the syllabus

I’m still working out the syllabus, and this semester may be more fluid than others, and the sections might differ from each other to a minor degree. I do want to give you a heads up, as the animation 2 syllabus as found in the catalog is incorrect.
Just to keep you in the loop and better prepared for the semester, here is the list I’m culling from. It heavily references the syllabus of ‘the physics of animation’ but diverges a bit. The goal of the course is pretty simple.

• develop a sense of weight mechanics..be able to have a character perform actions convincingly with the appropriate level of motion and detail.
• strengthen your maya workflow for taking shots from general to specific (layout, blocking, blocking plus, first pass, cleanup, polish)
• develop your storytelling/narrative skills
• improve your ability for pacing and shot planning so that each piece, even if it’s 5 seconds, feels complete
• learn basic polishing skills so that your work approaches a more finished level.

Here’s the base list I’m culling from, and will be rolling it out over the course of the semester, so be flexible as I define this further.

Animation 2: mechanics of motion

•  object interaction (3w): examples include picking something up off the ground, lifting a box or heavy object, grabbing something off of a shelf. The spirit of this exercise is to use the full body to engage in an action (3w)
•  pantomime exercise
•  one or two character interaction: example...1 character angry at other -character handing out pamphlets on the street, character cooking, character building something 
•  animating to the beats:  using a 5 second musical clip provided (e.g. Thelonius Monk), animate character movement considering and working with the texture provided by the audio. The intent of this is to better understand the tradition of using audio to animate provide a framework for your animation. From MIckey Mouse to Bugs Bunny, the history of animation is rife with great examples.
• jump over object:the parameters of this assignment are bit more open. It could be a character leaping over a cliff or jumping parkour style, or a little boy hopping over a can. The main intent is to study anticipation, the speed and importance of breakdown frames during a physical action
• 2 pose exercise moving hold to moving hold: making a character feel alive in 3d space is a subtle challenge. This exercise will primarily be about how a character moves from 2 emotion states in a physically convincing manner, paying attention of the speed and intensity of the breakdowns, as well as the appropriate AMOUNT of motion per shot.
• cycle: an in-place cycle of either a walk or run.
• turn around, or walk into scene and stop: from a walk or stand, have a character turn and walk the opposite direction: examples. character waiting for a bus and doesn’t notice it pulls away. someone leaves a card in the ATM, someone is waiting in a long line, gives up and walks away…the setting is a great opportunity for creativity.
•  obstacle course:   combining what we've learned from both the jump and cycle exercises, have a character navigate through a space filled with obstacles. (set provided)

I’m probably setting myself up for criticism by revealing my hand early, but I want there to be no surprises.  We’re going to start slowly and work our way into greater complexity as the semester goes on. My inclination is to do more assignments with a shorter timeframe, generally 2-3 weeks with a few 1 week assignments thrown in, and possibly a 4 week one at the end to focus on polish.
This is all preliminary though – I’ll be meeting with more faculty next week and honing it further.

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addendum.
so far, I'm killing the obstacle course and will most likely end with a longer piecce..either the character interaction or pantomime exercise.
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