Screen Project 2: Reflection on process & outcome

ESS A4 – Sang Thu from Media Factory on Vimeo.

Screen Project 2 was enlightening, while also, without doubt, more technically and mentally challenging than Screen Project 1. As always, the difficulties I encountered made the result a lot more rewarding.

My first challenge was not knowing where to start with animation. Eventually, I approached After Effects the same way I did with other editing applications which are through Skillshare and YouTube. Since these platforms are extremely resourceful with lessons for beginners to virtuosos, I had to spend a significant amount of time finding ones that are worth bookmarking. At the early stage of the project, technical difficulties were a major reason that made me questioned the decision to tackle animation. However, I am glad that as time went on, I became more motivated to improve my skills.

The second obstacle I faced during the process was maintaining consistent quality. For Screen Project 1, I did not have to work on the project every single day but it was the case with Screen Project 2. Naturally, I love breaking down a big task into bite-sized pieces. I reckon the repetitive nature of drawing motion and my unfamiliarity with the animation workflow had affected my ability to be persistent. I remember feeling exhausted when drawing up to the 20th frame of scene 5 (put on a sock), so I shifted to drawing in a lazy manner. The motion then ended up looking rocky and awkward. After redrawing 11 frames, I learned that I should never rush drawing movements. Animating requires me to be consistent, diligent, and meticulous, and I hope to carry these traits to other projects as well.

Reflecting on the process, I acknowledge that the course resources were a big help. The workshop activities such as the word video, the research on animated adaptations of literary works, sound design, etc. prompted many of my inspirations. Also, I believe my project’s topic resonates well with the overall theme of the studio. The studio discusses a very diverse range of subjects, and that pushes me to experiment with something new such as animation.

As for the video, I think it successfully delivers the spirit of the stanza and I am genuinely proud of it. Seeing still drawings transform into moving images is a purely magical and satisfying experience for me. My SCP2 is different from SCP1 in terms of the format, but they are quite similar in some other aspects. Both of the videos focus mainly on senses and technical learning. The poem itself is sensory imagery rich and poetic, and I further combine images that have sentimental value. Since the video lacks human actions, I concentrated on designing delicate details that can together generate the autumn ambiance more realistically. For example, to illustrate the wind in the air, the clothes of the characters are a bit wiggly and flowy, and the objects also move around. The sun rays in all of the scenes are always changing in opacity and position to indicate the golden light of autumn. I also think that by layering background music, many sound effects, and voice-over, I was able to make the video feel more intimate like I wanted. 

Now that I am more used to the animation workflow and perhaps drawing, I can tell that my video has room for improvement. While this video has a deadline, my learning journey does not. I will continue to finest my technical skills while seeking my personal style after this project to fulfill both personal and professional interests.