Objects At Rest

explorations in audio and moving imagery

Category: Sets

  • Sword of Damocles Production Notes

    The Sword of Damocles is a short stop motion animation that was made in response to the StopMoShorts December 2006 contest. The contest provided three words (sword, cave, and fear) to inspire animators. I focused on the sword with the idea of doing something related to the legend of the Sword of Damocles. I would also embed the other two words in some fashion within the film.

    When I first learned of the legend I envisioned it in a medieval setting. However, the legend appears to be Greek in origin and much older. The premise I chose would keep a medieval setting while also referencing the legend. By using a referential approach I took the opportunity with this film to explore how it could become a veiled criticism of conventional film formulas (including film techniques, story formulas, three-act structures, etc.).

    The list that follows contains the conceptual ideas that I was working with when creating the storyboards, the script, and during filming. The whole process was very much stream of consciousness and experimental to see what I would come up with quickly. I may have succeeded in some places and failed in others. In either case, I did have fun making it quickly and learned several things that I can apply in the Vitruvius production process.

    1. What quote by a literary figure is being referenced in the opening tale by the Jester? What is the context and meaning of said quote?
    2. At what points do the harp strings sound?
    3. Is the Jester ever seen in the same frame as any other character?
    4. At what point does the Jester directly address you the viewer?
    5. Why was the Jester dismissed by the King?
    6. The King and Damocles toast each other? Who is the other party that the Jester is toasting at the end of the film?
    7. There are multiple films presented, which one is the real film?
    8. There are five characters and each are symbolic of participants in the film making process.
    9. The sword is hanging behind the window at the end of the film but the Jester’s words are future tense and speculative.
    10. The voice of the sword in the last act says: “I am the Sword of Damocles. Pay no heed to the tale being told by the fool jester. I was recorded by Cicero as being invoked by the King Dionysus to inform Damocles of the perils of being King. I am the one true Sword of Damocles.”

    Character and Set Design Photos

    The characters are aluminum armature wire with epoxy putty at the hips and chests. The wire is wrapped in jute string and painted. I used thin craft foam for the clothes and hot glue to hold it all together. I painted raw umber acrylic paint on the clothes to dirty them up a bit. The hands and heads are carved from basswood. The arms of the puppets are single strands of wire and the hands have a small hole in them so they are easy to put on and spin around. The feet are epoxy putty with a slot cut through to use tie downs. I also used some epoxy putty for hair. The eyes are wooden beads and the eyelids are Sculpey clay. Eye blinks are made by pressing the clay over the eyes for for one, two, or three frames as needed.

    The sets are made out of pink insulation foam and covered with plaster wrap and then painted for texture. The chairs and table props are basswood and epoxy putty.

    The film was shot on a Nikon D50 and edited in Sony Vegas. The vocals were recorded and edited in Audacity and the music was made with Sony Acid Loop samples.

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  • Vitruvius Prologue Stage Photos

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    A couple of quick behind-the-scenes photos of the Serlio prologue stage sets. I’m in the process of shooting footage with the Serlio books and will finish the set design for the Serlio puppet when I begin shooting those scenes next.

    You can see my set framework in these photos which is constructed with pine wood, screws, and bolts and then stained a dark brown with a water-based product. The whole thing is then bolted to the wire rack. So far that design has worked well since I can wheel the sets around and the set frame is still flexible. The same design is used in the main set which is partially visible in the second photo.

  • Updated: Applied Flash-based Choreography

    I used the Flash pre-visualization test (see previous post) to assist with a very short test using my actual set and objects. I printed out the Flash movie as a series of small thumbnails on 8.5″ x 11″ paper. I then used the printed sheets of individual frames for visual reference when animating the objects, very similar to a storyboard.

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    This is a small sample of the actual prints which take about 3 sheets of paper. I also wrote notes on the paper such as the tops of the objects and rotation heading so I could keep track of which way to move things with each shot. I discovered I needed to do that in the middle of shooting when I forgot which way something should be turning!

  • Vitruvius: Building a Prologue, Establishing Authority

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    The secondary set (aka the Serlio Set) is almost done. Part of this secondary set development includes another minimal set that will be used for my prologue. I want to include some form of introductory segment in the Vitruvius film. The idea for a prologue emerged after listening to comments from people who saw my Man Drawing… film and the need to perhaps begin my films with some cursory information to inform the viewer about the nature of the film they are about to view.

    This idea also falls in line with Chuck Palahniuk’s advice on establishing authority in writing. He calls this action the “heart method” or the “head method”.

    …Next is the Head Method for establishing authority. This is where you use interesting facts and tidbits of knowledge to impress the reader that your narrator is smart. To do this effectively, you need to do some research. Then, find a way to work this information into your story. Don’t try to impress the reader with mere cleverness. Instead, invite the reader to share in a special world of insider knowledge, with facts that actually move the story forward.
    – Source: Chuck Palahniuk’s web site.

    I’m leaning toward the head method by introducing historic writers in the field of architecture, specifically Serlio and his work. The photo for this posting is a test shot for introducing the 5 books of architecture by Serlio.

  • Vitruvius Update Revisited: Secondary Set Development

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    REVISED UPDATE – NEW PHOTO OF SECONDARY SET:
    Update to my update. I’m playing around with a desk, chair, and props for the puppet.

    ORIGINAL POST:
    The secondary set is almost done. It is a minimal and basic set for the Serlio character which is also being modified a little. I need to make a desk so he can write his books properly. He may also need a beard depending on what I find during some more research. I’ve seen one depiction of Palladio with a beard so I may extrapolate that style for my Serlio.

    I’ve been busy working with my Nikon DSLR and trying out Stop Motion Pro and Stop Motion Maker Advance software. I’ve also begun shooting some initial footage to test various aspects of the film such as rig-removal in Photoshop and post-processing in Sony Vegas.