Create and justify a planned animation (M3, D2)

M3: Optimise the content for use in the final animation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These screenshots are evidence of saving as a higher quality. We have taken these to show how the quality is important within the campaign and animation and also ensured that the files are supported through Windows, PC and Mac systems.

My final animation product has been finalised and created in two formats, this being the MP4 Format for online usage on websites such as youtube to properly connote the high amounts of care that have been taken into our work at such a high compressed format. Also an H.264 File has been used for mobile devices and services. This file is a type of lowered bitrate quality which whiles loweres the resolution, stablalises the overall sharpness and quality to convert to mobile devices such as Apple and Android.  Addidionally by using these formats anyone with a lowered connection or internet status would still be able to view these videos at a minimum of 480p which is still relatively high quality when dealing with a poor connection type. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have been able to optimise my animations as shown in the images displayed above so that i will be able to apply my animation on a range of platforms such as mobile and online. To do this I changed my codec from a range of different formats such as H.264 as well as MP4/MOV for online purposes. These are some of the most popular and up to date formats that have been used and displayed through the media and are some really solid options when optimising work. This file format is also known to load faster and have less buffering, this is due to the amount of space they take up in storage known to be minimal as they save space on quality. This leads to viewers therefore having no interruptions when watching the videos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 For the actual sequences of my animation, I have decided to use the MPEG file format. This is because when creating my animation, I made the decision to not use and graphic sequences, this is because graphic sequences are moving images, using these would lead to the overall length and sizing of my files to be too large to handle and would end up causing the upload times of my videos as well as overall time to load and buffering for viewers to increase. Therfore it was in my best interest to use this format as it would allow easy access to sharing the vidoes on mobile devices. As well as this I needed to take into consideration the quality of the animaiton, if the quality being presented in the animation is too low of a standard, then this will leave a worsened brand image and reputation for Zombie March. People may view the lower quality as a lack of care for the actual march itself therefore the quality standards are vital. 

In the actual production of my animation, I ensured to not use stock low quality images, this is because it would throw off the viewers experience to have high quality stop motion being presented however have such a lack of care in the actual backplates, so to prevent this from happening I deceided to format the imaged as JPEG's. This is because the file size for these are much smaller whiles upholding a high standard of quality, therefore it would be easier to compress and create an overall high staking animation.

D2: Justify the choice of animation technique for the frame rate and duration

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Originally the plan for my animation was to mainly use claymation to be able to best control each individual character, however when putting this into practice, creating the models for my characters turned out to be much harder to work with and was taking too much time. Because of this, I decided to work with figurines from zombie sets as well as civillian sets to be used to create my stop motion animation. Using figurines I was however able to easily manipulate characters body parts such as the legs or arms and make their movements more realistic. For example, the zombies that I used were able to become limbless and crawling due to the figurines having detachable parts to them. This also helped reiterate the gore of the zombies. 

I also decided to use Stopmotion as my form of animation because I felt it has often been portrayed as more comedic of an animation style, knowing this I was able to create my animation with a comedic sense behind it, this is shown through the voice overs I use in my animation and the up beat music to connote the violence of the zombies. This will in turn also hopefully appeal more to my target audience as it would show the event is meant to be fun and family friendly.

The main speed of my animation per scene is aimed to be 4FPS. However, some of the scenes had to have a different average FPS due to the lengths and speeds of some scenes vary and therefore there needs to be more or less frames. For example on of my scenes averages roughly 10FPS due to the speed of the scene, however one of my beginnins scens is averaged at 4FPS. Using a range of different animation speeds allowed for my animation to be able to smoothen out overall with different changes of pacing and movement speeds. This is because I was able to identify the scenarios within my animation would require different pacing. For example the beginning scenes must be slowed down to show there is not problem present and the later scenes must be faster such as the zombie chase to present the intensity of the scene but also the speed being there. 

Overall, the final animation lasted a length of roughly 45 seconds long. This is good because it meets the briefs needs for a short and effective advertisement of roughly being 30-45 seconds long. This is also good because it means the file size overall will be smaller when uploaded and therefore is easier for viewers to watch on various devices. This also allows for the quality to be much higher as well which is what the brief asks for. 

My animation that I have created is best fit for the purpose that was asked for because it advertises the zombiefest March for a range of audiences as well as zombie horror enthusiasts. This is because a key aspect of zombie horror genres is the hoards of zombies taking over entire cities and chasing down civillians. The comedic side to this can be shown through the music as well as stop motion creating realistic yet goofy movements alongside eachother. 

The primary target audience for my animation had been aimed at horror enthusiasts. However with the amount of different groups and types of people that could potentially want to attend this event, I concluded that the best audience to aim at after considering the age, race, gender and class was 16-28 year olds of diverse ethnicity and races. This is because typically the age of 18 is where you are mature enough to be able to watch violent and more mature gore/horror films. Because of this, the mass audience of 18 year olds would be likely interested in attending this event. As well as this, the age of up to 28 year olds also fits into this younger demographic and would therefore support this age groups views. A seconday audience which may be involved could be 30+ year olds. This is becuase these ages will also be much more mature than younger audiences and therefore will find more appeal to many of the things such as the music and food at the event as well as the fun comedic side. There is also a mass of overlooked older audiences from 30+ who consume horror films that would likely appeal to this.

 

By using my user testing / surveys, I have been able to identify that the animation I created has appealed to the target demographic the brief required. This is because the feedback and the audience I surveyed has been aimed at the audience of 18 years old. The animation appeals to this audience because the general horror gore genre appeals to a younger audience, whiles also being able to appeal a wide audience. As well as this, the fact the animation provides information about the zombiefest march allows for audiences to be able to discuss the event online and get everyone involved in the event and excited about what the event will be like. E.G. there will be things such as food, music etc.

Overal, my animation is fit for purpose as it fits into all the brief calls, such as clearly advertising the march, as well as having a main character(s) that a brand can be built around. This ultimately means that the animation will advertise the march well, meaning that the main purpose of the task was met and completed. Using claymation allowed me to create an appropriate zombie, highlighting the main theme of the march, again meaning that the animation is fit for purpose.

To conclude, my animation is fit for the purpose set by the brief as it fits into what was asked of me. This includes, having main characters and advertisements for the march that are short and effective, meaning that the main objective of the animation was met. Using stop motion allowed me to create the appropriate balance of horror and gore as well as comedy to balance out eachother which overall fits the purpose of the animation.