After months of work, a name change, and many overnights. The (almost) finished version of the cinematic trailer has been done. The journey to this point was challenging, and the challenges quite interesting. So I would like to backtrack a bit towards the beginning and detail how it was throughout.
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Look Development
When everything started during the Spring semester of 2021, many topics were conceptual and various. Taking input from the entire team into account, mostly ending as a collection of bullet notes, as you see below.
We pushed various things we'd like to include, which most probably would have been very difficult to implement given the experience I have now. But, I can definitely say while we were an ambitious group of people, it was a passion project for most of us. As a student who shared the production manager role, a lot of my time was planning out overall timelines, deadlines, and support for team needs. I always had to summarize our meetings, and it went smoothly until the Covid-19 situation changed class format.
ZOOM MEETINGS
We originally did many zoom meetings, particularly during class hours on Fridays in separate breakout rooms. It took a while to get used to, and it required a lot of conversations to figure out ways of transporting files. But most importantly was the implementation of the Github Server for the Unreal Project. This was set up between Conner and programmer Seth Wagner. This was vital, especially during the final weeks, as immediate tweaks and adjustments needed to be done on a timely basis.
GITHUB EXAMPLE
SUMMER BREAK
A majority of Summer was a mixture of asset production, story refinement, and scripting, plus figuring various methods for the game concept it was at the time. Since there was a lot that happened, I will provide the summary video we did when we started Fall below.
PRODUCTION I and II
For most of the first segment of the Production, Fall 2020, we were tuned into asset production. We have some conflicts happy along the way with the length of the project and the amount of work needed for it, particularly in staying with making it a game or alternating into a trailer cinematic concept. We decided later during Winter Break, as many of the Thesis requirements were more cinema/film requirements than a game. While a bit disheartening, the team was determined to make an amazing cinematic.
Sadly during the Spring semester of 2021, I had to take a reserved position due to many life events happening. From sickness to the loss of my grandfather and having to work with one eye for a period of time. I was struggling to get off my feet and was emotionally strained. Thankfully I was supported by a great group of people who understood those issues and allowed me to come back with a higher sense of passion. I worked in collaboration with Chilli Kellaway on the cameras of the trailer and became the editor for the (almost) final version. Below is the current trailer that is being refined and tweaked for gallery submission in May.
REFLECTIONS
Looking back at it now has filled me with a mixture of relief and hardships. There were conflicts with students at times, while others were based on personal motivation. I may not have done a lot creatively in my eyes, but I am certainly proud of the people I was fortunate enough to work with. We created a beautiful trailer that, while it may not result in an actual game now. I do hope that someday it can be refined and reworked into something spectacular. Or the very least inspire something greater. For now... we are making our final stop in Fernweh. I have many thanks to both CU Denver and the Digital Animation Center (DAC) for providing this opportunity to collaborate, create, and experience.