Sai Intro Animatic
Storyboarding and Composition Class Project:
The goal of this project was to create an animatic that either captured the storyboards made initially at the start of the semester or something new entirely. I aimed to flesh out what I had boarded before with a sequence that would effectively introduce my character in a captivating and cinematic way. Adobe Photoshop was used for some backgrounds, Adobe After Effects was used for editing and the composite, and Toon Boom Storyboard Pro was used for the rest of the art / overall sequence.
The scene begins by establishing the setting which displays a busy, rundown city. This area was inspired by the capital of South Africa, Pretoria, along with Kingston, Jamaica. During this time, Sai is roaming the alley behind a store as we are shown glimpses of him for the first time in this early continuity. It is shown that due to the time, the store is closed. The next scene cuts to him breaking through the front of the upper store window with a bag of unknown items by his side. He is also carrying a Bo staff that would be used to not only assist in fighting, but serves as a navigation tool as well. Sai is a child who went blind at a young age so his hearing, smell and other senses are heightened as a result. Despite the dire situations he ends up in, he tends to have a lot of fun in such adventures and gets a thrill out of this particular chase. The rat shown between cuts is meant to juxtapose Sai and his current life. His name is also based off the Japanese word for Rhino. Rhino’s are strong and formidable in combat, but are also known to have poor vision and a strong sense of smell. Sai’s staff also has a retractable blade with a shape reminiscent to a geometric rhino’s horn and Exacto knife.
If there was more time, i would have boarded an entire chase sequence packed with action, combat, and an exciting escape from Sai. The angry store owner and his sons that were robbed in this got designed specifically for this project and I would like to flesh out that family as well.