Today during the first part of the day we worked on getting everything together for the 'rough cut' versions of our movies ready to be presented after lunch.   As all the footage has been captured and the sounds and voices almost all recorded, we were ready to view them together in a rough format, and as a group, to see where we could improve.  Issues such as story, continuity, audio levels, duration of different parts, transitions, and titling all came up in the discussion.   Groups who finished earlier than expected were encouraged to continue working on individual projects.  We were looking at ways to make the whole final process go smoother so that tomorrow's screening is as good as it can be.  The main point we tried to emphasize was that of <deadlines>, and that a deadline is a factor of virtually any production.  Since there are many more ideas, sequels, and alternative versions to any given movie than can ever be expected to be finished, at some point you have to call a project "done", even if it feels like it needs some more work.  Given the time and resource limitations of our one week together in tech camp, this was a good exercise in seeing what's possible in a short amount of time.   Remember that tomorrow at 3 PM there will be a screening of our work, so please be here then so that we can start the presentations together on time and we can see how far we've come.  Each group will be describing selected parts of the production process before their work is shown, and they will be on point to answer questions about it afterwards, in much the same way as a "Q and A" session following a premiere or test screening.  We will also be showing a short set of interviews with the campers where we discuss various elements of the production process and which ones we learned the most about.

Today we moved from the Pre-production phase of the animation process into the Production phase.  Yesterday after grouping into teams and deciding what movies to start making, we developed the ideas into scripts and storyboards.  We set up the animation stations ("green screen" background, lights, camera, tripod, and computer) to make sure that each team could manage the work flow of basic animation.  Then we began experimenting with the set and props to make a simple animation using "istopmotion", with crews trading roles to get hands on experience in each role (cameraperson, character animator, editor, and set operator).  By the end of the day we had developed a plan for filming and recording sound the next day. 
Today we recorded as many scenes as we could, learning how to make the still images flow into animations to be later edited into "imovie".  The process involved making frequent backups of saved work to ensure that if the computer or program stopped working, the loss of work would be more manageable.   After recording all scenes called out by the storyboard, we started moving into the world of sound design and began to record voice overs, sound effects, and narrations.  By day's end we had captured all images and clips as well as sounds into the computer, and in some cases had started to edit them into a basic timeline in imovie.  Tomorrow we will start to enter into the post production phases, where we will begin to see the animations shaping up into something to be ready for friday and the final screening.

Today we pushed ahead to get all versions of our animations done enough to present to the parents, friends, and family at the end of the day.   As part of the final workshop before the screening, we focused on remembering certain parts of the pre-production process, including early stages such as ideas, imagination, storyboarding, scripting, and prop / set design.  The second set of stages involved the shooting of scenes, recording of voices, set manipulation, and rough sound design.  Finally, we went over the final post-production tasks including editing, transitions, subtitles and text fields, sound levels, and continuity.  All these were towards the DEADLINE of having the final product ready to view for the screening, and it seemed to work out quite well.  Even in just one short week, we could see how we had come a long way and how important the whole video production process is, especially the concept of teamwork and cooperation.  Any time there is a shortage of funds, time, resources, (or any combination of these) the only way to get a project done is to compromise, and the groups all worked well towards this end.  Overall the week went well, and the campers went home with some more skills than they came with, and even a DVD of all their projects (including a short set of interviews we filmed over the course of the week).  Thanks to all the campers who presented, and to the assistants, friends and family members who showed up to see the work!

Today during the first part of the day we worked on getting the 'rough cut' versions of our movies ready to be presented after lunch.   As all the footage has been captured and the sounds and voices almost all recorded, we were ready to view them together in a rough format, and as a group, see where we could improve.  Issues such as story, continuity, audio levels, duration of different parts, transitions, and titling all came up in the discussion.  We were looking at ways to make the whole final process go smoother so that tomorrow's screening is as good as it can be.  The main point we tried to emphasize was that of deadlines, and that a deadline is a factor of any production.  Since there are many more ideas, sequels, and alternative versions to any given movie than can ever be expected to be finished, at some point you have to call a project "done", even if it feels like it needs some more work.  Given the time and resource limitations of our one week together in tech camp, this was a good exercise in seeing what's possible in a short amount of time.   Remember that tomorrow at 3 PM there will be a screening of our work, so please be here then so that we can start the presentations together on time and we can see how far we've come.  Each group will be describing selected parts of the production process before their work is shown, and they will be on point to answer questions about it afterwards, in much the same way as a Q and A session following a premiere or test screening.

Today in Tech Camp we worked steadily towards the goal of having all of our video footage, voice overs, sound effects, and stop motion animations ready to be edited into a "rough cut".  The groups worked in teams (or individually) to make sure they had all the files recorded, (saved out of istopmotion), and ready to be edited in the imovie environment.  All of the groups or individual teams were satisfied with what they had put together so far, and now they are ready to put in another full post-production day tomorrow (on thursday) to make sure we have a "final cut" to show on friday as part of the presentation.  The campers also were video interviewed individually about specific parts of the production process, the footage of which is being edited into a short documentary about what it means to be part of a production team.  Tomorrow (Thursday) will be the last full day of post production, after which they should be able to present their work to the rest of the camp as well as family and friends on Friday.   
Looking Forward,
Matt

http://www.flickr.com//photos/macsd/show/

Today we kicked off the first day of the first week of classes at the Media Arts Center.  We divided the campers into four groups of four, named them, and discussed the basics of video production.  Each group was then given a video camera, tripod, greenscreen background, clamplight, and set of Mac computers to use as a stop-motion animation workstation.  We watched examples of animations that were done with this fairly simple technology.  We then hooked up the cameras to the computers using a firewire cable and began experimenting with the greenscreen stage using such items as pennies, legos, bottles, and cups to begin understanding the basics of how animation works.  Using the istopmotion software, we helped the teams make short simple clips that showed these items in motion and in scenes we created using storyboarding.  We then discussed the process by which we could use these techniques and tools to imagine and realize short films based on concept and characterization.  Finally, we recorded voice overs and sound effects that we then added to lay over the animations, and in doing so learned an important process in the field of video production.  The campers were interviewed separately and in their groups to get practice in camera work, lighting, recorded sound, and interview technique.  Before we broke down each work station, we went over the scripted events for the next day's tech camp, and wrote down lists of props we would use for the longer more in depth animations to be completed by week's end.  All in all, it was a good effort and the groups worked well together.  We all look forward to getting started on the projects tomorrow!
Matt Lorenz
Instructor

Today was a great workshop on Final Cut Pro to learn about editing tools and keyboard shortcuts! Attendees were able to edit their videos using multiple angle, transition and audio techniques. This class is a great way to perfect footage and add videos to any work portfolio.

To save your seat for the next workshop just sign up here today!

Today was an exciting hands on lesson working with a variety of footage and learning about sceneline and timeline effects. 

Don't mss out on this great learning experience, and sign up here today!

This is our last week of workshops. 

Coming Soon - February Workshops: Intro to Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe Photoshop 200, and Intro to Wordpress

 

This is our last week of workshops. Sign up for tomorrow's workshop Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Flash Animation on Thursday.

 

Coming Soon - February Workshops: Intro to Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe Photoshop 200, and Intro to Wordpress