Bachelor of Science of Communication Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2023, Media Arts and Studies

"A Man Out of Time" is a an animation piece meant to briefly summarize the history of the fundamentals of animation. This project follows the logic of animation 'eras' as described in Charles Solomon's book, "Enchanted Drawings of Charles Solomon," including the Precursory Era, the Silent Era, the Disney Era, the Studio Cartoon Era, the Television Era, and the Modern Day. In the Precursory Era, Pieter Von Mussechenbroek discovered that moving projected images can create the illusion of motion. In the Silent Era, "Gertie the Dinosaur" pioneered keyframing. In the Disney Era, the fundamentals of modern animation were developed and the introduction of sound changed much of the animation landscape. In the Studio Cartoon Era, animation bifurcated into those who kept true to the rubber hose animation style of the past and those who followed Disney's example for progressing animation's evolution. In the Television Era, animation began to be made more quickly and stories had to adapt to the new production schedule. In the Modern Day, animation pipelines such as Toon Boom and Flash have expedited the production process of animation, as well as have made animation available to anyone with the means to do so. "Man Out of Time" seeks to represent these six eras of animation history by using 'Everyman,' a figure drawing, as a focal point. Everyman is comedically thrust out of the present and into each period of animation history, adapting his animation style to fit with the times, before crashing back home. The pieces wishes to briefly summarize this history for a casual audience to enjoy.

Committee: Kate Raney (Advisor); Beth Novak (Advisor) Subjects: Art Criticism; Art Education; Art History; Mass Media; Performing Arts

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2008, Industrial, Interior, and Visual Communications Design

The visual design phase in computer-animated film production includes all decisions that affect the visual look and emotional tone of the film. Within this domain is a set of choices that must be made by the designer which influence the viewer's perception of the film's space, defined in this paper as “spatial design.” The concept of spatial design is particularly relevant in digital animation (also known as 3D or CG animation), as its production process relies on a virtual 3D environment during the generative phase but renders 2D images as a final product. Reference for spatial design decisions is found in principles of various visual arts disciplines, and this thesis seeks to organize and apply these principles specifically to digital animation production. This paper establishes a context for this study by first analyzing several short animated films that draw attention to spatial design principles by presenting the film space non-traditionally. A literature search of graphic design and cinematography principles yields a proposed toolbox of spatial design principles. Two short animated films are produced in which the story and style objectives of each film are examined, and a custom subset of tools is selected and applied based on those objectives. Finally, the use of these principles is evaluated within the context of the films produced. The two films produced have opposite stylistic objectives, and thus show two different viewpoints of applying the toolbox. Taken together, the two films demonstrate application and analysis of the toolbox principles, approached from opposing sides of the same system. The organization of existing spatial design principles and the application of those principles to digital animation practice will benefit student and amateur filmmakers by providing reference and examples for spatial design decisions. Combining precedents from multiple visual arts disciplines, the proposed toolbox of principles presents seemingly instinctual knowled (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Maria Palazzi (Advisor); Wayne Carlson (Committee Member); Peter Chan (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Motion Pictures

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2006, Computer and Information Science

Fluid animation remains one of the most challenging problems in computer graphics. Research on methods using physics-based simulation for animation has recently increased since this method has the capability of producing realistic fluid behavior. However, the primary drawback to using a simulation method is control of the resulting flow field because it is computationally expensive and highly nonlinear. The main goal of this research is to help users produce physically realistic fluid effects along a NURBS curve that can be specified directly or derived from an image or video. A linear-feedback velocity matching method is used to control the fluid flow. A physically realistic smoke flow along a user-specified path is generated by first procedurally producing a target velocity field, and then matching the velocity field obtained from a three-dimensional flow simulation with the target velocity field. The target velocity field can include various effects such as the small scale swirling motion characteristic of turbulent flows. The swirling motion is achieved by incorporating a vortex particle method into the linear feedback loop. The method is flexible in that any procedurally-generated target velocity field may be integrated with the fluid simulation. The efficacy of this approach is demonstrated by generating several three-dimensional flow animations for complex fluid paths, two-dimensional artistic fluid effects, and realistic tornado animations.

Committee: Raghu Machiraju (Advisor) Subjects: Computer Science

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2021, Design

This thesis examines the theoretical framework surrounding my animated short film, Embrace, as well as how that context informed the creative development of the project itself. Embrace was created as an autoethnographic narrative, deeply rooted in my own experiences with my asexuality and developed with the audience of the asexual community and their empowerment in mind. In order for the story to achieve the greatest emotional impact, I wanted to explore the use of 2D animation in visualizing the intangible, emotional journey common to many asexual individuals. While I will discuss a variety of points throughout this thesis documentation, the three cornerstone areas of research backing my work are autoethnographic narrative, animation (specifically 2D animation), and asexuality. I will explore their definitions, history, and applications, particularly in regards to my own animated work. The second half of the paper walks the reader through the steps of the animation pipeline during Embrace's development, simultaneously elaborating upon my process, decision-making, design justifications, and overall journey from inception to presentation. My conclusions focus on a self-perceived evaluation of this complex process and the effectiveness of Embrace in offering support and empowerment to the asexual community through autoethnographically-informed animation.

Committee: Kyoung Swearingen (Advisor); Mary Anne Beecher (Committee Member); Candace Stout (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Film Studies; Fine Arts

Bachelor of Science of Media Arts and Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2019, Media Arts and Studies

The purpose of this paper is to understand the influences of art style in the development of animated film. By observing animated films with period settings, we can draw comparisons between their art direction and the art styles of their time. By understanding the historical era and its culture, a creator can then begin to build a world that uses these elements as inspiration. For my animated short film, I use the history and culture of 19th century Paris to illustrate the story. By using influences of period artists such as Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, and Pissarro I must understand their techniques and incorporate their stylistic choices into the film using visual storytelling techniques.

Committee: Kate Raney (Advisor) Subjects: Art History; Cinematography; Film Studies

Bachelor of Science of Communication Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2017, Media Arts and Studies

Exploring the evolution of animation production pipelines and testing the efficiency and possibility of combining 2D traditional animation methods with digital software to fuse the movement style of traditional animation with modern aesthetics and character designs.

Committee: Tyler Ayres (Advisor) Subjects: Communication; Fine Arts

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2015, Design

The potential for artistic practice-led research opening up new “realms of possibility” has been embraced by the academy, and it is the time now for animators to reveal how their practice is a method for the generation of new knowledge, exploration, and connection of ideas as well as for communication (as it is most commonly conceived of). Traditional views of research writing do not serve the wealth of knowledge to be found in the making process of animation. My goal is to illuminate the notion that the self-reflective creative practice of digital animation used as a method of inquiry contributes to both the field as well as the academy overall. Animation as a method of inquiry can be seen at the heart of many experimental and independent creations throughout the art form's history, as well as in the present. I frame my discussion by highlighting inquiry in the works of animators both historical and contemporary to bring to light how these methodologies are functioning in the medium. Inspired by the concept of `practice as research' in arts education discourse - I present a case-study analysis of my digital animation practice and reflections on my experience as an animator, a designer, and a researcher in animation. I claim that animation as inquiry requires the artist-researcher to engage in a reflection throughout their making process. From retrospection and contemplation of my own creative practices, I describe how writing has become an integral part of my animation process – but I also argue that writing is not a requirement for animation as a method of inquiry. The process of making animation captures our ways of knowing in a way that is unique but just as valuable as writing, as long as the researcher can articulate it. Valuing the `messy texts' that are generated as by-products of the creative process is one of several practices I suggest to highlight the discovery process involved in the making of animation. I expand upon the anthropological term `messy tex (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Maria Palazzi (Advisor); Candace Stout (Committee Member); Janet Parrott (Committee Member) Subjects: Art Education; Design

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2006, Computer and Information Science

Expressive facial speech animation is a challenging topic of great interest to the computer graphics community. Adding emotions to audio-visual speech animation is very important for realistic facial animation. The complexity of neutral visual speech synthesis is mainly attributed to co-articulation. Co-articulation is the phenomenon due to which the facial pose of the current segment of speech is affected by the neigboring segments of speech. The inclusion of emotions and fluency effects in speech adds to that complexity because of the corresponding shape and timing modifications brought about in speech. Speech is often accompanied by supportive visual prosodic elements such as motion of the head, eyes, and eyebrow, which improve the intelligibility of speech, and they need to be synthesized. In this dissertation, we present a technique to modify input neutral audio and synthesize visual speech incorporating effects of emotion and fluency. Visemes, which are visual counterpart of phonemes, are used to animate speech. We motion capture 3-D facial motion and extract facial muscle positions of expressive visemes. Our expressive visemes capture the pose of the entire face. The expressive visemes are blended using a novel constraint-based co-articulation technique that can easily accommodate the effects of emotion. We also present a visual prosody model for emotional speech, based on motion capture data, that exhibits non-verbal behaviors such as eyebrow motion and overall head motion.

Committee: Richard Parent (Advisor) Subjects: Computer Science

Bachelor of Science of Media Arts and Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2024, Media Arts and Studies

This thesis essay describes the research, process, preparation, and production of an animated short film that presents feminist theory and the creator's experiences with womanhood through the medium of animation.

Committee: Beth Novak (Advisor); Wolfgang Suetzl (Advisor) Subjects: Film Studies; Gender Studies

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2024, Design

This thesis introduces a theoretical framework for applying behavioral animation to generate autonomous entities with social motivations in a digital setting. It focuses on designing characters that develop distinct personalities through their interactions with the environment and other co-existing social characters. These personalities play a significant role in shaping the characters' desires and behaviors A central aspect of this study is how the scarcity of resources within the digital environment fosters social interactions among the characters, thereby affecting where they congregate and how they interact. A key feature of these characters is their ability to remember past experiences, allowing them to establish positive and negative relationships based on past interactions. This capability to form memories enriches the characters' experiences and interactions, paving the way for the development of unique emergent narratives for each character. The content of this thesis unfolds as follows: It begins by examining the literature and previous works that have inspired the development of this framework, setting the stage for understanding the current state of research in behavioral animation and digital storytelling. Next, the author's exploration of various projects that lead to the conception of this thesis is detailed, highlighting the iterative process of discovery and innovation. The theoretical framework is introduced to provide the foundation for the video prototype later on. Following, the creation of a video prototype, Sociable Creatures, exemplifies the practical application of the concepts introduced with the theoretical framework. The impact of this work lies in its potential to transform how narratives are conceived and experienced in digital media, offering a richer, more immerse storytelling experience, thereby revolutionizing our engagement with digital narratives and opening up new possibilities for complex social interaction within the virtual w (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Yvette Shen (Advisor); Jesse Fox (Committee Member); Shadrick Addy (Committee Member) Subjects: Design

Doctor of Philosophy, Case Western Reserve University, 2023, Musicology

From 1989-1999, Walt Disney Animation Studios experienced a period of industrial growth and a return to the artistic ideology of their "Golden Age," resulting in the "Disney Renaissance." The films that comprise this Renaissance represent not only a diverse body of musical works that dominated the cultural landscape of their time, but would soon influence the trajectory of the Broadway musical and popular culture in decades to follow. The theatrically informed compositional ethos of songwriting team Howard Ashman and Alan Menken brought new life to the Disney animated musical, and through their work, would bring about the era of the Disney musical on stage. With the beginning of Disney's Broadway productions in the 1990s and the company's subsequent expansion throughout Times Square through the renovation of and residence in the New Amsterdam Theatre, the impact of Disney's animated musicals ripples throughout popular culture today, bolstered by the company's adaptation strategies and nostalgia-based marketing. In this dissertation, I argue that Howard Ashman and Alan Menken's scores to The Little Mermaid (1989), Beauty and the Beast (1991), and Aladdin (1992) established a new model for the Disney animated musical, defined by musical theatre conventions, and created a distinct sonic identity upon which the company still relies. Chapter One focuses on The Little Mermaid, arguing that Ariel's (speaking and singing) voice represents not only her agency within the arc of the story, but would come to symbolize the new artistic aims of the Disney Renaissance. Chapter Two examines Aladdin's transformation beginning with its Broadway-informed conception, through its filmic realization, and eventually to its Broadway manifestation, centering sexuality, musical orientalism, theatrical influence, and US anxieties about the Middle East in the 1990s. The final chapter centers on Beauty and the Beast and Disney's move into Times Square, analyzing the film's theatrical aspira (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Daniel Goldmark (Advisor); Robert Spadoni (Committee Member); Georgia Cowart (Committee Member); Susan McClary (Committee Member) Subjects: Film Studies; Motion Pictures; Music; Theater History

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2019, Art

This paper provides commentary on my process for creating my MFA thesis show, Transluminal, a work of expanded animation. I have deconstructed the principles of animation and interwoven accounts of intimate personal experiences to explore how Transluminal breaks away from our traditional expectation of the animation form and into the material world. In Transluminal, I abstract the human body and physiological processes to create tactile sculptures that provide an immersive sensory experience for the viewer, allowing moments of intimacy, discovery, and humor. Through active viewership and the spirit of play, the work is in a constant state of becoming that reflects our own bodies' material condition and illuminates the tension between our desire for and lack of control over this constant metamorphosis.

Committee: Kenneth Rinaldo (Advisor); Alison Crocetta (Committee Member); Amy Youngs (Committee Member); Deborah Scott (Committee Member) Subjects: Fine Arts

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2016, Design

My thesis film, “Awake,” explores the animated expression of self- discovery through mindfulness. I employ a variety of 2D animation techniques in order to visually depict the character's internal transformation. Specific colors, line quality and brushstrokes reflect inner thoughts and feelings. This allows visibility of the “artist's hand” in the drawings. By hand crafting each image, I aim to impart a personal connection to my work as well as communicate my ideas with the audience. In my film, the main character uses meditation to find some kind of inner peace, or balance. Self-discovery in my film is the mode of stillness and self-reflection that helps get one to a point of personal growth, or realization. I use meditation as a vehicle for mindfulness and self-reflection. Mindfulness involves becoming receptive to the process of self-discovery by fostering openness to psychological flexibility and change. The main character's efforts are continually derailed by distractions in the form of thoughts. These are representative of a universal, although frustrating, aspect of humanity: the tendency to get caught up in thoughts at the expense of experiencing the present moment. The main idea of the film is the suggestion that there is no way to fully remove the presence of unwanted thoughts. However, it is possible to change one's relationship with them. Eventually, she comes to the realization that her environment doesn't have to be “perfect,” or totally free of mental noise, in order for her to succeed.

Committee: Maria Palazzi (Advisor); Alan Price (Committee Member); Candace Stout (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Fine Arts

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2015, Design

Since the earliest days of cinema filmmakers have experimented with the temporal nature of the art form during capture, manipulation, and exhibition. This thesis paper serves as a reflective documentation of the development process for the depiction of spatial and temporal scales in the animated short film Here Be Giants. Drawing from cinematic conventions and shaped by the malleable nature of the medium of digital animation a visual language was developed to convey qualities of scale and time essential to the narrative. A foundation for decision making during the development process was informed by project-based exploration including photographic, animation, and live action video as well as influences from cinema, video games, painting, and sculpture. The result of this reflexive research is a tripartite of categories of visual cues that include environmental and atmospheric elements (clouds, the sun, star trails, etc.), reminiscent subject matter (tree growth in seconds rather than years), and cinematographic considerations (depth of field and motion blur). These categories were used to develop representations of scales of time along the spectrum of human real-time to geologic time. The result is an animated short film with a purposeful visual language steeped in cinematic convention and reinterpreted through digital animation to actualize parallel narrative strands of a human interpersonal narrative and landscape mythology.

Committee: Maria Palazzi (Advisor); Alan Price (Committee Member); Janet Parrott (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Film Studies; Fine Arts; Landscape Architecture

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2010, Industrial, Interior Visual Communication Design

Creating the “symptom of life” is the goal of digital artists who create anthropomorphized virtual characters. To succeed in this goal, facial expression becomes an important tool to the animator. The eyes are an essential part of facial expression and how we perceive emotion due to our innate and social focus on the eyes. Its subtleties offer a wealth of information in regard to the intended emotional state of the character. Animators are responsible for creating the performance of the character. As a character rigger, one of my responsibilities is to supply animators with the tools they need to accomplish their tasks. The animator's goal in the use of the deformations, which are designed to control expression in the virtual face, is to increase the “perceptible reality” of the character and to elicit empathy from the viewer. The objective of this thesis is to create a set of ideals for modeling and deforming anthropomorphized eyes and eyelids that allow animators to create recognizable expression. Additionally, I design a rigging system created within these rules that is capable of meeting animator's deformation needs for a character's eyes and eyelids. Reviewing pre-existing approaches of animating and rigging for expression in animated characters is my first step. From simplified representations of the face I identify the areas whose changes are necessary to convey expression. These areas, which I call the lines of the face, are used to inform facial control placement, hierarchy and influence. Assessing the study of perception and expression helps me in ascertaining the usefulness of the fundamentally innate facial expressions, which I use to develop a basis for a character's range of expressive facial motion. I also examine and summarize anatomy and kinesiology relative to the eye in order to understand the framework from which expression is driven. Next, I present and evaluate a number of rigging designs in which I attempt to simultaneously enable an animator (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Maria Palazzi (Advisor); Wayne Carlson PhD (Committee Member); Jeffrey Haase (Committee Member) Subjects: Design

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2008, Art Education

Gender and technology scholarship demonstrates a longstanding, persistence gender gap reflecting the inequity between the large numbers of men and small numbers of women in technology educational courses and careers. What instructional and institutional changes can address and counteract the current gender inequity status quo? This dissertation presents a two-year critical case study of Digital Animation: A Technology Mentoring Program for Young Women, a pedagogical intervention that intends to increase the likelihood of young women participants pursuing future educational, personal, and professional technology opportunities. The program, situated at The Ohio State University's Advanced Computing Center for Art and Design, provides a group of 15 to 18 young women with an intensive two-week animation experience using Maya 3D animation software to produce short films on local environmental issues. The major program hypothesis is that women may be more likely to learn technology as embedded within an arts-centered curriculum, where arts function as the primary medium for learning and communication, as opposed to traditional computer technology instruction. Learning becomes co-constructed, collaborative, interdisciplinary, creative, and personal; learners become active. The aim is to provide participants with personal instructional support, a peer network, mentors, examples of successful women in technology, personal success, and exposure to a wide range of technology possibilities. I use gender and technology scholarship in conjunction with multiple critical theoretical perspectives, including feminist poststructuralist pedagogy and visual culture art education, to create a multi-faceted, complex framework for analyzing Digital Animation, its efforts, and its outcomes. This case study presents data highlighting ways a visual culture art education orientation can also utilize other critical theoretical perspectives, such as feminist poststructuralist pedagogy, to a (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Candace Stout PhD (Committee Chair); Maria Palazzi MFA (Committee Member); Sydney Walker PhD (Committee Member); Jennifer Eisenhauer PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Art Education; Computer Science; Education; Gender; Technology

Master of Architecture, Miami University, 2001, Architecture and Interior Design

It is imperative to have visual imagery when designing for lighting, therefore most architects of the past and present have used sketches, painting, or physical models for determining if the light in a space meets the design intentions. These tools all have their limitations. The advancement of computer technology, computer light simulation software, such as Radiance, Lightscape, etc., can be used as an effective tool for thematic daylight design. This thesis focuses on Lightscape, because of its reputation and affordability. The work found the tool to have variable precision, but a lot of research effort is focused on understanding what “precision” is necessary in a design context. It also strives to develop a method to incorporate Lightscape in the architectural design process.

Committee: Murali Paranandi (Advisor) Subjects: Architecture

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2007, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1985, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2007, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects: