Historical Animation

Yesterday, we studied the history of animation and watched classic cartoons like Steamboat Willie and Gertie the Dinosaur. Today, we were asked to find something historical from animation online and explain its significance. I chose an old Betty Boop short called "Red Hot Mamma".

The short begins with Betty trying to sleep during a snowstorm, but she can't sleep because of how cold it is and decides to make a fire in the fireplace. However, the fireplace ends up making it TOO hot, and the fireplace turns into a portal to hell. Then Betty falls into the portal, and ends up in hell where a group of demons are doing their usual mischievous things. Then she sings a song, and then the devil himself appears and turns up the heat until she's surrounded by fire. Then, the devil and a group of demons surround her. She freezes the demons by literally giving them the cold shoulder, and freezes the devil by giving him a literal icy glare. This ends up freezing over hell, and soon she ends up in her house, with the fire having subsided. She then gets back into bed and throws a bunch of blankets over herself. 

This short was clever and fun, and I loved it. The concept is genius and the exaggerated animation and visual puns are very enjoyable. Betty Boop was one of the first cartoon icons to go into more mature territory, which is what led to her popularity and iconic nature. Overall, this short was a joy to watch.

4th Quarter Reflection

My 4th quarter project was exhilarating but fun. My group's product was called the Lingua, and it was a microphone that could translate languages accurately and quickly. Usually, it took us a while to get anywhere with our projects, since CERTAIN members of the group were always lollygagging, but we ended up doing them in the end. One of the big challenges I faced was that I was one of 2 people who were trying to take this seriously, and the one who declared himself the so-called leader of our team was always lollygagging and never got any work done. And while I did make very practical animations and designed the logo, things usually would end up devolving into chaos, as shown by how chaotic our commercial was:

However, I learned along the way that marketing something is pretty easy, and making logos is far easier than I thought. I also learned that making a good commercial is difficult, especially when you have 3 different people to work with (and in the case of one of them, working with him was like trying to herd cats). The feedback we were given was simple. While my work was greatly appreciated, others pointed out that our commercial was far too chaotic or something of that nature. Next time, I hope I don't get paired with people whose ideas clash with my own like that. But I guess that's how group projects are. Group projects are like a game of chance: you roll the dice and see who you get. Sometimes, you get a good group, other times, you get a not-so-good group. However, I believe that my work in 4th quarter was quite phenomenal. Here are some examples of things I did:

In this quarter, I was sure to use my time in class well.  I made sure to make every minute count. Only when I was done with all that I needed to do did I look at funny pictures online. When I was done early, I'd look back over what I had and see what else I could add. Outside of class, I tend to use Photoshop a lot in order to explore what it can really do, so I can better my skills in this class.

As a student in e-Communications and as an employee, I have many strengths. One of them is my artistic talent and endless fountain of good ideas. I tend to think outside the box and see things more creatively, which helps me with projects like this. My knowledge of technology is another good point, considering my ability to use computers well is important in this class. I maximize my strengths by using them more and more, and that way, I can get better the more I do these things.

Areas I have in need of improvement include my ability to work as a member of a group. Yes, I CAN work with others, but when having to deal with someone like Mr. Lollygagger, I blew my top one too many times. I'm known to be slightly temperamental, and with him being the "leader" of our group and still not doing anything, I got angry to the point of crying at one point. However, my mom said that learning to deal with people like him is normal, and I think I should work on that.

This semester was an exciting semester. What I loved most was the Video Production we learned in Quarter 3, which was unbelievably fun. What I would do differently is fix the system of grouping used for our group project, because while you said you grouped us via our MBTI personalities, we were of completely different MBTI groups. I know that the intent was to have two introverts and two extroverts, but still. I have learned several things in this semester that I am most definitely using in the future, and I hope that next year, I can create more complex animations. As for my final thoughts? Well, in short, I'm glad I chose this 21st Century Program. It's well worth having to change schools for it, and it's definitely better than taking regular classes at East.

Product Project- The First Rotation

DAWN OF THE FIRST ROTATION 

3 ROTATIONS REMAIN.

So for the Product Project, we were supposed to come up with a product and advertise it. My group came up with the Lingua, a microphone that could translate things super accurately. We then split up to do our jobs: Riley and Evan did the 3D modeling, Hannah made the website, and I made the animation. So here is what I made.

I put a lot of effort into this. Like, a lot of effort. I spent several days procrastinating and procrastinating but finally it is complete. I now it's cheesy and all, but it's the best I can do.

Return of the Dreamweaver

Our project was to make a website using Dreamweaver using instructions on Google Classroom. Now, this time, Dreamweaver cooperated more and didn't hate me. I learned several skills that I could use for future web projects. 

There were many different colors for us to use, but they were similar, so they harmonized well with each other. The way the text was laid out also turned out very appealing. And I actually was the first one done, so that speaks volumes of how well I caught on. We had to follow the directions precisely. 

Most importantly, I learned how to code for a website. This will likely come in handy in the future. It's surprisingly easy to do it on Dreamweaver. 

Maddie's Magnificent Movies!- Chase Sequence

This week we made chase scenes. This is mine. I know that I magically changed my sweatshirt at one point, but if you just ignore that, you can appreciate it and all the work I put into it. The background music I used was "Duel of the Fates" from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace. It really captures the hectic nature of the chase.

I had a lot of fun with this project. And, so ends my video making for Video Production- until next year!

The Apple

So, in order to determine whether we were sensing or intuitive, we had to write about a picture of an apple that our teacher showed us. This is what I wrote. 

"The apple is shiny and mostly red with yellow too. It probably tastes really sweet, and crispy as well. Probably a little tart also. It is the same kind of apple that my mom keeps buying even though she knows I like Red Delicious apples best. It is the kind of apple that I used in my Disney Princess Interview video. It also reminds me of the Leppa Berry in Pokemon."

The Myers-Briggs Test- My Results

We took the Myers-Briggs test yesterday, and my personality type turned out to be Introverted Sensing Feeling Perceiving, or ISFP. To quote the test itself:

"More in touch with the reality of their senses than their INFP counterparts, ISFPs live in the here and now. Their impulses yearn to be free, and are often loosed when others least expect it. The ISFP who continually represses these impulses feels 'dead inside' and may eventually cut and run."

Basically, ISFPs are impulsive and act on their emotions. They are very charming, and tend to find organized education to be boring. They enjoy honing a favored skill for the joy of the experience, not for practice. They are known for outbursts of emotion and acting on impulse. Famous ISFPs include Marilyn Monroe, Britney Spears, Ulysses S. Grant, Paul McCartney, and Marie Antoinette.

This is extremely fitting, as I have been known for outbursts of emotion. Often times, I act on impulse. When I repress my impulses, I feel dead inside. I love doing things just for the fun of it and not to practice. And, yes, I think that school can be a little boring.