345: Final Project

Explanation of the Assignment:

Our final assignment was a group project where we worked with another person to create a story. We had to make our logline and plot summary, a script, storyboard, and an animatic. We will be presenting our animatic as part of our final.

Title: The All-Nighter

Logline: After another all-nighter, a procrastinating animator and a tired rig must overcome their differences to finish a difficult project.

Plot Summary: A slacking animation student is caught working on a difficult project after procrastinating once again. In the early hours of the morning she is forced to work around many glitches and crashes with a rig that seems to have a mind of its own. After many cups of coffee and many frustrating restarts, the student pushes the rig too far. Now stuck with a broken rig, the student must work out a way to finish the project in time.

Script:

FADE IN:

INT. DARK, COLLEGE DORM ROOM- NIGHT

A dark and cluttered dorm room lit only by the flickering of a computer screen. The screen sits on a desk in one corner of the room surrounded by unwashed laundry, unfinished papers, and a mess of cables. On the desk lies the head of a tired and messy young college student with a clock next to her head reading 11:00 PM.

STUDENT, female animation student with pencils in her hair and sticky notes stuck to her face, wakes up slowly.

STUDENT

Ugh, what time is it?

The student looks down at the clock and back at her screen to see the rig for her current animation class assignment with a tired, frustrated face.

RIG, A faceless, gray humanoid stands in the screen with feet together and arms out to the side in a T pose.

The student stands up slowly and walks out of the room. Rig comes to life and presses the autokey button off. Student comes back with a bottle of water and starts animating. Student then realizes none of her keys had saved and she has to start over.

STUDENT

Why aren’t my keys saving? I coulda sworn I turned auto key on.

Student redoes her settings and continues animating.

FADE TO BLACK:

DORM ROOM- LATER

Time passes and we see it is now about 1:00 AM. Her water is all gone and she goes to the bathroom. The rig comes back to life and decides to make Maya crash. We hear a FLUSH as Student comes back and she sees the Maya crashed box.

STUDENT

What…? When was my last save?!

The student throws her hands in the air in frustration. She turns to the clock and sees just how little time she has.

STUDENT

I don’t have time for this!

She hastily starts animating again and accidentally breaks the rigs arm by twisting it too far back.

RIG

Ow! What were you thinking?

Student freaks out and leaps out of her chair after realizing the rig has come to life.

RIG

You finally pushed me too far!

STUDENT

Wait you’re alive!? Oh my gosh! I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry! I can fix this!

Student moves her cursor towards the arm controller in an attempt to put the arm back in place.

RIG

What? No! So you can dislocate my other shoulder? Go away!

Student continues to chase the Rig with her cursor for a bit before giving up.

STUDENT

Look I’m sorry I hurt you and that I’ve been working you so hard lately. I know you’ve been through a lot, we both have.But we’ve worked together all semester cramming until the last minute. This is our final project and I promise from now on we’ll work together.

Rig looks at her then off to the side, contemplating what to do. Then Rig looks back at her.

RIG

Fine. But no more all nighters!

STUDENT

Deal!

The team begins to work together as the clock changes from 1am to 2am and so on until 6am. Sunlight begins leaking into the room as they realize they’re almost done. They hit the save button and send it off for grading.

STUDENT

We’re done. Finally finished… Thank you so much for your help.

Student has bags under her eyes. Student reaches toward the screen with her index finger where her and Rig high five. Student is about to close out Maya then stops.

STUDENT

Wait… Are all rigs alive? Or am I just crazy?

Rig shrugs at her and closes out Maya for her.

CUT TO BLACK