LO3 - Production Schedules

Below is my production schedule/gant chart, which I will use as a plan for what jobs I will need to do and when I will need to do them in order to successfullly complete my final animated piece.

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LO3 TASK 4 - Legal and Ethical Issues

One possible legal issue is that, whilst all the music is public domain, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra may have covered their rendition with copyright protection. This would mean that I would not be able to use the music without copyright permission or paying the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for me to use their music in my animated piece. If I was not able to maintain copyright permission, the composition is still public domain so I could find alternative versions of the music or find another musician to replicate the tune.

An ethical issue may be found in the shape of the mermaid's design. Some may find the designed outfit for the mermaid to be too revealing and some may even consider it as partial nudity. If any complaints are raised about this issue, I would have to re-evaluate the design and place her in a mode appropriate and concealing costume.

Another ethical issue could be how I depict creatures such as whales and sharks as antagonists, which could upset animal protection groups as it would reflect badly on some of the sea creatures they are trying to gain support for to help and protect. If faced with this issue I could include a disclaimer saying that my depictions of these animal are not true representations of their characteristics. Otherwise, I may be forced to remove these creatures from my animated piece and replace them with other obstacles and characters (e.g. replace the whale with a submarine, replace the shark with a fictional sea monster, etc.).

LO3 TASK 4 - Storyboard

LO3 TASK 4 - Moodboard and Target Audience

Due to simplistic style of animation and the inclusion of colourful cartoon characters, I would say that my target audience is very young, probably 7 and below. Although my animation involves a mermaid and romance, which can easily attract female viewers, I would argue that due to the pirates and action that feature in my film it appeals more to the young male audience.

Jack is 5 years old. His favourite shows are Little Einsteins, Swashbuckle and Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Jack enjoys playing with his toy boats and other bath toys in his paddling pool.

LO3 TASK 4 - Treatment

Title: Stormy Seas (Current Title)

Medium: Animated fantasy adventure short film.

Running Time: 3 – 4 minutes

Synopsis: Rex the Sailor has his ship destroyed by a storm, leaving him at the bottom of the sea; there he must battle and avoid horrible sea creatures whilst trying to rescue a beautiful mermaid.

Characters:  *Rex the Sailor *Suspicia the Mermaid *Goodwick the Whale

*Seabiscuit the Seahorse *Seals *Crabs *Lefty the Octopus *Ace the Shark

Key Scenes: The key scene is where Rex meets Suspicia but both are chased by Goodwick, as it introduce a love interest but the lovers are separated by this dangerous addition to the story. Of course, the happy ending is also crucial, as the lovers are re-united.

Sound Recordings: No voice actors will be needed as all characters are silent. The animation will link up with two sets of music – Symphony of the Seas by Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and a segment of Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture by Tchaikovsky.
Industry Trends: I feel that my character and story are fit for purpose and will appeal to the target audience. Pirates are popular amonst younger audiences, as proved by successful TV shows like Jake and the Neverland Pirates and Swashbuckle and how well these shows have done in terms of views and merchandise sales, so I believe my pirate character will also appeal to this specific audience.  The lack of voice allows for more animation opportunity as the character is more dependant on movement and charade. This also mean there is no language barrier so he can appeal to a much wider audience, similiar to children's characters WALL-, Morph and Mr. Bean, who have achieved global success due to using mime and facial expressions as part of their charm instead or verbal communication.

LO3 TASK 4 - Character Design

Below are the rough sketches I created of my character.

Below are the five final images I created of my character by placing the sketches on Illustrator, which I used to recreate/trace them in neat, before moving them to Photoshop to colour them in. These images show a range of emotion and actions that I plan for my character to display in the animated feature.

1. Action: Standing.
Emotion: Happy.

 

2. Action: Being squeezed.
Emotion: Unhappy, uncomfortable.

3. Action: Swimming.
Emotion: Unhappy, concerned.

4. Action: (Sea)Horse riding.
Emotion: Angry, determined.

5. Action: Dancing, waving, celebrating.
Emotion: Happy, excited.