Project Organization

Shared Team/Project folders:

\\fs1syd\Students\Public > Team-Project-Name

On-campus, LAN share folder

- - Windows File Explorer > type address first, to activate network browsing:
    - - Address Bar > \\fs1syd\Students\Public
  - Windows File Explorer > Point-and-click browsing:
    - - PC > Network > fs1syd > Students > Public > Team-Project-Name
  - The advantage of working in a LAN folder are several:
    - - all team project files live at a long-term predictable address - your software doesn't need to search for them on different disks or drives. All team members can share the same files in the same folders
      - all team project files are immediately available, eliminating time spent on uploads, downloads, compression and decompression over the internet.
      - It greatly improves team co-ordination, communication, and time efficiency while artists work together, on-site. This method is typical in an industry studio, especially in larger teams. This helps prepare you for industry.

GDrive > Starred > [Module]-Students > Team-Project-Name

Off-campus, internet cloud share folder

- - The advantage of a cloud folder is:
    - - all files are backed up, protected from hardware failure, damage, loss, or theft, and
      - all team members can access files, on/off campus, any time.

Blended mode: if using both LAN on-campus and GDrive off-campus shared locations, these two locations are to be synchronized before the start of each class, and at the end, please.

Remote-only mode: If the project is always off-campus, your private drive is to please be synchronized 1x weekly with the project/team shared GDrive before the start of each class, and at the end, please.

Synchronization: Google Drive File Stream may be of assistance for advanced students using an admin installation or a portable software folder.

2D Folder and File Naming & Hierarchy

Sydney, Pre-Production

Main category folders represent the departments in a studio, or the main stages of a project

ProjectName (team folder)

- - - - Design (folder, Design Dept.)
        Show Style Guides (line, shape, tone, color), Show Bible may also be here
        Char-Fred
        Character Fred's Model Sheets (i.e. poses, expressions), Turnaround/Construction sheet, etc to be used as tracing/reference by artists
        Reference (or "Ref"), (folder) for this design
        Backgrounds-Bedrock (or "Sets" or "Environments" or "Bkg")
        Backgrounds (various camera views) for location
        Reference (or "Ref"), (folder)
        Backgrounds-Bedrock-Quarry
        Backgrounds (various camera views) for location
        Reference (or "Ref"), (folder)
        Props, Vehicles
      - Story or "Storyboard" (folder, Story Dept.)
        Pitch Package, Outline, Concept, Synopsis, Script, etc. Show Bible may also be here.
        Scene # (numbered folder, e.g. scene 1, sc01, sc1)
        Photoshop scene file (master) (*.tif or *.psd) e.g.
        sc01.tif
        Shot key frames (panels) (numbered files, *.png or *.jpg exports) e.g.
        shot 1 frame 1.png
        shot 1 frame 2.png
        shot 1 frame 3.png
        shot 2 frame 1.png
        shot 3 frame 1.png
        shot 3 frame 2.png etc. or,
        +backup (folder of older versions)
      - Edit or "Premiere" (folder, Editorial Dept, video/film editing, Premiere Pro)
        ProjectName-Edit-Animatic (folder, early animatic version of the show's Edit)
        Premiere Pro Project files *.prproj
        Rendered/Exported Video files *.mp4
        (Footage) or "(Media)", or "(Assets)" (folder)
        Image files, Audio files, etc. imported and linked into Premiere
        +backup (folder of older versions)

Please note that the show's main Edit starts as a Pre-Production animatic.New versions of the same Premiere Pro project file are used throughout the project,adding more tracks, with previz renders, animation renders, lighting/comp renders,keeping everything in sync, all the way to post-production audio and finishing. The Edit is the heart of your motion picture project.

- - - - Ae or "Cmp" (folder, Compositing/2dFX Dept., After Effects)
        Scene / Shot (numbered)
        After Effects Project files *.aep
        Rendered/Exported Video files *.mp4, etc.
        (Footage) or "(Media)", or "(Assets)" (folder)
        Image files, Audio files, etc. imported and linked into AE
        +backup (folder of older versions)

Folder and file naming conventions are required for reliability and predictability, to reduce artist confusion and prevent loss of work. Team projects can involve hundreds of shared folders and files. So please be patient and organize your stuff according to the course naming conventions, so we can focus on the creative.

These naming conventions apply only to work-in-progress within the team. A delivery file naming convention is specified in the project brief. For example in industry: some clients will have a specific naming convention for deliverables. So names are converted, when delivering a package to another company, or importing from another company. This is normal.

2D Design and Storyboarding Workflow

Photoshop Workflow

Preparation of 2D artwork for Animatics

- - For efficiency and ease of working together, please learn the same workflow, methods, pipeline, and naming conventions (e.g. for scenes, shots, elements, assets, files, layers, and layer comps), as these standards, and as agreed with your team, and facilitator. This would usually be expected of you in industry, especially in larger teams. We can only help you if you use the same hardware, software, and workflow that we support.
  - Organize all storyboard work into
    - - scene # > shot # > frame # > element name (eg: character, foreground, midground, background)
      - in your layers, layer groups, or layer comps, use names that are understandable to everyone
  - All scenes, shots, and frames must please be numbered.
  - Follow this guide's conventions as a basis. For more details not fully specified here, please follow your team's naming convention.

For example, if everyone else is using a "Scene 05" style for scene names, please use the same style of name for your own scene. If your team is using "Char Fred - Model Sheet Poses" for a character design asset, please use the same style of name for your own assets.

- - Your Photoshop scene file (a.k.a. master, all versions including wips, backups) must please be
    - - saved with layers, as TIF (compressed preferably) or PSD
      - in your scene folder in the team project (not in your private folders or drives).
      - be editable for draw-over feedback inside the layers.
      - Photoshop masters with layers are to please be organized together in the same folder or side-by-side with the PNGs/JPGs exported from Photoshop, as per
        Tutorial - Storyboarding a Scene, Layer Comps, Photoshop,
      - the photoshop scene file must please contain all your current work on your scene's shots, all your keyframes, and layers, so that
        you can easily copy character pose layers, prop layers, background layers, or other elements from one shot/keyframe to another within the photoshop file, instead of struggling to copy layers between multiple files
        it is easier to overlay layers, compare layers/poses, trace, draw on-model, and plan sequences of camera framings and keyframes with better continuity
        your team can easily access your individual layers to modify or copy, so that the speed of work across the team can be improved
        so another artist can take over your shot if you are unavailable and use the same team workflow
        someone helping you (facilitator, colleague, supervisor, director) can easily draw feedback in your layers using the same equipment / software as you or anyone else in the team
        you might like some other 2D software. However, pngs/jpgs are not enough, sorry for any inconvenience. We typically want the highest-quality layer manipulation and professional features of Photoshop and the Adobe CC suite. Students are asked to learn and practice the most prevalent tools in industry, and build competitive skills for jobs.
  - Approved good-looking rough drawings are eligible for high-contrast cleanup line if desired. Please use high contrast on foreground characters and important subjects. Please do not use high contrast in backgrounds.
  - Color Keys: If the scene's main storyboard key-frames are already going okay, one color key frame per scene is desirable. These can be roughly painted. Google for Pixar's Color Script examples.

A "vertical slice" may be desirable: this is one shot, from any scene in the show, in which all the keyframes are colored, either with 2D cleanup or 3D renders/comps. It represents the proposed final look of the show. It is to be edited into the show's main Edit, in storytelling sequence order, so your edited video animatic will be monochrome shots with one of the shots colored.

- - In your Animatic video edit, keyframe the position and scale of your artwork clips to show
    - - Background pans - establishing shots, characters running.
      - Zooms - establishing shots, subject focus zooms.
      - Complex depth and layering can be achieved if you export some layers by themselves, for example backgrounds, midgrounds and foregrounds, you can scale/move these layers independently from each other.
  - A scene is a sequence of camera shots around a specific plot point or location. A shot is a single camera angle, either moving or locked off, within a scene, usually separated by a cut.

Editing, Audio & Animatics

Pre-Production Editing (Animatics and Audio), Premiere Pro Workflow

Project working files - sharing and backups

Please do not withhold any files in private folders, drives or devices (especially the project files you export from, a.k.a. master files or source files). You're asked to save all working files, into the agreed project-name folder during every work session, e.g.:

Photoshop *.TIF (preferred) or *.PSD with layers, are to please be saved, together with PNG exports
Premiere Pro *.prproj files are to be saved with the exported video files.
including all WIP version history

This is a professional habit as someone often needs to take over your shot when you aren't available. Your lead, director or facilitator will want to draw feedback inside your master file layers, maybe remotely. Your team will need to extract/export one element from your master, to copy and re-use it in other shots, or make it move as a layer in the animatic edit. These things happen frequently. So if your master files are missing, teamwork gets disrupted and this will not help your grade. Please excuse any inconvenience. It's your job to save all files to the work folders where they belong at all times, please. You may also make backup copies for your own records.

3D Folder and File Naming & Hierarchy

Sydney, Production

Main category folders represent the departments in a studio, or the main stages of a project

ProjectName (team folder)

- - - - mayaproject > scenes > assets (Characters, Sets, and Props)
        Char-Fred
        Models, Rigs,
        Env-Bedrock-Quarry
        Models, Rigs,
        Props, Vehicles (may be a sub-asset of a character or a set/environment)
        Models, Rigs,
        For each asset it loads (including references), Maya searches for linked files:
        in the same folder as the current .ma/.mb scene file, or
        in current maya project > sourceimages (for image file textures), or
        in current maya project > scenes (for sub-assets, rigs, models), or
        in the last known path location in the attributes of the file texture or the file reference
      - mayaproject > scenes > layout/previz
        Scene # (numbered, e.g. sc01, scene 1, etc)
        Each Maya file is a "story scene" i.e. a sequence of camera shots
        Use a standardized camera rig for all artists
        Each Shot # (camera angle) has its own camera with Shot # in the camera name. You can use the camera sequencer to playblast all shots, or playblast each shot as a separate movie.
      - mayproject > scenes > anim, or anim/light/render
        Scene # Shot #
        For animation, larger scene files may be cut into shorter sequences of shots for each animator.
        For lighting and rendering, each animator's smaller scene files may be re-combined through referencing for lighting and rendering in a master file.
      - mayaproject > movies (animation tests, hardware render playblasts)
        Scene # Shot #
        Use a standard codec (QT is recommended) and compression
      - mayaproject > images (renders): Special disks may be allocated for rendering.
        Scene # Shot #
      - any folder > +backup (folder of older versions)

All artists please use the same folder and file naming conventions for reliability and predictability, to reduce artist confusion and prevent loss of work, such as references/links breaking, causing failures and delays. Please use the same system on your own local computer as the shared team folder in GDrive/LAN. Team projects can involve hundreds of shared folders and files. So please be patient and organize your stuff according to the course naming conventions, so we can focus on the creative.

These naming conventions apply only to work-in-progress within the team. A delivery file naming convention may be specified in the project brief. For example in industry: some clients will have a specific naming convention for deliverables. So names are converted, when delivering a package to another company, or importing from another company. This is normal.

Version control:

- Any new work sessions/changes: Please "Save As" or "Save A Copy As" with a new WIP version number. Recommendations for version numbers:
  - - projectname v101 (start)
    - projectname v102 (small change)
    - projectname v121 (big change)
    - projectname v201 (total redo)
    - projectname vhero, vXXX, v000 = the awesome version (selected, main, best, latest, hero)
    - Not desirable or useful: "revised", "new", "fixed", "final", "final2", "finalfinalreallyfinal", etc. Please, just continue using new numbers.
    - Want to be more descriptive? Put version descriptions after the version number, like so:
      - projectname v121 faster
        projectname v130 more color
        projectname v155 final delivery 2020-01-22

"projectname" is a contextual example only. It could also be "scenename", "elementname", or "tutorialactivityname", etc.

Cleaning up old file versions? Cool. Please place older files in a sub-folder, using this naming convention:

- - +backup [folder name] Use exact spelling please.

Such folders will not be included in GDrive <> Server synchronization+backup folders are filtered out from the sync program (20T1 Sydney)This is necessary to protect us from disk space failures.

Animation Project Management Framework SYD 20T3 CIU212

Job Organization, Pipeline and Project Management Tutorials

Reference / Bibliography

Software solutions used in industry

- Shotgun
  - https://www.autodesk.com/solutions/creative-project-management

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