YR 1 ASSESSMENT WEEK 2, TASK 1 DIGITAL SKILLS - PANDA PANTHER

ARTIST RESEARCH

Panda Panther

The last practitioner that I am researching and analysing the work they produce is Panda Panther, the first example is an animation created for Zune and the concept of the animation is based on a spartan style war, the title of this animation is called 'Masks'. This animation is created using different methods, designing and modeling a battleground and then creating the 3D models for each character and placing the animation onto the recorded footage of the environment. What I like about this animation is not only the 3D and handmade props but the designs and concept of the two characters, the art style of this animation is very similar to the several examples of Panda Panther's work, I really like this house style and how the same techniques and process are used throughout multiple projects.
As far as the story goes, I'm not sure why this was created, I couldn't understand the plot of the message within the animation but enjoyed to watch it and analysis the production and process.

The second example of Panda Panther's work is an animation for Hello Kitty, the plot and story is shown on the website so it was easy to follow as I didn't have to re-watch the animation to try and understand it because of the very random and unexplained encounters that happen throughout. "Traveling through mysterious forests and sunny beaches she discovers new hidden treasures. Kitty’s secret house is revealed through sharing magic experiences. By sharing her own secret house, she brings her friends closer to each other." Reading this first the animation made a lot more sense about what was happening. But I am still unaware of the purpose of this animation and why it was made, nothing was being advertised or shown to give the impression it was promoting anything.

The art style is very peculiar and isn't like any animation of Hello KItty that I have seen, it consists of multiple medias such as both 2D and 3D, live action footage and mixed media across the background elements. Overall I didn't like this animation, I thought it was pointless and it seemed like their wasn't a plan or concept and that multiple ideas and elements were just placed into the animation. 

"PandaPanther set sails for the high skies and journeyed through twisting tornadoes alongside 
one-eyed-pirates and flying sheep to bring the latest cinematic installment to the Skylanders Franchise. We produced all the in game cut-scenes for Activision’s latest Nintendo 3DS release in stereoscopic 3D." This animation is the last example of Panda Panthers's work and it's an excellent piece of animation that is used as a commercial to advertise the latest Nintendo 3DS game for Skylanders. Knowing this information before watching it I understood the whole duration, as the animation doesn't give away any hints itself about the product, the story or who it is advertising, this description was an essential part of understanding this animation. 

The production process of this animation is way over my head, I couldnt think of what software could produce these individual elements adn the background but the atmosphere is constantly changing throughout the animation, changing from a bright, happy environment to a dusky, stormy and corrupt environment.