What If? Metropolis? - Thumbnails 102 - 112

What If? Metropolis - Thumbnails 70 - 101

What If? Metropolis - Thumbnails 30 - 69

What If? Metropolis - Thumbnails 1 - 29

What If? Metropolis | OGR - Part 1

What If? Metropolis by Alex on Scribd

Toolkits:

Maya Tutorials:
http://alexiscornwell.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Maya

Life Drawing:
http://alexiscornwell.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Life%20Drawing

Film Reviews:
http://alexiscornwell.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Film%20Review

Photoshop:
http://alexiscornwell.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Photoshop

What If? Metropolis | Influence Map - The Stenberg Brothers

The Stenberg Brothers - Influence Map

Film Review - 2001: A Space Odyssey

2001: A Space Odyssey was directed by Stanley Kubrick and released in 1968. The film has a confusing plot that leaves a lot up for interpretation, leading there to be many different idea's on the films story. One perspective of this is that 'The plot is not so much of structure but rather of events or moments in time that are united by the appearance of a large black monolith.' (Haflidason, 1968).

Figure 1: Movie Poster

The use of music in 2001: A Space Odyssey is interesting as there are scenes where there is nothing but music and motion with nobody talking at all and also scenes where there is no sound at all, just the emptiness of space. This has prompted people to write that 'One of the more crucial elements of 2001 is the lack of sound  that dominates the film, which is true to that there would be no sound in space (no atmosphere means no medium for sound transmission).' (Scott, 2009). The music used was classical music that wasn't created for the film. The use of a score designer for the film would have attempted 'to underline the action - to give us emotional clues. The music chosen by Kubrick exists outside the action.' (Ebert, 1997). This use of music encourages the viewer to observe the scenes as they happen instead of needing to respond to them the same way you would if the music was there to evoke a response.

Figure 2: Spacecrafts

The camera shots used in the film also create a distance from the events as they keep the characters in the middle to back of the screen (see fig 3) and rarely move into the foreground. This creates a sense of distance as it is difficult to see the faces of the characters which makes it feel impersonal. There are few exceptions to this, one of the most prominent being the use of a close-up shot on the character of Dave as he is shutting down the computer HAL (see fig 4). The shots show the lack of emotion on Dave's face as he destroys a creation he had previously said was like another crew member. The scene evokes a sadness and sympathy that feels wrong given it's directed at a machine, a computer with dubious ability to think or feel independently of it's programming.

Figure 3

Figure 4

Bibliography:

Roger Ebert, 1997: 2001: A Space Odessey Review:

http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-2001-a-space-odyssey-1968

Almar Haflidason, 1968: 2001: A Space Odessey Review:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2000/09/18/2001_review.shtml

Ridley Scott, 2009: 2001: A Space Odessey Review:

http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2009/07/ridley-scott-science-fiction-is-dead.html

Images

Figure 1:

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GAgI6Xhbdz6AJg_lk6-PnX_OUcCOgZhBjEm6PwMypHtshhLv6gjMbUS6gJIP6iedeRn79W57UQzOmqdsv8g9hwVWONvrbK6YH4cr9QR9tDfZIvcT0gP2sF_MDGCQecMfcj0h4WRQ1Pg/s1600/2001+A+Space+Odyssey+(1968)+Space+Station+One+by+Robert+McCall.jpg

Figure 2:

https://fogsmoviereviews.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/20110925-011821.jpg

Figure 3:

http://irenebrination.typepad.com/.a/6a00e55290e7c4883301bb07b7f1d9970d-800wi

Figure 4:

https://www.sfsymphony.org/getmedia/ee280956-c54f-41a5-b62d-a39c6b98e4e0/2001-Space-Odyssey?width=583&height=335&ext=.jpg

Invisible Cities | Reflective Statement

The Invisible Cities project overall has been a fun and interesting project to undertake. I feel that I learned a lot about how concept art works and how it is created. I feel like the project allowed me to work on my perspective drawing and that I now have a better grasp of how perspectives work in drawings. This project has shown me that while I did get everything finished when I needed to, I could have managed my time better and thus I will be working on bettering my time management for the next project.

Film Review - King Kong

King Kong was released in 1933 and was directed by Ernest B. Shoedsack and Merian C. Cooper. The film tells the story of a filmmaker, Carl Denham, who hires a girl, Ann Darrow, and takes her to a mysterious Island for the filming of his movie. While the story tells the tale of a Beast it is done in such a way that the beast is not seen as inherently evil, instead seen more 'as a creature that in its own way wants to do the right thing' (Ebert, 2002).

Figure 1: Movie Poster

The film being made in the 1930's is evident in a lot of the events that transpire, one that springs to mind being the depiction of the natives in the island scenes (see fig 2). Ebert writes that 'viewers will shift uneasily in their seats during the stereotyping of the islanders in a scene where a bride is to be sacrificed to Kong' (Ebert, 2002). The film has a clear underlying reference to slavery, as shown through the capture and further exhibition of Kong (see fig 3). The character of Ann Darrow is also a project of it's time as she is depicted as a damsel in distress for the majority of the movie and being saved by one of the men that previously insulted her.

Figure 2: The Islanders

Figure 3: King Kong Captured

The film itself is very influential, featuring special effects that were new for their time as well as a soundtrack featuring music specifically for each character and scene. The music is used to enhance the emotions for each scene, using suspenseful music to build suspense and calmer music to let the audience know when things are calmer. The films use of 'A gripping and fitting musical score and some impressive sound effects rate with the scenery and mechanism in providing "Kong" with its technical excellence' (Bigelow, 1933).

Bibliography:

Ebert, R. (2002) King Kong Review:

http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-king-kong-1933

Bigelow, J. (1933) King Kong Review:

http://variety.com/1933/film/reviews/king-kong-2-1200410783/

Images:

Figure 1:

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/76/d1/10/76d110fc47a86432a70c7e9795b8cb96.jpg

Figure 2:

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYpk6TALcU6ck6s8jAX5bXRPPFECLSotBbDv5ZFw-u1KXnZ5negfGpdhy-OObtZ-2ueE28HwWmeu87cv5AVwzF7vkSkM-oM3mhHMByhJQmdcACpdPLyu3HlUDskDam_uTOA5OPcHXIPps/s1600/KingKong_059Pyxurz.jpg

Figure 3:

http://manapop.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/kong-on-stage.jpg

Invisible Cities | Thekla - Art Of

Thekla - Art Of by Alex on Scribd

Invisible Cities | Thekla - Crit Presentation

Crit Presentation - Thekla by Alex on Scribd

Invisible Cities | Thekla - Influence Maps

Invisible Cities | Thekla - Interior Shot

Invisible Cities | Thekla - Exterior Establishing Shot

Thumbnail Choices for Establishing and Interior shots

Thumbnail choice for Exterior Establishing Shot

Thumbnail Choice for Interior Establishing Shot

Thumbnails - Experimenting with Colours

Thekla Exterior Shot Thumbnails

Thekla train station thumbnail

Thekla factory thumbnail

Photoshop - Value Study and Collage Thumbnails

Value Study - Ersilia

Collage Thumbnails

Thumbnails 65 and 66 were created by making abstract images and then layering them onto each other and cleaning them up. Thumbnails 67 and 68 were created by layering a bunch of the same shape in different shades to create an image and then refining them with the brush and eraser tools.

Invisible Cities - OGR

Invisible Cities - Ogr by Alex on Scribd

Photoshop Exercises:
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Film Reviews:
X

Maya Exercises:
X
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Photoshop - Word Map, References and Thumbnails - Zenobia

References and Word Map

 I found that using the word map allowed me to have a clear list of things I wanted to find references off which helped me find a starting point for my thumbnails a lot faster. It also made me think of things that were less obvious when first reading the extract.

Zenobia Thumbnails created using above references

Thumbnails - Octavia - 50 to 58