Okay, lots of good designs and interesting ideas. Things are progressing nicely. However, I have few notes for you to consider. They are...
Victoria - This is minor, but important to understanding character. You describe her as 'Prim and Proper'. I wouldn't necessarily describe her 'M. Monroe' design as being representative of that. She seems more glamorous/Hollywood than prim and proper. Prim and proper is more 'correct behaviour’ than the ‘out there/extrovert’ of Monroe. I'd either revisit her design or perhaps choose better words to describe her personality.
Skye – I’d look at the comedian ‘Miranda Hart’ (and the TV show Miranda) for inspiration for this character.
Cici – She is likely to rely on her hearing and touch more and therefore this changes her performance and mannerisms (see skits below).
The Restaurant – Try not to make the room too complex/detailed. A ‘pool’ of romantic light could cut-out a portion of work and make for a more focused (audience) composition. The characters are the centre of the animation.
Skits / Time frame – One aspect I was a little confused about (and you may already have an answer for this) is the time frame. Is it one evening or different evenings? If it’s one, then obviously Lucky wouldn’t be ordering multiple meals. If it’s different evenings, then Lucky may need a slight costume change. Different meals will also help explain the different time frame. If you are going for the same evening, then speed dates don’t typically happen in a restaurant with food. They happen in a bar with just drinks. Does that make sense?
Victoria skit – Lucky’s actions need to reflect Victoria’s distain for germs. That is perhaps true of all your skits. Lucky personifies his dates dislikes (until Penny). So, he shouldn’t just be clumsy, he should be clumsy in a way which causes Victoria to ‘squirm’. The ‘Lady and the Tramp’ idea may take a long time to setup too. For example, how can you quickly establish the ‘germ’ dynamic between the two characters, play with that dynamic, before leading up to the L&tT joke. If you go into that sequence too quickly, the audience may not know what is happening. You could reverse it by cutting to the date at the point of refusal (spaghetti) and work backwards, letting the audience into the joke.
Skye is essentially ‘tall and a bit clumsy/dishevelled’. Again, this should be the dynamic with Lucky. For example, instead of her hitting the floor (chair), could he manage to save her without her knowing (Chaplin/Buster Keaton style). Therefore, she thinks the whole date is going swimmingly whilst Lucky (and the audience) is secretly exhausted.
Cici – The boards in this sequence don’t make logic =al sense. Cici is blind not deaf? Why would she need or care about cards? You may need to rethink this part. It reads as a ‘cool idea’ not as part of the characters dynamic.
Penny – This seems the least developed and needs a bit more thinking.The answer needs to be symbolic / rewarding for the audience. Again, look towards what you’ve set up for both characters – They should complete / complement each other in their performance and in their final gestures.
Overall, there is definitely an animated short forming in your ideas. As I said (when commenting on your designs) the answers are in your characters personalities and how they polarise or complement each other. Any questions and we’ll chat on Thursday.
Hi All.
ReplyDeleteOkay, lots of good designs and interesting ideas. Things are progressing nicely. However, I have few notes for you to consider. They are...
Victoria - This is minor, but important to understanding character. You describe her as 'Prim and Proper'. I wouldn't necessarily describe her 'M. Monroe' design as being representative of that. She seems more glamorous/Hollywood than prim and proper. Prim and proper is more 'correct behaviour’ than the ‘out there/extrovert’ of Monroe. I'd either revisit her design or perhaps choose better words to describe her personality.
Skye – I’d look at the comedian ‘Miranda Hart’ (and the TV show Miranda) for inspiration for this character.
Cici – She is likely to rely on her hearing and touch more and therefore this changes her performance and mannerisms (see skits below).
The Restaurant – Try not to make the room too complex/detailed. A ‘pool’ of romantic light could cut-out a portion of work and make for a more focused (audience) composition. The characters are the centre of the animation.
Skits / Time frame – One aspect I was a little confused about (and you may already have an answer for this) is the time frame. Is it one evening or different evenings? If it’s one, then obviously Lucky wouldn’t be ordering multiple meals. If it’s different evenings, then Lucky may need a slight costume change. Different meals will also help explain the different time frame. If you are going for the same evening, then speed dates don’t typically happen in a restaurant with food. They happen in a bar with just drinks. Does that make sense?
Victoria skit – Lucky’s actions need to reflect Victoria’s distain for germs. That is perhaps true of all your skits. Lucky personifies his dates dislikes (until Penny). So, he shouldn’t just be clumsy, he should be clumsy in a way which causes Victoria to ‘squirm’. The ‘Lady and the Tramp’ idea may take a long time to setup too. For example, how can you quickly establish the ‘germ’ dynamic between the two characters, play with that dynamic, before leading up to the L&tT joke. If you go into that sequence too quickly, the audience may not know what is happening. You could reverse it by cutting to the date at the point of refusal (spaghetti) and work backwards, letting the audience into the joke.
Skye is essentially ‘tall and a bit clumsy/dishevelled’. Again, this should be the dynamic with Lucky. For example, instead of her hitting the floor (chair), could he manage to save her without her knowing (Chaplin/Buster Keaton style). Therefore, she thinks the whole date is going swimmingly whilst Lucky (and the audience) is secretly exhausted.
Cici – The boards in this sequence don’t make logic =al sense. Cici is blind not deaf? Why would she need or care about cards? You may need to rethink this part. It reads as a ‘cool idea’ not as part of the characters dynamic.
Penny – This seems the least developed and needs a bit more thinking.The answer needs to be symbolic / rewarding for the audience. Again, look towards what you’ve set up for both characters – They should complete / complement each other in their performance and in their final gestures.
Overall, there is definitely an animated short forming in your ideas. As I said (when commenting on your designs) the answers are in your characters personalities and how they polarise or complement each other. Any questions and we’ll chat on Thursday.
Typo - logic =al = Logical
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