I tried to refine my storyboard in the third week and made an animation showing the life state of a transformed person in a mirror world. And have been adding cause-and-effect relationships to make the plot complete. So I added that the transformer was a science and technology developed by the girl to extend her life, and the government killed one of the scientists who was close to the girl after the project was completed in order to keep it a secret. After that, the girl reversed the technology and rescued: human behavior and thought due to information limitations and the push to hide thinking, imitate others, do not dare to violate the concept, let the world back to freedom. To make it easier to understand, I also dubbed it and posted it on youtube at：https://youtu.be/_aMUjCd0k1s
However, after talk with Matthew, and the event and narrative of my animation was too complex for the 1 minute animation in studio2, it looks like the whole thing would be suitable for a 20 minute movie. I thought it made sense so I changed my direction
I reworked around my four questions and developed a new direction.
I put a clear focus on a relaxed atmosphere and a soothing rhythm, accompanied by the sound of the wind to create the healing effect of ASMR. And to recreate my animatic：https://youtu.be/cxNOQD2Q1AM
Although it was simpler than a narrative approach to capture my subject matter, as the piece did not stand out from the others, I tried to carry out brainstorming in preparation for the following week's production. In the meantime, different styles of colouring and ambience were tried.
It is well known that in the early days of animation its purpose was not to educate children but to please stressed out adults. I think that today, with the rapid development of society, this need still exists and is even greater. However, it is important to note that, unlike in the past, adults now have less free time and more fragmented time instead.
Therefore, the length of time should also be a key consideration in the design of this video. With the above statement in mind, I aimed to create a relaxing atmosphere with a combination of soft images and appropriate sound effects within a limited time frame.
According to the argument in 'More than a feeling: Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR) is characterized by reliable changes in affect and physiology"It is a warm, tingling and pleasant sensation that starts at the top of the head and spreads down the body, often accompanied by a feeling of calm and relaxation. There have been many attempts to do something similar in art. For example, the work of Japanese anime master Hayao Miyazaki has always been characterised by sleek lines, warm and unsharp colours, combined with soft music to create a healing and refreshing style. This is not only seen in anime videos, but also in games where the game designer tries to put this concept into a game, where there is no fast moving story, but rather a scene that the player can relate to through the art and music, for example Journey (2012 video game) aims to make the player feel intuitively what the game is showing them through its minimalist style. This allows them to explore and feel the surprises without direct instructions. At the same time, the music in the game changes in response to the player's actions. The game establishes a separate theme through the music, which corresponds to and illustrates the emotions of the game's story.
Based on the above theories and the attempts of pioneers in this area, I believe that it is possible to relax the viewer by reducing the pace of thought through the combination of graphics and audio.
Although it was simpler than a narrative approach to capture my subject matter, as the piece did not stand out from the others, I tried to carry out brainstorming in preparation for the following week's production. In the meantime, different styles of colouring and ambience were tried.
Purpose: To relax the viewer by reducing the pace of thought through the combination of picture and audio.
Planning the story: Firstly, I could not set the length of the final video too long due to the previous explanation, but it was not easy to tell the story in a shorter time.
Secondly, according to research on ASMR, ASMR reactions are more likely to occur when a scene is portrayed as similar experiences for the viewer. Combining these two points, and after much thought, I decided that the theme of the story would be wind - naturally occurring wind. The wind comes from nature and is free and unfettered.
Although it is invisible, it moves and combines with other elements in the environment to take on a form. Of course, in order to make the wind visible, other parameters need to be added and I chose grass, petals and clouds. Grass is a symbol of life and the sound made by the wind when it blows is often chosen to trigger ASMR effects.
When combined with the wind, the petals and clouds transform the wind from invisible to tangible, and the petals and clouds use the wind to reach places they were never intended to go.
Their mutually fulfilling relationship is more akin to that of friends helping each other rather than the sinister cunning of reality, which in another way makes you feel less guarded and relaxed.
By Guo Bingqian
Email Guo Bingqian
Published On: 23/08/2021