Initial Plans FMP

1. Initial Plans
Ewan Wild

2. Pre-proposal
My main aim for my final project is to create a short film trailer for a 2D animation
that I will make myself. Everything will be created from scratch, the characters I will
draw, the movements I will create, and the music and sounds that will go along with it
I will compose.
Along with this, I will create a movie poster that will work as an advertisement of my
film trailer, and If I have time, create more little projects. This can include merchandise
such as an album, a game, or a T-shirt. The side projects will not take as long to
complete as my main project, however I know that they are still important to my
project, as everything I do can make my final grade better.
However my main area is still the short film trailer, and that is what the majority of my
concentration will be on. I chose an animated short film trailer so I didn’t have to rely
on actors, but I could still do moving image. By the end of the project, I hope to create
a final piece which is very strong, and people will watch it as though it’s a real movie
trailer. I know to complete this well will take a lot of work, but with the time I have, I
an confident I will be able to do it well.

4. Skills Audit
I have different strengths and weaknesses for various skills, and in this project I feel
like both will come out at certain points.
My skills that I have leant so far will be very useful for this project. Over the past year I
have learnt to use Photoshop well, and that is an important tool to use in my project.
Both my main and side projects will use Photoshop in some way, so knowing how to
use it is very useful. So far this year I have also been good with my time management.
I have very rarely, perhaps never, been late to finish an area of a project, and that will
come in useful for the most important project so far with a quickly approaching
deadline.
However I also have my weaknesses. I am not very good as an artist, so creating what I
need to may look minimalistic. This could potentially affect my project as I will not be
able to make any characters in masses of detail. My way around this will be to trace
some things and once that’s done, edit them a bit to make them my own. Another
weakness is that I can be impatient. This can be a problem as I need to take a lot of
photos which will take a lot of time, so I may end up rushing it. I will tackle this by
taking breaks every now and again so I can fully concentrate, and produce my project
to the best of my ability. The fact that this is my final piece may also play into account,
as I know how important this is.

5. Content Ideas

6. Mood Board
Drawn
Black and White
Frame by frame, a lot of
photographs to put together

7. Mood Board Analysis, and How it
Portrays My Final Film Trailer
How does your mood board inspire your project?
My mood board is a very good example of what I want my project to be. It shows a
variety of different items, all of which will have a different purpose. For example, the
calligraphy is inspiration for my title. I will want a fancy, hand drawn font as my title
and so adding different types of writing can help me choose what style I want. The
mood board gives me inspiration for all sorts of different styles that I will be able to
do. For example, the middle photo is a still from the short film called Umbro Blackout
(created to promote a new line of shoes). This short film is in a rough drawn style, as
though the drawings aren’t supposed to be perfect. It’s a good example for me as it
shows an animation doesn’t have to be a perfect drawing to work. It’s rough, abstract
style creates strangely mesmerising shots, and that’s a style I am able to do. Similarly,
the shot works with some patterns that I added as well. Not only all they all drawn
alike, they all follow the colour scheme I am looking for, a simple black and white.

8. • How will your mood board influence your final product?
This mood board could have a big impact on my final piece. My biggest concern about
the trailer that I will make is that I’m not very good at drawing. However, looking at
the different styles I have on my mood board, a drawing doesn’t have to be a perfect,
realistic style. I can comfortably make my own style that works for me.
Thanks to the mood board, I also have an idea of what fonts I want to use. As I am
doing a simple drawn-style trailer, I wanted to follow that with the title. Because I of
this, I added different styles of calligraphy to my mood board. Non of these are final,
but they could be similar to my final product. The font is important as right now, my
trailer will be targeted to children. Because of this, I will need something that looks
fancy, however more readable. I don’t want something that kids will not be able to
read without really trying hard as it will take all the concentration away from my
actual final product.
Finally, I added other hand drawn objects into there such as trees and clouds. Little
additions into the background like this will take a lot of time as they build up because
there will be a variety of them, so showing some different examples gives me an idea
on how to make simple background objects which will allow me to make more in less
time.

9. Mood Board – Paperman Example
Black and white, only
touches of colour

10. Paperman Mood Board Influence
This mood board is very important, as it gives me an idea of my final style for my short
film trailer. This mood board shows the styles they used when making Paperman. It is
one of the few animated films that uses both drawing and computers in partnership
with each other to make the final animation. It shows the process between making a
3D model, to the final touches of a cartoon. This is an influence for me as I will also be
using a combination of both. Even though I will initially draw everything on Photoshop
and other assorted drawing programs, I will create the final animation in real life,
using my hands and a camera.
Another way it has influenced me is through the limited use of colour. The one shot
with red while the rest is black and white can have a big influence on my final piece as
I really like that idea, and might use it in my own piece somehow.

11. Ideas For Side Projects

12. Additional Examples For Side Projects

13. Analysis of Side Project Examples
My side projects are a very important part of my final piece, they bring together the
whole project. These examples consist of more calligraphy examples, different movie
posters for animated films, and different film and television piano scores.
I’ve added more calligraphy here as it is also very important for my poster. The title
will be the first thing people see so it is very important that it stands out and attracts
people to see the rest of the poster. Like I talked about in the earlier mood board, this
film trailer right now will be targeted towards kids, so I need that fine line between
calligraphy, and a readable font. For me, the font is something very important,
however miniscule it might seem. For the most part, the title is the first thing people
see, and so it could make or break not only my poster, but also my final main project,
the movie trailer.
Next I added different film posters. All these films that I picked could be considered
similar to mine in different ways, and so I took the posters for them to compare them
so I could find the similarities between them and try to incorporate that into my own
film poster. From these three that I picked, one difference that stands out is the
minimalistic look of all three posters.

14. Analysis of Side Project Examples
They all show the styles of the film as well as giving a small idea of the content within
the film, without giving anything away. This gives me different ideas for my film poster
at it shows I don’t have to make it overly complex to make it look good. It’s possible to
make a good looking poster that gives the viewers an idea of what it’s about without
adding masses of different photos and parts from the actual film.
Finally, I added different film scores. This is an important part for me as I will be
making the piano score for my final piece. The two scores I chose are complete
opposites, on top is a song from the cartoon Tom and Jerry. It shows a complex and
fast-paced piece. On the other hand, the score at the bottom is from the popular song
‘Do You Want To Build a Snowman?’ from Frozen. This piece is much more simple and
laid back. Although opposites, they both prove the same point, the score creates the
pace of the scene. Tom and Jerry is a fast-paced cartoon, and this music reflects that,
whereas this Frozen song is played throughout a long passage of time, therefore it’s a
slower-paced song which helps show that time has passed. If this song went into an
action sequence, everything would have a jumbled feeling to it and it would be all
wrong, which is why the music is important.

15. Key Influences – Terry Gilliam
Although Terry Gilliam’s art style will be very different to mine, the process of how
he creates his pieces is similar to mine. He creates his animations from cutting out
printed magazines and illustrations then moving them onto pieces of paper, where
he takes many photos in a stop motion-style animation. This has influenced mine
because it’s what I want to do. Once I’ve created all of my cycles and backgrounds, I
will print everything off and take photos of each frame, slowly creating an
animation that will be my movie trailer. However there are some key differences.
Terry Gilliam’s abstract technique is something that I would not be good at creating,
and his use of colour is different, as I already know I want to create something in a
simple black and white combination. However I really like his style of animating,
and that is why he is one of my key influences in my final project.

16. Key Influences – Classic Disney
In 1928, Disney created the classic character Mickey Mouse.
Although not the first time they started animating, it is
arguably the most iconic. In these early days, every single
frame was hand drawn and then put together to create a
cartoon. This is why it is an influence to me. The hand drawn
style mixed with all the frames coming together is quite
similar to mine. There are some differences, mine isn’t hand
drawn, it is just in that style. Looking at the middle photo of
Walt Disney drawing Mickey Mouse however, I can also see a
similarity. This early drawing is also quite a simple style.
There’s no extreme detail yet it has become an iconic
character in animation.
I also like the poster style for early Disney movies. This is an
influence for my side projects as the poster highlights the
character, something that I want to do. Rather than having
too much on it, it focuses on the one most important thing,
what the movie revolves around. It also follows a colour
scheme similar to what they would use in the actual film. For
example, the title is the same red as Mickey’s Clothes. The
clear colour scheme is something I want to follow.

17. Key Influences - Persepolis
During the making of Persepolis, the animators
started by using pen on tablets to create the
frames. However this didn’t work and the
creator wasn’t pleased with it. Instead, the team
of 20 animators put pen on paper and hand
drew the animation. This led to, according to
interviewee Marc Jousset, this version showing
“Involved a lot of focus on the character’s
natural, humane physical imperfections.”
It’s an influence because of its unique style. It’s
almost difficult to tell that it’s hand drawn. This
original style is something to look up to, and can
influence me into making my own style. It also
focuses on everything to do with the character,
not just the good bits, but the flaws too. Not
many animations do this, making Persepolis
something to look up too.

18. Key Influences – Norman McLaren
Norman McLaren was an animator in the 1930s
onwards. He did not own a camera to make all of these
animations, instead he scratched and painted the film
itself, creating his animations. All the sounds heard in
the animation as well were also created from nothing
by him. He is an influence because everything he did
was amazing considering how he was doing it, and the
sounds he created from scratch were way ahead of his
time. For my project, I aim to create everything myself,
also down to the sounds, making him an influence. I
have access to so much more than He did, so if he can
make everything from nothing, then so can I. Although
his animating style is very, His work is inspirational.