Scotch and Soda

I did not know what to expect from the scotch and soda performance , I knew that it consisted of live music tided in with acrobatics but what i experienced was far from this. The venue its self was a circular tent much like travelling circus tents of the 1800's. Inside stood a large wooden bar decorated with authentic bottles, barrels and brass furnishings creating an authentic bistro or lounge feel, individual wooden  benches and chairs surrounded a surprisingly small wooded stage, the size of this stage becomes important later on. Large decorative pillars stretch to the roof meeting the striped canvas overhead. strings of bulbs hung between these pillars illuminate the stage, providing a moody atmosphere also associated with a jazz lounge or cafe.
Some of the performers themselves were dressed down in simple beige trousers and off white t shirts. others wore black waist coats with bola hats or a red bow tie. The traditional 'strong man/pop eye' like character wore make up to create wrinkles on his face , he was topless to show his upper body strength only wearing weathered looking brown dungarees.
the whole production had a consistency it never broke out of this 1920s jazz/cabaray

The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello

This is an award winning short film I came across when studying the fictional time period of steampunk for my concept design. The combination of 2D shadow puppet like characters with 3D complex detailed animation creates a totally unique effect. The majority of the scenes ,which involve the characters, are done by wayang (Indonesian shadow puppets)  created from whatever flat materials could be found around the studio. These figures where then scanned into a computer, edited and animated on Photoshop. this technique was also used with various found objects layered over one another to produce the amazingly detailed set pieces. Scenes which consist of obvious three dimensional animations (the ships) are modeled in 3DS max, these are completely computer rendered, taking parts from ships , industry and natural materials to form magnificent fictional means of transportation.The two elements of animation are then brought together in another program know as combustion software then finalising details such as the smoke and cloud effects were rendered using Maya.

experiential pieces

To create these two images i used a watercolour pencil to produce a shape or form , working into them with sharpie and fine liner . Finally i put them in negative boosting the blue 

video

good way of creating concept art . i would like to give this a go 

Looking into advertising - just think

After to talking to our lecturer about advertising and how he worked in the industry for a while it inspired me to look into local  advertising agencies for possible work experience.

http://www.justthink.co.uk/ 

just think is an advertising agency based in Darlington who have worked with companies such as Honda, Pandora and Sony creating practical effects , web design and animation 

Creative

"Our creativity is what makes us different. It’s why we stand out from the rest. Being creative isn’t about being artistic. We don’t simply make something look good without considering the job it has to do. We create a strategy which sells our clients products. We provide a unique opportunity to our clients that gives them an advantage over their competitors. Whether it’s a childlike scribble on a piece of paper or a work of art, if it creates an urge to visit a specified place, if it creates a need to buy a particular item, if it creates a desire to have something, we have achieved our objective."

Find us at: Coatham Hall, Coatham Mundeville, Darlington, Co.Durham, DL3 0XL

Email: hello@justthink.co.uk

Tel: 01325 311999

Fax: 01325 311789

Tweet: @JustThinkJTM

WOMAN IN BLACK REVEIW

last week i visited the theater to see the performance of woman in black and i was truly surprised at how well it had been produced.

The set was unusual and took a while to fully understand but at the same time was amazingly inventive and created an amazing atmosphere. The stage was made out to be an old theatre with shabby curtains, some old simple props and a mysterious door leading behind a large black sheet which revealed another space when lights passed through the sheet. this spaced was used in multiple ways , the nursery room scene with the famous haunting rocking chair, then became the grave yard scene where a white sheet was placed over the furniture of the nursery to resemble misty graves. .there was also another' 'layer' of stage set where a back light would be turned on to reveal a set of stairs leading to a mysterious door. The set may have looked simple using basic props such as wooden boxes and chairs for your imagination to work with.
the performers were flawless with only three actors in the whole show. The actors would do simple costume stages mainly off stage but smaller changes were done on stage with the actor completely changing character. This all added up to create a raw performance full of fantastic acting and terrifying scenes.
The play would be noting without the woman in black herself. her movement ,her appearance and her voice were truly haunting. in the most unsuspecting moments she would appear; during the grave scene she slowly walked down the isles eventually stopping at the front of the stage letting out a shocking scream . they did not rely on cheap jump scares as they do in modern horror films instead her parts were subtle, often her face or silhouette just appearing in the background or sat in the rocking chair.

Paul fryer statue of Lucifer

 Paul Fryer-http://www.paulfryer.net/index

Anodised aluminium, silicon rubber cord, wax work figure, feathers/aluminium, concrete 

Lucifer: H 100 cm; wings: H 300 cm each; towers: 400 x 16.83 cm each

in 1889 a man called John Feeks was mending a electric cable in Broadway when he accidentally touched the wrong cable, this give him an almighty shock causing him to fall into a web of high voltage wires , instantly cooking him in front of the public underneath . at the same time Thomas Edison was planning on building the electric chair. Edison was the great inventor of DC power and used the chair against his rival, Westinghouse, who at the time was more successful with his AC electricity. Edison used Westinghouse AC to power the electric chair, he would demonstrate the chair on dogs and elephants in front of the public to push them away from this electricity type used for such brutal acts therefore purchasing and using Edison's supply of DC power.  this chair was up and running within three months. it took seven years to place cables underground. the sculpture shows how an innocent man died an awful death in which the situation is over powered by ideas of using the electric chair as a way of killing and a way of making money.

clay caricature of zack created from sketches (visual communication)

caricature drawings of zack (visual communication)

finished pieces

 

clay facial features for visual communication

Palladian window laser cut template - specialist techniques

Homecoming -outdoor theater performance

a couple of weeks ago i traveled to my local park to watch an out door performance created by Periplum. an internationally acclaimed threatre company. the show was performed on the 100 anniversary of the first world war ,telling stories of men, women and family affected by this iconic historical event who lived in Teesside at the time. the set consisted of a central platform. a selection of widow frames to represent streets and lamp shades to show industry. this very minimal set really took form as the play went on , space was used effectively to involve the audience surrounding them in sound, chants and illuminations. they also used the natural moon light to their advantage using subtle lighting and smoke machines to create a eerie battlefield atmosphere.

Simplistic widow shapes were lit creating an illusion of burning buildings

   

Unfortunately this photo i took was blurry but it shows the central tower of the set. on top is an opera singer surrounded by rose petals fired from cannons ether side.

first victorian model set

this is a 1:25 scale set i created for my specialist techniques module. It is based on a Victorian games room  

Pickering War Weekend

on the 11th and 12th of October every year Pickering celebrates the glamorous days of the 1940s remembering the 2nd world war replicating and recreating life from the past. thousands of people visit Pickering and the near by villages of which 90% of them are dressed in full 1940s costume. soldiers parade the street carring deactivated weapons around their shoulders, a vast array of military vehicles parked down every road , three steam trains packed with the public carrying them from village to village, explosions and reenactments of the blitz are carried out within the streets and even a fly by of some of the most iconic planes of the war.

i felt inspired to capture some of these moments to influence me in the future if carrying out a 1940s themed set or prop.

medical vehicles, the stretcher is placed on top of the sidecar

 

Levisham station

troops guarding the river

UK soldiers parade the streets

Grand Budapest Hotel

I recently watch the film Grand Budapest Hotel and i was amazed. Amazed how a film which doesn't necessarily have the most exciting story line can draw you in so much . The attention to detail of this film is unbelievable , the exaggerated colour pallet, the fast pasted comical camera work , the costume and even the music all comes together to make this art piece so complete. Each character has an individual presence about them , even if their screen time is only a matter of seconds. This film has inspired my work towards the importance of been Ernest and the style of which i am going to present it.

possible work experience

2/10/2014

we were given the task of looking into films , taking notice of the credits or searching for prop/set/costume designers which we could possibly find details of if in need of work experience in the next three years. i began my search by looking into a recent film which i enjoyed very much; The Grand Budapest Hotel. i used the website IMDB to look through many professionals in the art department. after selecting a few whom roles interest me, i search there names hoping it would lead to their personal web pages some of which i could find contact details.

Anna Pinnock- set decorator 
worked on:
-Grand Budapest Hotel
-Skyfall
-life of pie
-the fifth element
-the beach
-troy
-van helsing
www.wallpaper.com

Annie Atkins- graphic film designer
annie rhiannon@gmail.com
353851030144

Robert Wiesner-prop and set design 
Grand Budapest Hotel
Hanna
cloud atlas
oranienstrabe 185
10999 Berlin
rw@robertwiesner.com
4417620966421