Setting the Setting

    Up until now I've talked about the story, the animation, shots and stuff of that nature, but leading up to filming I've been taking some time to think about the set.

LOCATION

    I kind of knew from the very start that I wanted to film in my house. Most places in the general vicinity are very similar. If it's not another house it's just a Publix. Not to mention that here in South Florida, the weather tends to be fairly inconsistent. The only thing reliable about it is that it'll be humid. And the main reason I'd want to keep exteriors to a minimum is that fact that I have very little control over the lighting. Hence why the story takes place indoors.

    While developing the story, I'd reference the floorplan of my house the possible different angles I can get. Though that doesn't mean I can just set up a camera and start filming. Since I'm filming in my house, I have basically full control over how things are arranged. If I really wanted, I can clear my room. I'm not going to do that since the story doesn't require it, but I'll do it if I have to. With basically full control of the location, I get to play around with something very cool.

MISE-EN-SCENE

    I already know for a fact, that setting up to film will take so much longer than actual filming. I'm going to clear the space just so I can add stuff and decorate the scene. I've looked up workspaces that are catered towards animators, and I want give off a similar feel. 

    Of the bat, the main thing that jumps out at me is the little details. Sketches, storyboards, ideas, references, and inspirations all work to build up an atmosphere that's been worked in. It also conveys the kind of qualities a character has, like whether their organized or niche. I'm planning on placing a quark board to place storyboards on, a small blackboard to brainstorming, a calendar, photos, and an Akira poster to the movie up on the wall to add noise to the background.

    For the scene I'm going to be using 3 desks; 2 that form and "L" shape and another that's split off.

My current desk set up is in an L shape so mimicking the desks of the photos shouldn't be too hard. One desk will have a computer setup for day to day tasks, while it's neighboring desk will be the brainstorming station (just a mostly clear space to put ideas to paper). The split off desk will have an inclined surface for tracing.

    For the desk, I want there are be a lot of sticky notes all with ideas. That part shouldn't be too hard, since I burn through a stack of sticky notes about every month in an effort to clutter my desk. The set decorations should inform the viewer that this character is no stranger to animation, but they just happen to be in a roadblock.

LIGHTING

    The second thing that caught my attention while looking at those photos was the warm ambience. I never really thought about, but it makes sense since if animators tend to spend long hours working on projects, that they'd spend that time in a space that feels comforting. A decorative setting also provides an opportunity for motivated lighting. Cool light from the computer screen and help differentiate the subject from the warm background. Small lights in the back can also motivate the warm atmosphere. 

COLOR

    An idea I wanted even before looking at reference photos was for there to be a mostly neutral color palette for the live action portions of the opening. The animator will be wearing a beige shirt with a dark gray flannel to go with the neutrals of the frame, but also create contrast with the dark gray. It'd ground the world, before the introduction to animation. The animation could be colorful and vibrate in order to contrast from the footage. Though I have to be careful with it since, I don't want to overload the frame and make the animation stand out too much. 

FINAL THOUGHTS

    I am may have forgotten to mention it before, but I'm going to be the animator (in the story). I mean its only natural that I act in a story about writer's block that was based on my experiences with writer's block. And if you're familiar with the storyboard, you should know that the shots are locked down and don't move much (at least during production). If problems arise and its inconvenient doing certain things, I have my very supporting mom and sister that can help out making sure my placement in the frame is good and that I'm in focus.

    Fun Fact: this blog post was initially going to be call "I'm Insane" and I was going to talk about certain worries I had and the solutions I was think of, but I'm actually perfectly fine right now. This blog post has really helped me stay calm, and as a nice benefit, I have a pretty clear idea of what to do when I film. If all goes to plan the next blog post should be about something in relation to production, so look forward to that. Until then, goodbye.