BAF:Aardman Animations: Peter Lord.

Peter Lord is one of the founding creators of Aardman Animation Studios, one of the most notable British Animation Studios in history. Things like Wallace and Gromit, Shaun the Sheep, and Chicken Run all come from this studio. At this talk, Mr. Lord went into detail about what it was like to open his studio in the mid 70s and the troubles associated with having a small stop motion animation company. He showed us the difference of the plasticine he used vs. the kind that major companies sell, and the advantages and disadvantages of both. He even brought along Morph and showed us how both of the characters in that show had a different consistency to them and that some of the things one could do, the other couldnt. All in all it was a very informative Presentation and one that I hope to remember

BAF: 100 Things Games Students Should Know

This Presentation was made for people who are looking into doing animation or programming for video games. It was made by a woman who teaches a games course at some school in England, I cant remember very well. But she went over some essential things about working in the games industry. She gave us both good and bad examples of work within the sphere of 3-d gaming, along with good and bad examples of attitudes. She told us she has a portfolio of terrible 3-d work that she's received as submissions for her course. Since I don't have much of an interest in video games from a creating standpoint I don't exactly see this as a viable future for me. Although I did learn things about 3-D modelling I wouldn't have learnt if I didn't go.

BAF:McLaren Tooned

This one is the most interesting by far. McLaren, the racing company created an animated short series and made their drivers the main characters. Its a bit like a pseudo James bond, they have a person behind making their cars, and they're treated like agents to win races. Although most of the time the two drivers are competing with each other, which is when hilarity ensues. Whats most interesting to me though is the fact that a racing company decided to try and pull in a younger audience to F1 Racing. They decided that the best way to do this is by creating a 3-D animated series. The art style tries its best to be fluid and clean, just like the company with its cars. They showed us some of the animated shorts and It was pretty awesome.

Pixar Animation Studios

Today We watched a film about how Pixar Animation Studios became the studio it is today. Something interesting I found within the video is that as an entire studio, they were mainly concerned with if and how it was new or not. They were a studio that wanted to let creativity flow throughout the entire structure, and they weren't going to let anyone stifle that. I think the reason for that was because while they were working for Disney, they weren't allowed any creative room to play with things like medium and the like. An interesting view into the world of animation, to be sure.

Making A Successful Presentation

In order to create a successful presentation one must go through various stages of planning and processing. Its a vital step to make your presentation one that resonates with your Audience. First of all you must know to whom you are speaking, and write your presentation with that audience in mind. It goes without saying that you must know what you are writing about, because if you don't you'll be up on stage with a group of angry people targeting your self esteem. You need to make sure to capture an audiences attention, using your theme and by what you say. If you can't attract an audience you'll end up talking to a bunch of people who aren't listening to a word you're saying. You need to choose the right pictures to go along with your presentation, or whether or not to use any at all. You need to know your presentation front to back so that if there are any questions then you will be able to answer them. On the day of the presentation you should probably arrive early and prepare beforehand as well, just so its fresh in your mind when you walk up there. Good luck and try not to choke.

Oh and a reminder

• Dont
• Use
• Bullet
• Points
• Ever
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Copyright

Today we went over in class how copyright can affect us in our craft. We went over the various types of copyright, and what certain websites have as their terms of copyright. We were showed what Open Source was, and different programs that use open source programming. We also went over pirating and how some companies have made viral marketing techniques with the use of pirated software. Right now governments are trying to take control over the internet, even when the creator of it said that he wanted it to be completely open. Copyright will have to change meaning over the next few years as open source and intellectual property become more common phrases in our society.
(c) Gavin Rae 2014

Disney And The Rennaisance

In class today we watched a film that focused on the new breed of animators that were hired in the 80s that was supposed to breathe new life into the studio. What stuck with me in that film is the wealth of new ideas and the craziness that happened in the studio. It showed me that there were people like me even back then that weren't exactly clean cut, and that they were struggling with a lot of the things that I do from time to time. I liked that there was so much creativity happening in close quarters like that.

Along with that, we Also watched Atlantis: The Lost Empire, A film I enjoyed immensely as a child. I noticed later on the unique art style it had that wasn't the case in other Disney Films, excluding Treasure Planet.

Apparently the director of Atlantis ended up creating his own Atlantian alphabet just for use in the movie. That sort of dedication is inspiring to me.

Using Twitter Effectively

In Our PPP class the instructor gave us various tips and tricks on using our twitters effectively. They showed the class how to properly filter the flow of info coming in on your feed. They also gave us some useful people to follow that will help us with getting source material, and knowing whats going on in the animation world a the moment. I never really used twitter before this but now that i know it can be used in a professional setting rather than people sharing random bits of information you don't really need to know about. Pretty useful stuff, that is.