Spring Semester 2011
Tuesdays & Thursdays 8AM-10:45AM
Location: Arts 194
Course Description
An intense workshop-laboratory devoted to using time and motion as a medium for communicating ideas and information. Through creative investigations, readings and discussions students will explore linkages between non-linear editing, animation, and 3-dimensional animation as used in motion graphics.
Course Learning Outcomes
Knowledge – Skills – Dispositions
Knowledge • Students will study the advanced technology of digital video and motion graphics. • Students will study the concept and the design of motion graphics • Students will study the history of fine art animation and broadcast design and their role in visual culture. • Through investigation of artists and design theory students can communicate their intent through visual, verbal
and literary means • Students will have an understanding of professional practice as it relates to time-based imagery
Skills • Through: • Learning technical vocabulary • Examining choreographing motion • Learning about direction, velocity, and motion • Learning camera techniques and rhythm • Studying single frame non digital and digital techniques • Experimentation and investigation to refine skill level and fluency in motion and time-based design • Exploration of the issues involved with generating concepts • Learning the kinetic properties of imagery and type • Examination of the structure of storyboards • Screening works by historical and contemporary artists • Examination of the pictorial composition • Studying motion design interfaces • Learning to contextualize motion design as visual culture • Screening works by historical and contemporary artists • Learning the relevance and ramifications of their aesthetic choices
• Learning the value of deadlines • Learning presentation skills and practices • Learning aspects of professionalism • Learning the stages of production
Dispositions • Defining the objective, and audience of the piece • Refinement of research skills and protocols • Learning how to articulate and express art and design history and theory and its relevance to motion design
practice • Developing a process oriented approach to a motion design problems • Learning to articulate the value of their work
Class Format
Lecture Presentations will include relevant artists and designers, discussion of readings both in class and on-line using the Blackboard.
Work in Class
The format of this class will allow for significant time in class to work on each project. You MUST come to class prepared, with more materials than you plan to use so that you are working in class on your projects for the full class time. The projects are designed so that efficient use of class time will greatly reduce your work load outside of class.
Critiques
On the project due date there will be a critical discussion and presentation of the work with fellow students and faculty.
Projects
Five major projects will be given that will demonstrate a sophisticated knowledge of motion based technology and it’s appropriate use in design. The integration of image, type and content is important to each project assignment.
Exercises
Four exercises will be given that will demonstrate a specific skill set important to motion graphic design.
Motion Observation Reports
Motion observation reports are meant to expand the student’s understanding of the capabilities of the motion graphics, as well as offer the opportunity to preview high end motion pieces utilizing effective design. Students will complete five reports that will be written and presented to the class.
Research
Each assignment includes research and collection of source material. You will need a digital camera or equivalent for outside research and to create your own source material which will be used in class as you work on your projects. This research will include the creation of written proposals and well thought out storyboards.
Writing
It is the College of Arts and Media policy that all materials created by a student for this course must adhere to proper and correct applications of spelling, punctuation and grammar. Deviations from these expectations can result in student work being rejected for evaluation and grading.
Some projects will require writing as part of the design itself, good grammar and spelling is essential in the finished designs.
Tests
At least two tests will be given to demonstrate your knowledge of motion and digital video vocabulary and design principles
Students with Special needs
If you have special needs please contact me during my office hours and be sure that you have registered with Disability Resources and Services (Arts Building, room 177, (303) 556-3450)
Course Policies
Homework Expectations This is a studio class and will be taught as such. Students should prepare and bring the required materials in class to work on each project, significant class time will be available for work and in-progress critiques. Failure to bring materials to class (a lost or forgotten jump drive, for example) will be considered an absence.
Missed/Late Assignments
Projects are due at the beginning of class on the due date. Any work turned in late will be worth a MAXIMUM of 50% of the specified grade value and will only be accepted the next class session. Any student who misses critiques or fails to turn in all assigned work and/or papers for the semester will fail the course.
Attendance
The interactive case-based model of teaching employed here hinges critically upon the attendance and active participation of students in the classroom. Therefore you are allowed 2 unexcused absences. The 3rd absence results in a letter grade drop from the overall grade for the course. The 5th absence is an automatic failure from the class.
Attendance at critiques are mandatory. Failure to attend a critique, without an accepted excuse, will result in a letter grade drop from the project. Failure to attend the Final Critique results in an automatic failure from the course. As is consistent with University policy, absences for other personal reasons, including job interviews, field work, and personal commitments (e.g., attending a friend’s wedding), are not considered excused.
The only absences not penalized are those for the death of close family members, severe illnesses or observance of religious holidays. If you plan on attending a religious event later in the semester you MUST notify me in writing or electronically within the first 2 weeks of class.
Students are responsible for making up work missed during an absence. In grading class participation, absences are marked as “excused” or “unexcused.” Unexcused absences will adversely affect a student’s course participation grade.
You must attend class, arrive on time (3 tardies will equal 1 absence), bring your materials, and be prepared to work You are allowed 2 absences. You will need these for illnesses, emergencies, etc. On the 3rd absence your semester grade will be lowered by 1 full letter grade. On every third absence thereafter your grade will be dropped an additional full letter grade. It is the student’s responsibility to let the professor know of any mitigating circumstances preferably before or directly after the absence. Failure to do will result in no questions asked by the professor and the assumption that it is an unexcused absence.
Note: You must be present during the first week of class or contact me to inform me that you will be unable to attend during the first week, giving the reason for your absence (which must be deemed a valid reason for excused absences). If you are not present during the first week (and I have not been notified with the valid excused reason), and there is a wait-list for the class, you will be dropped at the end of the first week and the first person on the wait-list will be added in your place.
Required text for this class-
Creating Motion Graphics – 5th Edition for After Effects CS5 ISBN: 978-0-240-81415-5 Paperback: 768 pages, full color, with DVD Published by Focal Press, 2010
Optional Texts Flash + After Effects Add Broadcast Features to Your Flash Designs 2nd Edition Chris Jackson ISBN: 978-0-240-81351-6
Recommended Items:
1) Digital camera or equivalent 2) Flash drive 3) Portable Firewire Drive – 60 GB or more. USB 2.0 drives are also acceptable. Every digital artist should really have their own external drive(s), for backing up, capturing, moving between computers and storing the large quantity of files that are created in the course of producing digital video and animation. 4) Blank CD’s or DVD’s will be required for turning in final project files 5) Mini DV Tapes
Blackboard and Email
All communication through email will take place exclusively using the ucdenver.edu official email addresses that you are required to activate this semester. I plan to use the Blackboard system to post grades, make announcements, post the syllabus and to conduct class discussions. You will use blackboard to turn in papers, assignments and take tests.
Online Discussions are a required component of this class, you must have access to Blackboard and be able to post to any discussion forums. See “Participation” below for specific grading criteria and weighting.
Final Grades
The final course grade will be determined on a ten-point scale as listed below. Note that 3 unexcused absences will result in an automatic 10 point deduction (10%) of your grade. Missing a mandatory critique results in a 10% reduction of grade. A = 90-100 B = 79 – 89
C = 68 – 78 D = 57 – 67 F = 56 and below
Final Grade Weighting: Projects 50%, Exercises 20%, Motion Reports15 %, Exams 15%
Grade Evaluation Criteria
DO NOT expect an above average grade for simply completing the minimum project requirements. Grades for assignments, projects and the course will reflect student performance in the following criteria:
“A” is for exceptionally excellent work; clearly better than very good and reflecting special research, aesthetics, theory, design, innovation, excellence, abilities, effort and execution. Papers and research projects are extremely well thought out and executed. Perfect attendance.
“A-” is for very good; reflects a strong performance on all course requirements and for making regular and important contributions to the course. Work shows extra research, aesthetics, and application of design theory to projects. Work displays exceptional attention to detail and execution. Papers and research projects are very good and executed at a high level. Attendance is extremely good – perhaps missing only one class all semester.
“B+’’ is for finishing all the course requirements and doing a very good job on each of them or doing a good job on some of them and an exceptional job on a few of them. Student exemplifies attention to detail and going beyond the assignment guidelines to display initiative and creativity on all assignments. Attendance is extremely good.
“B” is for completing all course requirements in an extremely consistent manner that displays inspired creative work and a continued desire to improve and push ones abilities to the next level. A student has at least redone one assignment to those ends. Attendance is very good. Papers and research projects are executed with high degree of precision and professionalism. Simply completing all the assignments is not sufficient to earn an “A”, “A-“, “B+”, “B” in the course.
“B-“ is for slightly above standard performance on all course requirements. Student shows potential and some effort but has not pushed their execution and ability to the next level.
“C” is for completing all course requirements without special distinction in terms of creativity, aesthetics, theory, execution or presentation. Papers and research projects are executed at an average college-level. Attendance was fair.
“D” and lower are for poor performance and generally means that the student is not progressing well in the course.
Incomplete – The Digital Design program very rarely awards an incomplete. Students wishing to be assigned an incomplete grade must schedule an individual conferences during office hours and offer sufficient justification for the request.
Each assignment has a possible total score of 100 points based on the criteria listed below. There is no single criteria that will guarantee an ‘A’, instead you must pay attention to each criteria and challenge yourself with each assignment. Below is a brief explanation of each major area of concern. With each project you will be able to clearly see where your strengths lie and what areas you may need to work on to improve your creative work and grade.
Artwork Grading
Investigation 10%, Experimentation 10% Applied Research 15% Technology 15%, Meeting Objectives 15%, Form and Composition 15%, Presentation 20%
TOTAL:100
For these assignments you should not rely on what you already know or think about the subject, but you should look at the assignment as a visual problem that needs a solution. Designers are frequently presented with projects that on the surface appear to have no good solution. The client wants one thing, and the audience seems to prefer the opposite. A good designer will find a “third” solution that fulfills the project requirements but in a new and unexpected way.
You are expected to develop an idea through proposals, presentations and sketches. A good grade for investigation will indicate that you are thinking through an idea and doing research that explores various potential solutions.
Experimentation
You must do multiple sketches and present multiple ideas that show different approaches. The ideas presented will need to be ideas that are risky and ideas that you really would want to do as a final piece, which means they should be fresh, original and reflect the research and goals of the project.
Applied Research
The grading for concept will examine how well your research has been incorporated into your visual solution. Does your final solution reflect what you found during your research? Did your choice and methods of research provide relevant data? You must think about the questions you are asking as you do your research, designing research questions that provide information that is useful to your design.
Technology
This will be scored based on how well you are able to utilize and navigate the digital medium. If you are doing video, are the cuts and transitions clean? If your work is layered imagery, are there obvious seams or color correction problems? Is the overall presentation clean and neat (if appropriate)? With print or web, are there alignment problems?
Things that will lower your grade include blips in audio or video, smudges on prints, poor alignment, compression artifacts (both video and .jpg), poor quality resolution on finished project or source imagery and poor dynamic range (too dark or washed out).
Meeting Objectives
An average grade for Meeting Objectives means that you have met the basic requirements of the assignment. Each assignment is meant to be only a framework, and in design it is expected that you find new ways of interpreting what may seem like a standard problem. A good grade in this category will mean that you have gone beyond the assignment and created a concept or work that is unique and original, pushing the assignment beyond what is expected.
Form and Composition
This grade is based on the surface qualities of the artwork. The surface is what we see as the final product, often this quality receives more attention during critique and evaluation of art. It is important, but is only part of the grade in design classes because the context and research process is equally valued.
Questions to ask yourselves about the surface quality of your work: Is the work well-designed and appropriate for the solution? Are font choices conscious and appropriate to the solution and audience? Has a grid been established, addressed and used to communicate a hierarchy of information effectively? If you are ignoring the grid principle, is it done intentionally and forcefully?
Presentation
If you do not care about how you present your work a client will not have any confidence that you can present their company any better. This class is about ideas, particularly new ideas that push the boundaries of the assignment. New ideas need to be sold to the client and presented in such a way that the client feels that you as a design know what you are talking about. No great idea can survive a poor presentation.
Presentation includes the mock-ups that you will prepare and the .PDF documentation of your research as well as the final project. Designs will be neatly executed, cohesive and they will need to convey the “attitude” of the design piece in how they are constructed and designed.
Class schedule for FA 3454 Spring 2011
Week 1:
1/18 Class meets at 8:00- Introduction to FA 3454- procedures, attendance, lab time, etc. Orientation to the lab, camera check out paper work. Watch- Student Reel, D-Kitchen. Intro Project 1
1/20 Intro in to AE, Workspace, Creating new projects, Compositions, Composition settings, Importing Footage, Dark Motives Chapters 1 & 2
Intro Exercise 1
Week 2:
1/25
Project Proposal 1 due
1/27 Project 1 proposals due- Proposal includes storyboard, image, video, text and audio burned to CD. Intro into After Effects- keyframes and animation timelines, Watch- Selected Motion Pieces
Chapters 3
Week 3:
2/1 Keyframe Velocity and Keyframe Assistants, Watch- Selected Motion Pieces, The grid Chapters 4 & 5 Exercise 1 Due Intro Exercise 2
Motion Report 1 Due
2/3 Layer Essentials, Trimming, Motion Blur, Watch- Selected Motion Pieces Chapters 6, 7 & 8
Week 4:
2/8 Intro Project 2 2/10 Project 1 is Due – Critiques
Week 5:
2/15 Creating masks and track mattes, Watch- Selected Motion Pieces Chapters 9 -12 Project Proposal 2 Due Motion Report 2 Due
2/17 Project 2 proposals due- Proposal includes storyboard, image, video, text and audio burned to CD. Creating masks and track mattes, Watch- Selected Motion Pieces Chapters 9 – 12
Exercise 2- Due
Week 6:
2/22 3D Space Watch- Selected Motion Pieces Chapters 13 -15
Intro Exercise 3
2/24 3D Space – Cameras Chapters 13-15
Week 7:
3/1 3D Space- Lighting Chapters 13 – 15 Intro Project 3
3/3 Project 2 is due Critiques- Midterm Written Test Week 8:
3/8 Project Proposal 3 due Chapter 16
3/10 Exercise 3 is due
Week 9:
3/15 Parenting Chapter 17 Intro Exercise 4 Motion Report 3 Due
3/17 Nesting Compositions, Project 3 proposals due- Proposal includes storyboard, image, video, text and audio burned to CD. Chapter 18 Project 3 due- Critiques
Spring Break 21-25
Week 10:
3/29 Precomposing and Collapsing Transformations Chapter 19 &20 Intro Project 4
3/31 Text Animation Chapter 21
Week 11:
4/5 Effects & Presets, Color and Keying Chapter 22, 24 & 25 Project Proposal 4 due
4/7 Effects & Presets, Color and Keying 26 & 27 Exercise 4 due
Week 12:
4/12 Frame Rate Manipulation, Motion Stabilization and Motion Tracking Chapters 28 – 31 Intro Final Project Motion Report 4 Due
4/14 Project 4 is due Critiques Week 13:
4/19 Shape Layers, Paint and Clone, Vector Paint and Puppet Tool Chapters 32 & 33 Final Project Proposal Due Proposal includes storyboard, image, video, text and audio burned to CD.
4/20 Expressions Chapter 37
Week 14:
4/26 Expressions Chapter 35
4/28 Work Day
Week 15:
5/3 Motion Report 5 Due 5/5 Final Project Critique
Week 16: Finals May 9-13
Finals Week: Written Exam will be scheduled according to final schedule.
