There was no formal session this week, which gave me an opportunity to focus on developing my proposal independently. Most of my time was spent reading sources, refining my chapter structure and considering how the practical and theoretical aspects of the project could support one another.
One area I continued to think about was the relationship between traditional filmmaking and immersive storytelling. The more research I conducted, the more interested I became in one-shot cinema as a bridge between conventional film directing and 360° experiences. Both forms require directors to guide audience attention without relying heavily on editing, making them useful points of comparison for my research.
Although progress this week felt slower than during previous weeks, the independent study period allowed me to spend more time engaging with the literature and developing a clearer understanding of the topic.
This week I continued refining my advanced animation shot and presented another pass to Ting. She felt that the changes I had made to the chest and cog were a big improvement and that the body was beginning to feel much more alive. Her main note this time was that the shoulders and neck still felt too rigid. She encouraged me to offset them slightly so that the upper body would appear more relaxed and natural. I found it interesting how such small details can make a big difference to the overall feel of a performance.
We also had a workshop introducing AnimBot. Ting gave us a walkthrough of many of its features and explained how professional animators use it to speed up their workflow and automate repetitive tasks. It was interesting to see how much time it could save, particularly when dealing with breakdowns, spacing and pose manipulation. To demonstrate its usefulness, Ting gave us a quick exercise involving a Mario-style piranha plant attack. The task was designed in such a way that completing it without AnimBot would have been considerably more difficult and time-consuming.
Unfortunately, because of issues with my operating system, I was unable to get AnimBot installed. I spent a large portion of the session trying to troubleshoot the problem and, if I am honest, I became quite frustrated. At one point I almost gave up on the workshop altogether because I felt like I had already fallen behind everyone else. Eventually, I decided that rather than spending the entire class fighting with the software, I would simply attempt the exercise without AnimBot. Although it was slower and probably not as efficient, I was glad I made that decision. Looking back, the experience reminded me that while tools can greatly improve a workflow, they should not become barriers to learning. It also reinforced something I have learned repeatedly throughout the year: when things do not go according to plan, it is often better to adapt and keep moving rather than wait for perfect conditions.
This week I focused on creating the first pass of my advanced animation shot based on the hospital scene from The Walking Dead. Having spent the previous week planning and gathering references, I finally started blocking out the performance. I concentrated on getting the main poses and timing down rather than worrying about details. Since the scene relies heavily on acting and body mechanics, I wanted to establish a solid foundation before moving into polish.
After presenting the first pass, Ting thought it was a good start but had several notes for improvement. She suggested switching the character’s hand from FK to IK because the arm was swinging too much and distracting from the performance. She also felt that the centre of gravity could be more dynamic, encouraging me to make it “bouncier” so the character would feel more alive and connected to the ground. Another point she raised was that the chest animation felt too stiff. Although I had focused on the hips and limbs, I had neglected the upper body, causing the performance to feel rigid. These notes made me realize that believable motion comes from the entire body working together rather than individual parts moving independently.
Looking back, I noticed that I am becoming much more comfortable receiving feedback. Earlier in the year, I would often feel overwhelmed by notes because I interpreted them as evidence that the shot was not working. Now, I see feedback more as a roadmap for the next pass. I was happy that Ting considered the shot a strong starting point, and her comments gave me a clear direction for improvement. More than anything, this week reminded me that the first pass is not about perfection but about creating something solid enough to build upon.
This week did not have a major workshop or technical lecture. Instead, Serra focused on explaining the requirements for the final submission and showed examples of how students from previous years had structured their work. I found this really useful because I had been feeling quite overwhelmed by the number of deliverables and was still unclear about what was actually expected from us. Seeing examples of successful submissions helped me understand how everything could be presented and gave me a clearer picture of how to organise our own documentation.
The rest of the session was dedicated to project work. During a brief discussion with Serra, she once again stressed the importance of clarity throughout the project. Although our concept involving AI and prediction algorithms was technically interesting, she reminded us that the audience needed to understand what they were seeing and why it mattered. One suggestion she made was to film the interaction inside the 270-degree screen room. She explained that even a short clip showing someone entering the installation and interacting with it would communicate the purpose of the project far better than screenshots alone. This advice made us think more carefully about how the final work would be experienced and documented.
We spent the remainder of the session working on the next stage of the project, which involved generating heat maps and motion trails from the movement data we had collected. After searching through tutorials and experimenting with different approaches, we were able to produce some visuals that we were genuinely excited about. Seeing these first visualisations emerge from the raw data was encouraging, as it felt like the project was finally beginning to take shape beyond the technical setup and into something with a stronger visual identity.
This week we explored Reality Capture in Unreal Engine using Reality Scan. We began the session by selecting an object to record, and Serra gave us advice on how to achieve the best results. She stressed the importance of capturing footage slowly, ensuring all angles were covered and avoiding reflective or shiny objects, as these tend to confuse the software. I decided to scan my headphones, and after processing the footage we imported the model into Unreal, cleaned up the mesh and applied textures. Serra also demonstrated how the recorded object could be imported as a point cloud, which I found particularly interesting. Seeing the object represented as thousands of points immediately made me think about the possibility of animating point cloud values to create abstract and dynamic visuals.
Although I enjoyed the process, the workshop confirmed that photogrammetry is probably not something I would pursue extensively. I enjoy modelling assets from scratch, and I found the process of cleaning and correcting scans to be time-consuming and often inaccurate. While the technology is impressive, I personally prefer the control and precision that traditional modelling offers. However, I could still see potential for using point clouds and imperfect scans creatively rather than striving for realism.
Outside of the workshop, my group began developing the technical side of our project. Having previously experimented with MediaPipe during a TouchDesigner workshop, I spent some time brushing up on it before introducing it to the rest of the team. Once we were able to successfully track body motion, we started discussing which parameters would form the basis of our prediction algorithms and visualisations. We eventually settled on tracking hip, wrist and shoulder positions. By feeding this data into the system, we were able to generate a line graph representing changes in movement over time. Reaching this stage felt like an important milestone, as it marked the completion of the first technical stage of the project and gave us a foundation to build more complex visualisations from.
This week we had a short but enjoyable workshop exploring 360° video production in Unreal Engine using Off World Live. Using environments downloaded from Fab, we learned how to render equirectangular 360° videos directly from Unreal before encoding the output in Adobe Media Encoder. Although the process itself was relatively straightforward, it was interesting to see how quickly immersive content could be produced using real-time workflows. The session also gave me a better understanding of the technical pipeline involved in creating 360° experiences, which I found particularly relevant given my interest in immersive storytelling.
After becoming familiar with the workflow, I spent some time experimenting with different scenes and camera positions. Seeing the results in a 360° format highlighted how different spatial composition becomes when there is no fixed frame. It also reinforced some of the ideas I have been exploring in my thesis regarding directing attention within immersive environments. Despite being a relatively short workshop, it was one of the more enjoyable sessions due to how quickly we were able to move from setup to final output.
Our group also used the opportunity to further discuss our project. By this stage, we had begun settling on the narrative we wanted to communicate and started dividing the production into different stages. This helped us establish a clearer structure for the project and think about how the different screens and visual elements would interact with one another. Having a more defined narrative allowed us to begin planning the screen layout and think more carefully about how the audience would experience the progression of the video.
This week consisted of online tutorial slots and support for the next stage of the thesis proposal. As I had already received detailed feedback on my literature review during an earlier tutorial, I did not require another dedicated feedback session. Instead, I used the time to continue developing my proposal and refining my research question.
At this stage, I was becoming more confident in the direction of my research. I continued reading literature relating to immersive storytelling, viewer attention and 360° film while refining the scope of the project. One challenge was finding research specifically focused on 360° animation, as most of the available literature focused on virtual reality and live-action immersive experiences. This encouraged me to broaden my search and investigate related areas such as one-shot filmmaking and visual attention studies.
The session reinforced the importance of independent research. Rather than looking for a single source that answered my question directly, I began combining ideas from multiple fields to build a framework for my own investigation.
This week I continued refining my creature locomotion animation based on Ting’s feedback. While the overall motion was improving, I ran into several technical issues because the rig I was using was not actually designed for a horse but was instead a more generic quadruped. As a result, certain body parts would move in ways that did not feel natural for a horse, and I often had to create workarounds by counter-animating some controls to prevent unwanted motion. Although this was frustrating at times, it forced me to think more carefully about how different parts of the body relate to one another. It also reminded me that animation often involves adapting to imperfect tools rather than waiting for the ideal setup.
Alongside creature animation, Ting introduced our final project for the unit. She explained that we were free to choose any type of shot as long as it incorporated ideas and principles we had explored throughout the term. Rather than starting something completely new, I decided to recreate the famous hospital scene from the first season of The Walking Dead. I was drawn to this sequence because it combines several aspects I wanted to continue improving, particularly acting, body mechanics and cinematography. Since the scene is largely driven by physical performance and subtle character choices, I felt it would be a good opportunity to apply many of the concepts we had been studying.
Most of this week was dedicated to planning. I spent time gathering references, breaking down the original scene and thinking about how I could adapt it into an animation exercise. When I presented the idea to Ting, she approved it and encouraged me to move forward. Looking back, I appreciated having the freedom to choose my own project. Compared to earlier assignments where the focus was on specific principles, this project felt more personal and allowed me to think about how different aspects of animation come together to create a complete performance. It also made me realize how much my interests have shifted throughout the year, from simply trying to animate movement to wanting to tell stories through character and acting.
This week’s session consisted of online tutorials, with individual slots allocated to students who needed further feedback or guidance. As I had already received detailed feedback on my draft literature review during the previous week’s tutorial, I did not have any major questions or concerns that needed to be discussed.
Instead, I used the time to focus on work from my other modules and continue thinking about my research topic independently. Having recently received positive feedback on both my writing and research direction, I felt comfortable moving forward with my current idea exploring audience attention in 360 animated films.
Although there was no significant development this week, it provided a useful opportunity to consolidate the feedback I had already received and focus my attention on other projects. Looking back, the tutorial from the previous week had given me enough direction to continue developing both my thesis and Final Major Project over the coming weeks.
This week I continued working on my dialogue shot and spent a lot of time trying to address Ting’s feedback about making the facial expressions snappier. One problem I was struggling with was how to adjust the spacing and timing without destroying the key poses I was already happy with. Rather than simply telling me what to do, Ting very kindly recorded a short demonstration specifically for me. Watching her workflow was probably one of the most valuable things I have seen this term. She showed how she uses the graph editor and adds intermediate keys to adjust spacing while preserving the important poses. I honestly think that demonstration may have changed my workflow permanently, because it showed me that polishing is not about remaking the animation but about controlling the spacing between poses.
The second major task this week was creature locomotion. I decided to animate a horse because I wanted to challenge myself with a quadruped that has a clear and rhythmic gait. For the first blocking pass, I approached it almost like a walk cycle with extra steps. My brain tends to understand animation best when I can break it down into systematic patterns, so I focused first on establishing the order of the footfalls before worrying too much about overlap or secondary motion. It was interesting to compare quadruped locomotion to human walk cycles, as the same principles apply but the coordination becomes much more complex. Although the first pass was quite rough, I felt it was a good foundation to build on.
Reflecting on the week, I realised that I am becoming much more interested in workflow rather than simply final results. Watching Ting’s graph editor demo and experimenting with horse locomotion both reinforced the idea that complicated problems become manageable when broken down into smaller pieces. In the past, I often felt overwhelmed when looking at an entire shot, but I am slowly learning to trust the process and tackle things one layer at a time. Even though both the dialogue shot and the horse animation are still far from finished, I feel much more in control of my work than I did earlier in the year.
