Datasheet

Since the CG artist must define 3D scenes in the program, it is essential to have a suc-
cinct plan of attack for a well-organized production. The more time spent planning and
organizing for CG, the better. Entering into production without a good plan of attack is
not only going to cause you trouble, it will stunt the growth of your project.
In the real world, preproduction is part of every CG animation project. For the tutorial
projects in this book, you’ll work with sketches and other files supplied on the accompany-
ing CD as your preproduction. Even for these tutorials, however, you’re encouraged to
gather as much information as you can about the objects you’ll create, even more than what
is presented to you. As with disappointing movies with terribly flawed preproduction stages,
a poorly thought-out CG production will invariably end in headaches and wasted time.
The Script
To tell a story, CG or not, you need to put it in words. A story need not contain dialogue
for it to benefit from a script. Even abstract animations can benefit from a highly detailed
explanation of timings and colors laid out in a script. The script serves as the initial blue-
print for the animation, to lay forth the all-important intent. It is then fleshed out.
The Storyboard
A storyboard is a further definition of the script. You break the script into scenes, and
then you break those scenes into shots. You then sketch out each shot on a panel of a story-
board. The panels are laid out in order according to the script to give a visual and linear
explanation of the story. Storyboards are useful for planning camera angles (framing a
shot), position of characters, lighting, mood, and so on. Even rudimentary boards with
stick figures on notebook paper are useful to a production.
The Conceptual Art
Conceptuals are the design elements that are needed for the CG production. Typically, char-
acters are drawn into character sheets in three different neutral poses from the front, from
the side, and from an angle called a 3⁄4 view. Some are even sculpted into clay for better
reference. Color art can also be created of the various sets, props, and characters to better
visualize the colors, textures, and, later on, the lighting that will be needed. Props and sets
are identified from the script and boards and sketched out into model sheets. The better the
conceptual art is visualized, the easier it will be to model, texture, and light everything in CG.
Production
Production begins when you start creating the models from the boards, model sheets, and
concept art. You model the characters, the sets, and the props, and you assign textures
(colors, patterns). The animators take the models and animate everything according to the
boards and script. The sequences are rendered in low quality for dailies and checked for
accuracy and content.
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