A comparative discussion on filmic and visual narrative techniques

INTRODUCTION
Comics and films are both visual mediums by which the creator of the comic or film conveys an idea to the reader or the audience. This however is the only similarity between the two because films and comics utilise different visual narrative techniques that enable them to communicate information. The articles by De Grauwe and Ault further reiterate this fact as both these authors identify and discuss the different narrative techniques used by these two genres of communication.

This essay attempts to present a comparative paper on the visual narrative techniques used by films and comic books as identified by Donald Ault and Sophie De Grauwe in their articles entitled “Imagetextuality ‘Cutting Up Again” and “The Possibility of Minimal Units in the Filmic Image” respectively.

Ault, using Bark’s Narrative strategies and some of Lacan’s categories puts forward that comics make use of imaginary, symbolic and real visual narrative techniques as they relate to the gaze, which is identified as seeing in different context yet at the same time being able to see as a whole(Ault, 8).

According to Ault the imaginary is the visual images of the comic page while the symbolic is the language or words used to convey ideas. The real is communicated by the interruptions or spaces on the page (Ault, 2). These visual narrative techniques used in comics can not be separated and are used simultaneously in comics, as exemplified in the work of Carl Bark on which Ault offers a lengthy critic (Ault, 14).

In an analysis of the minimal filmic units De Grauwe uses the social semiotic approach based on Halliday’s systemic –functional theory as well as Kress and Van Leeuwen as a point of departure (De Grauwe, 1).

According to Halliday Semiotic systems are comprised of the interpersonal, textual and the ideational metafunction because such systems are tasked with expressing the experiential world through ideas or representational metafunctions, semiotic systems project, social relations, and they achieve this by the use of frames, angles, moving cameras and speech acts (De Grauwe, 3).

De Grauwe discusses minimal filmic units from the perspective of Metz who identifies the existence of different cinematographic codes, namely segmental units which are units that occupy a continuous segment of filmic space and time such as the object being filmed and suprasegmental units, which are more abstract like the role of colour in the filmic time and space.

Eco classify three articulations in film specifically kinesic, iconic signs and figures, De Grauwe disagrees with this approach and states that in normal viewing circumstances the kinetic figures can not be discreted by human perception. Furthermore De Grauwe puts forward that Eco’s classification is faulty in that as much as Eco claims that iconic figures do not form part of the signified iconic signs. This can said to be faulty because these figures have an inherent referential meaning, because it is possible for minimal filmic parts to refer to features or parts of the referent due to iconicity.

Groupe ‘u’ proposed an analysis of the still image by distinguishing between iconic and plastic signs De Grauwe is of the opinion that the iconic has a basis within the visual parameters of the plastic sign and that the difference between iconic and plastic meanings and subdivision does not prevent integration.

After an analysis of the positions of Metz Eco and Groupe ‘u’, De Grauwe identifies discreteness, abstraction, iconity, economy and arbitrariness. As the minimal units of filmic visual narrative, in that discreteness is create by relative contrast whereas iconicity can be retained by means of a flexible and socially determined concept. Arbitrariness which involves gradational scales is often influenced and limited by economy though to a small extent in the cinematographic system. The filmic image is less suitable for abstraction; however strategies such as changes in colour or texture can be employed to manipulate reality (De Grauwe, 21).

CONCLUSION

Though comic and filmic visual narratives utilise different techniques to convey ideas it cannot be concluded in this comparative essay that the techniques used by one medium is more effective or superior to the other because though the two are different they are both able to portray social relations in the manner in which the creator/producer intends them to. In the current diverse world system we are in, there is a need to have various methods of conveying ideas so as to be able to capture the attention of a different audience and one believes that the filmic and comic narrative are both able to do so because of their inherent differences in style.

Mime Trapped in a Box

The craft of acting is the action of a person willfully pretending to be something (an animated object or an animal) or someone for a limited period of time in any circumstance for any purpose. On the other hand, the art of acting is the use of the craft of acting for artistic purposes for example, acting used in a theater context and in some forms of storytelling. (Taylor, 1997) This discussion will be based mainly on the art of acting without props with reference to the use of mime and how it can be applied to animation.

Jeff Taylor states that, the craft of acting always has some element of communication as part of its purpose in any given instance and has highly subjective communication which deals in those regions of our humanity that are best shown and felt rather than described. An example I can give in support to Taylor’s argument is found in miming. Mime is one of the oldest forms of theater which expresses the dramatic art of representing scenes from life through bodily and facial movements. This can be seen in a pantomime, which tells a story in movement and gesture and normally consists of short comic acts. As the mime tells a stories, the movement of the hands and body help viewers picture the characters and actions in the environment. This can be applied to animation when creating key frames in order to depict strong actions which would make the animation effective and easy to read.

When looking back at pantomime in Greece, they often took the form of mimetic dances, which was the art of gesture called orchesis, were the word orchestra came from, a Greek term for dancing place. Romans also were especially fond of pantomime, sketching plays often as afterpieces to written plays, or even between acts. Two famous players (both freed slaves), were Pylades and Bathyllus.

“The turn of the century saw the most astonishing burst of creativity that marked the beginning of modern day mime. Mime was popular in vaudeville, music halls, circus, and Ziegfeld Follies. Rudolf Laban, teacher and theoretician of mime and movement, trained some famous dancers, several of whom incorporated mime in their dance work. Angna Enters was truly great, the first popular concert hall mime. Charles Weidman often used literary sources, like Thurber and Beerbohm, for his serious and comic work. Kurt Jooss' anti-war piece, The Green Table, became immortal and is still performed today.” (Rensburg, 2003)

Under silent film, comics played in motion pictures for the most part, because of their many actions and facility in physical expression.

“France was the innovator, with Georges Wague who saw film as a continuation of mime, and music hall star Max Linder reeling off one-reelers beginning in 1905. Charlie Chaplin saluted Linder as his "professor"; then followed Keaton, Lloyd, Langdon, and others. At first they simply improvised before a stationary camera, but soon learned that film was different from the stage, and developed the techniques that made them world famous in a few short years.” (Rensburg, 2003)

In conclusion animation can be aided through the role of acting without props, by the emotional amplification of the body movement in order to enhance action in communicating a series of expressions.

References:
Taylor, J. The Craft of Acting, the Art of Acting and their Relationship to the World of the Work. 1997.

Vanessa van Rensburg. The History of Mime. 2003.

Texturing a Pre-modelled Environment

Texturing refers to the use of additives in paint to give depth and texture to the surface being painted. (Gillette, 1999) This essay discusses the difference between 2d and 3d texture mapping techniques, including the way they are mapped. When looking at 2d mapping, one has to take into consideration the coordinates in the U (horizontal) and V (vertical) axis which go from 0 to 1. A texture map is applied using the coordinate system to match each 3D point on the surface to a 2D point on a texture (any regular image). This is called UV mapping, because the 2D surface consists of a U and V axis.

While 2d texture mapping consists of a flat 2d bitmap image on a flat or curved 3d surface, 3d texture mapping computes the texture color by mapping the object's 3d location in a space directly into a color using small C language procedural texture functions. 3D textures may also be locally and globally transformed just as with cameras and basic geometry.

The three methods of mapping 3d objects are:
1. Automatic mapping
This method yields the fastest mapping results and is used before any other mapping tool, because it maps the whole scene regardless of any mapping procedures already performed.

2. Unwrapping
Is fast yet has high quality mapping of complex shapes

3 Unwrapping using the Interactive Mapper
Has the highest quality results for planar, spherical, polar, and cylindrical shapes, mapping different parts of the models separately available in real time interactive mapping environment.

There are bump map textures that change the way light interacts with the applied surface, these come in two types, grayscale and RGB (Red, green and blue). Bump maps change the depth of the rendered pixels and are only available in 3d viewpoint. On the other hand height maps are useful for rivets, screws, gashes and stuff that is not complex. Normal maps are RGB images, depicting where change in the angle of rendered pixel occurs. This is useful for rendering folds, wrinkles and complex surfaces like the face and body.

Different implementations of 2D texture mapping often can be distinguished from the method used to filter the texture. Since a 2D texture image must be shrunk or enlarged to match the dimensions of its projected area on a textured object, texture filtering is required so that no unusual artifacts are introduced into the final image.


Reference:
Gillette, M. J. Theatrical Design and Production: An Introduction to Scene Design and Construction, Lighting, Sound, Costume, and Makeup. 1999. Forth Edition. McGraw Hill.

https://www.okino.com/new/toolkit/1-11.htm

http://www.righthemisphere.com/support/tutorials/duv/User_Reference_for_Deep_UV.pdf

Secondary Animation - Take (Surprise)

Secondary animation is as its name implies, secondary to the primary movement. (Skidgel p.112) In 3ds Max 6 Animation: CG Filmmaking from Concepts to Completion, it is said to be any character-related movement outside of the skeleton and face and it's one of the 12 animation principles. (Fox p.382) Therefore secondary animation is the actions added to a character to bring life and to support the main action, which involves follow through and overlapping action.

Follow through and overlapping action allow a smooth flow from pose to pose, making sure that the motions are not distracting and robotic. The body parts need to overlap with a believable physics without overdoing it. In order to make animation believable, the motions need to have good clean arcs, in the wrist, elbows, feet, heel and toes as well as the head, hip and ankle. The line of action defines the clarity of the poses, therefore making sure that the poses are interesting and can be read clearly.

Another thing to consider in animation is the energy of the character. This manages the tension, energy build up and release in action. In the gun shot animation, the anticipation (movement begins slowly, speeds up, and slows down again) matched the subsequent action, which was the reaction of the gun shot by the character. The body language and gestures were synchronized with the sound which helps the animation to appear believable.

Keith Lango further suggests under silhouettes: "Make your poses read in an instant, not in an hour." This I achieved through the use of timing. In conclusion the acting done by the character matched dialogue intensity.

References:

Barrett Fox, 3ds Max 6 Animation: CG Filmmaking from Concepts to Completion.

http://www.keithlango.com/tutorials/old/popThru/polish.html

Bouncing Ball

According to Scott Owen timing, or the speed of an action, is an important principle because it gives meaning to movement. The speed of an action defines how well the idea will be read to the audience.

Therefore when looking at the difference in timing when it comes to the weight of a bouncing ball, there are certain written principles that state that heavier objects take greater force and a longer time to accelerate and decelerate. For example, if a character picks up a heavy object, e.g., a bowling ball, they should do it much slower than picking up a light object such as a basketball. Similarly, timing affects the perception of the object size. A larger object moves more slowly than a smaller object and has greater inertia. These effects are done not by changing the poses, but by varying the spaces or time (number of frames) between poses. (Owen, 1999)

In How Things Work, Louis Bloomfield explains the physics of the bouncing ball, "When a ball bounces from a rigid surface, the ball's surface distorts inward and then pops back outward. During the inward motion, the ball stores energy--pushing its surface inward takes energy. During the outward motion, the ball releases that stored energy. But not all the energy invested in the ball emerges as useful work. Some of that energy is turned into thermal energy and never reappears. A properly inflated basketball returns a good fraction of the energy it receives while other balls may not. In fact, a bowling ball bounces pretty well from a hard surface such as cement. But when it hits a softer surface such as wood, the wood receives much of its energy and wastes that energy as thermal energy."

Squash and stretch is an animation technique that illustrates the effect of gravity and force on the volume and shape, creating a believable and interesting animation, which is achieved through maintaining a consistent even volume though the shape changes. This principle when applied in real life is observed in the flexing of the muscles, or when watching a rubber ball bounce. The arm in the muscle swells when the bicep is contracted and the ball flattens and widens as it hits the ground. (Skidgel p)














In conclusion the ball I chose to animate is a baseball. The weight of the ball is slightly heavy, yet the size of the ball is small resulting in it produces less bounces.

References:

http://www.siggraph.org/education/materials/HyperGraph/animation/character_animation/principles/timing.htm
G. Scott Owen, Timing and Motion, 1999

http://howthingswork.virginia.edu/bouncing_balls.html
Louis A. Bloomfield, How Things Work, 2008

John Skidgel, Design Menus With Encore Dvd.

http://www.mattornstein.com/images/downloads/ball_logo.jpg

Abstruction in Video Game

Cradle of Persia

In the game Cradle of Persia abstraction is achieved based on the narrative of the game, which has basic forms depicting the nature of the game, which is buying and selling. The game is designed in the form of a puzzle, were the goal is to acquire as much funds in the quickest time as possible in order for the player to either build homes, stores or buy them. The player can only move to the next level after all the bricks have been destroyed which are placed under the icons. This can only be done by matching 3 or more identical icons, were the higher the number of icons matched the more funds are made to buy buildings or even islands. This game is an example I chose to use in support to Wolf’s statement on abstract arts move into a more and more conceptual realm. The video game requires abstract imagery to be read in a new way, therefore the substance of video games is simultaneously both imagery and events, their elements can be abstract in both appearance and behavior. (Wolf, p. 49)

In the Cradle of Persia, the mouse icon represents the player’s presence in the game (the player-character); the green arrows during play indicate the computer’s presence in the game (computer-controlled characters) aiding the player’s next move; and the background environment which serves as the setting is not manipulated or altered by any of the characters during the game. These different elements help with learning to identify play during the course of the game. This game being a representational graphic game relies mostly on audiovisual media which helps the player identify what needs to be done when playing the game on the interface.

The patterns and designs created in the game represent the acquiring of funds in the form of gems and gold the player stores so as to advance into the next level. These also signify the wealth which will later be used to buy land or buildings in Persia. According to Wolf’s essay the new possibilities of abstraction in video games which are an advancement from the days of PONG is the way in which representation is done and adapted. Therefore abstraction can appear as an element within representational game graphics, or even as part of the subject matter which are found in the patterns and designs appearing on the surface texture and setting of the game.

Reference:

Wolf, Mark J. P., Abstraction in the Video Game, The Video Game Theory Reader, 2003, Routledge

http://www.womengamers.com/games/play/

Video Games - Time Wastage Phenomena

In my opinion video games are a form of play that can either relax the mind or stimulate thinking in dynamic ways. I agree to the arguments made by Gee that many games assumed to be a "waste of time" are in fact excellent at teaching critical-thinking skills. Which is evident in a survey made by Schwartz in 1988 were he set out to compare customary teacher-based tutoring of reading and comprehending with practice on a set of computer games derived from analysis of the reading process. 24 Primary School children were selected, who were of average intelligence and who were 18 months or more behind their peers in reading comprehension. The children were split into two groups and assigned to teacher-based tutoring or computer game training group where they received practice on four computer games. The training in both conditions focused on word decoding and phonics. At the end of the study, it was found that almost all the students improved their reading comprehension test score, although the poorest readers made significantly greater gains in the computer game condition than in the teacher training conditions.

Steven Johnson (2005)also looks at a particular interesting skill used by video game players, which he calls telescoping, which is "about constructing the proper hierarchy to tasks and moving through tasks in the correct sequence. It's about perceiving relationships and determining priorities". Telescoping requires the player not only determine their objectives but also prioritize them, which video games rarely spell out the objective - players use what they have come to understand as probing the world to determine how to accomplish the objectives. Which is very true, because in most cases when we play video games we do not consider them as a means of learning, consciously, because play is done at our convenience, which may give ground to the time wasting argument in playing video games, though I disagree to it.

Nathan Holbert uses the example of telescoping in a classroom setup stating the struggle many students have in being given so much information which becomes overwhelming. He makes a suggestion, "As teachers, we may use spiraling and other techniques to organize the topics in a way that takes advantage of telescoping". This is in support the argument raised by Gee, that games are not a waste of time, because though mostly played as and when a player wants to irrespective of the time and place, they have a positive influence to the player regardless of intention.

Brett Brixler, cites topics of particular interest, submitted to Meaningful Play 2008 give a brake down of the meaning of "meaningful play" in two categories, exploring meaningful applications of games and issues in designing meaningful play:

Exploring meaningful applications of games
1. Games to change attitudes, beliefs, or behavior such as social impact games and personal health games
2. Games to stimulate creativity or innovation
3. Games to build social skills
4. Games to advertise (advergames)and persuade
5. Games to exercise specific cognitive functions
6. Games to explore personal belief and help make decisions
7. Games to built knowledge and skills (games for learing)
8. Games for history and cultural heritage learning

Issues in designing meaningful play
1. Game Design for specific audience
2. Story types and play styles
3. Story and storytelling in games
4. Competitive and cooperative play (single player, multiplayer and massively multiplayer)
5. Balancing entertainment and serious goals
6. Unintended and unexpected effects of games
7. Using psychology and neuroscience to design and understand games
8. Evaluation and assessment of games impacts
9. Barriers to the adoptation of serious game

This in conclusion sums up in points the term "meaningful play".

References:

Jessica Harris, The Effect of Computer Games on Children, a Review of the Research
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/occ72-compgames.pdf

James Paul Gee, What video games have to tech us about learning and literacy. 2003
Steven Johnson, Everything is good for you: How today's popular culture is actually making us smarter. 2005
http://techmattersllc.com/pdfs/Shooting+Aliens+The+Gamer's+Guide+to+Thinking.pdf

http://ets.tlt.psu.edu/gaming/node/458