Thesis Work pt.6 (Final)
It's over! I am happy to write that I "finished" the animated short, presented it at my defense meeting, and was passed by my committee. I will be getting my MFA in animation. While it may sound somewhat cheesy or cliche, my growth over the three years at UTD has shown me I can do anything. It's no longer about what I can or cannot do, but more about what I want to do and how much work I am willing to put in.
Anyway, here is the final rendered short:
I will also include an edited version of the final short, with reference clips added, since that was a major discussion point at my defense presentation. It was really fun putting this edit together, looking through everything and seeing the major differences between the footage and the final product. As you will be able to see, I would use the reference footage as a foundation to further exaggerate the poses and expressions.
Alongside the short is the thesis paper [NOTE: As of right now, the paper has not been approved by the graduation office's format check; it can be prone to change.]
. The paper covers the entire process and development of the short. If you want the nitty-gritty details, they can be found in the paper.
This was a project that really showed what I am capable of, pushing myself to the absolute limit as I balance my classes at UTD and my part-time job at nonPareil. The project went through so many changes, I couldn't be happier with its result. In no way do I think the short is perfect, as it has several things I would adjust and change, such as adding more overlap to the movements (like hands and feet). To keep the post short, I want to list a number of bullet points that were my key takeaways. Some of these are painfully obvious but I put them in anyway because the obvious ones are usually the most important.
There's so much more that I did not list, the past year has had a lot of growth professionally and artistically.
So what's next? Not entirely sure, I personally am happy wherever, so long as I am animating. Would LOVE to pick up some studio work, something small like animating Barbie's dad in those poorly animated kid movies, that might be a great place to start. In no way do I think you can just jump from this to something like Sony or Pixar. I am considering taking an online animation course to keep some skin in the game and hold myself accountable, so my work ethic doesn't burn out. I am looking at teaching college-level animation classes, etc. All while I attempt to fix the animation curriculum at nonPareil. On top of all of this, I have a handful of fun animation ideas I want to make. Very excited for what the future holds!!!
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