Graduate Showcase 2006

This year’s Graduate Showcase saw more animated entries than ever before, and just like last year we’ve gathered together the best of them and put them online so you can see them in motion and check out the talents of 2006’s graduates.

All the files are in Quicktime format and a mere handful of megabytes each in size, Either click on the links to view them in your Quicktime player or right-click/Ctrl-click and save them to your hard disk and view at your leisure. Not all of the videos have sound, so don’t panic if you can’t hear anything.

And if you don’t have your copy of this year’s Graduate Showcase yet, don’t miss out! It’s available now, free with the July 2006 issue of Computer Arts.

NAME: Luke Janes
COLLEGE: Portsmouth University
COURSE: BA (Hons) Animation
CONTACT: contact_us@kineticmesh.co.uk

Freebase
“Freebase is based on freefall – a man jumps off a bridge, and from other high places across the city. I was inspired to create this piece by my interest in fluidity of movement and style. I used 3ds Max, After Effects, Photoshop and Premiere, and wanted to create a piece with a cinematic sense.”

NAME: Lina Koutnezsoua
COLLEGE: Portsmouth University
COURSE: BA (Hons) Animation
CONTACT: linakouz@mail.com

A Short With a Twist
“In this short animation, a little dog is excited about life until an accident happens. I have an interest in character animation and narration with a twist.”

NAME: Nicola Valsamakis
COLLEGE: Kingston University
COURSE: BA (Hons) Illustration and Animation
CONTACT: nicky@spitfireuk.net

A Bit o’ Ink
“This piece is about capturing the spirit of the Brazilian martial art Capoeira. It was drawn in pen and ink, which I felt was the best method to use in terms of the look and feel I wanted to achieve.”

Untitled
“A collaboration with Jung Min, the live action aspect of this animation was something I have never done before.”

NAME: Rob Millington
COLLEGE: Salford University
COURSE: BA (Hons) Graphic Design
CONTACT: rob.millington@gmail.com

Cyber Poem
“This project, which introduced me to Adobe After Effects, aimed to transform a piece of text into motion. I took my inspiration from the writer Marshal McLuhan, and his ideas on the negative effects of technology on society.”

NAME: Kit Hown Man
COLLEGE: University of Brighton – City College Brighton and Hove
COURSE: HND Multimedia
CONTACT: titmarlau@mac.com

Personal Ident
“My first 3D animation, created in two weeks. The piece was inspired by Studio AKA’s Pica Towers. I used similar, simple characters, but the colour scheme and narrative were the complete opposite. I wasn’t completely happy with the end result, because I attempted something too complicated for the ten-second time limit.”

NAME: Chris Cooper
COLLEGE: Glamorgan Centre for Art and Design Technology
COURSE: BA (Hons) Digital Video Design
CONTACT: j.bevan@gcadt.ac.uk

Neon VJ
“This is an interesting backdrop, created in After Effects and Photoshop, which I produced for a DJ night in a Cardiff night club. The piece is fully interactive on the night – the user can synch to whatever music is playing.”

NAME: Chris Lewis
COLLEGE: Goldsmiths College
COURSE: BA (Hons) Image and Communication
CONTACT: prscu22@hotmail.com

MTV: Life
“The butterfly seemed the ideal metaphor for this D&AD brief’s tag line, “Music is Life”. The butterflies were made out of speakers to convey a symbiotic relationship, and their movement synchs with many of the music’s frequencies.”

NAME: Jonathan Ball
COLLEGE: University of Glamorgan
COURSE: BA (Hons) Graphic Communication
CONTACT: jonni@fsmail.net

MTV
“The aim of this motion graphics project was to adopt the MTV logo and put it in the context of an ident. I created a world where the characters come to life and pull together to form the MTV logo. The piece was created using After Effects, FlashMX, Photoshop and pens.”

NAME: Emma McNamara
COLLEGE: Glamorgan Centre for Art and Design Technology
COURSE: BA (Hons) Digital Video Design
CONTACT: j.bevan@gcadt.ac.uk

Lost in Translation
“This is a stylistic design for a title sequence for the film Lost in Translation, created using After Effects and Photoshop.”

NAME: Gareth Lloyd
COLLEGE: Glamorgan Centre for Art and Design Technology
COURSE: BA (Hons) Digital Video Design
CONTACT: j.bevan@gcadt.ac.uk

History Channel
“I created this promo for the History Channel to entice viewers to watch a program about the world’s recent history. To create it, I used a combination of After Effects, Final Cut Pro and Photoshop.”

NAME: Neil Gittings
COLLEGE: Glamorgan Centre for Art and Design Technology
COURSE: BA (Hons) Digital Video Design
CONTACT: j.bevan@gcadt.ac.uk

2+2=5
“This graphical piece is a political comment on the recent war in Iraq through the eyes of a creative designer. I used After Effects, Maya and Cinema 4D to create the piece, in which symbolism plays an important role.

NAME: Nick Dacey
COLLEGE: Glamorgan Centre for Art and Design Technology
COURSE: BA (Hons) Digital Video Design
CONTACT: nickdacey@hotmail.com

Fookem Shopmobility Scooters
“This unusual and humorous approach to animation formed the basis of an advert for a new, and very different, kind of shopping trolley. The piece was created and polished using After Effects and Final Cut Pro.”

NAME: Dean Warner
COLLEGE: Portsmouth University
COURSE: BA (Hons) Animation
CONTACT: evatoifund@yahoo.com

Ive
“This 3D computer animation, created using After Effects, 3ds Max, and Premiere, is an advert for a new sound system. My interest in designing objects and character animation inspired me to create this piece, which I believe demonstrates a strong sense of design and good animation editing.”

NAME: Jeff Karrie
COLLEGE: University of Glamorgan
COURSE: BA (Hons) Computer Animation
CONTACT: jefoe@hotmail.com

Blackjack
“I used to work in casino and as a result this piece – Blackjack – was born. I based the character on the casino owner and wanted the general aesthetic to be like Goodfellas meets the Ant Hill Mob. This was my first film, and although I was happy with the look and feel of this animation, I think the actual story could have been improved.”