I'll Tell Ya What I Want, What I Really, Really Want...Back t

A drawing done for my website...

I start my classes exactly a week from today... In the month or two since I started the process of enrolling in school, every time I've mentioned to someone that I'm going for a bachelor's in computer animation, I've gotten the same question... "What kind of animation are you wanting to do...?"
Years ago (back when I originally wanted to go to college), computer animation was still in its infancy, for the most part. That was fine by me... The type of animation I wanted to make involved animation cells, background paintings and taking pictures of the two together. I also wanted to make animation that was more "old school", so to speak, with more muted colors and dull black lines, unlike the blinding colors that were used at the time.
But... the times they are changing... And so I must change with them. At this point, I believe all animation is done digitally on computers. In this high tech age, it's not surprising... It makes one wonder what else will be computerized in the future...

You will continue to watch Hypnotoad....

Now back to the original question... What kind of animation do I want to make...?

One choice is the basic cartoon type, such as Bugs Bunny, The Simpsons, Futurama... The drawings are very simplistic, which I would assume would make the job of animating the characters incredibly easy. They're meant to be comically entertaining without too terribly much going on for your eyes. Its main purpose is to entertain you without you having to put a lot of thought or attention to detail into them. Is this the type of animation I would like to someday create...?

Awesome sword action...

Another choice is the 3D animation used in such movies as Epic, Frozen, How To Train Your Dragon... This style packs a fairly good amount of realism with the slightly unrealistic looking characters. But for all that, there's still not si much realism that you can't realize you're watching something animated. After all, isn't that the purpose of watching something animated, to know you're watching something that's animated...?

BOOM....!!!

Which brings us to the next type of animation... realism...
Movies such as Transformers give you the largest example of this, though there are more movies than you think that add animation without you realizing (movies like Inception). This type of animation can be so true to life that your eyes literally can't fathom that what you're watching is animation and not something that truly happened... Granted, it looks fantastic on the big screen, but is this the type of animation I want to create...?

Oh, the flamboyance...

And then there's the Japanese animation... anime...
I won't lie; this is the type of animation that always held an incredible fascination for me over the years. I've watched it grow and change and always it remained a cut or two above the rest in comparison to other types of non-3D animation. Anime, in this day and age, contains a lot of detail both in the backgrounds and the characters themselves (though they are not exactly realistic in appearance in all cases). And here is a culture that isn't afraid to use light and shadow to get the correct feel of a scene and to make things seem as realistic as possible. Even the gestures of the characters, though sometimes a bit flamboyant like LeLouch here, are incredibly detailed.

You can feel his pain...

Expressions are also something in anime that nothing else can rival... Anime series (for teens and adults) seem to be a bit... angst filled... And where your story line contains so much angst, there's going to be a need for a fantastic, realistic (sometimes over-exaggerated) facial or bodily expression. The Japanese seem to have this down to a science in their work...

Stupid non-sexy Flanders...

But none of this answers the question as to what kind of animation I would like to create... I'm actually quite confused on this point myself. I've always had a dream of owning my own company that produces anime here in the US (anime that looks like anime, not the American wannabe version of said animation). Will this be the route I choose...? More than likely, yes...
The wonderful thing about the college I chose is that they don't just teach one style of animation. I'll actually learn all these (with the exception of anime) and a few others besides. Animation has really come a long way over the years and is used in places I never dreamed, such as simulations for military installations. Perhaps, after learning all the various types of animation, I'll find something completely different that I like, or I'll find I'm best at one I would not have chosen otherwise. Who knows what the future holds...?

This is what I call breakfast...

It holds coffee... Lots and lots of coffee...

The Dawn of Randomness...

Well put, Mr. Poe...

That's pretty much what this blog is about... random thoughts of insanity with a touch of sanity thrown in on occasion...

Recently, I enrolled in online college. I'm going for a bachelor's in computer animation at Full Sail University. I've been drawing since I was old enough to hold an instrument in my hand (which I assume was a crayon) and have wanted to be an animator almost as long. It's all I ever wanted to be, really... In any case, while creating my profile for school, I noticed that there was a space for you to link your websites, social sites and blog. Well... I have several blogs, actually, but I wasn't sure they were appropriate for people I would be so closely involved with. I figured my best bet to share my randomness with my fellow student,s and anyone else willing to read the drivel I'm apt to spit out, was to create a blog just for that purpose.

So here we are...

Movie poster from the 1960's

One of my favorite random conversations is based on the movie The Time Machine (the old one from the 60's, not the new one). For those who have never seen the movie, follow the above link to the Wikipedia entry...

If you are familiar or have read the Wikipedia entry, let us continue.

Every time I see this movie (or think about it, for that matter), the same random thought comes to mind.

Given the choice, I would much rather be a Morlock than an Eloi...

Now there's an attractive look...

I'm not saying I want to be a blue skinned freak with saggy, baggy man boobs that looks like a retarded, highly inbred version of a Smurf with the stereotypical British teeth... If we're talking appearances, Morlocks are not high on the list of most attractive beings. I mean, look at them! Who the hell would choose to look like that...?! Certainly the Eloi with their blonde hair, blue eyes and nice physiques would be preferred if you would be basing your choice on appearance only.

Case in point...

At the very least, they don't look like Papa Smurf's relative's from the backwoods...

But if you look at things from a more logical standpoint, it would be better to be a Morlock.

The Eloi are very naive people... They spend their days playing in the sun and having absolutely no concept as to how precious and important life is. All their food, clothing and shelter is provided for them. They have no clue where these things come from nor do they care. Essentially, they're like attractive, speaking livestock... literally...
The Morlocks, on the other hand, live underground and work their Smurf-like asses off to provide the basic needs to the Eloi to keep them in their lives of "luxury"...

Flocking to the temple...

Every so often, the Morlocks set off an air horn warning, the type used to warn of a nuclear air strike. The Eloi, conditioned as people were during drills to move underground when the siren went off, flock to the entrance to the Morlocks' den. Once enough Eloi have come through, the Morlocks close the doors and those poor, unfortunate Eloi are never seen again.

The Morlocks are cannibals, you see...

For years, they provided the Eloi with everything needed for survival, just as we do with livestock today. And the Eloi themselves are just as clueless as cattle... and just as uncaring...

"Good grief, how can they be so clueless?!"

So in the big scheme of things, I think I'd much rather be a Morlock... When it comes down to survival of the fittest, I'd prefer to be the one eating and not the one being eaten...

Though, from the looks of the Morlocks and how flabby they are, I'm guessing Eloi is not a food that's low in cholesterol...