HOMEWORK: WEEK ONE

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  • And Connor, I'd like Teresa to put up an official thread for homework so she can monitor it and I'll know where to find everything.  I've emailed her and asked again where the thread is.  I've been scrolling through the threads and keep finding new subjects shared by the school and students that pertain to our course.  I'm trying to answer you all but there are SO many threads here that it takes a lot of time for me to keep searching for all of the ones from my students.

    I'm a huge fan of simplification and editing - too much of a good thing can be bad!

    Shannon
  • Dimitar -

    Okay, this is my opinion.  I don't know what the market is like in your country, but having the ability to carve and carve well is a marketable skill.  Off of the top of my head, I can't see why you are not working for scenic departments.  Motion Picture, Theater, Opera sets.  I would try to get a hold of a block of styrofoam and try some carving since that is the standard for media arts vs. actual wood!

    It is relatively easy but it can be a bit expensive.  I'd carve some big pieces, and start approaching companies offering your Art Department expertise.  I also cannot believe that you have no drawing skills!  I want to see your illustrations as well as your sculptures.

    In short, share anything/everything that you want me to assess.  Okay?

    Your work is beautiful, but you are correct, there isn't a HUGE market for pumpkin carving!

    Shannon
  • Completely understandable Shannon, there's a few questions on that thread directed towards you for this week's homework.

    Let me know once you've read them so I can delete the thread (unless Teresa does that)

    Connor
  • Is anyone else having trouble factoring in certain cost of effects in your bid?  I included the creature fabrication in my bid along with the other special makeup effects.  However, I don't have a background in animatronics and was unsure of the cost needed to create these effects and the labor pay rate.  I guess this would be where my X factor comes in? 
  • Hi Julie,
    Just finished submitting my bid, ran across that myself in animatronics, since I don't generally do those. Depends on the type of mechinism you're aiming to create, materials, and finally the labor factor.
    Generally a servo motor for animatronics can range from $20-100+, not including the remote.

    Let me know if you have any other questions, I'd be happy to help with whatever I can :)

    -Connor
  • Hey Everybody -

    If you are going to bid on anything outside of your normal comfort zone, then this is what I would do if I were you: I'd figure how many people I was going to need and for how long.  This is kind of the definition of "man-hours." 

    In other words, "man-hours" are how many hours your labor force will take to get something done.  So, for instance, if you thought that it would take 2 mechanical designers 3 weeks to build your creature, than that would equal 240 "man-hours"
    (2people x 40hours a week x 3weeks = 240man-hours).  So, if on average you are paying say $20 an hour, than you should figure about $4800 in labor.  But we don't
    stop there.

    If they are going to be paid on a invoice schedule, rather than payroll, I'd still add an additional 15% in case of overtime or unexpected trouble.  If your are going to put them on payroll, I'd double the $4800 in my bid to cover payroll tax and worker's compensation insurance. 

    I'll let that sink in a second...

    So if you then have $4800 x 2 = $9600 and you divide it by 3 (to calculate material costs) you would have $3200 (in material costs).  Add that to your labor to figure
    out the mechanical costs of what you are going to do.

    Now, it wouldn't be fair if I GAVE you the answer.  I wanted to give you an example of how you would figure out A number.

    Ask questions here for the time being.  We'll sort the WEEK 2 HOMEWORK thread today.

    Shannon
  • Hi Shannon,  

    CREATURE SKETCH/DESIGN QUESTION
    What is the desired skilled level for sketching out creature forms.  My sketching work doesn't necessarily represent/translate into my sculpt/mold/paint skills.
     
    ~Do you have to be an expert sketch artist to represent & tweak your designs?  
    ~Can you hire someone with a focus in this area?  
    ~Is it okay for your to have roughed out sketches?  
    ~Is it necessary to have formal training to advance these skills?
     
    BTW Thank you for all your help Shannon! Once again, I am grateful to have you as a teacher! You are very clear and share a lot of knowledge in such a short period of time! 
  • Julie -
    You can bid on anything you feel comfortable with whether it is makeup effects, creature effects, specialty props, whatever.
    I'd like you to at least TRY to bid on everything.
    And...AND...IF YOU DON'T FEEL YOU CAN DRAW/DESIGN, then go on the web and
    find images that would REFLECT what you would design and build.

    We had a bit of a hitch this week but let's all get back on track ASAP!  Remember, there really is NO WRONG answer as much as this is an exercise for YOU!

    Do your best and we'll go over everything tomorrow!

    Good luck!

    Shannon
  •   Hi Shannon
    Carving styrofoam is a good idea I keep that in my mind. About working for scenic departments, I`m trying to build a my own bissines but it`s a good idea for developmen. For this class decide to work whit clay and I`m fascinated so let me show ( to everybody) what happend
  • And this is what happend when my dog diceded to help me 
  • ... oh man...
  • Oh no!!! Dimitar, my cats try to help too. But nothing this bad has happened. The sculpt looked really cool so far. The claws or spikes were great. 

    Do you typically work in sculpy? Or do you use Chavant clay ever?
  • edited December 2014
    Thank`s Carmen. Aout th clay i don`t liked very much because it`s easy to sculpt. This clay was given to me befor years when I wanted to go in art universal to pracice, but my drawing skills fucked me. So i decided to used because that I`ve got.
    Post edited by dimitar penchew on
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