Monday, February 24, 2014

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Character Caricature

Alyssa Zelman
February 18, 2014
MDIA 1020
p100166851
Character Caricature
Vincent Price:
·      Known for acting in a multitude of B Horror movies
·      Did voice acting in a number of animated films and cartoons including as a caricature of himself in the Scooby Doo series The Thirteen Ghosts of Scooby Doo.
·      Trademarks include his pencil mustache, slender frame, cartoonish expressions and distinctive atmospheric voice.
·      Some of his best known movies include The Fly and House of Wax, both of which got remade.
·      Started off as a character actor, not getting into horror until Tower of London.


Ellen Degeneres
·      Had a television show called Ellen where she first came out as a lesbian
·      Is married to Portia De Rossi.
·      Has produced several audio books.
·      Did the voice acting for Dory in Finding Nemo.
·      Dances every time she introduces a guest on her show.
·      Likes making weird noises. Most people would know that she spoke whale in Finding Nemo but there’s also a chapter in one of her books where she says something along the lines of “well since you’re listening to the audio version this means you get to hear me, so you get a treat that readers don’t and that’s me making a variety of noises.” And then she makes whale noises and other such sounds. 





Sunday, February 9, 2014

Your Hamartia is Showing

Alyssa Jane Zelman
P100166851
February 9th, 2014
MDIA 1020

For years now i've been writing The Witch and the Unicorn.

A young witch runs away from her abusive parents to live alone in a meadow. A unicorn frequents the area. She becomes enamored with the beast. The unicorn is oblivious. A mysterious black-eyed man befriends the witch and offers to help her impress the unicorn. Eventually, the witch realizes that she had been holding the unicorn up on a pedestal and ceases her pursuit. The tale could at first be mistaken for a love story, but it is closer to a coming of age story. The witch gains self respect and stands up for herself. I haven't finished it yet.

The witch's fatal flaw, or Hamartia, is the fact that she puts too much of her self worth into what other people think of her. Back in her village her parents neglected her. In a fit of postpartdum depression, the witch's mother strangled her, permanently damaging her voice. Another time her mother and father used magic to transform her into a cat and tried to sell her at the village market. As a cart she befriended a rooster who helped her transform back into a girl. Upon bringing the rooster home, it didn't take long for her parents to kill and eat him. The villagers scorn her and her family for being magic users. Despite all this, the witch does not hold resentment towards her family or the village for doing so. Her initial reason for running away was because she believed it would help her parents to not be burdened with her, not because she would be escaping an unhealthy situation. To call her low self esteem a character flaw is a bit mean but it's true. Her innocence and naivety only serve to further her down a bad path. I should hope readers pity and empathize with her.

The major turning point, or Peripetieia, in the story is after the witch almost accidentally kills herself. She is bathing in a pond, in a daze after a strange conversation with the black-eyed man. The unicorn arrives early, and, embarrassed, the witch sinks down in the water so that only her eyes are exposed. Her eyes have been strange ever since she was turned into a cat, so when the unicorn notices them, he mistakes her for an alligator or some such beast. He kicks mud at her and runs off, spooked. The witch has a panic attack and forces herself down to the bottom of the pond so she can scream without disturbing the area and nearly drowns. It is after she regains consciousness that she decides pursuing the unicorn is no longer worth it. This is a big step for her. She finally puts her own wellbeing above somebody else's approval. 

The Anagnorsis, or the big reveal, is of the black-eyed man's true motivation, which is hinted at in his and the witch's strange conversation. He's been nice to her throughout the story, but the reader is supposed to always feel vaguely creeped out by him, so the fact that he turns out to be devious won't be too much of a surprise. He's sort of like an evil plastic surgeon, but with magic. He's always been a bit pushy when it comes to helping the witch change parts of her body. First he compliments her and makes her feel adored, then says something like "oh what a shame you want to get rid of your voice, i'd be happy to have it", planting the idea in her head that she can change. It's revealed that her changes weren't free (foreshadowed by the witch using her magic at a cost earlier in the story), and that the black-eyed man intended her to pay with her heart. The witch finally stands up for herself and calls him out on manipulating her, which jumpstarts the rest of the story wherein she must figure out how to reclaim the parts of her body that the black-eyed man has taken, and return to the village with her new attitude.


The major turning point, or Peripetieia, in the story is after the witch almost accidentally kills herself. She is bathing in a pond, in a daze after a strange conversation with the black-eyed man. The unicorn arrives early, and, embarrassed, the witch sinks down in the water so that only her eyes are exposed. Her eyes have been strange ever since she was turned into a cat, so when the unicorn notices them, he mistakes her for an alligator or some such beast. He kicks mud at her and runs off, spooked. The witch has a panic attack and forces herself down to the bottom of the pond so she can scream without disturbing the area and nearly drowns. It is after she regains consciousness that she decides pursuing the unicorn is no longer worth it. This is a big step for her. She finally puts her own wellbeing above somebody else's approval. 



This video has nothing to do with any of the projects for MDIA 1020 but i'm proud of it and I think it's worth sharing as far as being an animation major goes so here. Done over the course of about a week in Anime Studio Pro 9.

Sunday, February 2, 2014

Alyssa Jane Zelman
P100166851
MDIA 1020
February 2, 2014
Storyboard a Joke



1: visuals- a family of two women and a man in a waiting room. One woman lays her head on the second woman's lap. She cries silently. The sitting woman strokes her hair to comfort her. The man is hunched over. All look exhausted and solemn. SFX- quiet crying, breathing.
2: The doctor enters the waiting room and clears her throat to get their attention, as they are clearly far away in their worry. SFX: sounds of throat clearing.
3: The sitting woman looks up, alert.
4: The laying woman sniffs and looks up. SFX: sniffling.
5: The man looks up and straightens his back. He sighs. SFX: impatient sigh.
6: The doctor explains that "The only hope left for your loved one at this
time is a brain transplant. It's an experimental procedure,
semi-risky, and you will have to pay for the brain yourselves."



7: The sitting woman covers her mouth and quietly says "dear god." SFX: woman's voice.
8: The laying girl begins to panic and cry, trying her best to say quiet. SFX: heavy breathing, whimpers.
9: The man grimaces and swears. SFX: man's voice saying "shit" or "Jesus"
10: The doctor has an apologetic expression.
11: The man sighs and thinks for a moment.
12: The man says "okay well what does it cost?"
13: The doctor explains that a male heart would cost $5000...
14: however, she goes on, a female heart would cost only $200 SFX: doctor's voice
15: the man snickers and covers his mouth to stifle the noise. SFX: snicker.
16: the sitting woman glares at him and makes an annoyed noise. SFX: grunt.
17: the man looks at the sitting woman innocently.
18: he snickers again, turning his face away.
19: the sitting woman rolls her eyes.
20: the man covers his face, continuing to stifle laughter.
21: the sitting woman groans "Just ask already."
22: The man happily asks the doctor why a female heart costs less. SFX: man's voice.
23: the doctor smiles at his childish question.
24: the doctor, her voice full of snark, replies that "It's just standard pricing procedure. We have
to mark down the price of the female brains, because they've been
 used."
25: the man looks embarrassed
26: the girl, who up to this point hasn't said a word, suddenly flips over and, in the vein of Regular Show, goes "OHHHHHHH"
27: The sitting woman laughs, her mood brightened.
28: The doctor, pleased with herself, points with both hands and says "ayyyy"
END