Animation

I hate Adobe Flash. Not only do I hate Flash, but I have zero interest in animation.

It all started when Flash became popular on the web about 45 years ago. I noticed that it was sluggish, cumbersome, and difficult to navigate. Although one could click around inside the Flash window, god help you if you clicked your browser's "back" button.

Then one day, a very powerful entity (probably Hulk Hogan) invented Google. Unlike search engines that made you beg them for the pleasure of being part of their elite database and would still reject you, Google did this revolutionary thing, they scanned the pages for content and then added them to their database so that people could find it. Guess what, all that content encapsulated within a Flash file was unsearchable. This was the terminal blow that Flash needed to make the world wide web a better place.

I have made a few Flash (and Shockwave) animations in my day. Each time, I felt like I was being punished. Re-exploring Flash at my advanced age makes me feel even worse. I don't enjoy anything about animation. I'm sure some people do, I'm not one of them. The only wisdom I have gained is that the software is even more counter intuitive than it was a decade ago. I do have a finer appreciation for the art form now, actually, I should say, the artists are who I appreciate. Anyone who will put up with this software has the patience of Job. I'm glad I have the option of focusing on film-media in the curriculum, because this animation business is lousy.

Now, in case you may have been curious, here is one of my earliest animation assignments back from 2002 or 2003, I forget. It was a visual interpretation of a haiku by Jane Reichhold, called "Autumn Winds."

"all night
autumn winds being heard
behind the mountains"

I agree, haikus are pretty silly. Come to think of it, why do they even have titles? They're three lines. Anyway...

http://m2j.us/movie1.php

Now, after seeing this masterpiece, my professor told me that the the moon should be visible at all times. Why? I don't know. She also said that the haiku text should stay in the foreground. I'll bite on that one. Finally, she said that there was no real climax, that it needed (as she put it) "more of a bang."

http://m2j.us/haiku.php

I delivered to the best of my ability.

Luckily, the uses for Flash have become scarce. Soon we will all remember Flash as a thing of the past, or just a took to animate, but export to movie files that will be embedded on webpages and displayed via built-in media functionality thanks to HTML 5.

No.4

This blog is the last for the semester. In this blog you'd like to hear from me about the
course. What worked for me, and what didn't, whether in the lectures or the labs.

I felt like the lectures and hands-on labs sometimes did not match up quite as well as they should have, but when they did, it was a big help. Personally (not criticizing the teaching, but the method of doing so), I think that trying to show a lecture class how to use Photoshop is such a waste of time. Watching Photoshop on an overhead projector without being hands-on is virtually impossible to learn. The lab is really where that needs to take place.

On the flip, I think a lot of what was explored during the lectures was essential and surprisingly necessary. I was surprised at how many students were not aware of simple things, such as the process of registering a domain name. When I was a mere 18 years old, I already had a domain name, by the time I was 21, I had several (the main one now being m2j.us).

I was shocked at how shy all of the aspiring artists were when it came time to do some hands on exercises, such as lighting. Perhaps it is an age thing, despite looking deceptively young, I'm old.

I enjoyed speeding through my work and being able to lend Fivel a hand helping out my fellow classmates. I'm also glad he lent me a dollar that one afternoon where I was jonesin' for some Pop-Tarts® and all I had were large bills. I look forward to attending the follow-up class next semester.

Finally, to end things on a high note, here's a cartoon I once made during a period of time where I may or may not have had the munchies.