Hey sirs and ladies,
Just finished up my short film and thought I would share. I just finished up a challenging year at Vancouver Film School and thought it would be great to hear what you think. The short was done in 6 months from concept to completion. All crits and comments are welcome and greatly appreciated.
You can "right click and save as..." from the link below:
http://www.ryanmcdougal.com/downloads/Sonata_h264.mov
Nice piece of animation! Love the lighting effect on the male character's face, and the music was so appropriate. Would like to see part 2. However, didn't agree with the graphics you chose at the end of the film---he walks in (fine) then immediately we see a white screen that has been cropped at the top and bottom by black bars. How about using a fade or some other in-tune-with-story effect?
well the black bars are simply because it's a widescreen film, thus the letterbox format. he should probably try exporting the file using the proper aspect ratio. i think the fade to white is a beautiful ending.
I really loved how you framed the male character in the window of the door. Just this blue, solem guy surrounded by brighteness of (from what I gathered) his past.
Beautiful.
Ontiaous
Black Anvil Designs©
JeffZNY & Zabrisa - thanks for the comments. Regarding the format of the film. It is widescreen and i have only rendered it in that fashion.
Artistically, I chose a widescreen format for the short as I felt it enhances the cinematic feel that I sought to accomplish and also allowed for more freedom in terms of the type of compositions I was looking to achieve. I chose the fade to white as a way of symbolizing a positive, hopefilled ending. My intention with the last shot (as he walks into the warm light and then it fades to white) is akin to slowly drifting in a good memory or believing in the hope of a new day and a dream of a better tomorrow.
In the end, this is my first and only animated film that I have ever written and produced so I have much to learn. Maybe my choices would be different given more experience or different circumstances? As always, thanks for the crits and I really appreciate you taking the time to watch...
I enjoyed watching this. The setup, and emotion in the way the man moved was very high quality. I definitely felt empathy for him in his internal struggle. The music was well chosen too. One crit I have would be to maybe tone down the sound effect of his shoes... just a bit, so they don't overpower the more important piano music or cause distraction. The fade to white seemed appropriate to me, and reading what you said as to why you chose to do it that way makes sense.
High quality work there!
I hope to see more. Thank you for sharing!
A well rounded emotive film. I thought the sound track worked well to emphasise loneliness and internal emotion. The stylised mood lighting, minimalistic textures and organic character mods bought a sense of vulnerability to the scene which you captured well with your choice of shots and transistions. You have allowed the viewer to become attached to the main character without being forceful, hope to see more of your work... aslo I hope he gets laid soon.
Foot - thanks for the c & c. I am glad that you enjoyed it. As far as the sound effect of the shoes, the final sound design is being finished tomorrow and will be available on Monday. I think that the sound design with regards to the foley is more appropriate as the present music and sound, sadly is just for placement. (needed to get some music composed for the piece to make it legit as I could not secure the rights to the music that is presently in use.)
Take a listen once more after monday and let me know what you think...
dalvinci - I really appreciate your compliments and am glad that you appreciated the details and transitions as most people just do not really see or pay heed to such things...versus just seeing it in its simplest form. Thanks! As far as the guy "getting some"...perhaps that will be in the x-rated sequel...haha.
sweet i hope i can make something like that i nthe future :)