Installation Despina, Florence. http://www.saci-florence.edu/

Space and Environment: Invisible Cities

Green Light ReviewJulia Mason08/10/14

CONTENTSThumbnails........................2Chosen City.......................3Mission Statement..........5Influence Maps.................6Key Thumbnails...............8Creative partnerships....9Film review links............10

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Space and Environment: Invisible Cities

Green Light ReviewJulia Mason08/10/14

THUMBNAILSIt’s always a good idea to start a project with some developing ideas. For Invisible cities we set about

creating thumbnails that resemble our interpretation of each of the 19 cities we were given to study. To make life

easier for readers and myself, I compiled all the thumbnails I did into one large blog post.

Here is the link to the Thumbnail post I created containing all of the 19 cities thumbnails I have created

for my project: Thumbnails. (http://juliascgartsstudentucarochester.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/post-for-linking-to-ogr.html)

I have also been venturing into the world that is Maya, she has as of yet been rather kind to me in the sense

that I have been able to successfully create the cups for the cup tutorial and I am slowly but surely progressing with the character modelling. Here is the link for Maya

tutorial: Maya Tutorial. (http://juliascgartsstudentucarochester.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/maya-tutorial-link-for-ogr.html)

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CHOSEN CITYAfter some deep thought and study of the cities for this project. I am going to go

with the city of Despina. This is a city that is split in half in terms of its viewers. The camel drivers see the city as a floating, or rather a sunken ship among the sand

that can take them away from the desert. Whereas the ship merchants see the city as a camel with an embroidered saddle which can take them away from their

desert sea.

Figure 1 Despina Extract with Highlighted portion

Above I have highlighted the section of the city that I would be focusing my final ideas on.

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MISSION STATEMENTThe aim of this project is to explore a city, in this instance Despina, and show it to the audience the way we see it. There are two ways in which I could

choose to show this city, in the perspective of a sailor merchant, or the camel drivers. I particularly chose

to work in the perspective of the camel drivers because it feels like I could walk across the dunes

and see this city floating, or even being stuck in the sand awaiting to be rescued, and in turn rescue

myself from the desert.

I have done a little research into aspects of this that can be associated with this, for example I was

looking at Tatooine from George Lucas' Star Wars as this is a city among the desert as well as looking at ships and how their sails bellow in the wind. As this

project has an aim to make concept art for an animation, I aim to look at it in different perspectives

and make my environments revolve around value and atmosphere. I hope to manifest my ideas and

learn from this project and take my current thumbnails further. I aim to project my work with a

fantasy theme, using desert-scapes from some well-known games and films to influence my concepts.

Moreover, whilst reading the description of this city, it made me think about the tale of the wise men

travelling to see the new born Jesus in Bethlehem. As well as how the Black Pearl appears over the white-

sand dunes in Davey Jones' Locker in Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. I aim to also

draw miniature camel figures to show scale within my images.

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INFLUENCE MAPSWorking with a collaborative partner I was able to make up an influence map that gives a vague idea of the setting for my two exterior shots. This also shows how my images combine and form an environment that can be manipulated. There is this idea that the desert has its oasis’, therefore what if I can create an atmosphere of an oasis so that Despina looks like a ship but its only in the haze of confusion that the camel-drivers see.

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Looking within a game concept, I was able to screen shot some interiors of a tavern that is both futuristic and rustic. This and the other images I have collected spring ideas to my head as to how to handle a interior shot. The description of the city does not give much explanation as to how in the inside looks, but it does give a description of the tavern and how the glasses are all smashed and a image of a woman in a window brushing her hair. I focused on mainly the tavern because it put me in mind of olden day taverns. When brawls were common and there was a lot of blood shed just over a little shove. It seems like the

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tavern can be depicted in two forms, one being bloody and a complete mess or sophisticated and as though nothing happened.

KEY THUMBNAILS

These are my current key ideas for my final pieces. I also like the one posted for the chosen city page as this was essentially the idea I was initially going for. I aim to look into these and many more concepts to help aid in making my final designs.

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CREATIVE PARTNERSHIPSHere are some examples of where I have used creative partnerships.

The majority of my creative partnership happened across the blog and Facebook, the rest I physically have had feedback and advice in person. I have discussed perspective with a few other students and how my work could benefit from extensive look into practicing perspective. These specific collaborative partnerships we based around help with Maya and research.

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FILM REVIEW LINKSAlongside everything I have also written film reviews. I have yet to write the latest one due to completing this review.

1. Film Review: La Voyage dans Lune, Georges Méliès (1902)

2. Robert Wienes Des Cabinet des Dr.Caligori (1920) 3. Fritz Lang's Metropolis Film Review (1927)

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