Final animation

WWF Save the Rhinos from Emma Rowsell on Vimeo.

soundtrack

The music used for my updated WWF Save the Rhinos animation:

(Sourced from Audio Network and Free Sound)

Predator by Terry Devine-King

Dangerous Moments by George Van Dyk / Jon Isbell

Ice Age by Neil Williams / Miles Bould / Sarah Ozelle / Rupert Pfaff

Updating animation

Feedback:

- Make gunshot louder in the poacher scene to make it more clear why the rhino is blacking out.

- Fade to black after the opening shot, as it cuts straight to a new scene which does not make sense.

- Cut the opening shot before he turns his head back and then hold that frame a little longer.

- Redo the camera for the scene where the helicopter comes into screen.

- Slow down the black out scene.

Production Diary

Major Project: WWF Rhino

Production Diary

Week 1:             17^th September

Researching for WWF campaign ‘Stop illegal Wildlife trade’

Came up with two initial ideas to focus on.

Research on environment- Savannah grasslands, gathering secondary images to get familiar with colours and different compositions within the landscape

Research Rhinos- life drawing on rhinos (Woburn Safari Park), primary source photographs and motion research

Week 2:             24^th September

Decided on developing rhino point of view idea.

25/09 - Made clay rhino head to help with drawing reference and also to imagine rhino perspective

27/09 – Lecture on narrative. Improve the narrative by adding in a twist- the story at the moment is too predictable

Research on moving rhinos to safer locations

29/09 – first rough storyboard

30/09- made 3d rhino model

Week 3:             1^st October

02/10 – feedback on storyboard- the rhino cam needs to build more tension and fear; could do this by introducing different environment and convey rhino is living in constant fear.

04/10 – Feedback- Do camera tests for rhino perspective, don’t focus on making the horn good now.

06/10 – Second storyboard

07/10 – Feedback on storyboard-

Character designs

Week 4:             8^th October

10/10 – Third Storyboard

11/10 – feedback on storyboard

13/10 – environment designs

Week 5:             15^th October

15/10 - Camera tests in Maya for rhino perspective

18/10 - Final storyboard

Week 6:             22^nd October

22/10 - 1^st Presentation:

-       Animatic

-       Character and background designs

25/10 – feedback on animatic

Week 7:             29^th October

29/10 - Rhino character rigged

02/11 – Texturing character tests

Week 8:             5^th November

08/11 – finish environment concepts

10/11 – motion research and colour palettes

11/11 – render character in motion

Week 10:             12^th November

2nd Presentation:

-       Full animated example of characters motion

-       References (actors, motion research)

-       Environment concept

-       Colour palettes

-       Character textures

-       Character designs and models (rigged not textured)

13/11 - environment tests

14/11 - rough layout environments 3D

15/11 - film rotoscope footage

16/11 – create shot breakdown (see below)

Week 11:             19^th November

Start animating

25/11 - rotoscope scene 3

Week 12:             26^th November

26/11 – Helicopter scene 4

27/11 – scene 1 animation

29/11 – scene 2 animation

02/12 – dead rhino image

Week 13:             3^rd December

03/12 – scene 5 waking up + rhinos grazing

05/12 – rotoscope walk

06/12 – scene 3 rhino pass out

Week 14:             10^th December

10/12 – scene 3 rhino looking for helicopter- helicopter comes into frame

12/12 – rotoscope WWF worker

Week 15:            17^th December

17/12 – put shadows in scenes

19/12 – lighting in scenes

20/12 – put animation together

21/12 – put in soundtrack and sound effects

23/12 – Animation completed

Scenes and environments animation break down:

SCENE ONE:

Environment 1

Rhino looking around, hears noise

SCENE TWO:

Environment 2

P.O.V walking through environment, looking at dead rhino

SCENE THREE:

Environment 1 (slightly changed)

P.O.V hears helicopter noise, looks up

Turns around

Poachers pointing gun (rotoscope)

Turns again

Starts to run off, starts to pass out

Poacher walk

SCENE FOUR:

Sky environment

Helicopter carrying rhino

SCENE FIVE:

Environment 3

WWF worker kneeling beside rhino (rotoscope)

Rhino waking up

Other rhino grazing around character

wwf animation final

Soundtrack

I do not own copyrights to the soundtrack. Below is the track I used for my animation.

Rotoscoping

Shot the footage using video camera and tripod.
Footage included:
- 3 'poacher' stances
- 'poacher' walk
- WWF worker

I have never attempted rotoscoping before so a lot of was trial and error. After trying various methods, After Effects rotoscope brush proved to be the most accurate. I rotoscoped over the footage and changed the levels to black to create a silhouette figure. 

Would have worked a lot easier if I used green screen or one coloured background and floor. At least I  now know for future reference!

Below is the rotoscoped footage: