HW 13: Creating Stereoscopic Images

Green/Magenta:

Red/Cyan:

HW12: Lighting a Scene in Maya

HW11: Building a Scene in Maya

This was SO hard!

Term Paper 2: Science Fact or Cinematic Fiction?

The laws of physics are absolute. There are no exceptions to these laws, because the laws reasons of why things are in this world. The only way we can defy the laws of physics is through the world of animation or computer-generated imagery.  Animation allows us to use our imagination to explore the world outside of the absolute laws of physics. Violating a law of physics may take many forms, including the obviously exaggerated or only slightly extended visions. This paper examines the violation of physics in jumping in the animated world. Different types of animation/CGI and different degrees of violations are examined to demonstrate the different effects bending a physics law can bring.

The Warner Brothers film Space Jam was released in 1996, combining live-action with cartoon animation and CGI. Michael Jordan starred in the film as himself, transitioning between the “real world” and the “looney world”.  Because the film took place in both the real world and a cartoon world, the creators made sure to differentiate the two worlds with obvious physics defiance in the animated world.  The film showed Michael Jordan going into the animated looney world, but also had scenes of Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck traveling into the human world. When the cartoon characters were in the real world, it seemed that the normal law of physics applied to the characters as well, as seen when Bugs Bunny was retrieving Michael Jordan’s shoe high above the mantle and needed to use a chair as a step-ladder in order to reach it. With Michael Jordan in the looney world, it appears that the normal laws of physics stayed with him in the looney world. During the game against the Monstars, it was obvious that the monsters defied physics with their every move. Michael appeared normal until the last moment, with 10 seconds into the game, when Daffy hinted to Michael that “this is looney land” in response to Stan being filled with air like a hot balloon then deflating in the air, traveling like he had no weight. After Michael’s realization that he could follow the rules of the looney world, he jumped from the center of the basketball court, continued to rise after being caught by two monsters, and stretched his arms into a slam dunk that won the game. Prior to this jump, Michael ran and stepped on a Monstar’s back, bending his leg about 90 degrees, exerting his force downward onto the Monstar upon his launch with an estimated push height of 2 feet. At the height of this jump, Michael’s feet were off the air by the length of a basketball hoop, or about 10 feet.  Applying this estimation to the physics jump magnification equation, Michael’s jump magnification would be calculated at 5. However, by analyzing the jump frame-by-frame, the push time took 16 frames. The scene was shown in slow motion, making the actual push time about 8 frames. This analysis brings the jump magnification to just (9/16)*2ft = 1.125. The inconsistency suggests defiance in physics, which is clear in this case. Space Jam purposefully defies physics to bring contrast to the real world, teaching its audience to break out of the box.

In the live-action film Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, the jumping in the film defies physics constantly that it immerses the viewer into believing the unnatural jump is ordinary. Crouching Tiger allows its characters to jump with no jump magnification at extreme heights, such as jumping onto the roof of a building. Fifteen minutes into the movie, the thief enters to steal the legendary sword. She escapes by jumping onto the rooftop of the buildings with no push height. She is simply lifted into air, sometimes stepping in the air as if it was to gain height. By estimating the height of jump from floor to building to be 15 feet and push height to be 2 inches, the jump magnification is estimated to be 90. Further estimating the thief’s weight to be about 100 lbs, the jump force exerted by the thief in this case would be 900 times! However, the ease of these jumps does not make the viewer question the rules of physics in all other aspects of the film. Although the jumps are obviously unrealistic, the creators were able to make the audience believe in the jumps. The characters did not try to jump high, as they did not even swing their arms prior to their jumps, which would help a normal human jump almost 30% higher. Instead, the characters jumped at will with little to no push height, purposefully to lessen the obviousness of the defiance of physics. This way, the creators were able to make significant jumps as a part of the martial arts skill. Unlike the jump example of Space Jam, Crouching Tiger never mentioned an alternate rule in their world. The jump in Crouching Tiger was repeated throughout the film, and preserved most of all other physics laws. By doing so, Crouching Tiger was able to bend the physics laws of jumping without bending the laws of the world.

Another look at a different application of jumping can be seen from The Simpsons Movie. The Simpsons Movie is a fully animated/computer-generated film with no live-action scenes. At the scene where Homer dares Bart to ride to Krusty Burger on his skateboard naked, Bart travels downhill on his skateboard before his launch. He travels at about 1/5 of a driveway per frame; 24 inches, roughly 30 miles per hour. Based on the ehow.com video of “How to Jump Without a Ramp on a Skateboard”, it would be near impossible in physics for Bart to be able to get so much air without a ramp, as you can only lift the head of your skateboard and fall without a ramp. In the movie, Bart approaches a fence that is taller than he is – approximately 4 feet. His take-off is fast, but viewing frame-by-frame confirms that the road he travels on is continuously downhill and he does not have a ramp or any other object before he launches off on his skateboard. You can see Bart bend down on his skateboard as he approaches the jump, in order to have a greater jump force by maximizing his push height. As he goes into the air, he takes his skateboard with him, over the 4 ft. fence. As Bart exerts his force on the skateboard, it would be sound for him to jump away from his skateboard. However, the scene carries the skateboard with him. In order for this to be feasible, it would mean that Bart exerted the force on the skateboard, and the skateboard exerted its force on the ground as it was moving, and then translating the reaction force from the ground back up onto Bart. If we don’t take the skateboard into consideration, we can see that Bart’s push height is approximately 6 inches, and we estimate his jump height at 90 inches, for a jump magnification of 15 times. This jump scene from the Simpsons clearly defies normal physics with the presence of a skateboard, no ramp, unrealistic jump height and magnification. Furthermore, Bart’s hang time is about 5 seconds – 3 seconds ascending and 2 seconds descending, falling from the height of a 2-story building onto lower grounds. The creators were able to present this scene with such subtlety that a normal viewer would never think twice about the scene. The extra long hang time allows the creators to emphasize the moment of Bart’s glory and determination and add in the expressions of passing pedestrians to further add to Bart’s moment. This is yet another completely different way in the use of false physics, compared with Space Jam and Crouching Tiger.

In Space Jam, the defiance of physics was obvious as it contrasted the real world, and exaggerated with other false physics elements such as stretching of the arms. The creators wanted the viewers to understand that the law of physics doesn’t apply in the looney world, thus the obvious defiance of physics. The effect is light-hearted humor and teaches the viewer not to take the movie seriously. In Crouching Tiger, the jump was also obvious, but the result was different from that of Space Jam. The creators made the defiance normal, as if the characters were supposed to be able to jump that high and that easily. The result is the belief of a skill. Lastly, in the case of The Simpsons Movie, the physics-illegal jump was subtlety done. Bart Simpson’s jump was a fast scene that should not have brought attention to the physics for the viewers, even though the jump magnification is just as unrealistic as that of Crouching Tiger. The creators used this jump to extend the moment and emphasize with its surroundings. In conclusion, the defiance of physics in animations can be done in numerous ways to achieve numerous effects. We should not look into the absence of physics laws in animations, as they are normally absent on purpose in order to bring humor or lighten the moods of the viewers.

HW10: Outline of Second Term Paper

        I.            Introduction

a.       The laws of physics are only bendable in the world of animation.

b.      This paper will examine the incorrect physics of jumps in animation

                                                               i.      May be obviously exaggerated or slightly extended

c.       The jumping physics is examined in different types of movies below to demonstrate the different effects the bending of physics can bring

      II.            Body

a.       Space Jam

                                                               i.      Michael Jordan’s final jump was obviously exaggerated, allowed him to jump from the center of the basketball field to make his slam dunk

                                                             ii.      Purposefully exaggerated to show that physics ARE bent in Looney world

b.      Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

                                                               i.      Martial Artists can jump and run in air

                                                             ii.      Laws are bent to become the norm, as if martial arts will bend the physics of jumping

c.       Simpsons

                                                               i.      Modest exaggeration of Bart Simpson’s skateboarding jump to extend time of the moment

                                                             ii.      Extra-long jump will be unnoticed to the normal viewer, but the scene is able to fit in more reactions from the sidelines to emphasize the moment

    III.            Conclusion

a.       Laws of physics are bent in the world of animation for different reasons. It can extend a moment, exaggerate an ability, or make a myth real

b.      Animation and CG allows us to bend the laws of physics, which we are otherwise restricted to – we should appreciate and take advantage of this ability and let our imaginations be the limit.

HW9: Character Animation

Animation was created with my laptop webcam. Story of the little light that wanted to shine - then realized he shined without being plugged in :)
I used the 2 lights, planned the scene in my head, and just started taking the pictures one by one. There was a lot of deleting and going back to re-match the previous picture. Total movie used 64 frames.

hw9 from jasmine su on Vimeo.

HW9: Reverse Video Reference of Walking

Clip A

clipA from jasmine su on Vimeo.

Clip B

clipB from jasmine su on Vimeo.

Clip C

Untitled from jasmine su on Vimeo.

Clip D

clipD from jasmine su on Vimeo.

Clip E

Untitled from jasmine su on Vimeo.

Midsemester Survey

This is to certify that I completed the anonymous mid-semester survey for Art/Physics 123 and am requesting the five points of extra credit.

As a student at San Jose State, I understand the university's Academic Integrity Policy (http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/narr/catalog/rec-2083.html).

HW8: The Laws of Physics in an Animation Universe

Shaolin Soccer's Unique Physics Laws

Shaolin Soccer is a popular Honk Kong blockbuster released in 2001. It takes place in modern times and combines the ancient concepts of Shaolin Kung Fu with competitive soccer through CGI special effects. The CGI special effects are focused on the kung fu elements of the movie with exaggeration that disregards physics realism, producing an extremely comical movie with a plot that is not to be taken seriously. The entire movie is full of physics controversies; in this essay, we will examine the physic laws of Shaolin Soccer animation which challenge the common physics laws, including Shaolin Soccer’s Action-Reaction Principle, the Shaolin Soccer laws of gravity, and Shaolin Soccer’s Law of Inertia.

The Newton’s Action-Reaction Principle states “For every action force there is an equal reaction force in the opposite direction.” The Shaolin Soccer Action-Reaction Principle does not necessarily have an equal reaction force. One instance is during the first soccer practice among the Shaolin brothers. The Second Brother “Mighty Steel Leg” takes the soccer ball and kicks it into the air. Due to his Shaolin Training, he is able to kick the ball so high that it disappears from the naked eye and stays in the air for over an hour.

When the ball hits the ground, it exerts its force on the ground, which is such a large mass that it does not move but exerts a reaction force onto the soccer ball, causing the soccer ball to bounce back into the air. The soccer ball loses some energy from friction, but reaches no more than 12 feet in the air and stays in the air for less than 2 seconds on the second bounce. The soccer ball is an elastic object with an estimated coefficient of restitution of height loss to be between 40%-60% with each bounce. Even if the soccer ball bounce was calculated at the higher height loss of 60% per bounce, with this calculation it would mean the first kick only reached 30 feet height (12ft / 0.4) and stayed in the air for 5 seconds (2sec / 0.4). This was obviously not the case, as the ball was portrayed to have stayed in the air for over 60 minutes. This inconsistency demonstrates that the shaolin powers of the “Mighty Steel Leg” applies only to the initial force exerted on an object but loses its power in the reaction force.

In another example, when the Shaolin Soccer Team goes against the Demon Soccer Team in the finale match, the Action-Reaction Principle is overpowered by the power of “American Drugs” for the Demon Team athletes. When Mighty Steel Leg attempts his third goal at the Demon goalie, the CGI portrayed the ball to travel about 15 inches per frame, which is estimated to be 20 mph. The CGI special effects portrayed the soccer ball to break through the atmosphere, changing the atmosphere colors into the shape of a Puma, indicating its high speed. The Demon goalie not only stopped the ball, he grabbed it with both hands without bending his elbows or moving any other parts of his body. Although the ultra-fast soccer ball appeared to cause no damage to the goalie, the impact of the soccer ball seemed to cause the reaction force to exert from the goalie’s feet onto the ground around him. The CGI portrayed the reaction force to cause an outward circle of energy in the form of the ground rippling and the wind blowing around the goalie. This is another example of special Action-Reaction Principles in the Shaolin Soccer Animation when it comes to strong characters.

Another example of uneven action-reaction forces can be seen with Metal Head’s character, also during the final match. When he goes against his counterpart on the Demon team, the Demon player flies head first at about 36 inches per frame; or 50 mph. Combined with the Demon player’s mass of an estimated 180 lbs, the impact on Metal Head should have made a normal human crack like an egg. Although Metal Head has an extremely strong head, his mass should not have been able to stop the Demon character’s attack.

The second physics law that is unique to Shaolin Soccer Animation is the lack of gravity for the Shaolin Soccer characters. The most obvious would be in the case of character Light Weight, who can jump and stay in the air so long he emulates flying. Ironically, he is also the heaviest character in the movie. During his moment in the final match, his jumped at a constant velocity of 4 inches per frame (5 mph), continued to rise for about 4 seconds, which suggests his jump height of 30 ft. 

Not only is his 30 ft. jump height unrealistic, he did so with a push height of a mere 3 inches. At an estimated weight of 300 lbs, for Light Weight to jump 30 ft with a 3 inch push height means he pushed with 36,000 lbs of force! Light Weight really did not emphasize on his push strength, therefore this example shows that there is a lack of gravity in the Shaolin Soccer animation world, when it comes to the Shaolin characters.

Conversely, gravity is present and even more extreme than normal when Light Weight is struck from above right after his huge jump. He falls onto the ground so hard; he falls into the ground and makes a dent in the shape of his body. This is contradicting gravity.

Another example of a lack of gravity among the characters is the scene where all of the brothers suddenly realized their powers came back to them. This was in the middle of their first practice match, after the big brother Metal Head surrendered to the opposing team. 

During this freeze moment, the movie showed each of the brothers in their signature poses, they stayed very stable with disregard to the laws of the center of gravity: the Third Brother Iron Body was seen balancing on one leg, with the rest of his body parallel to the ground; the Fourth Brother Bruce Lee look-alike was seen grasping the side of the soccer goal with one hand while balancing in mid air. If following the center of gravity laws, the Third Brother’s base of support should be under the pelvis. The Fourth Brother’s center of gravity should have hung right below the point of suspension.

The Shaolin Soccer’s Law of Inertia is another physics law that is unique in Shaolin Soccer Animation. Under Newton’s Law of Inertia, “an object moves with constant, uniform motion until acted on by an unbalanced force.” In Shaolin Soccer’s Law of Inertia, an object may travel in constant motion even though an unbalanced force is present. In the first tournament match of Team Shaolin vs. the white-uniformed team, Mighty Steel Leg makes several goals easily. One of his final goals were made by kicking the soccer ball into an opponent with so much force, the opponent is carried into the goal along with the soccer ball. 

In this scene, the opponent player and soccer ball travel into the goal at an estimated velocity of 6 inches per frame. This equates to about 7.4 mph, and he was in the air for about 3 seconds. During the 3 seconds of travel time, the player did not slow down or descend, even though the force of gravity was present. The force of gravity can be seen as present by the goalie that is placed behind the flying player; the goalie was stepping in place in anticipation of the goal, obviously bound by the normal laws of gravity.

The same rule applies to many characters of Shaolin Soccer. Right after the previous example, Might Steel Leg runs into a jump at an angle that is almost parallel to the ground, extends both of his legs to kick the soccer ball, and stays in the air for a total of 3 seconds. During his 3 seconds of hang time, he does not lose velocity or height.  Immediately after, Metal Head is also seen in the air for a few seconds without losing speed or height, before he hits the ball with his head. Both are examples of ignoring Newton’s Law of Inertia. The Shaolin Soccer Law of Inertia seems to apply to all strong characters, before unleashing an extra-powerful attack.

Shaolin Soccer is a live-action film that is heavy with CGI special effects. The CGI effects used in the movie made the storyline possible. The CGI was focused on humor rather than realism. In the Shaolin Soccer world, the Shaolin Soccer Law of Action-Reaction, Law of Gravity, and Law of Inertia are all unique to Shaolin Soccer. Although most of the special effects may not be realistic, they certainly made the movie!

HW7: Outline of 1st Term Paper

Outrageous Physics in Shaolin Soccer

        I.            Introduction

a.       Introduce movie, special effects oriented

b.      Laws of physics follows our standards in normal life

c.       Hypothesis

     II.            Action-No Reaction; unbalanced forces

a.       Soccer ball drop from high in the air, tiny bounce after - ~43:00

                                                              i.      Ball was high in air for an hour; the bounce should be much higher

b.      Demon goalie to stop super-fast soccer ball with 1 hand ~1:25

c.       Metal head to block flying head ~1:31

   III.            Lack of gravity

a.       Signature stance; unbalanced center of gravity ~56:00

b.      Third brother flying in the air

c.       Running in air during games

  IV.            Increased acceleration/lack of deceleration in objects

a.       Blowing hair after kick toward face

b.      Guy pushed by soccer ball into goal ~1:06

c.       Soccer ball to accelerate into fire in mid air

     V.            Conclusion

a.       Unrealistic physics introduced for exaggerated comical effect

HW6: Stop Motion Animation of Falling

I used SAM, the webcam that came with my HP laptop, and my cat's toy mouse. I taped the mouse onto the wall and reshot the scene 3 times in order to get the technique down. I also taped the mouse in 2 spots; behind its body and the tail so I could control how the tail would look.
I set SAM to save at 15.2 fps; I thought it looked best this way. Total of 18 frames.
Originally, I really wanted to make 'top 3' and I thought about photoshopping my cat into the video (so it would look like she held the mouse and dropped it).. but after many tries, I decided that this was beyond my ability.

So... please use your imagination and enjoy:


Untitled from jasmine su on Vimeo.

HW5: Video analysis of path of action

HW4: Tracker video analysis of falling

The falling placemat object may explain the non-parabolic arc?

HW3: Video Shooting Reference

Camera: Canon SD1100 IS
FPS: 30/fps
Object: Placemat

HW2: Mini Portfolio

I'm not an animator, but I did take an adobe illustrator class back in 2003. Here are 2 of my originals:

Adriana Lima (Victoria's Secret Model)

"Gfortune" - an event that unfortunately never happend

This is a video (made from a powerpoint slideshow) that we made for a friend's wedding:

I am currently a graduating senior with Accounting Information Systems concentration. I used to major in graphic design, once upon a time. I'm 27 years old and am very proud to almost graduate with my bachelors. It's been a long road with some rough times. I currently work for Bon Appetit Management Company at Google. We take care of the "free food" at Google. I've never taken any physics courses, so everything that we've learned so far I find very interesting. I enjoy sleeping, hanging out with friends, traveling, and I have a super cute cat. If I get the chance as part of an assignment, I will likely be uploading videos of her!

First blog post for Art 123

Hi, this is my first post to prepare for homework #1 for Art 123, Spring 2010