Sometimes the only thing to remind me that the month has ended is my Ringling e-mail’s monthly system maintenance check.

I really can’t believe it’s already February. But, since it is, it’s a nice time to actually update this thing.

Traditional Animation:

I should color this. It isn’t necessary for what we’ll be doing with it – and I was pressed for time – but color would make it a little nicer.

This is the only thing I’ve created in Concept Development this semester worth posting.

Time to get started on the internship search. Goals for this month:

1. Find at least three companies to apply for internships with.

2. Update résumé.
3. Begin updating website.
4. Get started on TA’s sketchbook assignment. (22% done!)
5. Begin studying horse and dog anatomy.

Head turn exercise from last semester.

On January 12, I was going to update my journal with this:

In History of Animation, our professor mentioned the importance of character flaws in story.

I know my character flaw: I suck at Maya.

Since then I’ve gained a little more confidence in Maya. At the time it was pretty bad. I didn’t understand at all what I was doing or what Maya was doing. I was talking to my mom about whether I’d be able to survive in a 3D industry… or even to graduation. And then all of a sudden, one day… it all clicked. It all made sense. Amazing what being dumped in a program you don’t know and basically being told “sink or swim” will do to you. I still suck, of course, but now it doesn’t feel completely hopeless.

I hear my friends complain about their skills in drawing, painting or other endeavors, and it always reminds me of my feelings on Maya. Art is just like that. You struggle and beat yourself up over your lack of progress, and then at some point, when it’s seemingly too late – like the day before the project’s due – it all comes together. Yesterday you were crap, and today you’re… tolerable. But better.

So, the development of my character for this semester’s Computer Animation class has been an adventure, starting with a surprise assignment to create a maquette over winter break.

I’ve been sending my mom and friends screenshots of my progress in Maya to scare them.

With any luck, in the near future I might actually have a final model to show.

It’s all accumulating to Sit/Stand, our sophomore Computer Animation project. Last semester in Concept Development we created a number of preproduction materials… such as this animatic, which plots out the story.