The members of the 11 Second Club come from a variety of backgrounds, each able to offer their own thoughts to our forums. Appearing in these forums on a regular basis, is the debate whether lighting and rendering should or should not effect the voting in our monthly competitions.
My own thoughts on this debate hope to find some kind of middle ground. Yes, 11 Second Club is an animation competition. However, what makes 11 Second Club so intriguing is its celebration of diverse talent.
This post hopes to celebrate the idea of being different. To do so, I wish to take you guys back to Dapoon's entry for July 2010.
The idea itself is unique and challenging. It presents a story of a same sex relationship. Sexuality is becoming more acceptable in television and feature film. However, within some social groups it is still greeted with an unease. I admire Dapoon's choice to tackle it within an 11 Second Club entry. He handles the characters with love and care, his animation and story telling are simply beautiful.
Dapoon felt that the idea was not communicated as successfully as he wished. We challenged Sarath Thomas to add to the scene. Through lighting and further rendering, the idea was pushed further. Its finished appearance is deeply sophisticated and appealing.
To conclude, the competition invites diversity. Playblasts are great! If you wish to spend all your available time on the animation, there have been some fanastic entries over the years that have done just that. Just please don't ever be afraid to be different. First with story, and then if you choose to light, ask yourself how this could use it creatively to add to the whole appeal.
Good luck and happy animating!
Please note, the new look animation will be rendered soon. I am posting now to offer the community the opportunity to explore Sarath's fab methods of lighting, opening possibilities for your own entries. To check out the tutorial, please click here
