The courses last project was an eleven second long piece of animation, focused on expression and lip synchronisation and although I found it engaging and mostly fun, (you always get to a point where you would rather be doing anything else than draw, then you get over it) I didn't want to do the same thing again.
To that end I though I'd try my hand at a flight sequence. This would enable me to both show some emotional acting as well as more acrobatic-centric animation. To that end I came up with the following premise:
A Thief gets chased over the rooftops of a renaissance town by a Monster, after disturbing said guardian of a treasure trove he found in an attic.
After some more thought I expanded this idea into a rather much longer script that you can read after the jump, should you be interested.
Don't touch that!
Written
by
Alexander Staufenberg
08046654
for AA2_D01_2010
26/01/2011
SCENE ONE
FADE IN:
INT. loft of wonders
This loft would look like any other medieval storage space, save that this one is stuffed with riches beyond most people’s wildest dreams. Crowns and piles of Gold vie for the viewer’s attention. Of notable mention is a curious patina of cracks in the brickwork on the far left of the room, maybe resembling an eye and part of a hideous face if you squint at it just right, as well as a beautiful, jewel-encrusted egg on a pedestal almost in the center of this wondrous place.
CAMERA PANS LEFT TO RIGHT over to a jutting out piece of wall. Two hands wrap themselves around the edge of the Wall. JERRY, the thief, slowly eases his way around the corner, scanning the room.
CUT to CLOSE UP on thief's face. As he Surveys the room his eyes light up when he spots the egg.
REVERSE ANGLE LONG SHOT on the egg upon its pedestal. It gleams in the light.
CUT TO MIDSHOT In one fluid movement the thief comes into shot. He studies the egg from multiple angles, both assessing its worth and checking for any hidden traps or alarms. Having satisfied himself that all is safe the Thief prepares to swipe the egg off the pedestal. Jerry triumphantly lifts his newest acquisition into the air, marveling at its beauty. Behind him the cracks on the wall behind the thief’s back that look like an eye reveal themselves to be, in-fact, an eye. THE MONSTERS EYE, focused in the mid-distance at first, opens with an expression of puzzled startlement that someone would actually be stupid enough to disturb its slumber.
CUT to OVER THE SHOULDER SHOT on Monsters eye, dirty on front of thief. The giant eyeball swivels around to find the thief in his pose of victory. FOCUS on Thief. Hearing movement behind a look of growing concern gradually develops on the Thief's face. He slowly turns toward the eyeball behind him.
CUT to LONGSHOT on Monsters eye and Jerry. As soon as the Thief spots the eyeball, his eyes widen. His expression changes to one of forced cheeriness. He quickly replaces the egg, and brushes over the top of it with a hankie he yanks from his pocket. He turns back toward the eye and grins nervously at it, his hands crossed behind his back. The Monsters pulls its eye away from the hole in the wall leaving it empty. Jerry wonders where it went. The eye is replaced by a large mouth full of teeth. The thief’s expression of alarm barely has time to be recognized before it and a sizable amount of the interior are whipped away by the wind of the beasts roar. After recovering from the aftereffects of nearly getting knocked of his feet the thief turns tail and heads out of the loft door behind him.
SCENE TWO
FADE IN to EXTREME LONG SHOT on rooftop panorama, scene is back-lit by giant full moon. The Thief Bursts through the door into open air. Registering that he is about to fall he flails his arms wildly. Jerry reaches for a cargo rope, suspended off a beam above him. He uses it to swing himself onto the other side of the narrow ally. As he rolls upright he overshoots the small bit of flat roof he landed. As a result of which Jerry falls down to a slightly lower level.
CUT TO MIDSHOT on Jerry. Jerry holds the crouch he landed in. He checks the roof in-front of him to find a path on which to escape. The thief then speeds off in a continuation of his flight. Behind him one can hear the monster braking through the side of the building. The thief checks over his shoulder fearfully. He covers his head and scrunches up his shoulders in anticipation. Bits of debris rain down on Jerry from off screen.
CUT to LONGSHOT on roof with chimney-stacks. Thief Stumbles up a short bit of roof using his arms to gain speed. He reaches a couple of chimney-stacks at the top of this incline and vaults over them. Jerry uses his momentum to slide down a short incline on the other side.
CUT to LONGSHOT on roof ledge and next ally with high wall on other side. The thief slides down the side of the roof, one foot outstretched to catch the gutter at its end. He braces himself in the gutter and in one fluid motion crouches low, using the momentum and compressed energy in preparation for a jump across this second ally.
CUT ExTREME LOW ANGLE
Scene three
EXTREME LOW ANGLE from bottom of ally to the gap between the house roof and the window on the opposite wall. The thief throws himself across the ally, aiming for a window on the other side. Just before he hits he curls himself into a ball in order to protect his eyes and crashes through to the interior of the attic.
CUT TO BLACK
Scene four
FADE IN to CLOSE UP of wall / Jerry's head. Jerry’s head comes into shot from bottom of screen. He is on hands and knees. He shakes off the slight befuddlement after his impact with the window and quickly looks up, assessing the situation. His eyes narrow slightly and he smirks in a humorless way.
CUT to LONGSHOT of attic, Jerry is in-front of the broken window in the far distance. Apart from the little bit that the Thief is standing on the rest of the floor seems is missing. He takes two big strides across the last two, widely spaced floorboards and grabs on to a rope on the far right wall. Using his momentum and the rope to brace himself. The thief flings himself across the room. Jerry catches a beam that juts out from the room's left hand wall with his right hand. He swings himself under this and kicks off with his feet jumping into the camera. WHIPE to BLACK with Thief's clothing.
Scene five
FADE IN to MIDSHOT on the corner of a wall. The Thief ducks around the corner and presses himself up against the wall. Breathing wildly, his chest heaves up and down. He checks back around the corner he just rounded to find some trace of his pursuer. Finding no such thing his demeanor gradually calms and he breathes a sigh of relief. At this precise moment the Monster's snout edges its way into shot from the top left, behind the thief's back. Its steamy breath gently ruffles the hair on the back of the Thief's head and a deep look of despair slowly creeps across his face as he sags into himself.
CUT to BLACK
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