Sem 2 week 2

In the first week, I tried to create a solid idea that I would stay passionate about throughout the year. Currently, I am aiming to produce a narrative driven horror short film with a strong ‘blue twilight’ aesthetic. Subject matter is currently being finalised (Horrors of uncanny valley, identity and reality, destructive nature of obsession and perfectionism). I intend to use motion capture to animate a character that will act as the antagonist / ‘monster’ in the story. I may also utilize a metahuman character with photogrammetry scanned facial features to add to the uncanny theme. 

Although I want to adapt a rich and engaging narrative into a short film, I started creating a general aesthetic that I hoped would inspire ideas to flow.

As previously mentioned, A twilight blue dusk ambience to me is visually appealing, yet eerie and cold, perfect for my ideal style of horror.

I then started to explore thematic influences that may shape my own narrative.

Uncanny Valley:  “Almost Human”

“Halloween” 1978

The Michael Myers character is a horror icon that is known for his eerie movements and lack of expression. The mask presents this theme of the uncanny as it appears human-like but is unable to express emotion. I also intend to implement this feature into the mocap character to enhance the disturbing nature further.

“Us” 2019

The use of doppelgangers with opposing behaviours and qualities created an eerie and disturbing atmosphere. This has influenced me to use a mocap character that simulates human movement but appears disturbing and creepy.

Reality and identity

“The Lighthouse” 2019

This movie uses scenery, time, and unreliable characters to make the audience question what is real or not. The movie also has heavy themes of struggles with identity and person. These are both themes that could be difficult but rewarding to implement into my story to create a thrilling atmosphere. 

What I'll need to learn this year technologically, is how to produce a 3D environment in unreal engine and composite live action shots on top of it convincingly. For example, if i want to achieve the blue twilight look from my inspirations I may have to replicate this lighting digitally. I will also need to learn how to do a photogrammetry scan of an actor for the mocap character. I can then seek assistance for adjusting the character to appear more eerie or sinister. Other than these processes, I will stick the the pipeline Hossein has provided for this semester. This will include: creating an animatic, modelling, texturing, rigging, simulation research, filming, early editing, and animation tests.