continuation

Into the final year, I've decided to continue on with this idea.
New documentation of my thesis process with be posted here.

thoughts after the final

From my first idea to the last idea, my thesis concept has refined based on much research and user testing. At first I only knew my project will be about designing 3D creatures and make them believable. Through my discovery of a new field of research called chimeric experimentation and my encounter of the Discovery Channel series titled Alien Planet, I started shifting my 3D creatures towards the science direction. Thus I came up with the idea of creating a science lab that concentrates in creating new breeds of human that are part animal. Although this was an interesting idea and had provoked curiosity from many other people, I got carried away by the social and environmental issues which were not completely my interest. Thus, I decided to not lock myself into the laboratory idea and just focus on character creation with an intended approach from a scientific point of view.

I think this pre-thesis class was a very productive experience. I have developed my general and broad idea into one that is much more specific and coherent. Considering the final presentation, I believe I did a satisfactory job. By stating my elevator pitch first, I gave a clear idea of what my thesis project will be. Then I presented my inspirations and precedents, followed by a detailed example of a piece in my project and what I would like to accomplish in the future. I tried to engage the audience with adequate visual aides and minimum text. And in return, I had received many helpful comments and critiques, including new suggestions such as relating to comical characters, thinking about the need for hyper-realistic creatures, and using exactly what animals. Although I still need to specify the direction to which I will take my project, I feel that I have gained enough help to assist me in making the decision next semester.

I think I am in a good position now in terms of preparedness to go into next year. I have the urge to stay with this idea for my thesis project because I am interested in both the technical and conceptual aspects. I will take my current idea and further develop it into a more solid concept, following by the actual production of the project.

new elevator pitch

For my thesis, I will create a series of hyper-realistic hybrid humanoids and explore the possibility of adding animal features to the human body.

My thesis is about approaching characters creation from a scientific point of view. The final permanent presentation will be a website that contains all the information about these creatures. The thesis presentation will be an installation that mocks a scenario inside of a science lab.

final presentation

Here is the power point presentation for the final.

sketches of tortoise man embryo

Here are some sketches of the embryonic stage of the tortoise man. The drawings are based on Ernst Haeckel's drawings.

During the 4^th week of the fertilized embryo, also the phylotypic stage, all vertebrates look the same. Humans, turtles, chickens, fish. And it is during this period we injected giant tortoise genes into te embryo.

And then for the next months, it developed into a form that is more identifiable. And instead of growing into what normal babies would, it had some tortoise features, like the shell, the tail, and the shape of the head.Then it leaves the embryonic stage and reaches the fetal stage, which is from the 9^th week to until the baby is born.

The 40th week is what the infant looks like:

This is when he is one year old:

This is when he is two years old:

baby turtles

Here are some images of turtle and tortoise embryos I found on the internet.

from the embryos

Becuase I want my creatures to be more plausible, I have decided to reaserch on the stages in which babies are born. Then, I will create the creatures from their embryonic stage and morph them into their grown up stage.
Here is a representation of vertebrate embryology drawn by a well known evolutionary biologists, Ernst Haeckel. Although there has been some questions about the authenticity of these drawings, I think I will focus more on the visuality and less of the sciences.

idea for the thesis show installation

Since I have decided to not do a website for my thesis, I have to think about other ways to present my work. Here is an idea:

I am sticking with the concept of creating a lab. However, the lab has experienced a tremendous event so that it is now deserted. I will decorate a table to make it resemble a desk used in the lab that has been left unattended for a long time. It will be dusty and full of spider webs. On the desk, there will be a bunch of binders lying around. These binders will contain lab reports on the successful creations of part human and part animal creatures with detail informations and illustrations. There can also be photos of unsuccessful examples. There will also be a computer screen present. The computer will loop a clip of mock news reports on the creatures that gets interrupted by an unknown events and lost signal. There can also be spot of blood to show that something has happened here in the lab.

By doing an installation like this, I have created a story while incorporating my characters in a logical manner. It can also be very interesting to look at.

But there can also be problems. How can I convince people to approach my installation and not mistaken it as a random desk? How can I showcase my characters and make people pay attention to the characters?

Special thanks to Nancy Wei for helping me to come up with this idea~~^_^

some sketches for the tortoise guy

These are the sketches for a version of the tortoise guy from four views:

This guy looks really old and sad. I'm not sure if I like how it looks more turtle than human. I will make the next set of sketches look more human-like.

Here are some possible information about this guy:

Name: Turtleman
Height: 6’3”
Weigh: 323 lbs

Description:
-Head and limbs are covered with scale
-Half of a shell can be seen on the right side of the body
-No teeth

Facts:
-vegetarian
-in stage of hibernation when surrounding temperature drops below 34 degree Fahrenheit
-head can be pulled into the shell for protection
-maximum speed can be reached is 0.23 mph

Personality:
Reclusive, shy

creature #1: tortoise guy

I began doing some research for the characters that I will be creating.
I started off with the turtle or more specifically, the giant tortoise.

image from http://ladywildlife.com

Reason for creation: to raise human's life expectancy.
The giant tortoise is the longest living vertebrate on earth. The oldest one on record is the 255 year Adwaitya. Their average age is above 150 years old.

Secrets to long life:
-they can survive for very long periods of time without water or food.
-low energy requirments, it doesn't take much for them to live.
-low metabolism.
-they move extremely slow or can go for very long periods without moving.
-they are very large.
-they have an armored shell for protection against enemies.
-they have natural protection from predators because of theri living habitats(isolated tropical islands in the Pacific and Indian oceans).
-they need to live longer in order to reproduce since it's hard for them to reproduce on a regular basis in the unpredictable or harsh environments that they live in.

Although these are logical reasons for tortoise to have high life expectancy, we cannot make a definite conclusion that a tortoise can live up to 255 years old because it moves slow or because it has a shell. Thus, if we make a person slow or add a shell to him, it does not mean he will live over 150 years scientifically.
However, since no one really knows what would happen if a human cells and giant tortoise cells are combined together, I can still make belief that a part human and part giant tortoise creature can live longer than normal human beings.

-

thoughts after the midterm

Most comments I have received from the midterm were concerning about the final delivery of my project. Specifically speaking, many were more interested in the lab itself instead of the creatures. Some were drawn to the social and environmental impacts that I had proposed. Some had suggested making the form of my lab somewhat resembles Area 51 or placing the lab within US territory instead of on a remote island. However, others had reminded me that the essence of my project is about character creation and questioned me about my true interest. Honestly speaking, I am far more interested in creating these creatures than constituting the social and environmental impacts. However, in order to make the existence of these creatures plausible, I need to have a solid background and context within which to place these creatures. The suggestions on the format of the lab were extremely useful.

I am also scratching the idea of the secret website. The web itself suggests freedom to gather and exchange information. This completely contradicts the secrecy of the lab. Thus, I think the web will only become a way for me to archive my actual thesis presentation.

Right now, I am still in the process of finding the best way to connect the creatures. I still believe the idea of the lab is a very interesting way to bring together all the creatures under one context, but i really do need to make it more concrete.

midterm

Here is the power point presentation for the midterm.
Here is the whole presentation in written form including detailed explainations of each slide.

concept proposal 3.0

For my thesis, I will predict the results and consequences of chimeric experimentations- a new field of research, with a goal to improve human's lives, that involves the combination of human and animal cells to create hybrid creatures that are part human and part animal- and develope a web-based database for a make-believe secret lab that performs these experimentations. All creatures would be created from my imagination and modeled, textured, and animated in Maya. My challenge is to not only create a detailed profile for these creatures, but to also provide strong evidence, in the forms of composited images and videos, to prove the real existence of these creatures. The ultimate goal is to make people believe that these creatures do exist and to raise the awareness of the possiblity of chimeric experimentations. The technical challenge is to create realistic characters and to make people think that all the 3D characters really do belong in the scene in terms of lighting and their interactions with real objects. The target audience of this project would ideally be people of all ages. However, due to techical limitations I would like my target audience to be teenagers. They have wild imagintions and are also old enough the understand the concept of genetic mutation and chimeric experimentations.

the chimeric experimentation idea

Although scientists have always been attempting to understand and treat human diseases by manipulating human and animal genes, I believe chimeric experimentations can be taken into another direction to advance people's lives.

Each species of living organisms on earth possesses its own adeptness. Mainly developed for the need to survive, these talents and skills are planted in the genes of the living beings. Humans, for example, developed intelligence that surpassed all other living beings on earth and helped them advanced to the top of the food chain. But on the other hand, the homo sapien is extremely weak in the competition of other aspects such as speed and strength.

For example, the fastest land animal, the cheetah, can reach up to a speed of 70 mph compare to the 20 mph human record. The strongest animal, the rhino beetle, can lift 850 times its own weight compare to the human record of 20 times.

Thus, is it possible to insert cells from a cheetah to human embryos and create humans that can run at 70 mph or add genes of a rhino beetle to human embryos and create the strongest human ever?

Taken this idea further, by mixing the genes of the animal with the longest lifespan, a Madagascar radiated tortoise that is at least 188 years old, with human genes, is it possible to raise the human lifespan to above 150 years?

In addition, if we combine genes of fish and birds with human genes, can we create humans that can breath underwater and fly in the sky? This would create new possibilities so that humans could live in underwater towns and villages located on cliffs or at high altitude. This might actually alleviate the problem of lacking available resources and living habitat in the future due to overpopulation.

Thus, in a sense, chimeric experimentations, that combine human and animal cells to create hybrid creatures that are part human and part animal, might be legitimately claimed to be performed for the sake of humanity's well being.

However, the questions asked by Jeremy Rifkin still stands.
Would such creatures enjoy human rights and protections under the law?
Would they be considered as human at all?
Would they be able to live normal lives without under constant surveillance?
Is it possible for them to mate with creatures from another species?
If it is, then would such a creature be able to mate with a human?
Then come the question: Would society allow inter-species conjugation?
Will they be forced to perform tasks that are dangerous to human?

Also, are they suitable to interact with the mass population in general?
How would normal people react to their strangeness?

Special thanx to ZZ for helping me to come up with the idea~~^_^

the chimeric experimentation inspiration

Chimera, a monster in Greek mythology that had a lion's head, goat's body, and serpent's tail, has given name to a new field of research called chimeric experimentation, or the combination of human and animal cells to create hybrid creatures that are part human and part animal.

Ever since human technology has allowed, scientists have been eager to create chimeras for the sake of what they claim to be humanity's well being. The reason for chimeric experimentations are always to understand and treat human diseases so that humans can live healthier and better lives.

In 2003, Chinese scientists at the Shanghai Second Medical University successfully combined human cells with rabbit eggs and the first reportedly human-animal chimeric embryos are created. This suggested a new way to produce human embryonic stem cells which many scientist hope to use eventually for treating disease.
USAToday.com:Rabbit eggs used to grow human stem cells

In 2004, researchers at the Mayo Clinic created pigs with human blood flowing through their bodies, which believed by many scientists to have possibly created a new model for understanding AIDS.
Mayo Genomics Researchers Observe Genetic Fusion of Human, Animal Cells -- May Help Explain Origin of AIDS

In 2005, Dr. Irving Weissman at Stanford University in California inserted human nerve cells into mounse fetuses and created mice that were one percent human, hoping to investigate how human brain cancers form.
Online NewsHour:EXTENDED INTERVIEW:IRVING WEISSMAN

There are no chimeras known to live past the embryonic stage. Thus, no one really know the exact appearance of a fully grown hybrid. However, what if scientists do succeed in creating fully grown part human and part animals creatures that are able to think like humans and are able to communicate with humans?

Most people do believe the experiments are unethical and do worry about the moral and legal status of such creatures. In the essay, "Scientists Busy Combing Human And Animal Cells to Create Hybrid Creatures," written by Jeremy Rifkin, the social impact of chimeric experimenation is clearly stated. Some of the questions he raised are:
Would such creatures enjoy human rights and protections under the law?
Would they be considered as human at all?
Would they be able to live normal lives without under constant surveillance?
Is it possible for them to mate with creatures from another species?
If it is, then would such a creature be able to mate with a human?
Then come the question: Would society allow inter-species conjugation?

Finally, there is the question:
Are scientist trying to play god and create new species?

personas

Karen is a 2o year old design student studying advertisement. She loves to watch animated films and her most favorite one is Finding Nemo. She also enjoys reading science fiction books as well as trillers. Two of her all time favorite authors are Orson Scott Card and Dan Brown. She lives in an apartment by herself and is hoping to find a roommate. Because she lives very far from her school and needs to travel by subway, she always carries her ipod video with her at all time to keep herself entertained. She also loves shopping and hanging out with her friends.

Jane is a 15 year old high school sophmore who loves animals. She likes reading about them, watching documentary about them as well as going online and search about animals. She loves to draw and draws mainly animals. Her greatest wish is to open a zoo by herself. Her favorite subject in school is biology.

example

This is a very rough example of how the database would work. Each type of creature will have a page dedicated to it. A turntable would clearly show the appearance of the creature. Detailed information would be listed, including name, type, elements combined, height, weight, strengths, weakness, and etc. Evidence of the sightings of the creature would also be provided.

concept proposal 2.3

For my thesis, I would like to develope a database, in the form of a website, of genetically mutated human beings(hybrid humanoids). All creatures would be created from my imagination and modeled, textured, and animated in Maya. My challenge is not only to create a detailed profile for these creatures, but to also provide strong evidence, in the forms of composited images and videos, to prove the real existence of these creatures. The ultimate goal is to make people believe that these creatures do exist and to present a preview about the consequences of genetic mutation. The technical challenge is to create realistic characters and to make people think that all the 3D characters really do belong in the scene in terms of lighting and their interactions with real objects.
The target audience of this project would ideally be people of all ages. However, due to techical limitations I would like my target audience to be teenagers. They have wild imagintions and are also old enough the understand the concept of genetic mutation.

some inspirations

Here are some predicted images of extraterrestrial creatures and videos of interviews with professionals on the existence of aliens. Alien Planet on the Discovery Channel.
Alien Planet

And some amazing composited work of crossbreds in a photoshop contest.
Surf and Turf (all images are copyright protected>_<)

concept proposal 2.2

Based on my last proposal(2.1) and the sketches, I realized that the aliens that i was referring to resembled more like genetically mutated animals and humanoid creatures. Thus, I've came across a great dilemma of choosing among three types of creatures to create a database:

1. Extraterrestrial creatures (creatures in a form that cannot be found on earth)

pros

• alot of room for creation
• many precedents to learn and study from
• easier for people to believe since the knowledge of outer space is equally unknown to everyone and alien encounters are being reported everywhere
  

cons

• harder to rig and animate since they usually do not follow normal movements.
  
• there is the limitation of people's perception on what aliens should look like
  
• no exact boundary; harder to start (aliens can take any form, what should i start with?)
  
• they are just seen in too many places

2. Genetically mutated animals (crossbreds of animals, insects, and plants on earth)

pros

• very fun to create
• ample references from life (images of animals, insects, and plants)
  
• easier and faster to create when the result can be viewed quickly (throw a rhino's head on a shark's body, there goes a creature)
• undesirable results can also be eliminated quicker
  

cons

• some people might say "what the heck are these retarded looking things?"
  
• harder to rig and animate due to their abnormal anatomy(this can also be positive since I can just make up the way they move)
  

3. Humanoid creatures (hybrids of animals, insects, and plants in the form of human beings)

pros

• plenty of room for inspiration
• I've always been more interested in animating human bodies
• not as hard to animate since they usually have human movements. (not that it's easy to animate humans, it's just that references of human movements are much easier to obtain).

cons

• less freedom to create since the result has to resemble a human. (this might have a positive aspect since I have given myself this limit and can just start from a human shape)
  
• much complicated to model a human.
  

I'm now leaning more towards the latter two. Any suggestions or comments are extremely welcomed.

sketches

Instead of creating aliens in the forms that most people are used to see, my aliens look more like biologically manipulated animals. I tried not to combine only features from a mammal with another mammal, i mixed and combined features of all living beings, including mammals, reptiles, insects, as well as plants to form strange creatures.
For example, i combined the head and legs of a ostrich, with a cactus as the body, and a rat tail.


I also thought about creating humanoids, combining the human body with elements of other living beings. The following is an example of combining the human body with elements of a bee.

concept proposal 2.1

Breaking News!! Aliens Found In New York!!

An account of alien encounter has been reported in Queens, New York by a 17 year old teenager this morning. The teenager, who wishes to remain anonymous, claimed to have waken up by a chirping sound in the room and woke up to see a tiny birdlike creature standing in the middle of her room. Wanting to take a closer look, the teenager stood up, but the creature took off immediately, exiting the room and was never seen again. The teenger stated," It just flew right out of my door. Not really high, but it really did fly. Actually it was kind of cute. Kind of looked like a bird, but I definitely saw a rat's tail." A various group of scientists, including the renowned genomic scientist Dr. Andrew Hoover, are now looking into the matter.

concept proposal 2.1

For my thesis, I would like to construct a register of alien encounters on earth. I would create a series of reports of alien encounters and provide strong, credible evidence, in the forms of photographs and videos, to support them all. Three-dimensional characters would be created in Maya and brought into footage and photos shot in the real world to be composited in AfterEffect. The ultimate goal is to make people believe those encounters are real. However, the true challenge is to make people think that all the 3D characters really do belong in the scene in terms of lighting and their interactions with real objects.

The target audience of this project would ideally be people of all ages. However, due to limitations to attain footage of big scenes, all the alien creature would be relatively small in size and more adorable in appareance. Thus, the age of the target audience would be younger. The setting of each scene will also be small in scale, such as under a bed or on a desk.

precedence

Ever since the existence of 3D computer-generated imagery, people have strived to develope realistic life-like characters that naturally blend into life action movies. And 1993, Jurassic Park set new standards for visual effects and digital compositing, showcasing amazing full-motion CGI dinosaurs that awed not only audiences but also pros in the visual effects industry.

VFX HQ: The Lost World: Jurassic Park

As time goes by, technologies used in the industry as well as people's experiences and skills have greatly improved. And the result: the creation of more and more extrodinary CGI characters. Here are some of my favorite ones in recent years:

The Dragon in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

The dragon in the 4th Harry Potter movie captured all my attention when i was watching the movie. The textures, the lightings, and the movements are all so realistic. The interactions among the dragon, Harry and the enviroment are so precise and plausible to the point that it really isn't hard to believe this Hungarian Horntail really does exist.



to be continued...

elevator pitch (1st attempt)

My thesis is about bringing a group of 3D fantasy characters to the real world and predict the way they would interact with people and objects on earth through a series of images or a short composited film. The goal is to make the appearance of the 3D characters as well as their actions compelling yet plausible.

prototyping definition

pro·to·type:
–noun

1.	the original or model on which something is based or formed.

2.	someone or something that serves to illustrate the typical qualities of a class; model.

3.	something analogous to another thing of a later period: a Renaissance prototype of our modern public housing.

4.	Biology. an archetype; a primitive form regarded as the basis of a group.

–verb (used with object)

5.	to create the prototype or an experimental model of: to prototype a solar-power car.

prototyping.Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1).Random House, Inc.

In other words, building a prototype is a way to test out a grand-scale project before starting the actual production of the project. By creating a rough representation of the project, designers can quickly test the project and discover problems that need to be solved.

To prototype for my thesis, I will set the style in which all my characters will be created. I will also illustrate examples of my characters as well as testing out the effect of bringing them into real-life footage.

concept proposal 1.1 (rough)

The goal of my thesis is to create a 3D fantasy world. Characters and sceneries will be created with 3D software. Profiles of the characters will be created. Sceneries and architectures will be depicted. The final piece might not necessarily be an animation but it would be a series of pieces that best illustrates this world.

Another idea for my thesis is to create a piece that combines both the real world and a 3D fantasy world. 3D characters will be created in Maya and brought into footage shot in the real world. The aim is to make people believe that all the 3D characters really do belong in the scene in terms of lighting and their interactions with real objects.