Character Animation: Demo Reel

[TheGreenGiant]

OMG. downloading now... I know they say imitation is the best form of flattery but OMG... what were you thinking?!!?!

* back in a sec with C+C

Hello there, I hope you're ready but I wasn't sure what to make of your reel - I take it that you're central desire/wish is to be a character animator but what I saw really wasn't very good. For starters, there was very little movement/animation to begin with - sure there was some lipsync work but in the instances where your characters is walking (in the instance of the man with staff truding.limping along) - it wasn't quite right; there wasn't any weight and it felt like he was sliding. Maybe not sliding but the gravitas of someone who has a limp and is struggling to move along isn't there. There was a semi-close up of your character holding his staff (and his hand looks like its in an awkward position.

Also, its a reel but you split the reel in half - half animated / half drawings which was odd. When the credits rolled, I was like "wait there is still half a movie to go".

Hope that wasn't too harsh.

[RatPoiZon]

all I can say is don't copy people's work... all of that is from the Cathedral... and u didn't make it look better than the cathedral... which just totally defeats the point... and u didn't give it any credit... so if I was a potential employer I would make it known to the guy that made the Cathedral and bring up a lawsuit against you... this is just not right... come up with your own ideas for gods sakes...

[TheGreenGiant]

I wouldn't go that far and say that this is lawsuit worthy. But it lacks originality which if you read the "what should be in a demo reel" thread... isn't AT ALL good.

[gleek]

Thanks guys- these are all, without a doubt, valid points. I would never deny that viewing "The Cathedral" at my first SIGGRAPH (2002) was an epiphany for me - hence my nod to the french influence in my credits.

I auppose I viewed this demo more from a place that any substance was filler, a vehicle for me to show what I really enjoyed doing - combining camera, scene setups, lighting, editing, and music to create the dramatic moment. I also admit I got too caught up in the method I discovered for making pseudo-random branches and how these naturally complement lights and shadows in scenes.

I can live with the fact that original story or character ideas will never my strong suite - to be sure, even all my drawings as a kid were simply renderings of famous works, still that didn't take away what I got out of the process of doing all that.

But you're right, and I do not plan now to send this out as is. I hope I can find a better way to show what I think my strengths are without the contents suggesting to the viewer that I'm just a rip-off artist of sorts - I certainly don't intend to be.

Much thanks,
-G

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