This week focused on narrative structure and character development, and how stories create meaning through structure, performance, and film language. The lecture introduced different storytelling models, such as the three-act structure and five-act structure, which are commonly used in films, animation, and literature. A key idea from this week was that narrative is not only […]
Author: Skyler Gao
This week focused on understanding animation in relation to art history, cinema, and visual language. The lecture introduced how animation developed alongside major social, political, and artistic changes, rather than existing only as entertainment or commercial media. We learned that early animation was strongly connected to modernist and avant-garde movements. Artists and filmmakers explored animation […]
Unreal Engine Showreel Summary This term I developed my Narcissus project in UE5 step by step. The main idea was to build a quiet environment and use visuals to support the theme of self-focus and emotion. I learned that good results come from clear planning, fast workflow, and many small tests. In the early stage, […]
In Week 12, Ting introduced the basic ideas of cinematography, focusing on layout, composition, and camera language. She explained that the camera should be treated like a character, because it helps guide the audience and tell the story. Camera choices should be clear and logical, not only for visual style. Ting talked about four main […]
With George In Week 11, George gave more detailed feedback on my body mechanics animation. This week focused on refining movement details and improving clarity. First, George gave specific feedback on the arm movement during the jump take-off. He explained that the arms should swing more clearly to support the jump and help show energy […]
With George In Week 10, the class focused on the polish stage of body mechanics animation. George gave me several clear suggestions to improve the quality and clarity of my motion. First, he said the movement during the jump take-off should be softer and more exaggerated. The pose needs to show a clear C-pose or […]
With George In Week 9, the class moved into the spline stage of body mechanics animation. George reviewed my planning and said the difficulty level was very high. He pointed out that during the rolling action, the motion needs to be controlled frame by frame, which means almost every frame needs a key. I understood […]
In Week 12, I put my main focus on the atmosphere of my Narcissus project. I wanted the sequence to feel quiet and emotional, and I tried to keep a consistent visual tone across all shots. In Unreal Engine, I used post process settings to shape the overall look and keep it stable between different […]
In Week 11, I focused on lighting and camera for my Narcissus scene in UE5. My main goal was to create a calm and reflective mood around the small lake. I tested different light directions and intensity to see how they change the depth of the space and the feeling of reflection. I tried to […]
Final Project Tutorial In this session with Serra, I talked about my idea of using water reflection in my shot. At the start, I was thinking too much about making real waves, like an ocean. I thought I needed a complex system to make the water look correct. Serra told me this is not the […]