Barry
The Details
Client: Class project
Task: Create a 4–7-minute animated short film
Synopsis: While taking the New Apple City Subway to work, Dan meets a talkative strawberry named Barry who just doesn’t seem to know when to quit.
Software used: Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects, Premiere Pro, Media Encoder & Logic Pro X
End product: a nearly 6-minute original animated short film
The Concept
The idea for Barry came from a place of wanting to appreciate those in my life who have humbled me through their dedication and kindness. Even though I’m not from a big city where this seems to be more prevalent, I’ve still seen myself get distracted by focusing on my work or myself rather than on people. Thankfully, though, there have been many strangers-turned-friends who have reminded me to stay friendly and approach life with an open-heart.
The Process
Clocking in at just under six minutes, Barry is the longest self-scripted short film I’ve made to date, and it’s something I’m quite proud of. Taking roughly 50 hours to complete (not including the script-writing process), Barry features two reusable characters and eight environment assets all designed in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator and lit, rigged and animated in After Effects. The music and voices were performed, recorded, edited and mixed using Logic Pro X (some additional sound effects were obtained using royalty free sound sites). The final film was exported in Adobe Media Encoder and compiled in Premiere Pro.
Let There Be Light
When designing the subway train interior, I wanted it to be overwhelmed by ads (as trains seem to be), but I also wanted to keep a clear focus on Barry. This was achieved through lighting, and Barry marks the first time that I’d ever utilized 3D lighting in After Effects. Placing a key light and vignette on Barry and teal ambient light on the environment, I was successfully able to make Barry stand out in the midst of cluttered surroundings.
Working Over the Phone
From early on in the writing process, I knew that I wanted my friend, Paul Keiser, to act as the voice of Dan. Unfortunately, though… Paul lived three hours away. When recruiting voice talent in the past, I had always been in the room directing during the recording process, but this time was different. To solve this problem, I ended up sending my microphone to Paul and directing him over the phone. It was definitely a new approach for me but was a great benefit in teaching me how to adapt and better articulate vocal cues without using my face or body language.