Mother of all action shots....

AGoodFella

Hey everyone,

I'm going to attempt an elaborate shot that will bolster my reel a 1000% should I do a good job. It's going to take months but I need to stand out because I'm not having any luck with job hunting. I need a shot that will eliminate any doubt in the recruiters mind.

First, I'm going to write down the plot/backstory.
Then I will board it out with the cam angles I'm thinking of. Won't be set in stone at this part.
Shoot/find ref. Will be tricky finding solid ref for some parts of the shot.
Then start working on it inside Maya.

Wish me luck!

AGoodFella

Plot/Bio:

https://imgur.com/a/d9S8r

Storyboard with some reference images coming up next.

Rmunday

Sorry to hear you have not had luck on the job front! Know that feeling. Love the optimism you have though you seem to have a solid plan moving forward.

Will be keeping an eye open for updates. Lots of Syncsketch links for feedback and you will be golden!

AGoodFella

Thanks, I'm going to document my entire process in this thread.

Some ref pics of the types of people I imagine the characters to be.

The girl is a rich spoilt girl who loves shopping, etc. The dude is a Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Adam Sandler type of guy. I could imagine these actors to be in a similar situation as the hero in my shot. A little goofy, heart is in the right place, etc.

https://imgur.com/a/Oihb8

Storyboard is next.

Archanex

hey AGoodFella,

I love how gung ho you seem to be about this whole thing, don't lose that spark! Personally I think you would be better off doing multiple smaller things instead of 1 big epic thing that takes months. You don't need to do some crazy epic shot to get hired, just make sure that whatever you show is really solid.

AGoodFella

Archanex said:

hey AGoodFella,

I love how gung ho you seem to be about this whole thing, don't lose that spark! Personally I think you would be better off doing multiple smaller things instead of 1 big epic thing that takes months. You don't need to do some crazy epic shot to get hired, just make sure that whatever you show is really solid.

Thanks dude, I'm not giving up, a fire has been lit and I'm going to get this game job even if it kills me....

I think you're right. I'm going to rework this and make it a simpler climbing/parkour exercise. Already have an idea. Will pose up some reference next.

Hito

cool man. looking forward to what you come up with. finding that job takes grit, just have to keep at it. End of the year is tougher search wise but not impossible, also good reminder to ramp up for GDC all over again

13randO

Awesome, man! Can't wait to see this thread after some WIPs. I also feel you on finding that game job; I'm still trying myself and I won't ever quit until I have my name on some game credits. I believe that the perseverance will pay off, and I'm inspired to see you as adamant as you are. 

AnthonyAnimation

It's great to take advantage of inspiration when it strikes! I'll add my thoughts and re-iterate what @Archanex said- instead of working on one shot for months it's better to work on shots that only take a few weeks. This will allow you to go through the process of a shot from planning to blocking, blocking plus, polish... It lets you work on each stage and find areas you may be lacking.

A lot of people (myself included) have a bad habit of starting many shots, but never taking them all the way to final. Companies want to see that you're able to stick with a shot and finish it. Every place look for something different and I know how hard it is to find a job. I would recommend doing something you're passionate about, work on making something unique with your touch. We've all seen walk cycles and parkour, but how can you make it pop?

LiamReynolds

Its best to do something simple and executed well than something complex and looks ropy. I caught your other post in the Career section i think.

Regarding content, you can do shots tailored to studios but you run the risk of pigeon holing to that specific place and that work may not appeal to anywhere else and recruiters may not want to send your realistic stuff to a stylized place for example - so you could just do work you enjoy and is above all good animation.

Theres also the possibility that a studio might say they want to see X, but hire someone who doesn't even demonstrate that on their reel. because its just solid work anyway.

I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

brucemoose

cool I look forward to seeing this shot man.

AGoodFella

Just got back from work. Re-worked the idea and instead made it into a pure parkour piece. There's enough challenging sections (like the bar swing and ladder climb) to make it worthwhile and I should be able to finish it by the end of February.

Here is the ref:

https://syncsketch.com/playground/9d08a583184d4df58b303e3b81585628#311804

Going to draw over it in the next few days and then start blocking on Saturday. Set myself a deadline of February 25th to have this thing fully done.

Here is schedule for this shot:

Blocking - to be done the weekend of 04/02/18 (I key every 2-4 frames for blocking)

Spline - to be done by the weekend of 11/02/18 (this is the part where I fix any major issues after switching to spline)

Polish - to be done by 25th Feb.

I will have to sacrifice sleep and I will be able to work on it for around 6hrs during the week and all day on the weekends.

Could a mod change the title of this to "AGoodFella's Progress thread" please.

As always comments/crits are welcome.

Cheers. Here's to the next six months....

Hito

little more ladder climb ref: www.youtube.com/watch?v=45yo5uQv9M8

AGoodFella

Hito said:

little more ladder climb ref: www.youtube.com/watch?v=45yo5uQv9M8

Jeez, that is hardcore. If I'm ever trapped in a burning building, I need these guys to save me.

I tried to do the ladder climb with only my hands like in the ref and my body said NOPE! Looking online, there isn't a ton of it as well.

AGoodFella

Quick run through with a cube to figure out the energy/timing of the shot. Trying to get the timing down for the most part. I could tweak the timing all day so if anyone thinks certain parts are too fast/slow, let me know. Going to start blocking next.

https://syncsketch.com/playground/dfa9d176782b47348f6eea9ffc994fe8#312915

AGoodFella

Rough blocking. Notes are welcome. Still lots of tweaking to do but I think the foundation is there.

https://syncsketch.com/playground/abcd10315c6944d19a16a028cd9cf66b#317719

AnthonyAnimation

I left some notes. Solid start!

AGoodFella

AnthonyAnimation said:

I left some notes. Solid start!

Thanks, will address these notes pronto!

tholmes3d

I just wanted to add one note about the balance while he's climbing up the ladder with only his arms. The legs should be underneath the ladder to counterbalance the weight of the upper body. I found a cool video that shows a few different postures for pullups which is great because you can choose which fits your character best. In all of the examples, the body is at some angle so the feet and some of the lower body are on the other side of the bar from the head/shoulders. This might also make for a cool moment when he transition from hanging to using his feet because it will be a bit more difficult. He may have to push off the bottom run with his hips to get his foot onto the rung. I think that interesting transitions like that will help add character and keep this looking like a fluid shot, and not a series of exercises.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig6JcPYkuRU

AGoodFella

tholmes3d said:

I just wanted to add one note about the balance while he's climbing up the ladder with only his arms. The legs should be underneath the ladder to counterbalance the weight of the upper body. I found a cool video that shows a few different postures for pullups which is great because you can choose which fits your character best. In all of the examples, the body is at some angle so the feet and some of the lower body are on the other side of the bar from the head/shoulders. This might also make for a cool moment when he transition from hanging to using his feet because it will be a bit more difficult. He may have to push off the bottom run with his hips to get his foot onto the rung. I think that interesting transitions like that will help add character and keep this looking like a fluid shot, and not a series of exercises.

Interesting. so i should have have the legs/hips counter the upper torso more when he pulls up on the rungs? Cool, I'll definitely address this. The ref I used had a wall close in front of him so I guess that is why it's more subdued in my anim. I'll work on this.

Thanks for the vid.

brucemoose

Nice blocking, looking good.

AGoodFella

Addressed some of the notes above. Going to spline it out soon and polish everything as much as I can. This is where I can really loosen the anim up.

https://syncsketch.com/playground/9693bf8bdd034b6d90277f526b36209a#319669 

AGoodFella

Got some additional notes. Added more energy/urgency to the shot. Going to spline today and polish it as best as I can.

https://syncsketch.com/playground/8e5ad1ce1152403fbf0a9dc6eaa6e2c6#321055

penOr

This is looking great! My only suggestion would be to shorten the amount of time he spends climbing, to keep the shot short and sweet. Just feels he dwells a little too long on the climb personally.

Looking forward to seeing it finished!

AGoodFella

penOr said:

This is looking great! My only suggestion would be to shorten the amount of time he spends climbing, to keep the shot short and sweet. Just feels he dwells a little too long on the climb personally.

Looking forward to seeing it finished!

Thanks for the note. Took 4 frames or so out of the climb. Going to finish it now. Post the final update soon.

EVernier

That's looking pretty neat, good job so far

AGoodFella

Done:

Green_Cheek_Conure

*whistle* Looking great! @AGoodFella I wish you the best and hope this lands you a job!

AGoodFella

Thanks man. I'm far from done. Got another 4 shots to get done before I think my reel is ready.

Green_Cheek_Conure

I'm sure you got this advice plenty of times already, but just in-case. Keep sending your reel. Even if it doesn't have all the shots you wan't in it yet.

Individual skill does matter. . .  ALLOT.  But most of the time it's timing and the studios needs that will determine if someone gets hired.

So IMO, slap that piece in your reel and show it to any eye willing to see it!

AGoodFella

Yeah, good point.

I just had a call from a recruiter about a game studio wanting to set up an interview with me.

And this was based on my current reel in my signature.