After Effects was, until recently, a programme that was as familiar to me as a banana to a penguin. Though thanks to the workshops and a few weeks of (a lot of) trial and (a lot of) error, I have managed to finish my sting! I feel proud of myself, as this brief required me to really draw together everything that I had learnt in previous years about Illustrator and Photoshop, and combine that knowledge in order to understand this programme.
I found that the more I played around on it, the more I could draw similarities between it and its sister programs, particularly Illustrator. It was after the second crit that I began to think about what I wanted to see in my final sting. As I remember getting some feedback that suggested I experiment using the eyes and have them blinking/flicking around the room. This really inspired me and I felt such an urge to get myself well acquainted with the programme.
One part of the process that I found surprisingly long-winded was the art of separating my scanned prints into multiple layers that I could then play around with and manipulate on AE. This was a useful process though, as it allowed me to clearly think about what I was able to produce given the prints I had created, and how I'd be able to create narrative and movement with these prints.
(Screenshots displaying photoshop breakdown of print layers for AE)
I decided to break down the image so that I had 4 layers for each eye; the lids (x2), eye-ball and pupil. I then planned to create a sequence of opening and closing eyes, darting their gaze around a dark room. This narrative aimed to suggest the ambiguity that still lies around mental illness, we are still somewhat in the dark.
(Storyboarding/figuring out ideas for final Sting)
I found the storyboarding exercises to be handy when it came to organising my thoughts and ideas. Unlike designing a 2D image, an animation requires one to be thinking about many more things at the same time. And so designing the story prior was a really useful way of ensuring that the end product met with my expectations.
(Screenshots showing AE development)
Becoming more efficient with Illustrator over the last year or so really lent itself to my work when using After Effects. I found that I was able to use vectors in a very similar way in both programs. I decided to use negative space to create the movement in my animation. This worked well as it allowed for a really fluid and smooth motion of the eyelids, that looked realistic.
Another consideration I had to make was the sound(s). At first I wondered whether including a piece of Sacks' prized classical music would suit, but quickly decided not. Rather, sound effects seemed to be the best direction to go. As well as the noises created by the movement of the eyes, I decided to play the sound of a brain scanner over the top during the first scene. The sound that this created was not recognisable as a brain scanner until pointed out, which I like. That makes the effect quite illusive and at times unnerving. To end the animation I combined the appearance of his name with the sound of a Norton motorcycle - Sacks' favourite. Bringing a sense of his own personality in.
Overall I feel that I responded well to this brief and definitely want to use After Effects again. I found combining print and animation to be really rewarding and often quite exerting, in a good way. It tested my digital skills and pushed me to learn more. Even something as simple as becoming more confident with keyboard shortcuts has boosted my productivity through the roof! Since this module, I find myself thinking about process so differently. When I see an animation or a print by a practicioner, I find it far easier to imagine how they've gone from paper to GIF, print, animation, etc. And that in turn is forcing me out of my box and off to venture into more of the unknown.
