tween fiction

Dr. Zork here. I have visions of a new jazz article that I must write, but first I must record some of the practices of my fictional character, the animator Akre. He is hard at work at his animated feature film Wargoon Flishe, which he has written, recorded voice over for, and is now animating as a solo task. Only a fictional character would have such an ego.

In an earlier missive I mentioned that he is essentially using three animation techniques to manufacture his opus. In this report I shall give some details on the second of these techniques. He has told me to tell you these things, and I understand them very little, but I will do my best to relay them to you in some haste.

The second technique that he uses I referred to earlier as the After Effects method. He uses the popular computer program. He first makes a large computer image file, part collage, part of lines, and this image serves as a background. This background can serve for several large sections of the story, so it is made a bit like a labyrinth with various rooms and angles. Or like a video game that he moves his characters thru.

Next he has made his characters, or actors. These are also computer image files, and have their various parts left as various Photoshop layers so the individual parts can be manipulated later. He combines these elements, characters and backgrounds and additonal props made into pictures, in After Effects, and then makes changes upon them using keyframes.

Altho this computer program has keyframe assistants that try to make the actions smooth, he has dispensed with the use of these to keep all actions seeming robotic. He basically sets up beginning and end points of an action and lets the program do the tweening, or in betweening. Last night he made his characters talk and sit. It was a scene where they were trying to come up with advertising slogans, but fall in love instead.

Enough of that nonsense. Now is time for the pome of the day project. This is another pome that could the lyric of a beautiful piece of jazz music. I hope you find it satisfactory.

fact or fict
which is my sweetheart
which treats me nicely
and which does me wrong

fact or fict
which is my honey
which one has substance
and which vanishes

fact or fict
which is my lover
am i in shit
or a world of dream

Written in sincerity and with fingers,
Dr. Hubert Zork