The mentors came to visit Savannah! It was such a wonderful experience to meet everyone and get to speak on them one on one. I had a group portfolio review with the mentors on Monday and received lots of valuable feedback on my demo reel.
Mentor Feedback:
Fix lighting direction in SH010 (light should be coming from top left corner)
Can shadows on ice box are too hot
Fix dark edges on tubes and cooler in SH010
Add extra fill light to SH010
Get ground reflections on cans in SH010
Use hue suppress node in Nuke to reduce green screen spill on ice box
Use AO for contact shadows and render a specular pass
Push the Peep pattern more on live action backgrounds
Add some texture to it to add believability
Match DOF
Add motion blur to confetti
Make confetti sliver
Finesse 3D edges in all 3D shots
All shots are overexposed
Get some midtones
Try to get 3 different levels of lighting
Push DOF in all shots
Play with idea of macro world
Ice is too sharp (needs to be blurred)
Add bokeh to ice in background of shots
Change rim direction on blue peeps in SH020
Use 1 light setup for everything
Screen right tubes in SH020 aren’t sharp enough
Lower IOR of tubes
Concrete of diving board should be solid (remove gradient)
Bring confetti to SH020
Fix clamping issue
Darken lighting
Blur SH040 ice more and brighten
Match SH050 black levels of 3D elements to live plate
Blur cooler edges
Add motion blur to logo on lid
Stop overthinking comp
Update tube material from SH020 in all shots
Get sky HDRI
Add grain at the end of shots
Thursday 3/7 (Class 18)
Based off of the mentors feedback, I re-worked our schedule by shot so we could work on as much as we could before our final deadline for Week 10.
SH010 shadows need to be softer and longer (look at product photography references from previous weeks)
Add more bubble variation (size)
Double check size of hero product in SH050
Update filler cans in SH050
Diffuse shadow in ice box
Ice feels dirty (adjust white values)
Keep working on camera moves for transitions (make edits simpler, just cut transitions)
Lighting is too ambient
Get more shadows on Peeps
Top down lighting in SH040
Framing too tight in SH010
Umbrella doesn’t match (possibly remove)
Add condensation to cans in SH010
Fix DOF edges
Add more middleground items in SH020 for more depth
SH040 is too blue, water feels murky
Hold on lid close in SH050 & comp logo
Adjust frame so ice box handle is out of frame
Add peep pattern to background of live action plates
Leaving the background generic looks bad
Add more items in SH010
Empty peep box
Peeps on pool floats
Work on peep lighting & atmospheric perspective
Add more break up to the ground water
SH040 water color needs to match previous shots
Add subsurface scattering to peeps in SH040
SH050 should only have Peeps x Pepsi cans
Or keep the pool tube, remove the cans
Play with color in comp
Bring down the pink and blue to make the yellow stand out more
Use still from the Barbie Movie
Add gradient on ice box in SH020 (mimic sky)
Possibly use gobo
Make umbrellas white
Diving peeps in SH030 looks too flat
Check ray depth on bubbles
Professor Feedback:
Just get one frame looking good, then use that as reference for the rest of the shot
Have only 1 person work on a shot so it’s not overwhelming
At a minimum, get a still frame of our goal to show the mentors in person
Thursday 2/29 (Class 16)
This week our team downsized, which means we now have to learn a lot about compositing. Jerilyn and Tempest have been working on color grading and adding depth of field to our shots while i have been making last minute adjustments to lighting and shaders. My compositing assignment is to get our product logo onto the lid of the ice box in SH050.
Background elements stand out too much, make them bluer
Reduce Background highlights
Bubbles too big and uniform (needs more variety)
Add DOF in SH040
SH050 needs more integration (still looks like a slap comp)
Sugar gets lost in SH040
Pyro detail gets lost
Focus on lighting and DOF
More motion Blur
Letters on can should be legible
Professor Feedback:
MOTION BLUR!!!!
Stop having multiple people work on the same shot (leads to inconsistencies, confusion and slows down production)
Follow established naming convention
Last chance to really improve SH010 before it gets cut
SH050 needs a lot of attention (comp)
No more render layers for SH040 (more of a hindrance than help)
Use sound to help gain interest in SH010
Thursday 2/15 (Class 12)
After having a conversation with Professor Murphy, he shared some organizational tools with me to help get our team to our final goal. I used a simple Gantt Chart to get us started. Initially it was organized by artist, but after further discussion it was decided that organizing the chart by shot would be more effective.
After getting our schedule together, I got started on my tasks. I removed the distracting highlights from the ice box and I darkened the background elements behind the diving board. The next step for this shot is to make those same background elements bluer to blend in more with the ice box, add DOF and motion blur.
Last frame should be all blue (to match the cooler) for a solid transition
More DOF
SH040 is too busy
Too many highlights
Cans too dark
Get sharper reflections
Peep reflections in cans
Pyro too dense
establish depth with Peeps
Peeps need more dimension (too flat)
Possibly add condensation on cans/ice/inside of cooler
Add motion blur
More separation between Peeps and can in SH050 (can should stand out more)
Letters on can should be legible
Use proxy geo to create shadow on Peeps in SH050
Professor Feedback:
Buy Pepsi can and Peeps for shader reference
Shots need to be isolated to one artist (too many cooks in the kitchen)
Get more slap comps done
Layout needs to be finalized ASAP
Pyro and Peeps need to be lit better in SH040
Live action shots need to look more cohesive with rest of ad.
SH040 stands out too much (update lighting and shaders to match previous shots)
Thursday 2/15 (Class 12)
I worked on lighting the ice in SH030 more appropriaely so there’s continuity from the previous shot and going into the next one. We got a lot of feedback on the Pepsi can in this shot being too washed out so I adjusted the lighting and shader to be more accurate.
Professor Feedback:
Get pipeline working
Need clear naming convention
Everyone needs to be clear on what they are working on
No more confusion with assembly cuts (not having the most up to date versions of shots)
Shaders need to be updated in all shots fro consistency
Adjust Peep animation in SH010
Too many filler assets in SH010 (taking away focus from cooler)
Render out camera move in SH020, don’t zoom in after in post
Add more depth. Can cheat the scale of items to exaggerate depth
Background should be out of focus (needs more DOF)
SH030 is too fast (add more frames)
Pull camera out more
Break up Peeps silhouette in SH040. Peeps need to be more integrated with pyro FX
Add sugar falling off of the peeps
Lighting is very flat, should be coming from the side (3/4, rim)
Cans should be brighter
Missing something (more detail, fall off, floating ice, out of focus cans, vignette, caustics, bubbles)
Have pool tiles or cooler for background, not solid color
Color needs to be more consistent throughout ad
Professor Feedback:
Make a To Do list in order of priority (split up by team member)
Discuss milestones, no more last minute presentations
COLOR CONSISTENCY!!!
Get slap comps done for SH040
Integrate live action shots with 3D shots (color)
Continue refining pyro FX
Update shaders in all shots (sugar, cans)
Thursday 2/1 (Class 10)
These are some color iterations I came up with for SH020. Our biggest challenge with this shot was finding a focal point, so I thought manipulating the color of the peeps would aid in that.
This is the final layout and colors we decided on:
For SH030, I spoke with Nathan Leichner from Team Death and he gave me some really insightful suggestions on how to improve our shaders. Their team also has ice in their ad so he was able to help us with that along with improving the metal shader for our cans.
Professor Feedback:
Make a To Do list in order of priority (split up by team member)
Discuss milestones, no more last minute presentations
COLOR CONSISTENCY!!!
Get an edit of vis rendered out every 2 days (Thursday, Saturday, Monday)
Put more effort into getting a polished vis and presentation
Pyro FX feel delayed (go back to first iteration and work off that, try to slow it down)
Don’t distort reality because of technical issues
Peeps can start is frame to help slow down overall velocity of pyro FX
Outdoor lighting is more interesting than studio lighting
Studio lighting has brighter colors
Get live action lighting closer to references
Break up the background in SH010
Needs a horizon line
Try color blocking
Shadow in SH010 is awkward, change direction
Assets look good
Get sugar in environment
add more assets in SH020 (beach chairs, umbrellas)
Line body of water with pool tiles
Maximize look of product
Professor Feedback:
Collaborate with Team Death for ice asset and shader
Lighting needs to get figured out
Get more peeps in SH020 (try to make it look like a rager)
Animation needs to finish ASAP
Thursday 2/1 (Class 8)
Work day. I was able to get more layout done for SH020 and keep adjusting shading and lighting to be brighter and more saturated. Worked with animator to fix up rig issues and continue with animating SH040.
Presentations! We showed the mentors our progress from the week and got really great feedback.
Mentor Feedback:
Live action plates need to be more fun (look for a nicer background, possibly a picnic setting)
Remove all labels from the cooler
Maybe roto the background to be a solid color or matte painting
Lighting needs to make sense in live action shots (since they book end the ad, they will dictate how it looks)
3/4 view of the cooler looks better
Look at product photography for reference
Studio lighting may be best
Fix framing for SH020 (try out different depths of field, and hint to the inside of the cooler)
Work on layout and lighting
Add party hats to the background
Try adding bubbles and sugar in SH040
Professor Feedback:
Continue to develop pre vis
finalize layout and narrative
Look for a Director of Photography
Thursday 1/25 (Class 6)
Work day. I reached out to multiple sound designers to join our project and was able to recruit one! Meet the newest member of Team Life, Aidan Jones! He will be responsible for the sound in our ad.
After finishing the rigs for our bunny and chick peeps, I was working closely with Jerilyn on some asset textures that will be populating our ad. We want to make sure all the shaders look just right for our very graphic advertisement.
Goals:
Render turnarounds for all assets to show off shaders and textures
Create an asset lineup to establish scale in our scene
Pitch proposals! Team Life proposed a Pepsi x Peeps collaboration ad.
Mentor Feedback:
Very graphic, motion media look
Live action shot should be as graphic as possible (as to not clash)
Make the camera move in shot 01 much subtler
The brown color of the soda is a concern (try adding lens flares, lights, or more bubbles to make it more appealing)
Maintaining the color saturation of the peeps in the soda is also a concern
60% of the frame needs to have the vibrant color
Try to scale down the scope of the ad
Get a better transition from shot 03 to 04
Start on lighting ASAP
Dry ice with the color palette coming out of ice box
Splash/bubbles should be the main FX
Simplify shot 01
Light from the disco ball can change the color of the soda
Professor Feedback:
Avoid green screen comp if possible
Don’t end presentation on text!!
Talk through pre vis
Get 3D pre vis for next class
Thursday 1/18 (Class 4)
Work day. Got our story more solidified and got further with pre vis. I UV’d our peeps the Tempest modeled and rigged them today. now I am working on texturing them. Their sugary coating is going to be a challenge to get just right. So far, not much luck. I’m hoping to work with Jerilyn to get this looking better.
First day! Got to know the professors and my peers. We had a debrief of the project and covered expectations, deadlines, and teams. Brainstormed ideas for my team’s (Team Life) ad before being dismissed for the day.
Team Life:
Tempest Oh
Clara Perkins
Jerilyn Tennison
Amanda Rabade
Thursday 1/11 (Class 2)
Met the mentors! Discussed commercial ideas with Team Life and got approval from supervising professors. To Do List for the weekend:
Clean boards, add to refs and moodboards
Sunday check in at 12PM EST
To Do List to prep for Class 3:
Clean up boards. Get more mood boards for pool party. Clean up/organize slides.
Find references for lighting and texturingFX – pepsi splash, fizzy bubbles, ice fog (cold)
Submit .ppt into dropbox before 5pm Monday
Rehearse presentation after feedback Monday night.
Shot 01 – ice box at pool party location. Slow camera move towards ice box while dance music slowly increases in volume. Ice box lid moves with music bass as light and fog starts to come out. Lid flies open and huge flash of light transitions to inside ice box. [3D ice box integrated into live action clean plate]
Shot 02 – cuts to inside ice box, dance music continues and we see dancing peeps and Pepsi cans at a pool party inside the ice box. Bunny peep jumps off of a diving board into Pepsi can. Pepsi splashes and fizzy bubbles transition to multiple peeps following the original one. [fully 3D]
Shot 03 – cut to outside the ice box (birds eye view), music muffled, hand opens ice box to reveal it full of peeps and a Pepsi x peep can nestled in the center. Pepsi x peep logo fades in. [live action ice box clean plate, filled with peeps and pepsi in 3D]
3D Rigging & Look Development 