reality.

Whatwas Important for me was to presentdreams and

realityas one.

I created the storyboardto

help

definewhere I was going. I

was abletovisualize and _{discuss my}project with _myadvi

sors and other people I shared _my project and Ideaswith.

My storyconsisted ofthesociological and psychological

aspects of minds. The sociological message is conflict.

Hana and Salty's modes of communication aredifferent.

The film isdirectedtowards adults. There is a sociological

conflictas a result ofthis message of

"unequal"

or"incom

patible"

confrontations. Psychologically,we feelthe frus

tration. _Trying to bridgethe idea ofobstacle, _having no

hands, makes itdifficultto succeed.

17

Thestoryboard _{I previously}created I believed was not suc

cessful. I was not satisfied. Ittook me a whileto rethink

it. I rewrotethe script Instead of _re-creating the _story

board. _Writing has become more profoundto me and it

clearly helped me_{depicted my} ideas. _{The many} mistakes I

easierthan to_{draw story boards.} Also, I discovered

thefeelings and Ideas _{by discussing} the _storywith

myadvisors. It helped make the_story more realistic.

I shared _mythoughts and ideas with _myadvisors,

and _theyapproved. Oneof _myadvisors cautioned

methat _my script could require atremendous

amount of work because I was quite inexperienced

with animation. Thatwastrue, but _during the

course oflearning, I gainedconfidence in _producing

and _{understanding} thefilm makers perspective. The

love of animation propelled me. I knewI was compro

mising to some_degree, but I felt in general, my film

worked _prettywell. Iworked hard to pull it off,tried

to maintain the quality, and I believe I accomplished

my goal.

\&

PRODUCTION/TECHNIQUES

Myfilm is presented as a surrealistic adventure. I have

chosen to use metaphor as a _strategyto enableall people

in theaudienceto authortheirown meaning. I _{began my}

movie with a restored,asymmetrical, _{charming "salt} box",

Cape Cod cottage in the remote countryside ofthe rugged

coastline in Maine:the"New

England"

feeling. The camera

focused on a white picketfencethat ledthe eye to a win

furni-ture. Therearefour ₍₄₎ television sets,a monstrous couch,

a couple of framed television pictures in and about

thecottage.

During a _sizzling summer night, a girl, _bythe name Hana

sits in frontof a TV set and uses sign languageto com

municateto her mother. The mother, Rosy, is _using an iron

to press a fish on _topofa surf board. Hana and _Rosy are

similar, with narrowshoulders, _skinnylong arms and legs.

Their heads have_{very long streaky hairs} thatare _standing

up-right. Neitherhavea mouth to speak nordo_they have

the earsto hear. This representsthe world of silence.

Their beautiful Innocenteyesare huge! Theirnoses,very

tiny! _Theyappearto lead rather normal lives.

This film showsthe characters _using sign language as a

tool tocommunicate. Thedialogue ofthe _{story begins}

when Hana asks her mother aboutthedinner planfor next

day. The mother responds,"Wewill have lobster". I created

this_storytotake advantage ofthe _popularity of lobster

claws. _Mystorytwisted thatfact, and _ironicallythe lob

ster snapped offthe girl's hands.

The making of a surrealistic _storyiscomplex. _Especially

considering thatthis is my first 3-D animated film. _My

characters came about with pencil and pad, Ithen redrew

the models Intothe computer. At one point_during the

process, I had toadmitthat_animating sign was most

tedious. _{Animating fingers, hands,}elbows, and shoulders

signing was _very painstaking. _Theyinvolve specificatten

tion to thejoints and wrists. These connections were

Importantelements in _makingthesigns look realistic.

Setting up certain keyframestocontain captions with on

and off_transparency effects were alsodifficult. Then

casting shadowsto achieve a

"feel"

of_{dimensionally} added

to thecomplexity. _Overall, I believe _{in my film.} The image is

exceptional and has itsown unique style andfashion. I am

very proud of_myachievement.

A pet bird appears in the_{very beginning} before _Introducing

the _living room scene where Hana and the mother are. The

big pink-eyed bird lands on a _fancy clock andturns the

hands showing it is bedtime for Hana. _Using light flashes

from thebird's eyes,_simulating a devicethat alerts people

who aredeafwhen the clockchimes,orthedoorbell rings.

20

While Hana attemptstofall asleep, she stares at a helium

balloon that is attachedto the bed post. She beginsto

dream. In thedream, hana has her hand attached to a

balloon _flying above avast _bodyofwater. A boat appears

The characteristicsofthe sea captain can be described as

huge, fiendish and evil. He is _wearing a yellow raincoatand

smoking a pipe. The appearance ofthe captain'sface under

the sou'wester hatis not revealed untilthe end ofthefilm.

It becomesclear _bythe lightofthe moon, that the retired

sea captain livesout on the Irregularcoastline in Maine. Fie

ownea dilapidated boatwith wooden lobstertraps. There

werefloats in waterto markthe location oftrapswhen the

captain setoutto sea. Each _day,the captain goes outto

emptythe traps,and always returns _empty handed. He

continues to rebaltthe traps. One day,the captain catch

es one small green _lobster, tinged with other colors. The

lobsterisalive. The _{lobster, Salty} isdumped out ontothe floorwith theaid ofa winch. _Saltyappearsto be

verysmall.

It is nightfall beforethe captaindiscovers how unsuccessful

hewas. He becomes furious and kicks the_{empty bucket.} He

gestures_Saltytocrawl back Intothetrap, then recasts

the _trapoverboard. The_trapfalls into the floorin the

water,and the dooropens _Salty is _producing a visualized

image ofHana's sleep. _Saltytravelsforward and backward

using his parts like an oar.

up to thewindowsill. Thethoughtofthe lobster_sitting

onthe sill is a _big thrill. Itoccurs _during an eerie hourof

the night. The bird agitated, _immediatelytries to alert

Hana. The lobster _having snuck into Hana's bedroom,

approaches Hana who is _holding a balloon. Hana became

startled and experiences confusion. Here we see an

example ofa languagebarrier. Hana signs to the lobster

who continuesto make bubbles with visible images

wrapped on them. Flana asks,"Whoare

you?" (the

subtitle appears on screen). Flana then asks," Areyou

joining usfor

dinner?"

A dramatic shot beginsto show

the _{bird escaping} out ofthecage to protect Hana, but

the lobstersnaps atthe bird and killsthe bird.

The nextscene is _shuddering with _chilling moments when

the lobster is hauled backto the boatwiththe girl's

amputated hands. The lobster makes _hearty bubbles

and the camera pans upwardtoview his reddish face!

Thevision ofthegirl's handsappeare in the bucket.

The lobster is covered with unique patterns on its

surface before it is cooked! It is not red as mostpeople

tend to think. This film isa horror film.

22

ad-visors. He asked me howthecomputer could replicate a

watereffect,and can it be done creatively? I did not

require much animated watereffects, except in the psycho

logicaltransitional scenes. I used acrylic _painting of water

on a small canvas. I then digitized the _painting andtrans

ferred it intothe Tips program. Here Iwas ableto add an

additionaltouch ofgreen _{before applying} and _mapping it

ontothe models, the lobster, and the spherical ball. Ithen

drewrectangular polygonsto create_transparency

watereffect.

I experimented with a_variety oftechniques and models

beginning from October 1993through _January1994. I then

began to script_my animated models, and continued todo

so until March 1995. The developmentof_my characters

and props required _manylong hours. _Duringthe animation

stage, I began to animatethecharacters and _concurrently

manipulated the movements ofthe camera. The lights and

casting theshadows were _{significantly}Importantforme.

23

Technicallyspeaking, the aspects ofthe movie requires 30

frames/second. I was ableto set one ₍₁₎ keyframeto hun

dredth _{(100th) keyframe,} and the In-between-frameswere

automatically created between frames in the computer. _My

film length concludedwith 7and 1/2 minutes and the total

During the process of production, I was_onlyableto share a

portion ofthefilm with theadvisors. Because of_rendering

time, I was notableto increasethe speed of_{my film} in

orderto receive commentsfromthem. I realizedthe proce

dureof _producing a movie requires a good organizational

plan. Italso mandated that thescript! storyboard must

contain clear Ideas. _{The making} ofthefilm needed a

smooth transition _{between scripting} andanimation of

scenes. The process of_evaluatingthe motionswere signifi

cant and hadto be done before renderings, since _rendering

would require _{many hours before being} ableto beviewed in

high-resolution. Oneofthe hidden secrets is to make

flip-books containing no numbers. I was able to runthe

flip-bookswithout _having shadows. Shadoweffectswould slow

the process. _{Technicallyspeaking, rendering} can rangefrom

6 hours to 46 hours forjust 1-15eecond offootage

depending on the_complexityof_{the materials,} shadows and

texture mappings.

24

THE CHANGES/CRITIQUES

Skip

and I discussed my storyand he suggested I makea

happy endingto _{my film.} I preferred toexpress a pes

simistic_feeling to makethe message strong. It enabled

meto

keep

a critical insight. _{Upon reviewing}the film with

him, he expressed his thoughtsasto _mystyle ofwork in

doing. He then suggested _making psychologicaltransitions

Insteadof physiological views. It made me expand _{my hori}

zons aboutthe world offilmmaking. I admired his critiques.

Associate Professor, Maria Schweppe, who later replaced

Skip

Battaglia as one of _mythesis advisorsforthis pro ject, made comments and suggestionsto Insert additional

footageto makethefilm run _relatively smooth and clear.

Hercomments have strengthened _{my film.}

Receiving thethoughts and thecriticisms thatwere

observed _{by my}advisors,was a problem. I realized I was

lacking knowledge offilmmaking. Barbara Foxanother of

myadvleore said,makethe _storyclear. I should emphasis

the story, not a pseudo story!

THEINFLUENCES

The infamousfilm, Gogol: "The Nose"

a film produced _byA.

Alexeieff&C. Parker, influenced me. I discovered a sense of

lovewas needed togive a _strong Impact and a pessimistic

view. Mostofthefilmsgave me a _feelingthat_something

crawled underneath _my skin, thatwasthe _feeling I was

looking for.

25

My biggest influence wasthecomic _strip, the'Opus n' Bill

Outland'

creativitythat takes place indoorsor outdoore are beauti

ful. His_drawing ofthecharactere are whimsical and adven

turous. Hiscolors depictgreatcontrastand a contempo

rary view. I perceived his marvelous work, and its artistic

styleas clearand crisp. Asimilar styleappears In _myfilm.

OTHER SCRAPS

I lost_TV2(one and a _half) quarters of production dueto

computer breakdown,and thatcaused me great stress.

Evidentially,thecomputer wasdeemed Irrepalrable. That

took several moreweeks,and forced me to takea break. I

put offproduction, and rested forthetime being. While I

rested Iwas _tryingto understand howanimated images

could be done properly.

One ofthe biggest problems I encountered _duringthe

processwas scheduling. It was a constant problem for

everyoneto get equal accessto theTopas facility. I also

discovered _mycolleagues shared similarfrustrations. In

orderto Improvethefacility, additional equipment might

help

increase production of_filmmakingfor most

graduate students.

26

Despitethestruggle with the_{time, I} began to sensea new

energyto challenge theworld ofanimation. Each of_my

was_very good.

Afterthe first reviewof_{my film} with _my advisors, I had to

redothe _beginning scenesto makea clearerIntroduction.

Thetransitions between the scenes were not equal. The

opening seemed weak and Irrelevant. _Myfeelingtowards

thiscritique was_discouraging nevertheless I hadto spend

moretimeto redofootageto add _claritytothe opening.

Eventually,thedream scenecameto _embodythe

strongest aspect offilm.

I handled thecamera well and recognized thevisual

possibilitiesof creative camera work. I wasfascinated _by

the appearance ofshadow and how I could use light and

darktocreate a different reality. I began tofeel stimulat

ed and excited in _myfilm making. I identified angles,got

closer orfurther, backed _{away from} it, and zoomed in and

out. A combination ofthese procedures givea specific

rhythm. Iwas captivated _bythe charm ofcamera, light,

and color.

27

FRUSTRATIONI/TECHNIQUES!

In thecourse ofscripting, my frustrationswere related to

the production ofa quick production rough. Whatis need

ed _using to increase the speed is more megabytes

(MB)

of

hard drivespaceto accommodate numerous projectfiles

and program _swapspace. The disadvantages Ifaced were

not _being ableto make

back-up

files! File saves had

become toodifficultto manage without extensive

external storage.

POST-PRODUCTION:

VIDEO EDITING

Editing afilm was a novel and _exciting experienceforme. I

was ableto

develop

confidence in the skill of editing. With

the little details behind me, I was able toget in gearand

concentrate on _my editing. Therewere _manyshots that

weredisorganized, and ittook me _many hoursto assemble

the footagesonto a S-VHStape. _Re-editing is an essen

tial processasthereare _editing adjustments _necessaryto

make the transition clearer. Theequipment I used was a

JVC-BR-sSOOVvideo cassette recorderand player.

23

SOUNDTRACK SCORE

I met with a veteran conductor, Bob Mowers and he was

delighted to accept _{my film} project. _Originally, wethought

we would choose deaflhard-of_{-hearing musicians, Barry} Kramarand Marlene Hart_{to play}the piano and clarinet.

Bob assisted and composed notes. _Barry showed methe

melodythat represented thecharacters, but I was dissat

Afterseveral meetings withthe trio,with time _passing

quickly, in fact one week _{before my film} wasto be shown, I

wasstill not satisfied. While I hadattemptedto explain

myfeelings, I asked Bobtoallowme todemonstratethe

sound notes and melodiesthat I believed were right_{for my}

film. In _{their studio, there}was _interesting equipmentthat

fascinated me. There was a synthesizer keyboard thatcre

atedvarious sound effects such as phantom,dream, ves

pers, etc. I invented a new _melodyand produced and

recorded it on thecomputer network with _set-up playbacks

to listentovarious sound effects. I began to start_rolling

myvideo and played the notesthatwere expressed from

my heart. I feltI had a hidden talent to _playthe keyboard

and I now havethefreedom to make notesthat represent

ed _exactlywhat 1 was seeking! Bobcommentedthat I was

the most appropriate person to _playthe sound. I contin

ued to perform till I feltsatisfied. Success atlast!

The sound assistant helped mix sound effectsand record

ed itonto studiotape. Then itwasdubbed onto S-VHS

animated and edited tape. The equipment used was on

Yamaha Music_{Synthesizer, SY99;}Yamaha Monitor

Speaker; Stereo Cassettedeck.

29

CONCLUSION:

mm:

m

m

wHmm

Hi

major_step in _challenging myselfto completethe film. The

storywas _initiallyvague while I _{concurrently developed} raw

materialsto use in thecomputer. _{Mystory began} to

evolveand became less foggy. Withthis film I have wel

comed myself intotheworld of animation.

I invested _mytime _bydevotinga period ofmonthsto train,

and work with the program, executetutorials and _study

thedocumentation. The program of graduate computer

animation offers students advanced _training in production,

using complex, and sophisticated media fortraditional or

non-traditional animation. The specific3-D Topas software

program has its weaknesses. _{Renderingcapability,} real

time preview,fllpbooks, placing lights, and objects in the

world getlost. _{The only} strengths werethe colorand light

that offered more complete model functions. Slow

rendering wasthe weakest part of_Topas, which is

common knowledge.

30

I used _my sense ofsurreal vision and angularfocustogive

thefilm a sense of Immediacy, _wanting togetthe audi

ence's attention. Theoverall effect ofthis film has been to

reevaluate _my approach to _filmmaking andto enhance pure

understanding and _clarityof_my Imagination. _{I enjoy being}

acomputer artist and _illustrating images that I love. I

knock one'ssocks off with the mostscenes.

Myopinion oftheTopas package is notto recommend. This is dueto the _inabilityto undo keyframes in the time

line ortimegraph mode. Despitethose Interferences, I

managed to completethe film. Theadvisors and myself

began to enjoy my movie.

I learned I musthavethe will, the patience, and a high

degree ofmotivation to complete animated films. I haveto

know as much as possibleto proceed. I keptnotes allthe time. In thefuture, I _{may be} interested in _narrating and

producing films adapting children's storybooks.

My biggestaccomplishment isthefilm is finished! I worked

on thisfilm for_{approximately 2}years. I realized _{from going}

through this novel experience I havegained confidence and wisdom.

REFERENCES:

Alexeieff, A.& Parker, C. (1963). Goaal: The Nose.

[Film]. France.

Hindman Miller, G. (19fi>4). The _Dictionary of Dreams. New

York, New York: Prentice Hall Press.

Jepson,J. (1992). No Wall ofStone. Washington, D.C.:

Gallaudet _University Press.

Parker, D.&J. (198>5). Dreaming. New_York, New York: Prentice

Hall Press.

Russet, R. & Starr, C. (1976). Experimental Animation. New

York, NewYork: DeCapo Press Inc.

"Silent News". December1994,Volume 26, No.12: Silent

News, Inc., Rochester, New York.

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