Shot 12
Beginning shot 12, the only key elements within this shot I needed to model were the cardboard boxes. I Aimed to keep this low poly to speed up render times due to the lack of time constraints and also to upkeep the simplicity of the visuals. I made the box with the ability to open the different ‘flaps’ of the tops so that I had the potential to add secondary animation also, Arnold’s counter renders filter will display the toon shader lines, giving the impression of the model being a cardboard box and not a smooth square.
In order to sell the height and dramatism of the shot, I wanted to make sure the camera moves from panning upwards to panning downwards to get the impression that the tower is taller than it is. I also wanted to give the impression that the tower was very unstable and insecure, much like how the situation over lockdown was. Especially since this part of the dialogue details trying to find makeshift workspaces to work from home in.
Much like the earlier shot involving the globe, I wanted to have a very simple background that accentuates the foreground. I also used the same colour background as the earlier shot (Shot 7) so that these two would match aesthetically and tonally. The key part about the lighting was to make sure that there was a strong directional light that would make the rim lighting visible on the edges, so the foreground assets would blend more seamlessly with the background. I also needed a strong light so that the facial expressions were visible.
Below is the finished shot; I think the concept for the shot works well and gives the impression of cluttered chaos. However, there are several aspects of this shot I could improve. My initial comment would be that the motion of the lower boxes is too stiff and uniform in motion. Looking at the reference video below, there is a slight offset, which I feel is due to the uniform way I parented the boxes, I was unable to create this effect.
Shot 13
Similar to shot 9, shot 13 is located on the interior of the house, and I followed a similar method and used the doors at offset times to accentuate different parts of the speech in a more visually dynamic way. For example, when the interviewee says “Its just finding the routine to do” I used the left door, and when he says “um” quite quickly after that I used the opportunity of having two doors to stress the jaw bonces and not have the ‘mouth’ move very quickly open and closed like it does in some shots which looks unnatural, even for a talking house. Improving on this shots animation however, I feel I could have done more with eyebrow movements because I feel at times they moved to robotically and uniformly, even though the implied material of them is bricks. I think it is important to find a middle ground between natural expression and the context of the implication of material the expression is being carved out of (I.e skin or Bricks).
Re-rendered shot
As highlighted in the previous shot, the lamp in the original render was slightly clipping through the wall, so to fix any of these discrepancies, I re-rended this with the lamp moved to a more appropriate location. This will aid in improving the host quality and selling the animated world in a more professional light.