AGI Studio 1: Week 2 Related Work

Week Two

Brendan Sullivan

1. Brendan Sullivan created a series of 3D models with the pixel art style. For example, he created a character model that is similar to the game Pokemon trainer in earlier generations.
2. He also created a plugin to change the character’s facial expression. It allows the user to change the facial expression of a character by simply changing the input number in the attribute editor
3. His work shows me the potential of blending 2D and 3D by applying different textures to the face of the character. It also initiated some researching time and below are two useful tutorials I found online.

Portfolio Link: https://www.artstation.com/brendansullivan?fbclid=IwAR1w0jmeFrh5x0KCnyYHViZW3PBSw4mAcLS-vsRL_LnWcBrItvIMkKmDKtU

Link: maya- animate colour and animate a texture map: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fn-Ge6X43H0

Link: animating textures using set driven key: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAezbttRTcs

Animation of the ‘Kingdom Hearts 3’

1. ’Kingdom Hearts 3’ tells the story of friendship as Sora and his friends are on an epic journey to defeat the darkness. The game asks the player to travel around each world as Sora to save his friend from the darkness.
2. The game uses different metaphors to describe monsters and most of them are saved by the power of friendship. For example, the darkness creature ‘Heartless’ is a metaphor for losing one’s kindness and passion. It can only be reunited once they regain their consciousness through the help of a friend.
3. As the story develops, there are always a few cutscenes animations playing here and there, showing us the potential of presenting high quality and smooth animation in a real-time rendering game engine.

CG Animated Short Film ‘Alike’

1. ’Alike’ shows the story of a busy father, Copi who tries to teach his son, Paste to fit in the world in the right way.
2. The story uses different colours to differentiate Copi and Paste from the rest of the crowd. It presents the theme of everyone is unique and shouldn’t be changed or educated to just to fit in.
3. The animation uses a minimalistic art style, e.g. no hair or clothing for the characters. It shows that a story can be conveyed effectively with simple character, smooth animation, great cinematic work, as well as matching background music. 

Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDHIyrfMl_U