After a week and a half since I animated the last scene I’m 75% done with the sound design process. I’m happy I elected to use splice for the majority of the sound effects. Downloading sounds that are already EQed makes everything much easier. Most of the work I’m doing involves bussing different tracks to different reverbs and speaker locations.
Once this is completed I’ll share the full episode with some close friends and put together a short trailer. I think it would be wise to piece together short intro videos for the main characters to build hype for the episodes release. More important than that, I’d like to use the Youtube algorithm to my advantage. Posting regularly for a couple of weeks will increase the likelihood that the cartoon is recommended.
I’m considering splitting the episode up into a few parts. It has a runtime of 28 minutes. I’m undecided about this, but feel I’ll make my final decision based on what will help it receive the most views. Viewers may prefer a 15 minute chunk, but youtube algorithm may favor the longer runtime.
It’s been a joy working with my speakers but I really can’t wait to be done with this. I’d love to work on some music and begin writing a new project. I think it’s equally important to begin work on the second episode immediately, though with one strong caveat.
Future project involving the characters must be produced with far greater efficiency. I will treat what I’ve already created as if they are chess pieces on a chess board. The amount of moves they can make are limited and must always remain within the confines of the board. Even with these limitations, there is an infinite number of combination moves that can be made. By refraining from creating a whole new set of assets I will be able to complete production of a second episode much more rapidly. Entertainment favors minutes of content over quality, and I must keep that in mind if I am to gain viewership and eventually a budget for a live action production.
Hope your week is going well and you keep your nose to the grindstone. Life is empty without purpose, and purpose is empty without strife.
Today is sound design day 1 after finally completing animation for Paramedic Robot ep 1. I spent most of yesterday setting up my new surround sound studio monitors. Once they were placed and plugged in, it took a few hours before I could confidently confirmed that the arrangement would even work. I hope to export one scene today that would fulfill the requirements of both a surround and stereo format. By doing this before I am heavy in the trenches I can avoid costly mistakes later on down the road.
I had the joy and fulfillment of watching the entire episode with Kelly last night. It was awesome to watch her laugh at something I created. You can spend an entire lifetime pursuing fame and fortune only to discover the only opinions that truly matter belong to those who already love you.
I am eager to release the episode in full but here is where I must be wise. It is always a thrill to race toward the finish line but I must begin building a platform. Spending more time on social media, short teasers, and weekly comments are a few steps I can take to ensure an audience is present when it debuts. Building a soundscape will enhance the overall experience and is worth the fraction of time it requires (in comparison to drawing and animating each scene from scratch).
When I began this project I naively thought I could complete one episode each week. Of course at its inception I also believed 1 episode would be 10 minutes. Episode 1 is currently 28 minutes (a 3 act story needs more time. It can be done in 15, but a short film of 5 minutes lives and dies by its gimmick).
I have added 18 minutes to the episode since December. I believe I can create a single scene – from voiceover recording to rendered animation – in 3 days. This means I will need some assistance to create future episodes more efficiently. To have assistance requires money, and to earn money you need an audience. I’m not sure what to make of all this but I know this is reality.
Anyways, I’m excited to FINALLY work with sound today. I hope your Wednesday is equally joyful.
I’ve got 2 scenes left to animate and have 25 minutes fully animated. The process continues to move along faster each day. I have created my final character for the episode, Nurse Becky, which took the bulk of my week. I have to say that created a new character is by far the most time consuming part of the process.
I have some ideas for how I’m going to promote the episode prior to its release. I believe animating a short 1 minute clip for each main character and releasing them as daily youtube shorts will do much to get the ball rolling. I’m going to limit myself to 1 character and one background angle per short.
My final 2 speakers should be arriving in the next two days. This will enable me to begin editing in surround sound. I believe the sound effects and foley design may move very fast. I will be using sound effects from “splice” in order to avoid spending time recording and editing sounds. The fun part is choosing the reverb, delay, speaker placement, and panning for the sounds. These tasks are simple and quick but allow me to be more creative than simply dragging and dropping the sounds into place.
The final part of the project will be adding music. I imagine at most using 1-3 songs for the entire episode. The more important “music” will be sounds that assist emotional transition. If you watch Southpark, there are several musical cues that indicate a scene transition or emotional moment. I hope to design high quality sounds that I can reuse for each episode.
I am very excited about what is to come and even more excited about watching my hypothesis of repeatability play out. When I begin work on the next episode, I will already have 12 main characters fully drawn and programmed. I will have 3 primary locations with a wide variety of camera angles.
I have chosen to make this comedy about private paramedic workers because the setting is relatively simple – each episode will feature the same 3 principle locations and 12 main characters for 90% of it. That means I may only have to create 1 new background and 1 new character each time I set out to create a new show.
Looking forward to the future and I hope you’re doing the same.
I’ve made significant progress this week and have settled on a 23 minute run time for episode 1. I have 20+ minutes fully animated and am now working on the climax.
It’s time for me to get more serious about the marketing and building a sense of anticipation for episode 1. I have been releasing weekly web comics that are generally scrolled over but have nonetheless received 1-7 likes on social media, which in some circles is called “going viral.”
I am convinced youtube algorithm can be successfully maneuvered through purposeful planning. Releasing videos in batches, posting Youtube shorts, and live videos are known methods to attract viewers to your channel. Finding your way into the “suggested” pile is a surefire way to get a long form video viewed.
Starting this week, I plan to begin releasing short 1 minute scenes of Paramedic Robot that have nothing to do with the episode I’m currently working on. They will likely feature 1 perspective, a basic background, and sketch so funny viewers will have no choice but to keep scrolling and forget it ever existed. The key here will be the amount of time required to complete the scene and the amount of viewership this can gain.
I would like to employ the use of a stopwatch during editing at some point in time. I find I can be relatively quick when it comes to backgrounds and the physical actions of animated characters. When it comes to designing watches or more minute (My-nute?) details of a character I am prone to wasting large sums of time until it looks just right. After this first episode debuts, I must make a set of ground rules for myself in order to keep production efficient. Have you ever seen those videos about Middle Eastern bakeries? The workers never stop! They move like clockwork until they are soaked in sweat. That is what it takes to turn a profit in the private sector, and creating a successful film production company should be no different.
*Below is an internal discussion I’ve been having with myself regarding the audio mix. It doesn’t really belong here but I already wrote so I see no sense in deleting it now. Hope you have a wonderful day.
I ordered some new gear recently – a 2 terabyte nvme card, 64 gb of ram, and my first set of studio monitors and a subwoofer. The first two items were necessary so that I could edit on my desktop computer. Since the completion of the last episode of Mountain Cult, I have not had enough room on my C drive to operate any programs. I literally had to juggle programs like After Effects, Adobe Audition, and Ableton Live in order to work with files on a separate drive.
I am determined to complete my set of speakers so that I can edit in surround sound. Unfortunately, that will also require me to order more cables, 2 standing monitor stands, another desktop stand, and a TV stand. It’s not cheap and I do not have enough room for all that equipment. I am willing to work extra shifts for the gear, in fact last week I worked a 36 hour shift to pay for the aforementioned items.
Surround sound – multiple independent streams of audio coming from various speakers. This provides a more immersive environment that allows the listener to hear background noises independent from the dialogue coming through the center front speaker.
Stereo – Sounds are limited to 2 speakers (left and right). A subwoofer may be included to promote frequencies generally at or below 80 hz.
One simple solution that I have all but decided on is to improve my abilities at stereo mixing before ordering the additional speakers. Paramedic Robot will debut on Youtube – which does not support surround sound anyway. Many modern day streaming services do, however, and that is why I’ve been wrestling with doing it in surround (it’s easier to downmix from surround to stereo than vice versa).
Another advantage of working in stereo is that the music we listen to comes from stereo files. This means any songs I create in Ableton may be uploaded as downloadable tracks on a site such as spotify. If I decide to mix the film in surround, I will have to export what is known as “stems” so that I can send different instruments/tracks to the Left Side and Right Side speakers than the Left Front and Right Front.
Ultimately at this point in the game I feel I would be much wiser to mix in stereo. Episode 1 of Paramedic Robot will be lucky to break 1000 views on Youtube. Preparing for the future is generally a smart decision, but in this case I feel the effort will not be worth the reward. One additional component of my consideration is that mixing in surround now will help me mix with more efficiency in the future. I may even able to find work in sound design for a legitimate film with that experience.
I’ve got 20 minutes to write this before I attend a work required class. Not enough time to do anything of significance but maybe I can get something out there.
I hate watching days pass as I continue to work on my current project. As I’ve noted throughout, the belief in what I’m doing for the current episode is based in what it may provide for me in the future. I came to a realization that frequency and quantity of content is a better predictor of success than quality alone. If you make a perfect song as a no name artist, you may not have anyone to give it a listen. Pop stars, on the other hand, will have their bullshit replayed over radio waves until even the non-complicit listeners know the words. Film and novels are no different – there are tremendous stories out there that nobody has ever heard of, and maybe never will.
I think about Van Gogh a lot. We all know he was an insanely talented and tormented artist. But what amazes me most about Van Gogh is his inability to sell a painting. He lived in his mind, constantly improving his craft with a non-stop output of material. But his personality was abrasive which I believe led to a lot of personal rejection. I believe Van Gogh thought that strangers would see the magnificence of his work without having a personal relationship with him. Today’s “influencers” are the polar opposite – they don’t produce a product, they’re personality is the product. For me it is proof that the majority of people value social status over the invisible truths – beauty, love, faith. Today Van Gogh is universally praised as an artistic juggernaut because it is the accepted social norm of a view. In his day, I’m certain the common man would respond to his name with a “Who?”.
All this is to say I believe in my current project because it should enable me to produce more content faster in the future. I can return to making music and include a new track in each episode. I can reuse the characters I have already designed, programmed, and replicated in multiple perspectives. The show itself is about ambulance workers – so I don’t see why each episode shouldn’t include an ambulance and a hospital for 75% of the runtime. That means I can reuse backgrounds, which again promotes efficiency.
The lag I have experienced is related to this repeatedly. Reusable background are created in multiple perspectives, as are the dynamic assets within them (passing vehicles, phones, chairs, desks, etc.). But why design one vehicle in 3 perspectives, when you can simply change the color and create 10 vehicles in 3 perspectives? This same thinking applies to everything. Why create a picket fence for the scene at hand and not save it as a PNG with alpha to be reused later? It’s millions of small tasks like this that drain the day. I do not enjoy any of it but stand by my philosophy.
A few days ago I ordered some studio monitors (aka speakers). Last week I purchased a new focusrite interface that will allow me to mix in surround sound. I am extremely excited about this possibilities this provides. Even if I should start mixing other filmmakers work, that might produce better long term results than spending more hours at the job I currently have, which is unrelated to any of this.
Any way, it’s time for me to head out now. Hope all is well and you find joy with your day.
I’m still working on the animated video regarding admiral byrd, but in the meantime here’s a look at day 3 of production on “Doctor with the Red Houseware”
Doctor with the Red Houseware was filmed over the course of 5 days. I intend to summarize each of the challenges and obstacles throughout the filmmaking process through a series of videos, and this video summarizes day 1.
Some graphics I’ve been used for epoxy coffee mugs. Guess character is a murderer? Hint – I found a dead finch on my porch last week.
Well good morning.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything on any form of social media. The truth is I’ve been busy filming Mountain Cult Ep 5 and in fact only have 1 scene left to shoot. Beside wordpress, I was making a habit of posting “film journals” to my youtube channel. Believe it or not I recorded a new episode of FJ about a month ago – I just haven’t gotten around to editing it.
As a matter of fact I have so much material I’m hoping to edit that it overwhelms me at times ( I want to remaster former episodes by fixing audio issues, send each actor from mountain cult a 1 minute clip for their acting reels, film a youtube “short” everyday, and – unrelated – but I’d also like to try my hand at singing to see if the vocals would improve the songs I’ve put together). The important thing is that I’ve edited much of Episode 5 already. However, it’s been a unique experience after learning so much about audio this year – I never thought that sound mixing would be more time consuming than coloring.
I’ll give you an example – imagine you film a scene on your porch where all that you’re doing is speaking on the phone to an offscreen character. Sounds simple, right? Well that all depends on how involved you’d like to get. If I were to go all out this is what I would do –
A clean take with mic focused on character speaking
A full minute recording of ambient noise with nothing else
A full take that focuses only on the rustling cloth and movements of the character
Focus the mic on any distinct sounds – phone placed on table, phone picked up
Sound of the voice coming through the other end of the phone (an easy improvisation in post, but always sounds better when played in the actual environment)
I think those are enough pertinent tracks to make the scene. When I get to the editing room, I’ll isolate each sound on a separate track – ie, dialogue, sound effects, foley, background noise, special (like editing a normal voice to sound like its coming through a telephone… or cellphone since nobody uses the word telephone anymore)
So now each layer is on a separate track. From here I’ll place audio effects to each track – EQ, highpass filter, dehummer, deesser, and finally mastering. The less effects needed the better. Often Dialogue needs the most. (the better the recording, the less I have to do in the editing room).
Once the sounds are placed I’ll add cross fades and some quiet audio to the start and beginning of dialogue bits. This prevents those sharp, millisecond blips that you hear when an audio level changes dramatically in an instant.
After all the audio is placed, I would import the tracks into ableton. Here I can design a score that is specific to the scene I am editing. It is important during every step of the process to level your clips appropriately – dialogue should always be the loudest, most distinguishable track. I like loud, crisps sound effects (the phone being picked up and placed down). Foley, or the cloth movements, should fit the scene appropriately. In others words the common viewer should not even know that track exists. Ambient noise should also be at a low level, but consistently present. The music volume depends on how important it is to the scene. For something such as this I would keep it at a low volume. I might even sidechain it to dialogue so that it lowers in volume during each moment a character speaks.
After all this is finished, I would focus on panning – or speaker assignment for each layer. Dialogue will be front and center, but the other sounds and noises can be panned to the side speakers. Panning audio is something I still have a lot more to learn about. For example, I am uncertain if it is better to pan most sounds far left and far right, or to settle them closer to the center.
The cool thing about making my own score is that I can pan each instrument separately along the speakers. I am also unsure of where sound effects should be placed – I enjoy panning them according to the object creating them in relation to the visual scene.
My biggest question when it comes to panning is how it effects surround sound. I believe that exporting in 5.1 means that each track will go directly to the speaker it is assigned even if it is not panned. What I am curious about is whether a hard right/left pan makes any change to the speaker it is assigned to. 5.1, for those that don’t know, means that your audio set up includes 1 center speaker, a front left and right speaker, and rear left and right speaker, and 1 subwoofer that plays the low frequency waves (explosions are popular).
The final step for audio would involve leveling it once again. Where will the clip be posted? Youtube, broadcast television, and film festivals each have different leveling specifications. Youtube requires audio that is much louder than the other platforms. The other consideration for this is surround sound – cable and youtube will not support surround sound audio. I believe most film festivals will.
The other major concern for me has to do with kickstarter – I desperately want to offer episode 5 of mountain cult on a DVD. I want it to supply 4k video with surround sound. I’m sure it’s just a few web searches away, but I have some big questions before I can promise this. #1 – can basic DVD-R support 4k and surround sound? #2 – Do I need a special DVD writing drive, or is a simple CD Rom drive capable of writing these specs to a DVD? #3 – Do I export 2.1, 5.1, and 7.1/7.2 to the same disc? Or do I write the most advanced surround sound tracks to the DVD and allow the AV receiver to fold the surround sound according to the viewers audio setup? For example, you can upload a surround sound clip to youtube, but youtube will fold the rear left & rear right speakers so that it is incorporated into the stereo track and plays through front left and right speakers. I believe Youtube supports 2.1 audio, but I could be mistaken.
Anyways, thank you for listening to all this audio gibberish. Definitely not what I intended to write about when I sat down here but I’m glad I got it off my chest. I hope to begin posting stills from my footage soon I’m just too lazy to press the upload button now.
I’d like to make this short and sweet as I just finished my shift and it’s time for me to rest. I made some great improvements to the script last night and feel that it is heading in the right direction.
It’s amazing how easy it is to delete segments of your story after you get some breathing room and realize it is not as perfect as you first thought. I think you make the most progress when you view your product as partially defective and take it back into the shop for repairs.
A lot of highly successful comedies feature an endless onslaught of transitioning meanings. Many scene begin with the anticipation of a character’s actions resulting in something bad that turn into something good. I feel quite certain that the more fluctuation you apply to the events that are unfolding the more intriguing they become. You keep your audience on your feet and your protagonists in a position of uncertainty.
I want every line in my story to add significance. The stakes should continually raise with the threat of danger repeatedly becoming more imminent. The awesome thing about late-stage drafts is that you understand your story more thoroughly and become less concerned with word count. Every dramatic situation you come up with will always have areas of tension, urgency, and conflict. Applying your creative ability to find ways to increase these elements will tighten and escalate your story.
I always like to think in terms of levels when I am doing something creative. As a filmmaker, I find areas of cinema that I feel separate the production quality. You begin by purchasing a camera and audio recording equipment. You get the takes you need, then you edit them into a story. It’s easy to stop there, but learning how to color grade takes you to another level. After that it is tempting to call it a finished production – but learning how to sound mix and improve dialogue with compressors, cross fade, and background noise brings you one level closer to a professional production. After all this is completed you will be tempted to export and publish. But then there are special effects – and often times there are areas in your story that will be more effectively shown with animations (think title sequence at the least, or phone and computer screens, or a burst of blood).
It is the same with writing just as it is with everything else. Each progressive step is not necessarily more difficult, it is simply more laborious to continue applying one improvement after another on a single piece of work. I think of it as “leveling up” because other artists who are working within the same medium are bound to drop off at each of the points I feel are “good enough.” I do believe every story can only be as good as its premise, but even that I am willing to rework if it means the final production will be better. I am never afraid to start from scratch all over again. If I don’t have a good story to tell prior to production, then I do not wish to devote a month or two to telling it.
Now it is time for me to sleep, or as I like to call it, “plot.” I wish you good fortune today in your day’s adventure and hope to have positive news regarding episode 5’s story soon.
Now that Episode 4 has been out and available for close to a month, I’m excited to begin working on Episode 5.
There are some new challenges, however, and as always there is more for me to learn.
I have been contacted by one online streaming service that would like to show my content to their viewers. This deal features the potential for monetization, which is obviously exciting news.
The major dilemma I am facing is that the current episode features soundtracks from Epidemic Sound. Epidemic sound licenses songs from artists to be featured on youtube. I am not permitted to publish my content on other websites without upgrading my subscription. I have been informed that it would cost me $500 a month to purchase this license. I would consider such a business transaction to be a “bad deal.”
I have been in touch with a music composer who is willing to score the episode and am currently considering this option. Taking this avenue would also enable me to publish episode 4 as a video rental on Amazon. Personally, I am thinking I might be better off waiting until episode 5 is complete before publishing on Amazon. My ability as a filmmaker continues to improve and I have large ambitions for the next episode.
Another major concern is the audio of Episode 4. I have written on here before about my shortcomings and obstacles that came with the dialogue featured in Episode 4. I would have to thoroughly clean that up before I posted the content to Amazon. I don’t know if that is possible due to the recording errors that were made during production. Ultimately, I do not want anything coming from TMWproductions to appear amateur as I move to new outlets. It is not about racing to monetization for me. It is about producing a professional product that viewers will enjoy watching. I would feel like a thief if I began making money on a product that is not satisfying for the customer.
Once I make some of these decisions about episode 4, I can begin work on episode 5. I’m going to start by figuring out a location. I would like the majority of episode 5 to take place in a relatively large and open building that I can film in 1-2 days. This will take a ton of preparation and pre-production planning.
In order to finance the film, I will have to return to working more overtime (I have been slacking). I already anticipate purchasing a:
2nd camera to maximize continuation for each take
A better microphone
Lighting Equipment
Something to improve the recording quality of audio. I am completely new to this area of set design and must expand my knowledge.
Any props that will be required.
The two actors I have asked to return have already stated they are willing. I’d be privileged to have the entire cast back for the next episode, however, I prefer to write the script first. I do not wish to request them back only for them to find out I have filmed the episode without them.
Anyways, these are just a few of the things that have been on my mind lately. I’ve spent many a days being lazy and having nothing to do with the creation of future episodes. I am ok with this because once I get started the filmmaking process inevitably takes up all of my free time. One aspect I am looking forward to for the next episode will be fast edits. I have learned so much over the past year that I envision I will move much faster. The great bottleneck in this process will be audio, of course. In episode 5 I fully intend to provide crisp, clear dialogue that will require minimal editing effects. In order to do this I will have a lot to learn before I even start editing.
If you haven’t viewed episode 4 and would like to take a look, feel free to check it out below:
Thomas M. Watt 