Title sequence

Background

I am currently experimenting with potential background ideas. I’m currently considering using a paper background playing on the whole aspect of the poem being written down. This could be quite a nice aesthetic as it would allow me to keep my animation quite minimal.

More experimentation with both foreground and background

Background design

Background design

I made this background quite simple and neutral and at the moment have been learning how to apply it across all layers of my animation and how to make the shadow reduce as the cat jumps out of frame. 

Above is my more successful outcome of the cat jumping out of frame with the shadow following it.

Phoenix animation

This is my current progress of getting the Phoenix to catch the cat. I have not yet incorporated the cat but I have been working on a digital version of my Phoenix based on my earlier drawings. I am attempting to incorporate my favourite features from my designs, such as the colouring, the long beak and the tail feathers.

Phoenix emerging

Below are a sequence of images taken as a screenshot from Procreate, which is what I’m using to animate. At the moment I am trying to figure out how I can make the smoke begin to appear from beneath the cats paws before it jumps in fright, revealing fire. As a result I am experimenting with different styles of design and drawing to figure out what would be the most aesthetic result.

Animating- cat jumping in fright

 Trying to make the cat jump in fright was very difficult, above is the result I have landed on at the moment with the cat jumping out of frame.

Above is my initial outcome however it doesn’t look natural how the cat kind of floats of out of the screen. I thought this could be fixed by making it faster so I edited it and it still didn’t seem natural so I edited it further.

Animation progress

This is the same animation I made previously but with the details of the cat and the bird added. At the moment it is still in need of some editing, for example I think I’m going to animate the cat sneaking in to the position ready to jump as well as extending the end before it cuts to a new scene, otherwise it will be very short and hard to follow.

Storyboarding the Phoenixes emergence

I am now storyboarding in order to imagine the cats reaction and the birds transformation. I have also begun to consider the ending where the Phoenix swoops in and catching the cat who is cowering in fear of the Phoenix.

• A key part I am trying to develop is how the Phoenix emerges from the flames subtly without it just appearing on the screen.

Below are larger versions of the storyboard

Phoenix- character design

Sketching out with pencil and using watercolour to colour I attempted to design the character of the Phoenix who rises from the ashes of the initial bird character. In the above page I really enjoy the colouring with the reds, green and yellows. I particularly like the bottom design as it’s in flight preparing to catch the cat. These designs also look most like my original bird out of all my drawings which might make the plot easier to follow.

The above designs are again made with watercolour and pencil. I decided that the bottom design would not be as effective as the bird looks very small and not very intimidating or strong. The top design I really like for its vulture like stature as if it is preparing to hunt. I kept the beak long on both drawings so that he Phoenix resembles the bird that features at the beginning of the animation.

This is probably my favourite overall spread. Attempting to gage movement with the same design of the bird in different positions and facing different ways. I really like the subtle shadow and the deep colouring. The tail feathers are also particularly eye catching although I do believe they would be very difficult to animate consistently.

A more basic design but this time considering not using bright vivid colours and instead grey ash tones. I’m not particularly a fan of this as I think although it suggests harmful intent the Phoenix is still meant to be the protagonist of the story and this suggests otherwise.

This is one of my favourite and most unique designs. It’s very much a story in itself and really eye catching. The colouring is more parrot like with allot more green and the tailed feathers are long and flowing. It definitely resembles a mythical creature, but I think it would be confusing to the plot as it does not resemble the bird that it transforms from. It also does not look particularly vengeful of intimidating so it might be hard to believe that it could face the cat unless it was huge in scale.

Finally I began trying to figure out how the Phoenix can emerge from the flames which is going to be very intimidating to animate.

Artists research- Olivia Lomenech Gill

Attempting to understand my animation better. At the moment I have been working on small segments but have been struggling to view my animation as a whole. As a result I decided I need to have a fuller view of my animation so I created a larger and fuller storyboard. The end is still uncertain as I still have a number of ideas in my head as to what to do. One idea is to have the bird turn the cat to ash. Another is to have the cat shrink in fear to reveal its true week form, this would be a play on Goebbels the Nazi propaganda minister and how although he endorsed the ‘final solution’ he was actually very weak in character and could not face what he did. I also had the idea of this huge Pheonix catching the cat and it gradually turning to ash in its talons.

• The Phoenix is an allegory from the idea of the ashes used in the poem lady Lazarus. Although there is no reference to an actual Phoenix its the imagery the poem gave to me. It’s also perfect to suggest the revenge and the idea of being reborn that’s presented in the poem.

Below is the same storyboard but larger. I used watercolour to enable me to visualise the colours and how they would fit with the animation.

Storyboarding

Some more storyboarding. Attempting to gage how I can animate the cat creeping up on the bird. However I am not entirely sure if have the cat head on is the right direction to go now that I have decided for it not to have any facial features. I really like the idea of the side profile so you get all the movement of the limbs jumping. I’m contemplating not having grass anymore and potentially having a different type of setting.

Cat movement

I have really developed the movement now which I really like. I really like having red paws beneath, a splash of colour. Also implicating the danger, also the lack of facial features makes the cat really ominous. I’m considering doing a close up of the face just to highlight this design choice.

Animation- attempt

I am currently struggling to make a cat walk normally

Character development

Researching my bird more

 Trying to visualise how the bird can be caught and considering potentially doing a close up of the paws landing on the bird. Not entirely sure I like the idea because I wouldn’t be able to portray the cats expression when the bird emerges as a Phoenix.

 Considering the ways that the cat can be revealed hunting the bird. On the left is the camera over the birds head to reveal the cat crouching. On the right is the camera panning around the bird to the right revealing the cat in the grass that was previously hidden by the birds head.

Thinking about how I can get the large bird that I have already animated to become the more panned out view of the small bird being hunted. So I’m considering zooming out but not entirely sure how to do this. I have also considered just cutting to a separate scene.

character development- drawing characters

Ideas generation

This is some story boarding to figure out how I can transition from the main setting of the sun to the first character, the bird. I’ve been considering adding elements of coulee in to small details such as the sun and maybe the back drop.

 I was struggling to make the cat move in my first so I decided to storyboard the individual movements to make it a bit easier. This helped to make the motion a bit more fluid and realistic.

Research- Michael Dudok de Wit