Project Thesis

Nuclear power is our greatest tool in the fight against climate change, however, the concern for safety from the public has held back the innovation and expansion of these plants. Nuclear power is more consistent and takes up less land than other sustainable energy sources. Additionally, uranium is easily transportable meaning nuclear plants can be located anywhere, even submarines. Modern technology is making nuclear safer in a time when clean energy is in higher demand. It's time that we reconsider the negative stigma of nuclear for the sake of our planet.

Research Summary



Nuclear power is a clean and sustainable source of energy. US. Nuclear power plants utilize uranium fission to extract power. It's a growing sector in the US with more startups, companies, and government agencies developing new technology. Nuclear power remains one of the few ways to prevent climate change at-large.

Precedents



The Royal Society

Precedent 1: Author

Visual

Topical

Storyboard



Script



Asset Creation: Modeling



Sketch

Modeling

Shading

Oil Rig Armature

An important skill developed during this project was 3D animation in Blender. The geometry was imported from a CAD model was then assembled in 3D. Cylinder objects were added in place of where screws would go in real life. Objects were parented to each other and an armature was used to coordinate the movement. The armature is very useful for animating complex systems of movement because it uses inverse kinematics to move the chain based on user input. This technique is used by animators to rig limbs on characters or animals.

Asset Creation: Lighting



Right Light

Full Lighting

Render

Scene

Key Light

Left Lights

Project Thesis

Birds of a feather is a short animated film that aims to show a different side of birds in captivity and bring a view into the different personalities that birds can have throughout their time with us. Briefly going into the body language that birds have, this visual narrative shows a different way of communication. We chose this topic because we realised that we humans haven't understood the true importance of birds and their unique personalities. This short in-progress film is targeted towards the general public and possibly students to provide new perspective on the bird community in a different light.

We started our project as an exploration of bird intelligence and communication. For our final project we decided to explore African grey parrots because of their unique personalities and exaggerated body language.

Syrinx

Research Summary



Precedents -



Art Style - Precedent 1: Slack

Bird Intel. - Precedent 4: Bird Solving Puzzles

Humour - Precedent 2: Vega the Cow

Tone - Precedent 3: Odd1sout

Art Style - Precedent 6 - Playful & Bright Colour Palette

Bird Comm. - Precedent 5:Why Parrots talk like humans

Storyboard



Script



Asset Backgrounds + Color -

Color Scheme

Background (Multiple Species)

Background (Kitchen Scene)

Background (Bedroom Scene)

Asset Creation: Still Props -

Old

Old

New

New

Asset Creation: Rigging -

Asset Creation: bird process - jere



Asset Creation: Main Character Rigging -

Sound Design

Project Thesis

Strange Slime is a lighthearted, comedic video for people of all ages who wish to learn about the fascinating world of slime molds without having to read a research paper that may be outside of their comfort zone. The video focuses on some interesting facts about slime molds, and features colorful visuals that are both realistic and cartoonish. With clear narration and calming classical music, Strange Slime strives to replicate a video of the likes of popular short scientific video essays found online.

Research Summary



Slime molds are a group of organisms defined by their amorphous shape and strange nature. Most slime molds are actually a single cell, a huge blob of cellular sludge with thousands of cell nuclei inside it. Cellular slime molds do have cell walls, meaning they are actually made up of thousands of definitive cells. The cellular slime molds have a much more complex life cycle than the acellular ones.

Precedents



Fungi Sim: John Crawford (YT)

Physarum Sim: Softology (YT)

Slimemold.org: Unknown

Storyboard



Script



Asset Creation: 2D

Storyboarder

Premiere Pro

Clip Studio Paint

Asset Creation: 3D

Layout/Composition

Lighting

Materials/Textures

Slime Mold Sim in Houdini



RESAMPLE

RESAMPLE

RELAX

REPEAT

RELAX

RELAX

Project Thesis

In this project, we made a documentary-like animated short exploring the midnight zone of the ocean and the unique creatures it contains. The deep-sea is relatively unknown and unexplored. This project aims to educate people on the wonders of the deep. Because of the lack of sunlight and other resources most creatures would need to survive, the animals in the deep sea need to develop unique traits in order to live. Animals like the yeti crab use arms covered in hairs to sift for bacteria in the water or something like the angler fish uses bioluminescence to lure other fish to it.

Research Summary



For our research, we looked at which animals live at and around 2100 meters in the ocean(the midnight zone), and what unique traits they have gained that help them survive. We also looked into eating habits and general behavior to better understand the creatures we were animating.

Precedents



Script



Story Board

Asset Creation: Modeling



Asset Creation: Rigging



Textured Character

Armature

Keyframed Animation

Sculpt

Editing

Modeling

Rigging

Environment

Rendering

Compositing

Project Thesis

In the 1700s, the industrial revolution began, humans harnessed the power of steel and combustion. However, with the rise in the prowess of technology, carbon emissions, and other pollutants began entering the biosphere at higher rates while trees and other carbon sponges began to die off. This project investigates the effect of the industrial revolution throughout time, from the 1700s to the 2000s.

Research Summary



Initially, our research was focused on the reactions between the chemicals in tailpipe emissions and plant mass. Demonstrating the link between tailpipe emissions and local (side of the road) plant decay. As we dove deeper into our storyline, our focus began to zoom out into the more abstract social changes from the 1800s into the 2300s that would affect the climate.

Precedents



Precedent 1: Justin Avellar

Precedent 4: Jeff Lynch Photography

Precedent 1: Author

Precedent 2: Blender

Precedent 5: Msenvsci PK

Precedent 3: Sir Sadono

Precedent 6: EU Space Agency

Visual

Topical

Storyboard



Script



Asset Creation: Buildings & Landscape



Asset Creation: Cars!!



Asset Creation: Rigging



Character

Armature

Keyframed Animation

Houdini Algorithm