About
- “Our Beating Heart” is a narrated animated poem that uses the heart of the body as a metaphor to illustrate the crucial role of the ocean in regulating climate. Visualized through a blend of 2D and 3D animation, as well as VFX, the poem delves into lesser-known facts about the ocean with the aim of educating audiences about its significance. Featuring music, immersive soundscapes, and multi-generational voiceovers, this animation serves as a call to action: to preserve our ocean, we must first comprehend its importance.
Title of the project
After a lot of consideration, we have chosen the title ‘Our Beating Heart’ for our project. This title symbolizes the profound significance of the ocean, highlighting its pivotal role in both our lives and the broader ecosystem.
Group aim for the project:
Our aim for this project is to showcase the profound importance of the ocean in our lives and to celebrate its beauty through the medium of poetry and visually captivating imagery. Our ultimate goal is to create visuals that effectively convey this message to our audience without overwhelming or disengaging them. To achieve this, we have chosen to focus solely on portraying the ocean’s magnificence and vitality, deliberately avoiding depictions of the human-induced challenges it faces.
Collaborators and roles:
Alwin Felix (MA VFX): In this project, I’m responsible for creating visual effects and working with my team to meet project goals. I mainly use Houdini for making crowd scenes, ocean effects, and animations. I also use Unreal Engine to build worlds and bring my Houdini creations to life. After that, I use Nuke to put everything together and make it look polished. By using these tools, I aim to make our project visually stunning and cohesive for everyone to enjoy.
Emily Ward (MA Anim): Her role is to create 3D models, and animation which are visually pleasing for the shot.
Negin Jafari (MA Anim): Her role is to create environment which are visually pleasing for the shot.
Poppy (MA 2D Anim online): My role in this project included writing the poem, recording voice overs, sound design and creating 2D animations. To create my animations I did frame by frame in Procreate dreams and then imported PNG sequences into TV paint to be coloured. For the sound design, I got friends and family to record the poem in an attempt to create a communal feeling. I used Adobe Audition to edit sound and downloaded appropriate foley sound and music to support the piece.
Yifang Liu (MA VFX): For this project, I took on the role of building the 3D environment.I used maya and C4D to create the basic form of the coral and then zbrush to add details to the coral. As well as I always use world creator to create the terrain. In ue5 I put all the models together and use the textures I made in sp. and finally I use nuke to create bubbles, lights and other effects.
Stages of production from idea to completions:
To kick off the project, we gathered and spent the first week storyboarding together. We generated animatics and met twice weekly on Google Meet to collaborate, pooling our work on Miro and OneDrive. As we progressed, we gradually integrated elements into the animatic to develop the project further. We heeded UNESCO feedback and made adjustments to certain aspects of the poem as the project unfolded.
Screenshots captured during collaboration
Behind The Scenes
This is the behind-the-scenes video of the group showcasing the making of the short film “Our Beating Heart,” produced for the UNESCO Ocean Decade.
My Process
Spiral Fish Schooling
Ocean Reveal Through Clouds (Not in final edit)
Huge Schooling Fish