@ring: fun images, b. hate to say it because it looks really nice but it does look likeflat. the blurry background seems to exaggerate it even more so. I would have to see it in motion to see if i can get the 3d effect you're going for. but as it stands in the stills, definitely doesn't look 3d and i can see the individual layers themselves.
since i'm working right now i wish i could go into more but i'll come back and edit this post. but i wouldn't use after effects for animation simply because the tools are limited for animation. I would actually recommend motion if this type of animation is what you're goin for.
EDIT: okay... finished work.. and i feel like cartman on yesterday's south park.. I want to tell Seth Macfarlane that if he wants to fuck me the way he does.. to please be gentle. I'm a fragile soul.. that said. Cleveland show really fucked me up today. and not just the cleveland show either... other shows as well are just waiting in line to fuck me up some more... shit. i'm beat.
anyway. looking at the video I really gotta say.
good shit. great composition, curious characters, and it seems you're setting up the story nicely. it was well done and for after effects, a program that was designed more with compositing in mind vs animation, I feel like it was very well done, even though the limitations of the program were greatly felt. that said, let me get onto things that I feel can be worked on or tweaked if you ever go back to this project. I know your AE license expired but that doesn't mean you don't/won't have access to AE ever...
that said, your art compared to other scenes such as the world being destroyed, and the hair really stand in stark contrast with one another. your world shot is very clean and crisp, but your drawings are very messy. lines aren't really consistent and and they have that messy pencil feel. I would have liked to have seen a balance between the two, so the images portrayed would be more consistent. so they wouldn't contrast as much. also, that 3d effect you were going for, wasn't there at all. the planes were plain as day, and it had more of a motion comic feel then a full blown animation. the animations were very stiff, but in respect to the motion comic feel, it worked well enough. your camera work really flattened out your image. your hair animation was brilliant, and achieved the 3d effect you were going for however when it was overlayed on top of the image. it really stood out. again, made me wish there was a balance there...
I think there should be better lighting.. I would recommend you watch Book of Eli (off the top of my head) to get a sense of the lighting within shot. It matches your post apocalyptic feel and if you study that, you'll see how the scenes can still be dark without blowing up the contrast and lowering the brightness to darken out the scene. and really for what you're going for, the lighting is very important. how you render a flat plane within perspective can really make something stand out and feel 3d. look at some optical illusions, how things pop out at you even without the need for glasses.. it's all perspective.
i think the meteor in the beginning is very sharp and oversaturated, it overtakes the composition of the shot. toning it down make the shot cleaner and crisper and just a tad bit easier on the eyes.
you have the right idea of working in separate layers. animation is that much more easier when you work in separate layers, and it's easier to fix individual layers rather then work on a single layer, mess up, and then have to do everything again. for a first time animation, really good job. it was really impressive. i liked how the shots worked in sync with the music. and yeah. good stuff.
edit: Gj, i would really loved to have seen your work. just to gander at it.
edit: andur, I'm interested in that.. might make some of my own personal animations a bit easier to plan out... but i don't have motion builder.. any maya plugins?
