Since the last post I have been working through the next two sections while also taking a comprehensive look at the project as a whole. The assets for a Fox in Greece were complete and assembled in After Effects. Next on my list was asset creation for the Japan and America sections. As I got toward the final frames of Japan, I was really curious as to how it would work with Greece. Rather than jumping into creating assets for America, I chose to start assembling things in Premiere.
This was a bit of a detour but a necessary step in the process. It was also a reminder that, “Oh yeah, I still need to re-record all of my voice over.” This was accomplished fairly painlessly with my trusty Shure SM58 into the previously mentioned Focusrite Scarlett. There are plenty of USB mics on the market but the SM58 fit the bill for this. They are great dynamic mics for any purpose and built to last (mine is close to twenty years old!). Some of the clips needed a bit of editing, so the handy Edit Clip in Audition shortcut made for a streamlined workflow. There are still tweaks to be made down the line, removing plosives, de-essing, but the general speed and pacing are there. I had a lot of fun adding effects when the Zeus character is introduced. I turned the pitch down a few clicks and added considerable reverb to create a real “King of the Gods” vocal effect. I’ll return to audio in later stages.
I also put together the intro sequence using a combination of techniques. I wanted to show a real time illustration of my fox character. To achieve this I recorded myself drawing the fox as an Action in Photoshop. This took quite a few attempts but I finally was able to record it cleanly without any errant brush strokes. With the illustration now saved as an Action, I moved over to the OBS broadcaster software. I set it up to record only the Photoshop window I had open, then hit play on the Action. I really like this effect but the intro still needs something. I’ll definitely be revisiting this in the near future. (Clip below is at my original speed. The intro is much faster).
All in all, I’m really enjoying translating the stories visually. In Japan especially, a few parts allowed me to depict the poor souls who had been possessed or enchanted by fox spirits. This victim of fox sorcery had a a particularly tough time.
Enchanted by kitsune
And this young woman underwent the unfortunate experience of kitsunetsuki. Which by all accounts sounds highly unpleasant.
Young woman possessed by a fox
As I finish up the America section, probably the most bizarre story of the three, I plan on doing a zoomed out overview of the project as a whole. This will be a chance to really determine what’s working and what isn’t. I will no doubt cut some parts that have become near and dear to me and add things to make it feel like a cohesive piece. As it stands, I’m happy with the overall visually style and mood of the storytelling, but, as ever, improvements can be made.
One final note, today is Halloween! One of the truly great holidays. This year we will be dressed as Laszlo and Nadja from What We Do in the Shadows. There is no shortage of vampire and bat adornments in our house, and there will be no shortage of Sour Patch Kids and Snickers for Trick-or Treaters.
‘Til next time, wishing you an extra spooooooky All Hallows Eve.
Bat!