This week focused on body mechanics planning and body acting. When designing physical performance, it’s important to clearly identify the key elements in the scene — the character, props, and background.
At the same time, the actions should be kept as simple and clear as possible to avoid confusion.
Idea
I found a sword-drawing (Iaido-style) video as a reference, which fits well with the theme of my previous project. The action is also a good balance in terms of difficulty — it includes detailed hand movements as well as a large, full-body turning motion.
I created a more practical reference based on the original video, tailoring it for easier animation use. I also added a bit of dramatic flair to the story — after the slash cuts through the target, it also slices through the camera tripod, adding a fun and unexpected twist.
This week was focused on the final integration and adjustments of all content.
I made final adjustments to the long take. I changed the character’s movement from jumping between pillars to running, and used camera animation to make the slashing action feel more powerful and impactful.
Feedback
Adding a sword-sheathing action after the boss fight can help make the overall pacing feel smoother.
This week, I focused on the initial integration of all scenes, and continued to refine some of the action designs within each scene.
In Scene 1, I gave the character a more superhero-style landing pose to enhance the overall visual impact.
Before the first phase of the fight in Scene 3, I added more still shots to build up the tension. This also helps set the stage for the fast, continuous action that follows.
At the same time, the long take is no longer a single continuous pull-back. Instead, the camera stays locked onto the character, creating more varied and dynamic camera movement. This approach strengthens the rhythm of the fight and provides a stronger emotional impact for the audience.
In the boss fight, I reduced the number of standoff shots to avoid slowing down the pacing. At the same time, I added a few wider, more comprehensive shots to help the audience better understand the overall situation.
Feedback
Some shots in the first scene still have room to be extended.
After the final slash in this phase, the camera movement is too fast. It should move more slowly to balance out the fast pace before.
In this long take, the character’s movement on the upper level can be changed to fast movement on the ground. This would make it easier to create more variety in the action.
At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be a composition issue here, but in fact, it breaks the 180-degree rule. The character’s position needs to stay consistent to avoid confusing the viewer.
Switching to a close-up at this point can help connect more smoothly to the following shot.
This week, I worked on the initial design of Scene 4 and 5, and continued to refine the boss fight sequence.
Scene 4, 5
Scene 4
Scene 4 is relatively simple in terms of content, but the main challenge lies in using the camera to express the character’s emotional shift.
The visual elements within the frame are very minimal — the key action is the protagonist taking the memory card.
Feedback
The scene where the protagonist retrieves the memory card needs more close-up shots to better show the character’s emotional changes.
Scene 5
Scene 5 serves as the final conclusion of the story. The protagonist leaves the laboratory, only to find a large group of enemies waiting at the entrance.
I chose to end the story in an open-ended way — as the protagonist draws their sword, the scene cuts to black, leaving the rest to the viewer’s imagination.
Feedback
The shot of the protagonist leaving the lobby should follow their footsteps to create a smoother transition into the next scene.
Boss fight
As part of the boss fight refinement, I changed the reason for the protagonist’s backward movement. Instead of being forced back, the character now steps back after a brief standoff.
This change makes the character appear more confident and in control, and also adds more visual interest to the scene. I focused on designing the moment of tension during the standoff to make it feel more dramatic and meaningful.
Feedback
The standoff phase of the boss fight lasts a bit too long, which disrupts the pacing. To fix this, some of the standoff shots should be removed.
This week, I focused on refining Scenes 2 and 3, and began the early design of the boss fight. The main goal was to make the action more clear and efficient.
Scene 2
In Scene 2, I further reduced the number of enemies, limiting it to two kills. This helps avoid repetition and keeps the audience more engaged. It also allows each action to feel more focused and meaningful, while better supporting the camera design.
Feedback
In this shot, after the intense conflict earlier, the camera should remain still to create a moment of calm.
Scene 3
In the first phase of Scene 3, I kept the long take from the earlier version, but changed the two-hit sequence to a single strike that takes down both enemies. This makes the action cleaner and more efficient.
I also removed the enemy behind the character to avoid unnecessary complexity. To guide the character’s movement, I designed a new camera shot to replace that function.
In the second phase, I changed the reason for the character’s movement — instead of moving freely, the protagonist is now pushed back by the boss during the fight. Although the protagonist tries to strike first, they are countered.
The boss is finally defeated in a second iaido. This change makes the story feel more dynamic and dramatic, rather than flat and predictable.
Feedback
Before the character starts to charge forward, the camera can first zoom in, then follow the movement. This helps build tension of the scene.
Both the moment after the slash and the time before the boss appears are part of a new preparing phase, and both need holding more time.
After the boss appears, a small-scale conflict should be added to bridge into the next part of the story. The original shot of the protagonist being forced back feels too flat and lacks interest.
This week, I focused on optimizing and designing Scenes 1, 2, and 3. I refined Scenes 1 and 2, and started the early design for Scene 3.
Scene 1, 2
Scene 1
In Scene 1, I made the character’s actions more exaggerated and stylized, while also making the movements clearer and easier to read.
Feedback
In the preparation phase at the beginning, camera movement should be kept to a minimum, and any movement should be slower and more controlled.
The landing at this point needs a more distinctive action to better show the character’s personality.
The distance between characters should be adjusted through camera staging to create a more balanced composition.
Scene 2
In Scene 2, I added more camera changes and action variations to further increase the intensity of the conflict.
Feedback
This shot needs a series of connected actions to create a smoother transition into the next scene.
Scene3
This week, I started working on Scene 3. I designed a long take to show the first phase of the fight — a smooth and continuous sequence where the protagonist moves and defeats enemies within a short time. I also placed an enemy behind the character to guide the movement toward a specific location.
The purpose of this movement is to prepare for phase two. I designed the boss to enter the scene by elevator, which makes the moment more dramatic than simply having the boss wait in place.
Feedback
Similar to the previous shots, this one is part of the preparing phase and needs to hold a bit longer to better prepare for the upcoming action.
As a key part of the slashing sequence, the character’s movement should be clean. Using two strikes feels too slow for a powerful protagonist — it would be more effective to show the enemy being taken down with a single blow.
The boss’s appearance should be preceded by a clear signal, such as the numbers on the elevator display.
It’s clear that the character’s placement feels too sudden and out of place. A better solution would be to increase the distance between the protagonist and the boss — for example, by positioning the end of the protagonist’s attack farther away from the elevator.
When the boss appears, the protagonist should also be visible in the frame to make the following sequence more smoothly.
Future Plan
The next part will focus on designing the boss fight, followed by Scene 4, where the protagonist finally reaches their goal.
This week focused on designing the second scene of my previs. My idea is to tell the story through visuals and camera shots instead of using dialogue.
The main part of this scene is the conflict at the entrance of the building. I designed several action movements and used multiple camera angles to make the shots more dynamic and to increase the intensity of the fight.
Feedback
In some shots, it’s important to pay attention to composition, so that the viewer’s attention stays focused on the main part of the scene.
In the shot before the protagonist’s outburst, I need to stay longer on the preparation phase—when they’re getting ready to take action—to build up to the moment they draw their sword. At the same time, the composition should be adjusted to remove unnecessary elements from the frame and keep the focus clear.
These two shots need opposite types of adjustments. The first one should be zoomed in to reduce the amount of visual information, while the second one has too little content in the frame, which makes the following shots feel disconnected.
The execution shots can be slightly extended to give the viewer some breathing room visually.
Future Plan
I also started planning out the next scenes. The third scene will focus on the battle inside the first floor of the building. After that, the protagonist will take the elevator to the top floor, where a final boss fight will take place.
The focus of this week was learning how to tell stories through camera language. In many cases, camera work can be more powerful than direct dialogue — it helps the audience understand and accept the story in a more subtle and emotional way.
When creating characters, it’s important to make them feel three-dimensional. Instead of flat or basic character setups, we should try to show their unique traits and personalities through their actions and how they are presented on screen.
Previs
This week, I also started working on the actual previs. I focused mainly on camera work and action design.
The main content this week shows the protagonist arriving at the lab building. I used four short scenes to gradually build up the sequence — from the character’s first appearance, giving the audience a sense of who they are, to finally reaching the entrance.
Feedback
However, in some shots, it would be helpful to increase the character’s presence within the frame.
Refelction
When planning camera shots, it’s important to include close-ups at the right moments to help guide the audience’s attention. This prevents information overload that can happen when there are too many medium or wide shots.
This week focused on camera shot design. At the same time, I also started building previs scenes in Maya using simple geometry, based on one of my storyboard ideas.
Previs
I gave the main character a basic setup. I decided to let the protagonist use a melee weapon, while the lab guards use guns. This contrast can make the action scenes more exciting, and it’s also easier to animate than having both sides use melee weapons — which fits my current skill level better.
I also added more story details. The robot is not attacking the lab for no reason — it was tricked by the lab’s contract, and when the lab refuses to return its memory card, the robot decides to fight back.
At this stage, I haven’t started working on the actual action design yet. For now, I just placed the characters in the scene as a symbolic setup.
Feedback
At the beginning of the story, I need to show both the character and the destination they are heading to. This gives the audience enough information to quickly understand the setup and get into the story.
The ending of my story feels too flat, so I need to add a small climax to wrap it up in a more impactful way. For example, the protagonist could be surrounded by enemy reinforcements, and the story ends with the moment drawing sword.
Moodboard
I also looked for more references to help build my moodboard for this project. I focused mainly on character and environment design.
For the character, I prefer a smooth and simple style, which is also easier to animate later on.
Refinement of the first story
Based on George’s feedback, I made some changes to the first story. I removed the part where the protagonist’s friend dies, and instead, the main character is a famous pilot who becomes grounded after an accident. Doctors advise him not to fly again.
However, he can’t stand living an ordinary life and still longs for the sky. In the end, even if it means burning out his life, he chooses to fly again.
This week’s focus was on worldbuilding. When creating a fictional world, it’s important to use key visual and narrative elements that quickly communicate the setting to the audience.
First idea
My first story has a feeling similar to Top Gun. I imagined a world where people race with fighter jets, like F1 racing but in the sky.
The main character loses his best friend in an accident during a race. After that, he feels very sad and stops flying. He goes back to a normal life, but one day he remembers the last words his friend said before the crash. After thinking deeply, he decides to return to flying and join the race again.
Feedback
Although the theme of my story seems clear enough, it’s still important to provide enough background information at the beginning to make the whole story feel more complete and well-rounded.
Second idea
My second story is more focused on action. It’s about a robot that breaks into a lab to get its memories back. On the way, it fights many robot guards and finally reaches the memory storage.
At first, this story didn’t have much meaning, so I added a small twist. When the robot finds its memory card, it is already broken. In the end, the robot decides not to hold on to the past. Instead, it takes a blank memory card nearby and chooses to create new memories for the future.
Feedback
The second story has a similar issue — it lacks a clear background to support the narrative. Since it mainly focuses on animation, it’s important to add a more detailed setting to give the story more depth.
Third idea
The third story is a continuation of a project I made last term. In that work, I used the human body as a metaphor — like a huge factory — and designed a mechanical heart inside it. The idea was told in a fable-like way to remind people to take proper rest and care of themselves.
In this new story, I continue with the same theme and explore it further.
Feedback
The third story has the most serious problem — it doesn’t even tell a complete story. Although the background is well-developed, the narrative needs to be finished to make it whole.
Reflection
Overall, although I’m able to develop a relatively complete storyline, I need to focus more on strengthening the background and setting. This helps provide strong motivation for the characters and builds a believable and coherent world.
