Richie Prado - Bourbon - Video Review

Watch the review here.

Richie Prado - Not that woman - Feedback

That's such a great line to work with, nice choice!

Overall it's going into the right direction, but I'm not too sure about the finger point being that long. Finger points are a bit generic to begin with, so it's good that you keep it going with it in order to make it different. But after x43 I would take that hand/arm back with more pain exhaustion. Right now it's going back in almost the same rhythmic motion that is visible at the beginning, so it's a bit repetitive.

The way I hear the line is that after the first "I'm not the woman you say I am..." she kinda breaks down and then collects herself to say "I'm not that woman." at the end. So during that pose, I would play it out more like she's struggling with her emotions and trying to control herself, then she says that last line (which you could act out with her being stern again, or breaking down). I personally would go for stern again, but that's up to you. Right now though you have her looking right and then left during that pose, which is a bit too "search-y" for me, as if she's searching for the words, as opposed to trying to regain control of herself. And the very last frame, watch that pose and expression. It looks like she's sleepy, or drunk or on drugs. :) The intensity of the audio is missing in that last expression and pose, so I would listen to that part more closely and push the emotion at the end.

I find that after this stage I go into linear or spline mode and the feel and timing of the blocking gets lost, do you have any advice to advice to avoid this?

Regarding the feeling of losing the blocking timing. It's the pitfall of blocking things out in stepped mode. Going pose to pose will give you sharpness and accents but if you spline it all that will get diluted. You will have to have a clear vision of how the acting is supposed to be and once you spline it go back in there and add more breakdowns and work in segments. Go section by section and re-time the beats. What helps me is to blocking things out in linear mode and add spline mode from the get go during sections where I know that I will have it anyway (like during a swing, or jump or anything arc-y). At least in linear you will see how long each transition from pose to pose takes and how it looks like. If you don't have enough breakdowns in stepped mode then you're going to have to block things in after your initial "blocking". Your goal should be to have the exact timing in your blocking, so that when you go from stepped or linear to spline mode your animation doesn't change dramatically.

Hope that helps!
Cheers
JD

Richie Prado - My family - Critique

Hey,

brown guy only:

overall looking good, there's just one point where you hold the gesture which feels a bit awkward and little detail things:

The first shot works well, I would just sharpen the jaw movement when he opens it. It's a bit soft throughout, so a sharper opener would make it a bit more "reactionary" (if that makes sense).
The eye look down to x55 is a bit slow, I would make it a frame or two faster. You can always add a half blink during that section. You're also starting an eye move at x63 right to where the shot cuts. I wouldn't add sudden movements like that right before a shot ends or right after a shot starts. The audience needs about 7 frames to register what's going on. Any big move right at the beginning will be confusing and at the end will be jarring. Not that this eye dart is jarring, but it's right where the cut is and it's more distracting than helpful.

2nd shot:
The eyes are drifting a bit at the beginning towards the annoyed look. Eye darts should be fast, 2 frames, sometimes even 1. I would keep the eyes the way you have them on x68 a bit longer, then dart over frames to the eye pose on x76, then wait a frame and then dart from that pose to the pose you have on x86 over one frame. Hold that one a bit so that you can dart Right now you have them go up to around x79 and then they slowly stop and then go down slowly. It's all a bit too swimmy.
Around the x106 area, is he going to pick up the other guy's hand or just brush it away? I like the gesture of how he gets there. And little push off of the other guys' hand could work. I also like how he puts it up to his head around x163. It's like he has a head ache. :)
Afterwards I would bring the hand and arm down. Right now it's in a weird salute mode around x184 and how it follows the head in it's movement from x173 to 189 feels weird.

You then hold that pose pretty much throughout the 3rd shot and that's a bit awkward to me .

Before that though. Track the guy's nose towards the end of shot 2, how it goes down, yet at the beginning of shot 3 it's going up. Make sure that the action works over the cut.

The rest of the last shot works well. I would just do one tweak with his eyes. Right now he looks screen right around the x327 area, but then you bring the eyes back to the left to x331 while the head still goes to the (screen) right and then you bring back the eyes looking screen right. I would get rid of that move to the left and concentrate on what's going on screen right.
The first pose at the end is a bit soft and the fingers are too symmetrical. I know it's not a fist of massive anger, but just visually, bring the index and pinky finger closer to the middle finger, so that there is no gap between them (especially the pinky) .Try to always have a rounded shape for the knuckles and where the fingers fold. Right now (last frame) the hand/fist is very cube like. See image below for what I mean.


Cheers
JD

Richie Prado - Note - Critique

The clip is much better and the addition of having him turning the piece of
paper around works really well, nicely done!

One last thing that sticks out to me is his upper body area starting around x51.
It moves screen right until x55 and then stops very suddenly, as if it's hitting
a wall. After that you have it drop very quickly from x59 to 61 and you can see
how the head is not moving screen left anymore either until around x66. It looks
like the whole body is pivoting through the head, since it's stuck there in
space.

I would definitely work on that area a bit more before moving on. Almost there!

Cheers
JD

Richie Prado - Note - Critique

Hey,

I don't think you need that sound, it's not vital to the story and it's just an added thing, it's not really necessary. Unless you're playing with the fact that this is a gate at an airport, but again, it's not really needed.

The animation works better, you're on the right track! One thing though, it would be good to tweak the part around x190. I thought I mentioned it before but I can't find it in the notes, so I apologize for that. It's just an idea, but I think it would add a clearer beat.
So, when he looks at the note again, around x199, what do you think about having him turn the piece of paper around, so that he sees that the #9 was actually a six.

What do you guys think?

Anim wise what's standing out a bit right now is the moment around x128 where he crumbles the paper. How the arms go together and his body rotates down feels a tad too fast.
And you could speed up the run after x255 a tiny bit, for a nice zippy exit. Although that one is not a deal breaker.
And before that actually, around x55, when he looks up but the body slumps down, that pose change is also a bit too fast and it looks like the head stays in place and only the body changes, it's a weird pivot moment there from x60 to 64. And the body drop from x79 over two frames is also a bit too fast. All you need to do is add two or three frames to the overall move and cushion/ease into that new pose.
Same goes for x145 to 148, that body side move, it hits a wall spacing wise at x148. Look at the line the left side forms down to the leg at x147, then 148, see how much it moves screen left? Then go one frame further. Now it doesn't move to the right anymore at all. It's a sudden stop and you need to ease into that as well. Think about the mechanics and the momentum of weight shifts. By moving the whole body so quickly, it needs to settle over a few frames.

Almost there!

Cheers
JD

Richie Prado - My family - Critique

Hey,

I really like that one, it's working really well!

Looked at it in a broad way, what wasn't quite working for me was the first cut between shot 1 and 2. They are very similar, especially in terms of how close you are to the characters. So to me the cut was a bit jarring, almost like a camera pop. It's good that you are wide in the first shot. That way you establish the characters and the set, giving the audience an overview of the characters' geography.


The second shot could have more of a close-up, same for shot3, so we can really look at the character's face and his emotions.


Shot4 works the way it is (wider) because of the broader character movements and also for contrast, since we just had two close-up shots, we can pull out again.
The only thing in shot4 that's not working for me is how close the green guy is walking past camera. It's distracting and not needed story telling wise.

On a more anim technical side:

SHOT1
Green guy:
- the hand on the shoulder is not bad, but you could have more contact with the index finger. It looks like it's slightly hovering over the shoulder. The lower part of the wrist is also a bit still, compared to how the body is moving, so adding a bit more keep alive in that wrist would be good.
- it might just be a shader thing, but the forearm of the arm resting on the other guy's shoulder seems to have a weird dent in it. Is there a way to take that out?


- careful with the screen left leg from x33 to 37, how it moves to really extend the leg. Then from x41 to 46 it's bending again. I don't think the full extension is needed. At least that transition isn't fast, so it's not looking like a pop, but you could just leave it out and have the leg more bent as opposed to straight from x33 to 46.
- the screen left hand from x10 to 15 is rotating a bit fast. You could have it more casual (just like his voice delivery) and end the rotation around x23. But don't end it in the finger pose you have on x23, because it stays in that pose until around x48. There could be more complexity and finger pose changes during that section.
- on "grab" and a bit before you have the lipsync a bit off. On x44 his mouth/lips shape more of an "M" pose, but from "uh... grab" I wouldn't close the mouth. I would go from "Uh" to a "U" shape for the "gr" section of grab, leaving the mouth mostly open.
The blink on x34 is a bit mechanical, with the closing over two frames. Close the eyes a tiny bit on x33, then keep what you have on x34 and a tiny bit less closed on x35, then closed the way x35 was. Keeps it less mechanical and more casual, working more in tandem with the mood/tone of the voice.
- the screen right arm has a funky arc as it goes up to land on the shoulder. Make sure the arc is smooth out and a bit more elegant

- same goes with the screen left arm moving to the left at the end of the shot, there's a quick move, then a pause, then another quick move. I think you could simplify it and just have an under arc in one move

beige guy:
- I would reduce the jaw down movement from x12 to x22 and keep it more closed and save the opening for the reaction to the shoulder. Right now it's a bit even how it goes down and you could have one mouth shape in order to show the emotion of the guy and not have the jaw slowly drop like that. It feels too much like a key you forgot

SHOT2
Green guy:
- screen left arm drop on x105 ends a bit abruptly on x117, you could ease more into that
- screen left arm moves a bit too much with/like the body from x152 on. When the body moves to the left starting at x152, the arm could drag a bit, so push it more towards the body for 2 or 3 frames, then have it go with the body and overshoot a bit after the body ends moving. Right now the arm stops the left movement around x160, then starts a move away from us towards the back. I'd keep it just dangling and not introduce that long and straight move to the back
- the screen right elbow has a quick move from x66 to around x69, keep it where it is on x66, x69 looks a bit awkward (and again, if there's a way to get rid of the dent underneath the wrist, that would be great)
- during "go home" the hand on the shoulder feels a bit loose, would be good to see more believable contact
- the wrist flicks a bit from x153 to 156 before the hand/arm goes away from the shoulder
- watch the eye contact of the green guy. For instance x88, he's looking above the guys, try to keep it closer to his eyes


- the eyes are also a bit swimmy starting around x125. Try to keep eye movements limited to darts over 2 frames or even 1 frame and avoid 5 to 7ish frame long drifts

beige guy:
- his eyes should stay in the same position as x66 until around x107 for the blink. It's good to bring a emotional gesture in there, but eyes move right at the start of the shot and are a bit swimmy as well. It could work to just have him stare until his eyes close
- I'd stay in the brow pose on x73 until the eyes close. Right now it feels like you're going into that pose, then a subtle reverse around x79, then a more flat one after that. All in all it feels like there is a bit too much movement during that section
- the hand contact on the suitcase could be stronger, the lid is moving around separately from the hand
- the pose on x118 is a bit unclear (the screen left arm/hand). At first I thought he's going to hold his shoulder in pain or frustration. I like the move at that time, it feels right, but maybe have the hand just in front of the chest
- starting at x156 the body move screen right, it would be good to lift up the hip in the screen right side a little bit for the weight shift.

SHOT3

green guy:
- all good, except a left arm pop from x221 to 223

beige guy:
- screen right hand/fingers are a bit weird after x188, the fingers just pop down during that section

- the screen right arm has a little quick move as well. It goes down to x192, then goes up slowly again and suddenly jerks up on x195 and stops again x197
- the eyes are a bit weird, he looks over to him, then has a big move up as he starts talking. It feels like he turns around, then looks at the green guy's nose, then his eyes. :) I'd keep it targeted at his eyes and maybe do a little side to side eye dart (maybe just to one side)


SHOT4

green guy:
- love the gestures and the timing of it, I just wouldn't have him get so close to camera as he walks by

beige guy:
- they eyes are swimmy at the beginning
- his left arm is poppy throughout and goes through the table at the end
- right hand could have stronger finger poses and variations
- the head turn is a bit fast starting at x286
- the jaw move on the "t" of "wait" is too snappy
- the body and face + eyes seem to drift down at the very end. I could see it as a "deflating" emotion, but then I would keep the eyes up and fixated on the guy leaving


Sounds like a lot, but it's not, plus once the work is so good, you gotta dive into the nitty gritty!! Nice work though!!

Cheers
JD

Critique - Richie Prado

Quick note, on the camera move, you could wait a tiny bit more before you pan to the left, but then move faster, in order to keep the energy up a bit? Also, you could either tilt up a bit towards the end or zoom out overall, so that the number 6 is clearly visible, since it's a main story point.

You mentioned that you feel the timing is blending into blandness and I agree, although it's not as bad as you might think.

Before addressing technical notes, I would concentrate on your next pass purely on timing. You can divide the clip into different sections.

First, the moment with him at the door and then backing away from it. What is he feeling when he takes those steps back? It's a bit unclear. It feels mostly loose, kinda indifferent. You could keep his back more straight up and not so hunched over. He could be frustrated since he can't get through the door. A more tense and firm walk back would reflect that (his arms would swing around less). He then looks at the piece of paper and then smashes it with his hands, resulting in the end of this frustrations.

Then, the turnaround. That's when you can have his shoulders down and his body attitude all hunched over and disappointed. Don't have him look up immediately on x162, keep it straight forward, finish his steps, then give it a beat, so that he can look at that other door. Then move his body back and his head up like on x181 in a slow move as in "What is this?". Give that end pose a beat, so that he can register in his mind what's going on. He is thinking about the numbers right, so give him time to think about it. Then quickly move his head down to look at his paper the way you have it now, but a bit faster. It's a "Wait a minute!" urgent move. He then understands what's going on and is happy. So the head up move that you have to x205 is too slow. He understands what's going on and goes right for the jump. The pose on the jump could be happier. For instance, his left arm is just kinda following the body, more as in overlap. But the whole body pose should show "Happiness".
Then during the first few steps before he runs through the door, you could accelerate more. The first few steps should be faster. He's really excited. Right now the steps are a bit timid. It's like tires spinning when you hit the gas, after a while it will gain traction and the car will zip off. So it's kinda what you will have with this guy. First the legs just run run run without him really moving, then he zips off.

With these kinds of tempo changes and giving your character enough time to think, you will change up the overall timing and pace of the clip and hopefully get away from the blandness you mentioned.

Number run - Richie Prado

About the AM clip:

As a general note, I would shift the timing of the camera so that the pan over happens a bit later. I think it would work a bit better if the character is leading the camera, as opposed to the camera doing it and giving away the joke so early. So have the start of the pan happen around x143.

Anim wise the ideas are pretty clear, the blocking reads well. The only thing is around x132. Is he crumbling the paper there? It feels like a move of frustration and then he has both hands together with that piece. But then the arm swings down and the piece of paper is all flat and nicely flowing along. That's the only part that wasn't too clear.

The other part was once he sees the number six. Since the paper crumbling part isn't too clear to me I wasn't sure about this: he looks at the paper, sees number 9, doesn't understand what's going on and turns around. Then he sees the number 6, looks at the paper and realizes that this is the door. But isn't he still reading 9? Shouldn't he turn the paper around and realize that he's been holding it wrong and that 9 is the right number?
That's my thought because since he's shrugging on x122, he looks confused and not exactly frustrated, so it doesn't read to me that he just read 6 instead of 9. ... This is now starting to be really confusing, hahahaha!
I think after he turns around and looks at the paper, he should turn it around and realize that it's actually 9 and not 6.

Pose wise, I would have on x121 a clearer silhouette when he holds up the piece of paper and his left arm. Try to move the piece of paper a bit up or down (you could have it higher and the screen right arm lower), in order to clear up the space between all those body parts. You can start with the higher movement on x105 when he reads the paper, emphasizing the action that he's doing.

Next step is for you to spline the whole thing (or at least to get rid of the stepped mode), so that you can work on the timing between poses and movements. For instance x184 to x185 is a big move, but it's happening over one frame, which is way too fast. That's to me one of the big pitfalls of animating in stepped mode. I prefer linear so that I can see how much time all the movements really take.

Another tricky part is the exit on x250 to x251. Whenever an object enters or exits frame, you want to have a little piece visible during the first (entering) or last (exiting) frame. Otherwise it will read as a pop. You need to ease into that intro/exit more. So once you spline it out, have at least the shin and the foot out and then nothing.

Hope that helps!
Cheers
JD

Reel - Richie Prado

About the clips. What's the company you really want to work for? It's always good to know, so you can tailor your reel towards it.

You have a lot of clips on there, but yes, like you said, they would need a bit more finishing time. The first clip is pretty cute, you could finish that one up. The 2nd one cracks me up because I used the same sound clip :) There are some funny moments, but it's a bit overacted. 3rd clip is okay, not sure about Jack Black voice though, he's a bit overused. I like the sound clip of the next one with the police, but I think the acting could be stronger.. The one with the girl and the guy leaning against the wall is the weakest of the bunch. The last one is great, I would definitely work on that one. So all in all, the last one for sure, re-use the sound clip with the police guy, keep the first one for pantomime.

What's overall visible is the same type of composition for the shots and the basic use of the rig. In order to stand out of the crowd, we will have to work on a more cinematic feeling and push the acting. Adding some clothing and bit more set design would help.

I think you're work is good, but it could be stronger acting wise (acting choice wise). I don't think you're going to have too much trouble landing a good gig, but for the top companies it's going to take a bit more work. Focus on one clip and finish it, going through all the polishing detail work for that extra special touch.

Let's finish up the pantomime shot first and then go from there!