Stranger Than Fiction

I recently saw the film Stranger Than Fiction starring Will Ferrell. I went into it with a certain mindset that it would simply be another funny Will Ferrell film, with ridiculous dialogue and situations galore. After the first 20 seconds of the film however I knew it was going to be different. It began with a the main character rising and going through his daily routine, but it was accompanied by stylish diagrams showing his methodical method of counting and precision which gave the feeling that you were just as bent towards OCD as he was. The effect was artistically phenomenal and resembled graphic advertising, filled with lines and diagrams showing count, distance, and other factors. The rest of the movie was just as intriguing, with an incredibly interesting plot ranging on the supernatural but touching on such simple concepts as love and sacrifice. The movie culminated with a very edge-of-your-seat situation that is very uncommon of anything other than action films, but it didnt require cliffs, explosions, or guns...just a choice. An excellent movie in my book, funny, emotional, and intriguing, all seemlessly woven together to create a movie that engages the viewer very well.

Treasure Planet

Michael Spooner's concept art for Treasure Planet was incredible. I've always loved concept art, the way it influences the final build of the project and the small minute changes that are made. It has it's own style even, with the use of black and blue for shading and its sketchy feel, yet still retaining precision and concept value. I found it very sad that they didnt use his final ideas for the moon harbor and I would be even sadder if I was in his place and all my concepts and drawings that I had worked and slaved over for so long were simply discarded and a simpler idea was implemented. I could seriously consider a concept artist as a legitimate career choice for myself because I love drawing and coming up with concepts, and even more so in helping them transform into finished pieces. All in all, an awesome show which I enjoyed extensively.

The Rise of the Short Film

I've noticed latel that the short film has begun to make a name for itself. many different cultural fads and advances in technology have allowed for a number of different medias to arise, of which, the short film is one. Almost a seperate entity from any other film works due to its way of presenting ideas and commonly controversial issues in under eight minutes or so, they are easily accessible and fit our needs for short concise, and fast information intake that is so common to our culture. IPods and fast streaming allow for easy distribution of short films and were until now, usually free. The changing market for short films however could, in the future, hold its own as an income because so many people love short films these days and are willing to pay for them. Anyone can create short films in this current age with all of our different artistic programs and equipment now made available to the common man, lets just hope that we don't become jaded and begin to start pumping out generic trend-whore films to which Hollywood has so succumbed.

Computer Science and DMA

I think personally that DMA and Computer Science are interlinked to a great extent. Many programming concepts that Maya and other animation programs use are directly out of a computer science textbook and can be used just as effectively. Another obvious benefit that was mentioned today when Professor Lehman spoke was that animators can create their own tools for their specific needs instead of spending money on people to come in and do it for them. I think a DMA major should be well versed in both worlds, with a solid amount of programming knowledge and all the creativity and skill that comes with DMA study.