IOL Week 2 tests- Restlessness

By Carlo Tolentino

Adjective: Restlessness

I wanted to bring over our week's exercise into a 3D environment, and test how I can express "restlessness" in a minimal composition. After speaking with Nick with my ideas for IOL and my studio project, he encouraged me to iterate and experiment using a small mockup or diorama of a projection-mapped environment. In this environment, I experimented on simply using a single spotlight source intending to observe and analyze movements on the shadows and gradients it would cast between objects. I wanted to keep this exercise similar to our simple exercise in class, wherein we use basic shapes, black and white, and animate a single value of a tool we decide to use. In this case the x and y value of the spotlight. In the movement of light and shadows, I tested animating restlessness different timings of abrupt and snappy movements that break the initial stillness. I also introduced camera movement to reveal more movement where the shadows are cast. Between each test, I also tried different rhythms and intervals between stillness and restlessness, as well as playing with the curves, and step keyframes in Cinema 4D animation. 

I found that having short bursts of action and using step keyframes created a snappier movement in the composition, which I felt suited the concept of restlessness even better. I will certainly consider thinking more on how to humanize elements in the composition, by way of animating through adjectives. Specially adjectives that are relatable to human expression. I'll experiment on this process and try to incorporate it in a projection-mapped environment, to see how the physicality of objects, such as simple movement of shadows, also contribute to the piece as a whole.