Final

I was successful in altering all of the chapters title pages so they would be animated. The final result of this project can be found at http://appstore.monk.ee/details.php?appid=100892243. Click on HTML5 and it will open the phone app into a browser for viewing. This link will bring you right that that spot.  

Through readings from the text, Introduction to media production: the path to digital media production as well as random searches via the internet, I learned about the many ways art is used in the digital world. Media projects are very involved and require a lot of planning. I now understand why pre-production, production, and post production are necessary in developing a media arts project. Getting ones ducks in a row helps tremendously.
 This project allowed me to explore programs I would normally not use. I became familiar with Animoto, Windows Movie Maker, Audacity, and Mixcraft. This experience opened my eyes to where I am strong and where I am weak. Figuring out new programs came easy to me, where creating my own music was an absolute failure. 
I plan on carrying my new found knowledge with me into future courses and future works. I still have a lot to learn in this field and look forward to my next hurdle. 

The End is Near

Using the knowledge I have gained from my animation independent study, I recreated the title page for chapters 1,2,5, and 6. Check it out through the mobil app found at http://fanapp.mobi/kaphrus. I am working on figuring out how to apply this animated title page to chapters 3 & 4. Those chapters were created using Animoto and are not as easy to fix. 

Holy Buttons Batman! There is more work to do!

As the semester nears to the end, I am happy to have the bulk of the work done by now. All that is left to do is to clean things up a bit. I have noticed through my review that a few things are not working. These items include:

1.  The music I inputted with the original video file is not coming through when played in Youtube. 
2. When I went back to review the videos on Youtube, I was horrified at chapter 1 & 2 and their quality. I must figure out a way to fix them so you can read the words. 
3. I need to make the Home screen of the app dressed up more. With the icons used from the gallery of the site the page looks very blah and unappealing. I found some free avatar icons to use that make the Home page look cohesive, brings a little life, and brings some of my quirky personality to it. 
4. The whole point of me creating the app was to have a fun and unique place to start for the viewers/readers. I want to make them feel like they are embarking on a journey or quest. Sadly, using a free service comes with its price and I have noticed that when one goes through the app to each individual chapter. The image quality is not there, making reading the words near to impossible. So, I am forced to tell my viewers to please engage in the app first, but they must go to my actual YouTube account to be able to read the chapters. 
5. Lastly, I seem to have forgotten to place the main title page at the beginning of chapter 6. I will have to go back and edit that file, convert it, upload it, and correct the link on my app page. A simply solution, but a process. 

* The app can be found at http://fanapp.mobi/kaphrus. Click on View HTML5 App to view it as a web browser for the best results. 

Hitting a brick wall

As with any project, there is something that does not go as planned. 

 I seem to have hit my brick wall with posting chapters 5 & 6. I have finished chapter 5 and was going to post it on my Tumblr page, but Tumblr does not support the .mp4 file I had to save it as after rendering it in Photoshop. I really like the way I put together the chapter in Photoshop and do not want to recreate the chapter using a different program. So I must find an alternative site to post the last 2 chapters that will also be compatible with the app I created for the project. 

Progress

I have been diligently working on my project. I have found many programs to aid me in creating each chapter visually. I want to keep some continuity to the appearance of the mini-series I have created, so I am only using 3 different programs. Chapter 1 &2 I used Windows Movie Maker, chapters 3  & 4 I used Animoto, and chapters 5 & 6 I will be using Photoshop.  I have published chapters 1-4 to be reviewed and any comments/ suggestions to be made before I dive into chapters 5 & 6.

You can access the app via computer at : http://fanapp.mobi/kaphrus

Literacy Coming to Life

Last night while trying to sleep I could not help but think about this project. I have a clear vision and understanding to what I am creating, but I felt I was not conveying it to my audience in a clear way. I also wanted to make it known that I was not simply putting together written chapters into a visual form. I want my audience to experience a little journey themselves, just like the main character of the story. I don't have a vast amount of knowledge or technical skill to achieve more than I am able to, but I am pretty happy with what I came up with. 


Modern society is turning away from printed material and being drawn to material that has images, animation, music, narration, podcasts, and so forth. Just think of how many books have been turned into movies. Many people choose to see the movie, rather than read the book. This Visual Media course has taught me this, which is why I am utilizing this knowledge and created part of an adventure story to put into digital form. Using different media programs, I am turning each chapter into a slide-show type story. I am looking through Google to find images that fit the story-line. 
I am creating a not-so-traditional e-book. My idea behind creating an app and linking various pages to it is to create a little adventure for the reader. Turning a page is not too thrilling, but clicking on a page and being transported to a new place and then watching what is to come, that is an adventure. 

As I continue on my project and applying links to my app, I discovered to use the app via the internet is best by this link: http://h.fanapp.mobi/kaphrus. I will continue to repost this link as I blog more so it does not fall out of sight. 

Research material I have used thus far:
https://fluency21.zendesk.com/hc/en-us
https://fluency21.zendesk.com/hc/en-us

Story: What I will be visually presenting

This is my story that I created and what I am creating my Visual Media project on. I will create each story in a visual way using images, text, and music. The main character, Nakita, is who I will use as my animation character. http://brittanyvisualmedia.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

Storyboards

This is my first time ever creating storyboards. They are not as easy as they appear to be. As I started drawing them out, I was thinking I bit off more than I could chew by creating 6 chapters of a story. I already have my story written out and did not want to shorten or cut what I created. I vigorously spent days working on these storyboards. In-order to get these completed in a timely fashion by the due date, and to keep my sanity, I simplified the characters and made the scenes minimal. I will post the chapters to read as part of my next submission for the March 30th deadline. Each scene correlates with it's chapter:

March 15th: App Created & Progress

App & Progress

As of March 15^th, 2014  I am moving- at a snail’s pace, along with my Visual Media Project. I am sticking to the timeline and outline I set for myself. The first month of my outline is as follows:

11      Come up with project idea ✔

22    Start writing out story line for the project ✔

33      Work out storyboard - started to

44     Create app ✔

55     Continue on storyboard 

I have officially created and published my free app at http://fanapp.mobi/kaphrus. I kept the design simple, yet enticing. This app is the main portal to my Tumblr page (http://brittanybeek.tumblr.com/) where I will post my story in a digital media form. I also included a link to my blog where the viewer can read about my train of thought and process behind this project.

 

Visual Media Project

Visual Media Project

 Project Overview:

The purpose of this project will be to create an app that leads you to another source, which is the home to a story I have created. The idea behind the app is to draw anticipation for the viewer.  The story I will write goes hand-in-hand with the character I am animating for my Animation Independent Study. A synapses of the story involves an elfish girl who was born with the ability to read an ancient script that no other can. She goes on adventures finding scrolls with this script, until one day she comes across one revealing a legend. This legend reveals trouble coming to her people, and she is the only one who can save them. 

Research

Read: Introduction to media production: the path to digital media production, Making Media-Foundation of Sound and Image Production, research websites, analyze apps, and ask for input from viewers.

Timeline:

·        Proposal: Due by 3/16/2014

·        Write Chapters 1-3 and begin app: Due by 3/23/2014

·        Write Chapters 4-6: Due by 3/30/2014

·        Ideas/Music/Videos/Images/Programs chosen for each chapter and finalize design of app: Due by 4/6

·        Production week for chapters 1-3: Due by 4/20

·        Production week for chapters 1-4: Due by 5/18

·        Post Production: Due by 6/1

·        Present to others: Due by 6/15

·        Revisions: Due by 6/22

·        Final: Due by 6/27

Process:

I will create a basic app using the website http://www.infinitemonkeys.mobi/. The main path of the app will be linked to my Tumblr page, brittanybeek.tumblr.com, where I will add 6 chapters to a storyline that I created. I will be using Word to write out the chapters of the story. Some chapters will have imagery (drawings, paintings, digital art, etc) that will be from my personal gallery or web-searched images. Other chapters will involve music, or video, or a combination of all 3 medias.  In order to get the media together, I may have to post each piece in separate threads on my Tumblr page, or go to the program Pstory and paste that link into my Tumblr. If I am not liking the idea of using my Tumblr page, I will resort to making a separate blog page and link it appropriately to the app.

Sketch Ideas:

Traditional sketch

Traditional sketch that I colored B&W in Photoshop CS6