"Go Fish!" - animated short film
Click to watch animation above. Requires Flash. Best viewed in Firefox. Note: the movie has no sound. Length: 3 mins.
Characters
Waddles
Meet the test penguin who made the cut
Named after his incomparable walking style, Waddles was originally modelled for experimental purposes only, however his on-screen persona and effectiveness led to the decision of making him a central character. Composed of only a few shapes, his simplicity adds to his appeal as he conveys behaviour and emotion with efficient ease. His love for 'the catch' is matched by no other and with a mischeivous innocence, the animation follows Waddles' quest, showing us the trials and tribulations he meets along the way.
Lucky
The baby of the bunch
A young African penguin, Lucky seems to have had his fair share of fish, but he certainly won't give one up without a fight. An adventurous little guy, Lucky shirks away from nothing - no height is too high, no distance is too far and no penguin is too big, Lucky is happy to tough it out with the big guys.
The King
He's all shook up, but won't be cruel
The emperor of the bunch, The King is the most complex in terms of modelling and animation techniques and thus feels he can go around and act all big and proud. Well, he should be proud! The King can swim and toboggan like the best of them and when he's hungry, he wants fed, and will try any game from under his wing to win the food. The King is in the building. Thank you very much.
Fish
Out of water and out of luck
The subject of any penguin's desire, poor Fish has to keep trying to escape the clutches of not one, not two but THREE penguins all wanting him for dinner. Fish is crafty however, and although out of water, he finds ways to elude the penguins and get back to swimming once again.
Pictures - Screenshots, Storyboards & Sketches
Click on the thumbnails below for the larger image.
Screenshots:
Storyboards:
Sketches:
Extras
Go Fish! Card Game
[adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Go_Fish]
Five cards are dealt to each player, or seven if there
are only two players.
The player whose turn it is to play asks another player for his/her cards of a particular rank. For example, "Waddles, give me your fours". A player may only ask for a rank of which he/she already holds at least one card. The recipient of the request must then hand over all cards of that rank. If the call was successful, the same player has another turn. If the player who was asked has no cards of that rank, he/she says "Go fish" (or simply "Fish"), and the asking player draws the top card from the pack. The turn then passes to the player who was asked.
When one player has two cards of a given rank, they form a pair, and the cards are placed face up on the table. The game ends when all twenty-six pairs are formed, and the player who won the most pairs wins.
If the player whose turn it is has no cards left in hand, the game is not over, but he/she simply draws the top card from the pack and the turn passes.
Scissors-Paper-Stone
[adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone-paper-scissors]
The players count aloud to three, each time raising one hand in a fist and swinging it down on the count. After the third count, the players change their hands into one of three gestures, which they then "throw" by extending it towards their opponent.
- Scissors: represented by the index and middle fingers extended and separated.
- Paper: represented by an open hand, with the fingers connected (horizontal).
- Stone: represented by a clenched fist.
The objective is to select a gesture which defeats that of the opponent. Gestures are resolved as follows:
- Stone blunts or breaks scissors: that is, Stone defeats scissors
- Scissors cut paper: scissors defeats paper
- Paper covers or captures Stone: paper defeats Stone
If both players choose the same gesture, the game is tied and the players throw again.
A contest is often played best out of three.
The "Go Fish!" project was produced in its entirety by Barry L. Watt over three months in 2006, as part of the MSc Design and Digital Media course at The University of Edinburgh. Barry received his MSc with Distinction, and returned to help lecture on 3D animation the following year. The animation was modelled and rendered in Alias Maya, while textures were created in Adobe Photoshop. Barry L. Watt reserves all rights on the original story, title, artwork, design and completed animation of "Go Fish!".
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