#they just didn't???? know when to zoom in and pan out and whenever they zoom focused it was always on a member who wasn't singing

[heoneyology]

full offense but the camerawork for gayo daejeon sucked

[serxinns]

I HAVE AN IDEAAAAAA!!!

okay so like, what if there was a reader who was like really happy-go-lucky and kind and what-not but when it comes to battle or sparing they are a BEAST!!! i mean DISRESPECTFUL, folding people like HOT OMELETS IN A PAN! i also like to think what if this reader has a quirk thats like toph from atla and they know like reaaaally rare earth bending techniques like bone-bending and lava bending. how do you think yandere class 1a would react?

btw you dont have to write anything 4 this(though it would be a bit cool if u did, no pressure ofc!!!) i just wanted to share the thoughts in my noggin

(NOTTHEHOTOMELETOMG 😭 y'all are insane)

•You had a very powerful quirk which was earth bending you had telekinesis and were able to control earth like dirt, and sand, and mentally your quirk was considered dangerous and very powerful but despised that you were the exact opposite you were a happy full of life always smiles and your classmates and some of the teachers love about you

•Your classmates would do anything to protect that beautiful smile of yours they would even fight to the death if that was the final result to make you happy, even in the darkest times you still were always positive and made everyone's day whenever someone was down you made them happy with your silly jokes and encouragement

•you got along very well with the happy, and chaotic ones (Ochako, Kiri, Izuku, Sato, etc) izuku Was writing down everything about your amazing power he wishes to be a hero with you and to always protect you from wicked villains so he can be called your hero or how Kirishima would be your number one "Fan" whenever he always feel insecure your encouragement and compliments motivate him on making him blush making him mumble about how manly you are

•And You got along with the quiet ones as well (Shoto, Jirou, Kota, and Shoji, etc.) Jirou and you would join in and sing happy tunes and talk about your favorite genre and Shoto wanting to have his private therapy section with you because he's memorized your positive aura and words Kota loves when you hang out with his animals he almost cried tears of joy when he saw his pet rabbit resting on your lap he is just in AWE he took a lot of photos that day

•Now nobody saw you angry heck is it even possible to make you angry one time a person rudely shoved you all you did was shrugged it off and hummed your tune, If you were so close to winning a game and you lost at the last second you still would just be like "Oh well!" and just play it again, everyone was curious to see that unknown side was but didn't matter to them sicje they like seeing your smile

That's what they all thought

•One day you were fighting some villain for stealing some money when all of a sudden the villain punched you in the face you were ok and quickly recovered from it but you were PISSED because they broke your favorite hero helmet, you quickly zoomed over trying to hunt that villain down and beat the absolute SHIT out of them while saying saying words that they didn't expect for you to say such vulgar words

•Bakugo wasn't even shocked this dude was cheering for you while the rest of the squad jaws were wide open

•iida was even speechless he didn't even try to stop you just...observed you he was more worried for you then the poor dude gets beat

•Kirishima was just a mess he thinks your a absolute badass, He honestly loved this side of you

•Ochako was just eyes was just sparkling she wanted to hug you right you right then and there and asked to marry you

•While Izuku was shocked he was secretly fanboying dude was writing down this whole new side while giggling to himself he was gonna ask you a lot of questions after this

Aizawa was just shocked while the mic was paranoia mic was begging Shouta to use his bandages on you to restrain you but aizawa was just smirking telling him "Wait wait just a little more" but he had to restrain you cause he didn't want you to kill the poor dude

[archivehotties]

django unchained: 4.5/5

GODDDD THIS MOVIE IS SO GOOD. SO GOOD.

tonight i watched django unchained! my pc is having issues and i can't edit properly so to pass the time i decided to finally get this movie out of the way as my friend has been recommending it to me for forever. from the get go i knew i was gonna be interested in this movie considering it's (i don't know to what extent, i'm not a history expert nor american so idk) historically accurate and i loooveeee a historically based movie ^__^

obviously it's a quentin tarantino movie, it's gonna Look Good. i have once again been pulled in by the magic pretty colors and how well they all contrast together, and i love a lot of the choices they made for the shots. a lot of quick zoom ins, panning out stuff, very good. those choices specifically made it feel more and more like an authentic western movie since it gave a feel of those older cowboy movies. this shot specifically of the blood splattering onto the cotton plants was SOOOOOO ugh. amazing. love.

i didn't expect this movie to be this gory for some reason? but it's to a point i can tolerate, it's a lot of fast shooting kind of gore rather than the kind of gore that's slow and painful so it was fun to watch. it wasn't an ewwwwwww kind of gore it was fun!

unfortunately leonardo dicaprio once again does well acting. god do i wish he was bad. as a person? absolutely, you don't date freshly turned 18 year olds and be a good person. but man can he pull off playing a rich asshole well. stuck up and racist, he probably fits off half of that anyways.

jamie foxx does very well in this movie too, sometimes though it did feel a little too much like he was trying to act cool but i think it's also what they were going for? they weren't exactly trying to play a lot of these characters off as the most accurate to real people, it did feel exaggerated but in a way that was enjoyable and not cheesy. i also do wish carrie washington had more lines, i think it would've been fun to see her talk and interact more and not just be a damsel in distress. definitely does not pass the bechdel test, that's for sure.

also i really enjoyed the music score and soundtrack!!!!! i really enjoyed whenever they embedded actual rap songs into the soundtrack and not have it be purely just cowboy southern style music. it reflects the struggle of black americans not only from the past but how it evolved over time, additionally it was a choice that clarified to the audience that it's a modern adaptation of a cowboy movie.

overall for this movie, i have the same kind of high i got off of watching babylon. beautifully shot, very well played out storyline, at times somewhat chaotic? yes. but i think in this movie specifically, they were able to know when things need to slow down and when it needs to be hyped up and exciting. i had lots of fun watching!!! <3

[rencissancealpha]

Nathan hadn't really taken Mike's outburst too seriously when it happened. It wasn't the first time the other had snapped a little sharply at him since he'd been feeling ill. But, the world renowned boxing champion took it in stride and didn't take it personally, knowing full well that Mike was ill and he didn't expect him to be all sunshine and rainbows when he was clearly feeling ill- that wouldn't be fair to either of them. That was why he'd just kissed the other's temple soothingly afterwards, a subtle and physical way to offer the other some love and kindness and to help calm him down. Nathan wasn't scared of the other being emotional or worried about him being less than perfect- in fact, it was the opposite, he cherished the other for being himself and he was also grateful that despite feeling sick and temperamental, Mike still allowed him to stay and to be close to him. He didn't look too closely or critically at Mike's actions, knowing and trusting in their bond more than a superficial mood swing or two.

Nathan smiled when Mike promised to win the bear for Kate, which is what he'd offered to do for the little one, but it was a sweet moment and he figured that the other must be feeling much stronger than he had seemed lately. He nodded and with a few comically large final bites, he finished his food so that he'd have a free hand to record. He wiped the greasy hand on the napkin it came with before tossing it in a near trash can, then pulling his phone out to catch a few clips and shots of Kate on the ride in front of them, cheering her name whenever she spun into view and within earshot and in some of the clips he included a shot of Mike in the foreground, smiling in his signature goofy, love-struck way when he did, narrating as he took the video, "There is the most precious girl in the world ..." he said out loud for the video, zooming in on Kate in the near-distance, then zooming out and panning to Mike, "... and there's the most beautiful boy in the world."

After a couple minutes, he slipped his phone back into his pocket and his arm back around Mike, holding him close and letting out a happy sigh as he looked out at the fair. He was truly happy and content - a combination of feelings he'd found himself in more often than not since he'd arrived for the holidays. "You really don't wanna eat?" he asked, gesturing to Mike's treat, "I can get you something else? What're you in the mood for, Princess? You can have anything you want," he hummed, pressing a kiss to the top of Mike's head, rubbing the arm he held. Kate's ride came to an end not long after that and Nathan moved to collect her, picking her easily up off the seat and deciding to rest her on his hip and carry her for a bit- something the little girl seemed quite happy with and he received a tight hug and another thank you for the ride. Nathan felt that surge of happiness and contentment again as he reached out and took Mike's hand with his free one and they started off again, "Let's go find that bear now, huh?" he said to Kate excitedly.

There was no holding back the laugh that escaped when he saw Nathan take a bite. He probably should have warned him that, although it looked like a corndog, it wasn't meant to be eaten like one—delicious but very messy. Despite his amusement, he composed himself and offered Nathan an apologetic and sympathetic smile. However, his expression quickly shifted when Nathan began to show concern for him. "No, I'm just not hungry," he said, trying to play it off, though panic began to flutter within him. His anxiety only heightened when Nathan reached out to touch his stomach. Part of him wanted to swat his hand away; surely he could feel the weight he'd gained. "No! I mean, no, I just want to spend as much time as I can with her since it'll be a while before I come back," he interjected, forcing a smile onto his face to mask his unease. Fortunately, a distraction arrived in the form of Kate, who had gotten too excited and nearly wandered off ahead of them. He reached out to pat her head as they continued walking.

Mike nodded his head in agreement, though he knew he wouldn't be indulging in food, no matter how much he craved it. Perhaps he'd persuade Aria to sneak one for him to enjoy in secret. He'd just have to ensure he kept track of his calories for the day or take an early morning walk to burn it off. Nathan's words, though kind, sent a surge of panic through Mike. Maybe Nathan sensed that Mike was aware of his plans, and was trying to make it seem as his weight and body weren't the issue. Mike felt like he might be sick, but he forced a smile onto his face despite the urge to cry. "Thank you," he responded, his voice strained. The hoodie he wore happened to be one of the only baggy ones he owned, a result of a sizing mix-up when he bought it. Surprisingly, it worked in his favor now, providing some comfort.

He fought the urge to correct Kate when she called Nathan "uncle." After all, they weren't married or engaged. But if he did, Nathan might suspect something and act on it. The worst part was the anticipation, knowing that it was coming. He just wanted Nathan to get it over with. Yet, perhaps he should cherish the last few moments they had together. It was a relief that he hadn't broken up with Travis. At least he wouldn't be alone, even though he had also noticed changes in Travis's appearance lately. Mike was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't realize they had already boarded the ride. "Oh, you can go ahead and record. I'm sure Aria and Ezra will want to ride with her again. Besides, you can always send it to me," he said, forcing another smile. Kate reached for his hand, eliciting a genuine smile from him. "You've been so good, so after this, I'll win you that bear you want," he promised, noticing how her happiness seemed to intensify. Maybe all he needed to distract himself was to focus on doing the things he loved with the people who loved him.

[stray-kids-react]

Hot Topic

Masterlist

Warnings - Swearing

Genre - Fluff

Pairing - Changbin x Interview Reader

Your boss was a bitch and everyone knew this for a fact, being head of a huge magazine company really went to her head. And being her assistant and part time celebrity interviewer put a lot of stress on your shoulders, but it payed well and you still loved your job nonetheless.

But having to run to a coffee shop at 5 in the morning in uncomfortable through the pourning rain, was definitely not a highlight of your job experience. Your teeth clattering and goosebumps rising on your skin, the rain was pouring down hard it was hard to focus on anything in front of you.

"H-hi can I get two small black coffees, one meduim vanilla mocha, and one large hot chocolate." You ordered, wiping off the mascara that ran down your cheeks.

The cashier nodded cautiously, concerned by the way you looked. The elderly couple sitting not to far away from you was sipping their cups of tea as they boared into your souls it seemed. You knew this day was coming, having such a great couple of days and getting a raise... It was bound to have a small dip so your life isn't like Barbie dolls.

"Name?" The chashier questioned, chewing her gum loud and obnoxiously.

"Y/n." You sighed, trying to maintain some level of composure with that annoying chewing.

You tossled back and forth on the pads of your feet, zoning out due to your tired state. You nearly tripped over your own feet when the cashier called your name, holding a tray filled with burning cups of caffeine. You turned around quickly at the vibration of your phone, alerting you that you boss was becoming impatient.

A dark haired man crashed into you, gasping out of concern immediately. All of the drinks spilled onto new and already drenched jacket, and the rest flew onto your face. You left your eyes closed as you held in the scream trying to crawl out of your lips.

"Shit, I am so sorry." He apologised, helping you to your feet.

"It's okay." You whimpered, voice trembling from the overwhelming emotions forming in your mind.

Before he could grab napkins to help you out, you were already walking back to your home. Tears strolling down your cheeks from a mix of frustration and exhaustion, you knew you needed the day even if it meant taking extra hours the next day.

You poured the bubbles into your bathtub as you called your boss to tell them you wouldn't be showing up today, they sounded passive aggressive as they agreed but demanded you to do extra hours tomorrow. Which included interviewing the kpop boy group Stray Kids.

That's when a lightbulb clicked in your head, the man you rushed into was Seo Changbin. You were a fan of Stray Kids and didn't even recognize your bias because you were so stressed out from work.

"Oh my God..." You sighed, sinking into the water with disappointment in yourself.

-The next day-

"Y/n! Can you help this group to to the proper floor? I'm really busy." Your favored and spoiled Co worker suggested, clearly just wanting to get some time off. You agreed nonetheless.

Eight God like men stood next to each other with innocent confusion in their eyes, they didn't complain like other celebrities or acted snappy either. This made it more frustrating when your co worker made her irresponsible actions your problem to solve, they didn't deserve that type of treatment.

"Hi, I'm y/n l/n I will be your interviewer tonight and I just wanted you all to know how hug of a pleasure it is to have you hear. I'm a huge fan." You revealed, adjusting your posture with a pure smile.

They followed you towards the correct location, couches and chairs set up for the interview. The staff were all busy fiddling around with the equipment to make sure everything was fully prepared, which left you to try and entertain the special guests all by yourself. But before you could speak one more word, your boss rushed towards you.

"I am so thankful for you y/n, I just got a call from Elle magazine asking me if I would be able to interview Rihanna in a few hours, so if you don't mind locking up the building for me. Thanks sweetie." She demanded, tossing you the keys as she waltzed away from you.

It was after supper and you've been working non stop since 6am, and now you had to stay in this hell hole for even longer. A staff member ushered most of Stray Kids to different spots of the set.

"Are you the person I ran into yesterday?" Changbin questioned, close behind you.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I ran out so quickly. This job just is a lot of stress and work." You apologized, confusion furrowed hsi brows as to why you were apologizing.

"Don't worry about it, I actually feel bad for how hard these guys seem to be on you. Do you need any help setting up or anything?" He suggested, a softness in his eyes that made your heart do back flips.

You shook your head, knowing your face was probably stuck in a slightly shocked expression. You were proven this when a small smirk was noticeable on his features as he walked past you to get ready for the interview.

The interview went smoothly, not a awkward moment between you and the band. This is due to being a fan and doing your research before agreeing on the interview, unlike other interviewers who have completely made it unwatchable for some viewers.

You nearly stumbled over your words many times but kept composure each time, the stumbling only ever attempted to happen when you looked at Changbin.

Sending you small winks whenever the camera zoomed in to an other member, and watching you soft eyes everytime you spoke. You could feel the heat on the top of your ears from his simple but effective actions.

Felix noticed Changbin's actions towards you and smirked to himself, he slightly warned him whenever the camera would be focusing on him or if he would be in view. Everyone knew how entertainments were like when it came to dating, and that's why it was exciting when an idol didn't seem to care and wanted to live their lives.

"So I have one last question for you guys." You reassured, reading the last card in your hand.

"What is something you want to tell your fans?" You asked, smiling since you considered yourself a fan.

Each member expressed their love and appreciation for their fans, some sending small hearts from their finger tips before the camera panned away from them. You appreciated how humble and easy going they were, especially after dealing with celebrities like the Paul brothers. The worst interview you've ever had would have to be with Justin Timberlake nonetheless.

You stopped listening to Timberlake after the interview and wanted to try a new genre, and that is how you got into kpop. The first band you became a fan of was Exo, but your ultimate group became the loveable dorks called Stray Kids. You saw yourself as just some regular interviewer that wasn't special in any way, and you never thought any celebrity would give any attention.

The most attention you've got in your career was a handshake you made with Itzy's Lia while interviewing them. That's why it surprised you how Changbin seemed interested in you, since there were so many other people who would give everything they had to be with him.

"Did it work?" Changbin questioned, a genuine smile across his features as you looked in his direction.

"Did what work?" You asked, giggling softly at his puppy like expression.

"Your day seemed tough so I wanted to make you laugh, that's why I was winking. I wanted to break the ice." Changbin explained, fiddling with the ends of his shirt.

His reasoning made your heart flutter much more than if he would've just done it to flirt, it seemed genuine and thoughtful rather than desperate and fuck boy like.

"That's actually really sweet. Thank you." You commented, trying not to show him how much it effected you.

He nodded as a welcome, secretly adoring the that crossed your features.

"I better get going. I have a lot of cleaning up to do." You sighed, beginning to step away from the boy of your dreams.

Changbin glanced towards his band before running after you, a prominent shade of red dipped on the tips of his ears and cheeks.

"If I promise not to spill it over you, do you think I could make you a coffee and help you?" He asked, voice meeker and less confident than it was a few minutes ago.

You agreed to his proposal, trying not to squeal. Your crush wanted to spend time with you, and this was the only time you ever wanted to thank your boss.

[seelestia]

LIAAAAA i missed you terribly but i am glad you're checking in to let us know you're okay!! life happens, but it's always nice to see you around from time to time <3 i hope things are settling down now or at least soon? don't forget to take breaks and eat your meals and drink your water!!!

good thing that i always have him out whenever exploring these days, hope he's enjoying this 'retirement' life-

polearm users = hot, handsome, beautiful, gorgeous. i don't make the rules /j sldkjflsjdkf YES zhongli's charge attack is so 👌🏻💯 he executes it so flawlessly i love love love him it

ofc zhongli will win he's got his wife cheering him on with a humongous banner and his adoptive son (begrudgingly) waving his lightsticks /j

i will be impatiently waiting until he becomes playable hehehe

.... w a i t i feel dumb now act 4 isn't the end of sumeru?? sheesh. hoyoverse's mass recruiting is really showing its impact now huh ;))

him patting you when you proudly present the full basket of fresh juicy strawberries hehehe <3 imagine if one day you found abandoned puppies on your walk and you bring them home to ayato, who disapproved at first (untrained unruly little pups? what if they mess up his paperworks and disturb the workers from doing their job?) but when he sees you and the numerous pairs of beady eyes looking up at him.... he just melts lol camera pans out and zooms at ayaka and thoma who are shaking their heads, one giggling and the other muttering how 'waka is so whipped'

yeah that scene hurtssss ;w; i just want to shove them onto a sofa and tell them to shake hands and hug it out. and they're gonna do it every single day until they talk things out and repair their relationship >:|

i'm v v glad you liked it!!! AND I AM HUGGING THAT FANART TO MY HEART SLFJSLJFLS ZHONGLI MY LOVE MY DARLING AAAAA those eyes and that expression this is foul play my hearttttttttt 😭

enjoy the gameeee <3 though it doesn't have ayato or heizou in it i hope you'll at least enjoy childe's route <3

oh what a coincidence bc that word also describes you perfectly??? 🧐

also i saw the speed matchmaking and i will be 'dialing' that number soon hehehe <3

rin jieeee, it is always a good hit to my heart to know that my presence is missed <3 my time on tumblr has really been limited lately, so much so i didn't have the time to be active on my priv... hnghh, outrageous !! >:( and ty for the reminder, i actually got myself a mug of hot cocoa with me, hehe.

ah, yes, zhongli enjoying the retirement life and osmanthus wine-ing until a red hilichurl suddenly charges at him. what a measly little thing... tendou bansho. (⁠｢⁠`⁠･⁠ω⁠･⁠)⁠｢ 𒆙 (/j)

so trueee, polearms users >>> !! now, care to tell us what you think about the general mahamatra... in general (get it? ehe, hehe, aha *goblin snicker* /j)? 👀🎙️ i, for one, thinks he's quite neat! i won't spoil anything abt him in the archon quest, but he is quite principled and straightforward. cyno often has this lingering serious aura abt him, but he also has this hidden gentleness to him?? and not to mention, his fondness for jokes and puns too LOLLL his aloof exterior also reminds me of our beloved yaksha a little bit, hehe.

now that you say that, i just realized that darn, sumeru's story is really going past act 4. but i'm vv excited to see how everything unravels, especially with what is about to happen with scara 🤫 AND I JUST SAW THAT YOU FINALLY STARTED THE SUMERU QUEST ACT III !! looking forward to your comments about it, huehue >:)

noooo, the headpats, my weakness?! help, i might as well discard the basket just to lean into his hand jfjwkrkke yeahhh, give in to the beady puppy eyes !! rin jie, hand me my eyedrops, i need them to make the puppy eyes more convincing, ahem. (/j)

ikr?? i hope hoyoverse will do more events with character elaborations/developments like this in the future! kinda like dlc's that are nothing too lore-heavy (since i personally think heavy lore belongs in permanent quests, not temporary ones), hehe. AND YES, I WILL ENJOY YOUR GAME !! i haven't played it yet, but i already know i'm gonna enjoy it lots <3 and the way you knew if there's no ayato or heizou, it'd be tortellini. fjejdkks

psst, one more fanart to lose your mind over, nyehehe. having a chat over tea with zhongli at mount aocang !! cloud retainer is eyeing the two of you and gossiping this to shenhe later (/j)

[mononokehunters]

You're very welcome! I know it's a ton of info and, again, pretty specialized but I'm happy to explain it. I know it's a lot to absorb, I spent a good amount of my time in high school and college studying it, so I totally understand if something I take for granted is confusing. But I think it's a super cool subject so I'm more than happy to pass the interest on!

[[MORE]]

It's not at all a stupid question, particularly if you're not familiar with cinematography and the vocabulary that goes with it. It happens that's another one of my interests and one of the reasons I love Mononoke so much. You've got the gist of it, what we see on the screen is what the camera, whether it's a real one or one created by the scene drawn by the animator, sees. The camera is essentially our eyes to the action. A change in that viewpoint is a change in camera angle and where it's positioned has an impact on how we feel about the scene. There's many many different types of angles, wide, close, extreme close, high, low, still, moving, zooming in and out, panning, or some combination of those, and each of them has an ideal use depending on what you want the viewer to get out of the scene.

So a low zooming angled shot, as in Bakeneko 1 when the bakeneko senses that Mao is about to leave to house to be married and closes in on her, that creates a sense of action and tension. The odd angles used to introduce the characters at the beginning is discomforting, we feel that something is off about the situation because we're not seeing things straight, literally, and when the bakeneko strikes, the camera makes a full 90° turn, cementing that feeling that whatever is happening here is WRONG. Honestly I could go on at length but then this would be more like an essay than anything (*﹏*;)

I'm familiar with the shitshow that the Berserk team spat out, a couple friends who watch it were absolutely livid with the quality and I can't blame them. I never really got into the franchise but I did love the gritty quality of the show that came out in the late 90's, even if the production quality was low, and the modern adaptation is... Horrifically bad. The way it used to work, probably up until maybe 2015 or so, was a studio would write an episode script, draw up the storyboards, have a local team draw the major scenes, and send it to an animation house in South Korea where the labor was MUCH cheaper, and have them do all the mindless things like simple walk cycles, mouth flaps for dialogue, backgrounds, things like that. That's where a lot of the potato quality animation in Naruto and Bleach came from.

Before CG was an option, if a studio had the budget, a pro animator would be hired to come in and draw any intense action, people jumping around, dancing, etc. If there wasn't a budget, the action would be much less dramatic or they would just have singular panels with action lines animated over it to give it a feeling of intensity (a ton of cheap shoujo and shonen titles were infamous for this in the 80's and 90's).

Now when CG came into use, even though investing in the tech was expensive, it was still cheaper than paying an animator for those dynamic scenes. Initially it was only used for mecha and vehicles like in GiTS: Solid State Society or Code GEAS but eventually it was easier to animate organic bodies so you'd see shows like Yuri on Ice or BECK with small instances of CG in with the traditional. I noticed it whenever the stream quality wasn't shit but I'm sure a lot of viewers didn't and I think for the most part it worked well.

And now I am going to sound like a grouchy old lady nagging from the porch. These days, a studio can create working textured models of characters for a show in a matter of weeks and use them for as long as the show runs, provided there are no major wardrobe changes. It's easy to create an entire library of frequently used assets, so scenery and props can be modeled and then recycled at will through as many projects as they like. It's no wonder it's a very appealing workflow when your focus is purely the creation of content to get in front of people's eyeballs in the most efficient way possible. Which unfortunately is pretty much the state of the anime industry now. It used to be it was expected that the production cost of a show would be a wash, the real money could be made in merchandise or DVD and other media sales. But you'd still get gems like Mononoke or Wolf's Rain or Noein that were just oddballs, I can only assume the advertising spots made them worthwhile. Or they're like Cowboy Bebop where someone wanted to produce a show to sell toys but gave it to a madlad like Shinichiro Watanabe who decided (correctly) that a noir space Western sounded like a fucking AWESOME idea.

Anyways, now, production cost can be reduced to where studios are still banking on those merch sales but the production pipeline is so streamlined at this point, it's hardly worth the effort of bothering with traditional shows, certainly not for a blockbuster they expect to run for 3+ seasons.

In fairness, it means we do get shows like Dorohedoro that would never have gotten the greenlight five years ago based on the sheer cost of animating all that detail. Still, I'm split on it. On the one hand, I've been a fan of the manga ever since it came out in 2000 but on the other, the CG toon shader falls exactly in the animation uncanny valley for me and its a struggle for me to reconcile my enjoyment with my unease. I think the biggest issue personally is that in terms of CG animation, it's usage in anime is extremely low effort. The models move like puppets, they don't tend to squash or stretch or deform according to their motion and those are some of the basic elements of organic animation. Also they never get the damn fabric right. I think it's very possible that someone could create a CG anime that would look awesome (it's possible there's one out there I like that I'm forgetting) but at the current level of quality, it just comes off as lazy and cheap.

So, I managed to go all fucking over the place but those are my thoughts on it (^～^;)ゞ If you (or anyone else too!) have other questions you're more than welcome to DM me, I promise I don't bite.i may throw more walls of text at you tho. ( ╹▽╹ )

henlo! i have started watching mononoke recently and i find the visuals stunning! in a recent ask you answered you said that it had a "visual style which used a lot of technology that was groundbreaking at the time". may i ask, do you know more about this style they used? if it's easier, i's also appreciate if you can istead tell me where i can read/see more about it. thank you in advance!

Hi there! I'm going to preface this answer by saying that I studied Computer Graphics Technology and Animation in college so I may use terms that are common in the industry but are otherwise gibberish for everybody else so please don't be afraid to ask me to clarify (◠‿・)—☆ Continuing under the cut cause this is A Lot

Fortunately, there's THIS video on youtube, I suspect ripped from the Japanese DVD (which I would absolutely kill for, it looks incredible) which, tho it doesn't say anything, shows the process they used.

Basically what it's showing they did is use a combination of CG and traditional animation techniques. So most of the backgrounds were created in a program like Autodesk Maya or Google Sketchup (I don't know what actual software they used) and then supplemented with traditionally drawn details (still probably using a drawing program like Photoshop but). You can see the bg characters were rendered in sort of the same way with 3D modeled stand-ins that would have either been drawn over in earlier episodes (like the hotel patrons in Zashiki Warashi) or just given a flat toon render (as in the second Bakeneko arc) with main characters being given a rigged stand-in that could be posed and then animated over traditionally.

This gave them a lot of freedom to go absolutely nuts on the details and camera angles, which is why everything is so opulent, they didn't have to draw every change in the frame by hand, and how they were able to do things like have a million scales come out of Kusu's box or have a wall of floating paper fuda charms that open their eyes in a wave.

The downside of these techniques tho is that they look very unnatural in comparison to traditional animation. For example, if you've ever seen The Dragon Prince (or any anime produced by Netflix actually), it's animated with 3D models that have a 2D toon render put over them and the difference compared to something like... Idk Bleach (do people watch Bleach anymore?) is pretty obvious. Which isn't to say crappy traditional animation doesn't exist or is any better (Bleach still fits into this category pretty frequently) but it's hard to bridge that gap if you want to make a show that looks really good.

Which is why I suspect you see that neat paper texture over everything. It makes everything look like an ukiyo-e print AND hides that weird uncanny valley thing going on with the 3D elements. Win-win! I suspect that's also why there's that weird... Idk how to describe it but it's the thing that happens when Mao and her family are walking down the hall to send her to get married.

To be fair, this came out around the same time as Finding Nemo. It's not like they were creating something totally new (as far as I can tell) but what was impressive was that this sort of animation was unusual to see coming out of such a small studio. The tech needed to make it was (still is) very costly so they were investing a lot of money into a very expensive experiment.

Personally the neat thing about Mononoke is that the animators used what was available to them and instead of being restricted by the stylistic limitations, found a way to work around them. There's a lot I could say about having a clear artistic vision and using your tools creatively but that's something else (*﹏*;)

The irony of it is that you'd be hard pressed to find a show that doesn't use these techniques now. Toon renders, 3D modeled vehicles, sets and characters, CGI special effects. They've all become the industry standard since the technology has advanced because they can streamline the process when you want to produce a show quickly. In the case of a studio like Netflix it also means you can create a set of stock character models that you can dress up as necessary for production and focus your resources on set design and other unique elements.

Personally I'm not a fan of it as a practice now. It means everything looks the same across the board and takes the soul out of the creative process, turning animation into a factory assembly line. It's not like it's something new in the industry, cheap shortcuts have always been a part of the process but idk. There's a difference between Mononoke and Pretty Magical Girl Show #57 and my eyes and heart know the difference.

But yeah, that's more or less what's going on behind the scenes of Mononoke. If you're curious about learning more, check out a few guides about 3D modeling and animation and programs like Maya, Sketchup, Z-Brush and compositing programs like Adobe After Effects or Sony Vegas. Keep in mind, these are by no means the only programs that do these types of things out there, I know there's quite a few good quality free ones available if you're interested in doing something similar yourself. I've just not been involved in the biz for a while so I'm not super up to date on what's out there. There's tons of awesome indy animators out there (I'm a big fan of WorthiKids) who are more than happy to talk about their process and tools so give them a look too. Safe travels and good luck with your research!