The link that seen below this paragraph depicts the Star Now callout that I produced on Friday 23rd October 2020 asking for possible voice performers who could provide their vocals for the short Audiobook/Drama;

StarNow, 2020. Voice Performer for Audiobook/Drama. Student Production. -StarNow. [online] Available at: <https://www.starnow.co.uk/listing/1095375/voice-performer-short-audio-drama-book-student-production/&gt; [Accessed 23 October 2020].

The link to the PowerPoint Presentation that contains all is the sketchbook pages depicting the written development and scheduling for this project can be seen below;

The screenshot below depicts comments/critiques provided by Andrew (fellow colleague in the course) on what I’m doing so far. Another Screenshot that follows depicts the critiques I’d given Andrew when he was going through his project;

The embedded YouTube video that is linked below showcases the rough edit of the opening sequence of ‘The Magic Wood’. This was done as I tried to upload the original wav and mp3 files to the blog but they couldn’t upload;

The Word Document linked below depicts the messages I sent to the two chosen performers who’ll providing their vocal talent for this student production (This was written before the final recording sessions that took place during the second week of the project);

The Unlisted YouTube video shown below depicts the first recording i made on my own within Microsoft Teams which will be implemented in the recording sessions on Thursday and Friday (although this subject to change depending on how the performers feel on the day or other factors that might prop up);

The next two Unlisted YouTube Videos depict the edited recordings I done with both ‘Anthony Stuart Lloyd’ and ‘Jessica Gittins’. Added Noise Reduction and -24 Loudness was applied to the chosen takes to make it sound more polished and professional:

The YouTube Video embedded below depicts the edited slideshow presentation of the recording session I done with ‘Anthony Stuart Lloyd’. The video was edited to together by Anthony and the video is located on his channel ‘anthonystlloyd’;

The Unlisted YouTube Video that can be seen below depicts the final edited rendition of the audio drama ‘The Magic Wood by Henry Treece’ for Project 3. The Audio Drama was edited on Adobe Audition;

A link to a Word Document containing the Harvard Referenced Research performed for this project can be seen below;

The positives that are present within the final edit of the audio drama ‘The Magic Wood’ is how the individual performances of Jessica and Anthony overlap each other seamlessly despite the fact there were two separate recording sessions with the performers in question relying on my direction alongside describing the basic outline of how the drama will come together. The music and binaural effects are also worth commending as they both enhance some scenes within the production as well as mimic the standard quality that is found within professional Audio Drama Productions.

Negatives prevalent however mostly relate to the production feeling as if it needed more sound assets to flesh out the audible world which I feel is slightly lacking in my production. Some sound edited tracks of the performers appeared unrefined and needed more adjustments so the vocals blend in with the rest of the environment (This can also be said of other sound tracks that had similar issues).

Improvements that I would have considered if I had more time or if I find myself doing a similar project in the future will be focused on discovering methods in creating more seamless transitions and overlays of different sound tracks so the entire production runs in a smooth manner without repetitive ticks that come in the form of sounds not natural to the constructed environment produced for the production.

Thoughts I have overall for this project is mostly positive and relief considering that I managed to produce a full-cast audio production within two weeks under the current circumstances at the time this was written in relation the government lockdown implemented within the United Kingdom. Although I would like to a similar production again in the future the need to have a timeframe of more than two weeks will be refreshing as well as provide the necessary time for me to refine and tweak the production to the highest standard.

Further Harvard Referencing (Project 3 and ‘The Process Book’):

InDesign Research (The Process Book):

Angelo Montilla, 2020. How to add videos to an interactive layout in Adobe InDesign – YouTube. Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhTliWR5O6k&gt; [Accessed 05 November 2020].

Pariah Burke, 2017. InDesign: Adding Background Colors to Pages in InDesign (All Versions) – YouTube. Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54fWWLxMxmw&gt; [Accessed 05 November 2020].

The Sketchbook Page seen below showcases the original notes and mind maps expanding on the narrative which will be in the final animated segment which will be produced in the next two weeks;

Further Sketchbook Pages below showcase two possible narratives that were considered for the animation with the ‘Hyter Sprite Transformation’ idea being the final one chosen. Storyboards were produced to showcase what bot ideas could’ve looked like if further expanded upon;

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The sketchbook page that can be seen below further expands on how the Fairy Transformation will look like with added notes dictating which animation techniques will be used on the fairy herself. Facial Expression storyboard depicts the prominent animation which will be prevalent on the fairy when she appears. Apart from her facial expressions that rest of the fairies body won’t move or at least this is what is planned at the moment;

The photo and screenshot that can be seen below showcase the critiques I made to Manon (Fellow Colleague) in relation to her current work development as well as comments from her relating to what I need to consider for the animation I’ll produce;

As is written in both the sketchbook pages above the animation project changed from the ‘Fairy Transformation’ back to the ‘Fairy Ring’ idea after gaining new enthusiasm for the idea which will incorporate unused VR photos that were taken earlier in the year.

The idea of the short film being the viewer will be in the centre of the ring seeing the fairies appear alongside the mushrooms before the said fairies disappear with only the mushrooms remaining. This came as quite a nice revelation considering I unsure on how the idea could be realised.

VR Footage was considered but i felt it was better using Photos as it’ll save space on the final film itself, focus on the animations of the fairies and the mushrooms themselves. I also at the time i written this down could’nt access the said footage for some unknown reason so the decision was made to use the photos which were accessible rather than spend time trying to recover the footage.

Three of the Insta360 Photos (taken originally for the ‘Graphic Design for the Web’ module) that were considered (one of them being chosen for the final film) can be seen below;

The 10 second YouTube clip embedded below showcases my attempt at the ‘Electric Ball VFX’ tutorial on YouTube which was considered for the transition effect for the mushrooms to appear. Despite creating this effect it became clear at the end that there was no way for the background to be transparent thus another tutorial called ‘Glowing Orb’ was used instead. Despite this I felt it was worth linking it to this post to show the experimentation I performed for this project:

Two screenshots below highlight key comments from the ‘Electric Ball VFX’ tutorial that answered questions to issues that I came across while watching the video. The ‘evolution’ issue was sorted but the transparent wasn’t thus why this VFX piece was not considered for the final VR film;

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The first experiment I performed with the ‘Lighting Effect’ (Mock Fairy) laid over the Insta360 Photo (IMG_20200227_171040_00_028.insp) can be seen below. I thought it looked really effective the risk of combining elements that could or could not have worked. As can be seen the second video produced on 15/10/20 it was a matter of making the animations small enough so the viewer can see them as well as the animations not disappearing off out of site, creating disorientation to the viewer in question;

The four embedded videos that can be seen below depict the individual animations produced on After Effects using tutorials which are Harvard Referenced in the ‘Research Word Document’ which will be be linked at the end of this blog post. The After Effects Animations are then placed within Premiere Pro as seen in the experimental videos above this paragraph;

On Friday 16th October 2020, i experimented on After Effects and Illustrator to produce a Mushroom animation which will be needed for the middle and ending parts of the VR film that’ll be produced for Project 2. The two PNG’s below showcase the early experimentation on Illustrator using the the ‘Watercolour brush tool and Wacom pen tool’ opposite the traditional ‘curvature tool’ technique. Research that informed the Illustrator experiments are Harvard Referenced in the Research Word Document which will be linked at the end of the this blog. After experimentation was done it became clear that the ‘Curvature’ Tool’ is not only quicker to produce an effective mushroom illustration but is also appropriate considering the short period that is given for this project:

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Two PNG Files that were used for the animation experiment performed on the 16/10/20 can be seen below. The animation technique I applied on the mushrooms as they fade in and out is the same one used for the ‘Great Stukely Logo’ in Project 1 called ‘Text Animation-Writing Text Effects- No Plugins’ which felt looked really affective and will look great in the final VR Film;

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The embedded Unlisted YouTube link can be seen below showcasing the finished Mushroom Animation with added distortion effects and a Glowing Orb Transition feature;

The experimental distortion effects i applied to the mushroom that appears in the middle section of the video above comprise of ‘Stroke’, ‘Bulge’, ‘Spherize’ and ‘Ripple’. I might apply these four effects during the transition phase when the mushroom is materialising into existence. Three Mushroom Animations will be produced surrounding the viewer of the VR film (create three different mushrooms?).

After some thought i will start the film with the VR photo being in monochrome initially till it changes to vibrant colours at the end emphasising the magical supernatural occurrence that is happening in the scene. I might include stock sounds of animals in the film if need be. Four to Five Mock Fairies will be created and multiplied within the film itself. Animations will be produced on After Effects first (Mushroom and Fairies) then applied within a Premiere Pro Program where the final VR Film will be rendered.

The seven second Unlisted YouTube link below showcases the 360 photo transition from Monochrome to vibrant colour which I referred to earlier in this blog. The use of tweaking the Opacity feature was used prominently for this sequence;

(17/10/20) The embedded clip below showcases the early development of how the final VR Animation will be structured. The ‘Bensound’ Royalty Free Music ‘Piano Moment’ felt more appropriate and whimsical compared to the other royalty free music I chosen which comprised of ‘November’ and ‘Relaxing’. The VR Transition I’ll use for the final film which can be seen below will be ‘VR Spherical Blur’ rather than ‘VR Chroma Leaks’ presented at the end of the mock film below;

Two JPEG’s that can be seen below depict the two final Mushrooms/Fungi that will appear in the final VR animation for Project 2 with added colour combinations that were used for the individual designs;

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The first 18 seconds showcase the Mushroom transformation scene that will appear in the final VR animated film. This is the second mushroom animation that I produced for the animated VR film ‘The Fairy Ring’. I felt it was appropriate to call the film @The Fairy Ring’ as links to the original English/Cornish Folklore that researched during Week 3;

The embedded Unlisted YouTube video below showcases the final opening title sequence to the VR Film which incorporates the techniques used for the mushroom animations. I thought it looked very nice after the brief period of experimentation thus why the clip below will be present in the final film. The font used for the opening title is ‘Viner Hand ITC’;

The embedded Unlisted YouTube Videos that can be seen below showcase the various final ‘Fairy Animations’ which will be incorporated into the final VR animated film. These animations were produced on Sunday 18th October 2020 using the YouTube link Harvard Refenced below this sentence. Experimentation performed using ‘Turbulent Disturbance’, ‘Wave Warp’, ‘Ripple’ and tweaks to the ‘Glow’ ratios achieve the final results present in this blog;

EQUILOUD, 2015. Light Strokes Effect with built in Plugins // After Effects Tutorial // HD. Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prbCwL6V5qA&gt; [Accessed 16 October 2020].

(19/10/20) The two embedded Unlisted YouTube clips seen below showcase the updated ‘The Fairy Ring’ title sequence and ‘A CALLUM FORSTER FILM’ with the added glow effect to link to them of glowing fairies and magic that is present within the two minute VR Animation. Thought it would be cool to create my own opening title animations which feel turned rather nicely after a bit of experimentation using the ‘Distort’ features on the ‘Effects’ section;

(20/10/20) First Edit of the VR Animation ‘The Fairy Ring’;

The Embedded YouTube link below showcases the final edit of the Short VR Animation ‘The Fairy Ring’ completed before the final session dedicated to group critique on individual Project 2 development so far. The cog symbol on the bottom left of the video has to be selected with the ‘720’ option selected so the quality of the video is lowered to a blur (20/10/20):

(21/10/20) After receiving feedback from Tina during a Microsoft teams Meeting the selected tasks set out for me to complete before the 22/10/20 deadline is as follows;

Incorporate actual photos of mushrooms rather than Illustrator images (looks more effective and magical. Images will be found on the internet and Harvard Referenced in the Research Word Document at the end of this blog.

Make it clearer the fairies are creating the mushrooms. I will tweak the animations so a select few circle around the mushroom transformation until the mushroom is fully formed.

Tweak the opacity of the Fairy animations to make them look more ethereal or increase the colour adjustments of the VR Photo chosen for this project. I will attempt to tweak both these areas.

Four Images that were found on the internet that appear in the VR Animation ‘The Fairy Ring’ can be seen below alongside separate image files that were produced for the four after effects animations for the final animation;

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The Unlisted YouTube links seen below showcases the Mushroom animations using photos from the internet;

The final edit of the VR Animation ‘The Fairy Ring’ with added tweaks as suggested by Tina (Main Tutor) can be seen linked below;

The final thoughts that I have as a whole after completing this particular project is mostly positive considering the last minute change of concept from drawing a actual fairy to creating ‘The Fairy Ring’ narrative depicted in the abstract two minute VR Animation that I eventually produced.

The animations of the glowing fairies and the fade in/out transition effects on the mushrooms I thought looked very effective and high quality despite the large amount of time put into experimentation to achieve these particular effects as documented through screenshots and unlisted YouTube Videos throughout this blog.

The only negatives that occurred during the development of this film is how much time was dedicated to some sections of the film more than others (Focused more on Animations rather than standing back and see how the animations compliment the narrative I want to tell in the film) alongside trying to create to many assets within a short period of time which i only just managed to complete a day before the submission of this pilot project.

Improvements and factors that I’ll consider from this project is to be more productive during the first week rather than the second week as I wasn’t very productive in producing work during the first week of this project than I was in the second week. This would allow me to stand back and see how all the components work together and compliment the story as well as spend time on how to create a more polished VR Animation presentation which I felt I didn’t achieve for this particular pilot project.

The link to the ‘Research for Project 2: Harvard References’ Word Document can be seen below;

The sketchbook pages that can be seen below showcase feedback from Tina on the Microsoft meeting held on 30/09/20, early script development for the final dialogue spoken within the advert (Including final track chosen from the Adobe Audition session performed on 03/10/20) to extra notes documenting further research in producing the final logo animation. A page was also dedicated to the development of ‘The Process Book’ as well;

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PNG Files linked below showcase the final logo separated in individual files with a transparent background. This was done so separate animations can be done on the letters and paint strokes to make the final animation appear seamless within the final Village Advert. The final logo was animated separately from the advert on After Effects;

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The Final PNG File below depicts the final Logo (and extra information for the ‘Stukely Parish’ website) that will be depicted in the final Village Advert:

The First Draft of the ‘Village Advert’ with the ‘Final Logo Animation’ can be seen embedded below with the Royalty Free Music ‘Memories’ from http://www.bensound.com. Video was produced on 04/10/20:

Three photos below depict the equipment I used to record the footage which can be seen in the embedded YouTube link above. The equipment in question consists of a Canon EOS 4000D Camera and a Manfrotto Tripod. The day the footage was shot went very well throughout the afternoon;

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Further Development on the Advert can be seen below with an email from Tina (Tutor) providing critiques on how the ad itself can be better presented. The two ‘Lumetri Effects’ used on Premier pro for a select few clips within the ad is also seen below. The effects were added to make the footage more in sync with the family friendly; several of the clips were more brighter and clearer in presentation than others:

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The final edit of the film with a slightly tweaked logo animation transition can be seen embedded below;

Link to original Word Document that contains all the Harvard Referenced Research performed within Weeks 1 and 2;

Screenshots (Microsoft Teams Meeting. 07/10/20) and a Sketchbook Page highlighting key notes and critiques both what I received and what I given out to both Carla and Manon (fellow colleagues in the course);

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The embedded Unlisted YouTube link showcases the final version of the advert applying the feedback provided by Carla and Manon (Fellow colleagues in the colleges) earlier in the Microsoft Teams Meeting at 07/10/20. Although the feedback was helpful and did improve the advert there are still a issues with the final presentation with some edited footage being more oversaturated than others. Despite this the first project went well overall;

The link that is placed below contains the sources to various Research Sites and Videos that I overlooked during Weeks 1 and 2 for Project 1. All Links are Harvard Referenced;

Final Thoughts/Evaluation of the First Pilot Project:

The positives aspects that can be found within the first pilot project, in the form of the mini-documentary, is how smoothly the developmental process proved to be despite the restrictions imposed during the Covid-19 Pandemic in 2020 at the time this evaluation is written. The written and verbal feedback picked up within the Microsoft Teams Meetings in relation to the mini-documentary proved to be very productive into producing a more structured edited production.

However, the negatives that were prevalent in the project  is once again related to the Covid-19 Pandemic which made it difficult to gain access to the university initially, thus why the footage which was shot appeared lower in quality due to usage of a camera I have at home rather than the higher quality equipment the student services provide within the university.

Improvements which will be implemented in the future if I produce a documentary production is to involve a group of people within and outside the university who work on specific areas of a documentary production which was absent in the original developmental process for this project. As a result of this absence, the mini-documentary was lower in quality  in comparison to similar productions I done for the Digital Media course in past modules over the last few years.

Final thoughts I have overall after completing the work for the first pilot project is although I managed to put together a short and informative mock advert that delivers on what its suppose to be within a short period of time, it has become apparent that I tried to produce a production that needed more time to be the appropriate quality it needed to be as well as the realisation that a group collaboration with other creatives was also needed to improve the quality of the production as was the case in the third pilot project.

This post document the development and research performed for the first project laid for trimester 1 within the third and final year of the digital media course;

A link to the PowerPoint Presentation I gave in Week 1 during a Microsoft Office Meeting can be seen below;

The Sketchbook Page that can be seen below showcase notes and added tweaks to the existing projects after hearing feedback from Kurtis Bevan, Manon Raja and Fabiano Taveres;

Further Sketchbook Pages that can be seen below showcase early storyboards for how the short advert for the village I live in will be presented as well as logo experimentation;

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Another Sketchbook Page that can be seen below depicts notes i taken after watching a YouTube video online discussing tips and key features that are needed to make an advert. Like other sites and videos used for research it will be present in a work document either in this blog post or in blog post for the Third Project. Further development and fleshing out of the adverts content can be seen throughout the entirety of this post;

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Word Document Link below expands on Logo Experimentation performed on the website CANVA (as reccomended from the ‘Business for the Creative Arts’ module from the second year). Despite the decision to create a new logo from scratch within Photoshop the experimental logos do have an influence on the final logo for the short advert;

Three JPEG’s below showcase the initial experimentation (Fonts, Colours etc.) performed on Photoshop;

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Due to technical difficulties with the Adobe Photoshop program which I used for experimentation I had to save the detailed sheets/experimentation of the brushstroke effects found on ‘Brusheezy’ and other details like fonts to PDF documents. The links to the said PDF documents can be seen below. ‘Underline Photoshop Brushes 3’ variants that I chosen are 3 and 8, I mention this here as I haven’t made it clear in the original PDF Document;

JPEG depicted below shows the final design for the logo which will be present present in the final advert near the end with a unique fade-in transition over footage that I will shoot within the village;

The link that is placed below contains the sources to various Research Sites and Videos that I overlooked during Weeks 1 and 2 for Project 1. All Links are Harvard Referenced;

The photos that can be seen below showcase the early notes (development) depicting the initial concepts for the possible three pilot projects;

The link that can be seen below showcase he research i performed before the start of Trimester 1;

The link that can be seen below depict the final presentation that I sent off to the ARU CANVAS page online before the beginning of Trimester 1;