Books for Animators

I hear all the time, from friends and colleagues, which are the best books for Animators?

The response tends to lean towards a response of "just google what you're looking for" - this is especially the prevalent answer, when asked for the best books to help understand Maya. Maya gets updated every year, so it makes sense to steer away from buying specific books to help with why-won't-keyframes-move-in-the-graph-editor questions.

There are LOADS of great books out there, that become like bibles for animators. Everything from Disney sketchbooks, to the ultimate Animator's Survival Kit, by Richard Williams. So...I made a page especially for them. Take a peek and let me know what you think: Books and Gifts for Animators

Edinburgh Fringe Inspiration

I've been away for a few days at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Absolutely amazing. I've seen some cracking stuff...and also some naff stuff. Most importantly, I've been very inspired. A lot of things I saw made me think "that would make a good piece of animation" or "that was a really comical face expression" or "that walk would make a brilliant animated character".

Got lots of work to catch up on though, but I'm getting there.

Looking through my blog, I haven't told you the good news - at Escape, we've started rotating desks! It's the small things. But, what this means is that I won't be able to see the board for only a 1/3 of my time there (there are 3 rows of desks). This makes such a difference - being able to say really enhances ones learning, when needing to follow what is happening on a board in front of you!

So, yes, I've got lots of work to catch up on, so more from me soon.

An Animator's Life for Me

I started the animation side of the course this week. I'm on week1 and really enjoying it. The tutorials are engaging and interesting - its so cool seeing images from Disney films I grew up watching, then hearing Alex say "this is the shot I animated from the Lion King" ...it blows my mind a little bit!

Dare I say it, but I'm enjoying this side of my training, so much more than at Escape. It goes to show how some people can relate and respond to different presentation and teaching styles. As I'm writing this blog about to go to Escape, I'm thinking "what will I get shown today, that I won't be able to do". Hmmm - I'm not sure if that says more about me or more about the confidence being given to me as I learn - probably the former.

I'm not sure if I've already mentioned in a previous post, but I emailed the training support coordinator (I think that's their title, basically the person who did our mini induction at the studios) about me not being able to see properly - I'm pretty sure no one in the back row can either, to be honest - but I've not heard anything back. Grrrreat! I was talking to friend about it, it's kind of got to the point where it's gone too far to make a point of it in class...kinda awkward. I'm just going to play it by ear and make sure I'm getting value for money - this course ain't cheap!

So, back to the animation, I'm probably about halfway through the first set of tutorials and I've already been set a deadline and have to submit a shot, how cool is that? I can't wait to get on with the rest of the tutorials. I'll see if I can post a few bits as I go.

We've also been set another text to get hold of...needless to say it's straight on my amazon wishlist.

Finding My Feet

I've had a pretty good week, as far as learning how to become a 3D Animator goes. Actually, no, that doesn't make sense, because technically speaking, I haven't started any animation training yet...so, far I'm still learning the fundamentals of Maya...but that's going pretty good, so that's good, right? Yup.

Last Thursday we made a bottle using a NURBS curve, then created a surface with it. It was so much fun. I'm still finding it a little bit tricky to keep up with the pace of the class, but I'll get there.

One thing I like about the course, is at the start of the session, we have a chance to go through any questions that have come up since the last time. So, that's a really good opportunity for me to dig a little deeper with anything I don't understand!

In the past 10 days or so, I've been thinking how grateful I am that this course is twice a week, in other words, part time. Escape Studios do full time intensive courses, that are all day every day for a period of 12-16 weeks. I don't think I would do very well with that one. I'm really enjoying having the time to go home, reflect on what's been taught, and practice and go other bits that I'm not sure on. A bit like driving a car, I found the experience of having a lesson per week, gave me more time to think about what I was doing, than had I done an intensive crash course over a short period.

I don't have an incredibly strong, technical background when it comes to IT and computers, I am slower than most of the others in the class I've noticed. Oh well, we all learn at different paces and ways don't we? When we made the bottles in class, there was one guy who had not only made a bottle, but a cork to sit in it, a table to place the bottle, and a glass to accompany it!

I'm confident in my creative background - having a degree in Art and Theatre. My puppetry and animation manipulation should tap into my theatrical directorial work, and the whole look of the shot should tap into my artist's eye...at least that's the theory. That's what I figure.

Hoping to find out more about the Animation side of things this week, to get that underway...I'm tres excitedo indeedio! As soon as I have more news and updates, I'll be sure to update this trusty blog :)

Well, that knocked the wind out of my sails...

I started my course in Maya Core last Tuesday (26/06/12), and had my second session last night. I'm not going to lie, I'm finding it challenging (but I have only been on the software for a total of 6 hours, so far!) I can work my way round what we've done so far, but the pace of the class is very fast.

The biggest struggle I'm finding, is getting used to the teaching style. We're working our way round introductions to the elements that make up the Maya software...but I find that I need a bit of time to reflect on my notes, to work out how to do something (...such as showing a cube's vertices)...I'm getting there - but feel just as I get to the point of "right, I know where we are, now", the tutor has moved on to something else! Argh!

I'm answering a lot of questions (correctly too, I'm proud to report). Some people say I like the sound of my own voice, so I like answering questions (especially if I'm right, lol). I struggled a bit last night on pivots (stupid pivots, tsk) and snapping a pivot to a vertex (don't you hate it when that happens?). The tutor helped me out, but perhaps he thought I was slow...because that's the only thing I can think of that inspired a comment along the lines of...

"Doing this course, and another course in Animation is a lot of work...if you're struggling with this...how are you going to 3D Animation as well" ...Nothing like a bit of support, right? (...and that's nothing like a bit of support!)

I could be paraphrasing, and I could be being over sensitive, but honestly, I felt devastated. Firstly, because by that time, I had only been on the course for 4 hours of contact time (about 4 minutes of which have been 121, helping me)...and secondly because it's encouragement I'm after, not criticism...yet! By all means criticise the creative work I produce, but not my ability, without some sort of proper assessment first.

Anyway, he seems like a nice guy, so I'm reserving all judgement until we get a few weeks into the course. A little voice in the back of my head did say "You're paying all that money, to be told THIS?"...anywaaaay - what doesn't kill you makes you stronger and all that jazz. I'll be catching up with my Animation tutor later today, who will hopefully make me feel a bit better about what I'm doing and reignite some enthusiasm, spirit and confidence in me again.