Time Based Media (insert 7)

1+1=3 from Petter Prinz on Vimeo.

Time Based Media (insert 6)

Playing around with After Effects, Premiere and Final Cut Pro- i have decided to do the majority of my work in After Effects. The concept of my time based piece is centered around the synchronization of audio and visual elements within the film.

With After Effects i can edit/cut my audio and visual to a good standard as well as add all the effects which is the purpose of my film.

Although one of my treatments was the concept of playing around with elements within an eye, i have chosen not to use it as my final piece- its far too boring! However, i did use this concept as an initial experiment as to what effects can be used in After Effects- its a very rough film, but i wanted to see how long it would take and what it would look like.

Time Based Media (insert 5)

So having had a thought shower session with my house mates, i have come to the conclusion that i would like to make a visual film that goes with the audio that has a plot. The plot may not be completely recognizable, but i want my film to be thought provoking within itself.

When i first heard Zwerk, my two initial feelings were abandonment and digitalism-

I want to combine these two elements in my film.

Two films by the same artist [UNKLE] have had a large influence in how i want my final footage to look and feel.

Burn My Shadow from UNKLE on Vimeo.

Rabbit In Your Headlights from UNKLE on Vimeo.

Time Based Media (insert 4)

This week in college i drew up a storyboard that included an eye that had different effects added to the iris etc as the audio changed so too would the different effects. I presented this to my course tutor who's initial reaction was that it was very cliche and had been done 100 times before. I have to agree!! This concept on reflection is very cheesy and i have decided to bin this idea and start again. With the help of my housemates, we had s bit of a thought shower session. I always like it when i can bounce ideas off people and watch how other ideas emerge and form-

One of my house mates told me of a very famous film she saw by Francis Ford Coppolla named Koyaanisqatsi

I liked the time lapse compositions and the way the camera pans over landscapes- the music perfectly reflects the images that are shown.

Time Based Media (insert 3)

After listening to all of the audio clips we were given, i have decided to work with Zwerk by Bitbin. For me, this is the piece of audio that evokes the most ideas and i can visualose cirtain images and ideas that i want to develop. I have written down some of the feelings i get when i listen to this piece of music- calm, empty, derelict, floaty...... are just some of the words that spring to mind. I hope to elaborate on these initial ideas, and find narrative that ill best echo these feelings.

End of Year Show Poster Designs

Time Based Media (insert 2)

We have been given a selection of audio pieces with which we can sample from and use in our video/s. Having now listened to all of them, i think it is fair to say that the music provided is very experimental and leaves much to the imagination. My initial thoughts are that each audio clip is very different from the next however they are all mood provoking. In that i mean nearly all of them have no beat or rhythm and are a a collection of sounds and noises, almost ambient music.

At first i was unsure as to how to approach this type of audio and how i would sequentially piece together a visual narrative.

However, a few months ago our class attended an exhibition at the V&A called Decode which i remembered had a few artworks that linked audio and visual imagery really well. Some pieces used digital technology to project shapes that would mirror the sound that was produced. An almost organic light show. One of the pieces that i remember the most was by a design company called Universal Everything.

V&A / Decode / Video Loop from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

I had look at their website and found that they have produced a number of short videos that combine animation and ambient music really well. I feel that illustration is my strongest area and so i was thinking of doing something that would combine animation with real life video footage to represent the audio clip. I like the idea that the visuals would physically reflect the audio tone i.e if there was a certain beat at a certain point, then an example would be a colour would appear or explode at that point.

These are a few of my favorite examples that Universal Everything have produced and which i shall be taking influence from;

Nike / Brasil National Team Jersey 2010 from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

Reverse Snowball Effect / Nissan - Journey to Zero from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

AOL / Blow Painting from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

AOL / Hypercolor from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

MTV / Power x 1000% / Soundquake from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

Short Film / Onedreamrush / 42 Below Vodka / China from Universal Everything on Vimeo.

Time Based Media (insert 1)

For our final project this year, we have been asked to produce a short audio visual sequence that demonstrates an understanding of the technologies which are used to produce a sequential, linear analogue or digital work within a narrative framework or theme.

Brief;
We must produce a 60-90 second video and sound sequence that has been derived from or influenced by the sound provided.

E leaning project finished!

Handed in the flash project this week, check out the link to view the finished article:

http://www.jamescox.info/elearning/index.html

My mum will be using it in her class at school wich is cool- just need to add a few more sound effects!

As you can see by the design i went for a similar feel to the "feel good drinks" campaign- bold colours and a type of 2d animation effect.

Fusebox with Divs!

Having found out that my website was chosen as the final design in our web design project, i re built the site with divs and css as this is more compliant to web standards. I was put off at first using divs to build sites as i thought it was easier to control the layout using tables over cross browsers- i have since found out that this is not the case!!

I have learnt so much re building the site- i think it really helped that i knew the design so all i had to concentrate on was the back end. I will be setting up a wordpress blog that i will use to document things i have learnt along the way- little helpers that i have found searching the web- think i will call it "a is for anchor" as this was one of the things that i struggled on for ages- how could i change the styles of multiple links inside the same div- a is for anchor not link, so assign an "a" class to each link and you can then style them from there- simple when you know how!!

Check out the site i have built for FUSEBOX:

http://www.jamescox.info/fusebox/index.html

I still need to input the clients content but the structure is all there.

New theme!

Was playing around with this theme in Wordpress but have decided to use it in blogger instead- what do we think?

YCN Deadline

So after a few changes i have now submitted my entry for the YCN student awards.
Check out the final poster design- i changed the background as i thought the blue was a little overbearing.

I'll let you know if i hear anything back.....fingers crossed!

Website Module Update!! Great News!!

Got some good news this week from my tutor, the website i designed for our class assignment has been chosen to use as the live site!

This is awsome news. I will be working on some tweaks to get the site to the clients specifications, but hopefully it will go live soon. Watch this space!

Goal Mates

Designing a new website for a friend, its called Goal Mates and basically its a group that he is setting up that you can join to achieve your main goals in life!

Great idea i say as we all have dreams we never accomplish and what a better way to do it than with the help of your friends!

Good luck with the project Dan,

check out my progress here

http://www.jamescox.info/goalmates/index.html

Hannys blog

Set up my sister blog last week, love the photos she has on there! Check it out for some inspiration x nice one Han xx

http://www.hannahecox.blogspot.com

Ineteractive module

Our forth module this year is to produce an interactive e-learning experience for a Key Stage 2 demographic. We can choose any subject within the KS2 curriculum aimed at children aged between 8 and 11.

Initailly i was thinking about covering the language Spanish as my subject, i spoke to my mum who is a primary teacher and therefore has a lot of experience in this field and she said that introducing a foreign language was new to the curriculum and very topical, however looking ahead i dont think that my spanish is good enough to incorporate into an e-learning experience!

I have therefore decided to cover science, as it is a very broad subject and one that i was interested in as a young boy.

The curriculum covers many topics in science and i having had a look at other e-learing exeriences on the internet there was less on the subject of Forces and Motion. I have therefore chosen to cover Forces and Motion, with 4 sub areas; Gravity, Friction, Forces, Magnets.

Firstly i have been doing alot of research as it is important when using Flash that you know exactly the stages and work flow of the site.

I have decided to uses characters within the e-learning site to guide the children through each section,; here are my designs, let me know your favourite!:

Web Site: FUSEBOX

For this module we were asked to design a website for a real client. The client was Robin Blackledge and his brief was:

"The redevelopment of an online sister space which is a pliable virtual version of the project space FUSEBOX with scope to allow for online submission and interactivity"

This is my final design, let me know what you think!

YCN: Presentation

So in our final week we now have all the elements to our project and it turns out we have a lot to present, the question is hows the best way to show what we've done?

i like the idea of using a book: initially i'm thinking A3 in size, which i know is quite big for a book but i want to show the detail in the posters- we can also include A4 pictures of the email pack....

The A3 foam board can then show thunbnail images of the content with an annotation of the concept and what we have produced.....

YCN: The web site????

So we've decided on designing 2 mock web sites- a hompage and a subsrciption page-

The subscription page will have the address www.juststayin.com which is advertised on the campaign poster designs- the idea is that when the audience have subscribed they will recieve a log in name and password which they can then use to log into the home page:

The home page will then be used for news, events, for downloading past email packs, vouchers, playlists, wallpapers etc.

It would also be cool to have a gallery on the front page so that members can upload and share their pictures of their evenings in- we could make the themes into competitions so that the pascks become desirable/collectable???

YCN: Email Pack

The next stage in our project is to design the email packs that will be downloaded. Dominique and i were split as to how much content to put into the pack. I wanted to put in alot where as Dominique wanted to keep it to possibly 1 or 2 sheets. We decided to go with 7 pages in the end: a front cover, contents page, welcome page, themed page (for competitions), events page to tell people of upcoming Bollocks To Poverty gigs - [they have a tour so this would be an ideal platform to advertise these events], a vouchers page and a subscription page to encourage more members. Although this may seem a lot, it is the first email pack so i felt a welcome page was necessary- obviously in future content there will be less information. I also thought that if the client did not want to download all 7 pages then a quick sheet would be available which would cram all the info onto 1 downloadable pdf document.

YCN: All about the detail

I have been working on some vector drawings this week for my YCN ad campaigns. I found a design with some patterns i really liked which i then traced in illustrator. I also had a go at drawing some pints, a heart and a five pound note. Although they make up a small part of the design, its the details that count! Plus, now i have these vector images saved which i can use in other projects!!

YCN: Ad Campaigns

The ad campaigns have now been completed!! We have used the tag line "Feel, Good, Give" and a similar background and style throughout all the campaign posters so that they can be easily linked to promote the awareness of Just Stay In.

Art & Copy

Check out this trailer for the film Art and Copy- looks good......

ART & COPY is a powerful new film about advertising and inspiration. Directed by Doug Pray, it reveals the work and wisdom of some of the most influential advertising creatives of our time.
‘A deeply fascinating movie…you’ll probably never be able to look at commercials and ads the same way again.’

YCN: What we're trying to get across...

So what we're trying to portray in our campaign is feeling good about giving- one of the concepts that the brief outlines is that they want us to stay away from evoking guilt in the message to give, so instead Dominique and myself want to try and put a sense of comparison in our ad designs i.e breakdown the cost of £5 and show how much it is worth to an average 20-25 year old in England compared to its worth to a person in a third world country.......

YCN: Ad campaigns: Ideas, branding, ideas, branding.......

Searching the rich mediums of the internet and print media, i have made a short list that any good ad campaign should include at least one of:

1. A WORD HOOK
2. A CHARACTER HOOK
3. A REPEATABLE THEME
4. A CONSISTENT BRAND LAYOUT

I like the idea of using subtle links in print ad campaigns such as using similar techniques such as colours and tones as well as illustration techniques and photographic techniques, brand identities as well as subconscious meanings and ways of getting messages across to the observer- one of the best examples of using these techniques i have found is the WWF:

YCN: Just Stay In

So we've been working on the concept identity and this is the finished logo- we've learnt that its important to give a concept a name in terms of brand marketing and awarness. We are designing a number of media concepts from ad campaigns to a mock web site and so however diverse the designs are, we will be able to link them all by adding the design logo. That's the idea anyway!!

The idea behind the logo.......


We wanted the font to be clear and to tie in with the house design- therefore we wanted to stay away from anything script or freehand. We also wanted the design to not feel too juvenile or conformative- the style we went for was bold clear and went well with the house design we had previously created. We added lots of colour within the windows of the house to represent the fun in staying in. Becuase of the amount of colour within the windows of the house we felt that by adding colour to the type would over complicate the logo and take the focus away from the house. We also thought about the positioning of the text and went for a staggered layered layout so that the logo felt centered. We initially thought about replacing the n in the "In" with the house but felt it looked better as the a in "Stay" as it was more of a focal point. We went for a drop shadow effect to give a sense of volume. Finaly we added a dashed rounded corner border to give the logo status- this dashed border is also found on the actionaid website and so links the concept with the charity.

YCN Awards

For our new assignment we have been given the task of choosing a brief from the YCN awards. The YCN Student Awards are based around a collection of live creative briefs, written each year by partnering brands, charities and other organisations. http://student.aisforawards.org/

We were also asked to work in pairs; i have teamed up with Dominique Gervais. We decided to work together because we felt we both had different qualities that would contribute to the project. Dominique has a lot of photographic experience and i am confident with creative software. I was also impressed with Dominiques' earlier project and felt we had ideas that would compliment each other.

Our first step was to chose the brief we felt we could both work on. Initially we were interested in the British Music Experience because we are both keen music fans and we felt the brief was exciting and creative. However, we both felt that perhaps this project would not stretch us creatively and so we wanted to step out from our comfort zone.

Eventually, we decided to work on the Action aid brief. http://student.aisforawards.org/briefs/view/action-aid/

The bases of the brief is to present an idea that will encourage the 20-25 year old demographic from the "Bollocks to Poverty" followers to donate £5 a month by evoking a positive message as opposed to guilt.

Our initial thoughts were to create an ad campaign with a sense of humor and so we had the idea of creating poster advertisments with the message of "heart in the right place"- we would photograph situations where people thought they were doing a good deed but with a sense of irony e.g. a person would give all of his clothes to a homeless person on the street, in the rain, but the clothes would not fit- the tag line would read; Alternatively..... you could donate £5 a month to action aid.

We dismissed this idea because we felt this concept would raise awareness however the brief asks how we would encourage donations.

After a few "thought showers", we came up with the concept of encouraging the demographic to stay in one night a month and save money that can go towards a £5 monthly donation. Although we did not want to rebrand Bollocks to Poverty, we wanted the concept to have its own identity. The concept name we decided on was Just Stay In. We decided that our project would include an ad campaign, an email pack and a mock website.

ink-d

Stumbled across this wicked little gallery in Brighton today called inkd www.ink-d.co.uk- it has loads of really cool prints and at the mo they are exhibiting portarait work- one of the artists i really liked was MissBugs- check out his stuff its amazing

1950's Poster Project- Final Prints

Finally finished my three designs for my first assignment at College. The brief was to represent the noe-retro history of a piece of consumer technology from the 50's. I chose the compact record player. The first is influenced by an illustration i found on deviant art with the main image formed by text- i actually used illustrator to create this image and when i highlighted all layers, the image turned multicolored- this was a cool accident that i decided to keep as the them of the design. The second design is in the style of Pop Art and i actually scanned in my towel to use as the earth!!- cool texture!! I think this design is the most aesthetically pleasing but does not stick to the brief as much as the third poster. The third and final poster i have submitted as the main concept. It was heavily influenced by the International Typographic Style that originated in the 50s and i think it makes for a good information poster- let me know what you think!!

Beautiful Losers Screening @ Prescription Art Gallery

Went to a screening of Beautiful Losers last night (thanks to Nats for letting me know about it). If you haven't seen it yet i highly recommend you get a copy now!! Its a fantastic documentary on the humble beginnings of many well know creative urban types in and around New York over the last 20 years and a great insight into their thoughts and aspirations.

Projected animation event in Brighton Saturday 24th

Walking through the Botanical gardens on Sat 24th, on my way to work and i came across a projected image on the huge gateway entrance to the Pavillion grounds- it was part of the animation event held by BANG and it was an unexpected surprise- nice on guys!! Defo in my diary for next year!!

Lateset WAD mag sep-oct-nov 09

Got my latest issue of WAD few weeks back- great issue as always, love this magazine, so much to read and i love the fact that its in French and English- i would defo recommend subscribing- check out their site, its really good too
http://www.wadmag.com/wadmag/
Particulaly like the article on the Reebok Pumps- amazing invention and great shoes- PUMP UP THE JAM!!!

Fabrica Gallery Brighton 17/10/09

Visited the Fabrica gallery today in Brighton for the first time- i like that it is in a chapel, it makes for an interesting atmosphere! The exhibition on at the moment is by Tina Gonsalves and is named "Chameleon". Chameleon it is explained "highlights how often we are on the threshold of trying to make sense of each other and how we search for meaning and authenticity through balanced codes of expressions, dialogue and body language".

The images of the faces are projected onto suspended canvases and therefore give the impression that they are floating in the room. The faces appear to be sleeping or resting between emotions. I enjoyed moving around the room and watching the different expressions on the faces as they are played out. It gave me a sense of voyeurism, that i was at times intruding on someones personal state of emotion- I was also imagining the situations they were asked to react to. It was strange with no sound but added to the tone and emotional ecology of the gallery space.

Brighton Pavilion Museum with my Design Group

Today we visited the Brighton Museum!! Lots of interesting facts and figures- i especially liked the history of Brighton post war and the Mods and Punks section!!

Group Poster Project 13/10/09

My group worked on the concept of the Barcode. We took into consideration the history of the barcode and how the method of identification has developed through the last 50 years- Barcodes are used on practically every commercial item to track and record for stock reports- we used the idea that barcodes represented identity and in our poster we showed how a persons life and their possessions are "branded" and therefore connected- in the poster we scanned items that an everyday person would posses and link them to the central figure through the stripes on the design of the barcode- we tried to convey that most things can be branded with a barcode, from a packet of crisps, to a driving licence, to a pet and even used as a fashion design in the form of a tattoo. We have also included in the design of the suite, a bar code pattern made from newspapers which represents mass media identification- on top of which we put some information on the history of the barcode and what we were trying to achieve in the poster- we also used a font that felt synonymous with the bar code numbers. Let me know what you think!!

Independant Art House: Coachwerks

Was invited to attend the Coackwerks studio tonight in Hanover, to watch several visual and audio performances- great little place, full of character and charm. I highly recommend it, good for inspiration and broadening the mind.

1950's Poster Project

The 1950s were the age of the consumer. The post-war boom brought massive changes in the home; it was out with the old and in with the new.

The project brief is to design a poster that presents the evolution of an item that originated from the 50's through to the present day and even into the future.

I've been looking at graphic artist of the 50's to get a feel of the style they used and their influences.
Raymond Savignac, Bradbury Thompson, Paul Rond, David Klien, David Weidman

Products that have caught my attention are the portable typewriter and the headphones- both have been developed throughout the last 50 years and have taken on may design forms.

The Turner Prize; Art or Arty Farty?

I like the Turner prize, if not for anything else, the reaction it provokes from people who would otherwise not be interested in Art at all. If it gets people talking about art then its a plus for me- i'm thinking of entering his year....my idea is to run around a room (posibbly naked) with a bucket on my head....now all i need to do is come up with a reason why???????

Does originality exist?

In my opinion, originality can be classed as a new concept or a new theory that has never been seen or explored before, but it then depends on what you are applying the term "originality" to and how loosely you apply it - if you question the originality of a design concept, you must question the influence the design has had and why the designer has chosen that design. If you look at the history of a product or design, you can more often than not trace its roots to the first time the product was invented and built, which you could then argue is the original concept, but if you were to look at the very first design you should look at the influence the designer took from their own experiences. I feel originality can only exist through influence- but does this mean originality doesn't exist at all.......?