Week 1：Thesis and Proposal Structure

On graduation which area or environment of production do you wish to focus upon and why?

In fact, I am considering two different paths. The first is to work in animation after graduation, as I have interned for two animation game companies. I also enjoy character design work and being good at 3D modelling, character design, and bonding. Becoming an animation director has always been a goal of mine. But I’m also considering applying for a PhD because art creators need to understand various fields and gain much life experience and professional skills. So reading and writing are also essential to me, and I hope my dissertation is beneficial for the future of the animation field.

What skills will you need to attain the standards required for vocational practice?

I need to be proficient in animation software such as Maya, ZBrush and substance painter, but I believe that design thinking is the most essential part of character design, which means I have to hone my hand-drawing and design skills.

How will you showcase your FMP practice for the final shows?

I wanted my final FMP project to be an animated short film, and I was discussing my thesis topic with George. I really wanted to make a film about autism as I have been surrounded by friends, family and myself disturbed by negative emotions. So I was also looking for a thesis topic on this subject.

Is it important to directly connect the thesis research to your practical work?

Very important because I need a lot of information when making animations. For example, I will incorporate a lot of traditional culture and mental health into my FMP projects, but the truth is that I am just a little bit more concerned about this, and there is a vast amount of knowledge waiting to be learned. I don’t want my characters and scenes to look good and be technically sound; I want the audience to find a sense of empathy in my animation. And how to increase the connection between the animation and the audience has become a part of me that I need to explore all the time!

Do you have an area of research you wish to conduct that is unrelated to practical element?

I don’t think any field is separate and unrelated, especially as animation is a broad subject. We must look at seemingly unrelated areas, such as dance, music, performance, social news, etc. It’s actually all about life experience, so I usually enjoy looking at exhibitions or achievements in various fields. For example, I’m working on a robot arm this semester, and I went and taught myself something about robot dynamics, which is originally in the field of artificial intelligence but is also very useful for animation at the same time.