Progress 8/28

First, I spent the weekend experimenting with various aesthetics and character designs. Here are some images that I created.

The Hot Dog Wizard himself.

A loose sketch of New York and Central Park. The type of aesthetic I'll be going for.

A sketch of the wizard with his cart.

Experimenting with the blur tool, to create depth. 

My main goal with these images was to create a few examples of the aesthetic I might be going for. Overall, I'm satisfied with the ideas I've come up with, and will continue to push in this direction. I now want to take the same style and attempt to create 3d dioramas in AfterEffects, in order to see how AfterEffects handles the natural lighting effects, as well other effects I want to experiment with. 

Now for my calendar. Here's the schedule I'm entertaining right now.

8/28- 9/18= Over the course of these three weeks, I will be creating assets and experimenting with aftereffects to attempt to create an aesthetic that will seem like a dynamic, three-dimensional illustration. The goal of this will be twofold- by creating assets that are in a 3d space, I will give my animation a sense of depth, creating not so much an illustration, but a world, and also will create a piece with a uniqueness that will push my story further. GOAL: Nailing down what it will all look like and pushing on from there.

9/4= Storyboard for the piece, which will I will use as reference for shots.

9/20- End of Semester= Create the comps in which my animation will take place. There will be numerous shots in the piece, and each will need the same amount of detail as the other. Each will be 3d, and each will use the layers and lighting, plus effects, to create a moving illustration. However, it's a large amount of work, so the rest of the semester I will create the various shots. This will allow me to spend next semester animating without having to worry about creating new assets, focusing on polish.