Tiffany Vu's artblog

115 Animation

2011-03-19T16:57:00.000-07:00

I realized it's been forever since I posted stuff up. Time to do a whole year worth of catch up, haha.

First, from Spring 2010. My short animation film. Sorry it wasn't shot as clear as it could have, and it's actually incomplete.

Development:

More old works spam coming.

Portfolio Online

2010-12-11T03:07:00.000-08:00

A separate blog for my portfolio work is now up:

http://tiffanyvu-portfolio.blogspot.com/

I'll be sure to update this blog again once finals are over.

Thanks!

[117] Kitchens, digi practices

2010-03-20T09:31:00.000-07:00

For VizDev class, we had to design a kitchen based on few Gary Soto short stories, which takes place in the 1950s. Here are my views.

There are still issues such as perspective and, well, my Photoshop skills :) I'll repost once I come around to fix them! Overall, it was a huge learning experience and progression for me. Thank you Courtney for the compliments and critiques!

These are post-project Photoshop practices on digital painting with objects in front of me. So hard!

Pre-VizDev, sketch

2010-02-18T22:06:00.001-08:00

Before launching full-fledged projects, this was a warm-up to the visual development process. In VizDev class we had to design shots of a location we chose from the given options. I chose a 1950s salon. These are done in Photoshop, still pretty rough.

Random sketchbook spread.

More 3D projects

2010-01-10T16:21:00.000-08:00

SELF PORTRAIT: In the end, we were unable to finish the T800 as a class, so the project became a self-portrait. We also went through hair briefly. 10,432 polys.

Here are some old projects that I previously didn't upload.

HUMAN SKULL: 2k poly.

LIGHTSABER: Done all in NURBS.

Resume

2010-01-10T12:34:00.000-08:00

This will be updated from time to time.

--------------

EDUCATION

- San Jose State University, San Jose, CA
Major in Animation/Illustration, Bachelor Degree in progress
Overall GPA: 3.7/4.0
- Moreau Catholic High School, Hayward, CA
High School Diploma, May 2006

SKILLS

Software: Flipbook, Autodesk Maya, Zbrush, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Indesign, Dreamweaver
Participation: SJSU Animation/Illustration club member
Language: Fluent in English (written and spoken) and Cantonese (spoken, basic written). Basic Mandarin and Japanese.
Others: Webcoding (html, php) and Webdesign.

EXPERIENCE

- Understands basic 2D animation principles, 3D modeling.
- Part-time Graphic designer for SJSU Engineering Deans Office (Spring 2008 - Spring 2009)
- YearBook Main Editor in Senior high school year (2004-2006)
- Head Officer for Japanese Animation Club in High school (2004-2006)
- Designed invitational card cover for relative and performance pamphlet for music school summer concert

AWARDS

San Jose State University
- Dean’s Scholars, Spring 2009

Moreau Catholic High School
- Outstanding Achievement in Computer Science: Yearbook, Spring 2006
- Outstanding Achievement in Visual Art, Spring 2006
- Outstanding Achievement in Computer Science: Yearbook, Spring 2005
- Outstanding Achievement in Computer Science, Spring 2004

--------------

Please contact me by tiffany[at]gmail[dot]com.

114 Portfolio

2009-12-20T04:53:00.001-08:00

As promised, here are the pages for my 114 portfolio. Because the previous posts already contain many animal drawings, I've left them out. Below are the figure drawing spreads plus sketchbook spreads and other work spread. Note: Some of the works have been posted here before.

Complementary RESUME.

Figure Drawings:

Sketchbook:

Other works:

Ultraman dance!!

2009-12-19T01:31:00.000-08:00

It's done! It's really done!!! My classmate 某S and I have started working on this since Thanksgiving along with finals. Since we did not have time to animate our models as a class, Gustlin made "dancing Ultraman" one of the extra credit options for final. Dude, we so couldn't pass up the opportunity. It didn't even matter whether it was extra credit or not, for we just wanted to animate our Ultramans!

Copyrights go to Tsuburaya Productions and Shuuchishin. This is a student project only and is not affiliated with the company. No profits were made from it.

Ultraman Taro by me, Ultraman Zoffy by 某S.
Song: 羞恥心 (Shuuchishin) by 羞恥心

We've reached our physical limit because of the project, but after seeing Gustlin's and the class' great laughters as well as the audience's during the A/I screening in the Washington Square Hall (the giant screen!!!) as the last item to show, the whole week of full-pilot animating non-stop was SO worth it!! 100% satisfactory (●´Д｀●)!!

The whole process was so surreal... I mean, a total of 2688 frames animated, done with no instructions and zero experience on 3D animating. Plus, we started from scratch: searching for references, drawing blueprint, modeling, UV mapping, rigging, painting weight, and finally, animating... It was a miracle we finished it. We just want to keep screaming, as words can't come close to describing our hype. I think this type of passion will be hard to come by a second time. But because of 129A, this semester was truly lots of fun.

Mascots are yours truly, respective of our Ultraman's.

Some in-progress shots of many. Preview:

★ MORE SHOTS and EXTRAS below! ★

"Pika-Pika" (shiny-shiny) Drama:

*insert soap opera lines*

Forgot to render with light, and... this Ipod nii-san happened. *LAUGHS*

"Hey You!"

And this is an extra animation we made for Gustlin. Three things he either loves or loves to say. The reactions were... epic.

Click here for last screenshot (to not spoil XD).

★ They all are OUR PRIDE! ★

114 - Sack Pantomime

2009-12-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

Here's my final "sack pantomime" for my 2D animation class. The assignment is basically to make the sack have a change of emotion due to contact with an object.

Music is track 21 "Kirby's Hill" from the Kirby anime OST, composed by Akira Miyagawa. I apologize for the lightness and the slight static. >.<

Will upload my updated portfolio pages after converting them to jpgs. Please look forward!

[129A] T800 WIP

2009-11-14T19:33:00.000-08:00

This is our next project: T800 Endo Self Portrait. Basically it's a self-version with the Terminator T800 Endoskull. That is... if we have enough time to finish it within just 3 weeks. I would love to have it finished. Current progress:

Skull: 20 hours. Head (plus teeth, tongue): close to 50 hours.

Btw, it's not the end of Ultraman! We (hopefully) will still do something with the model. Even if we don't, I personally will do something.

[129A] More Taro!

2009-10-11T16:17:00.000-07:00

EDIT: Updated the snapshots (model last moved on December 2009).

タロウ教官！ヽ(´∀｀)ﾉ After understanding his character much more than before, I was so compelled to do him justice that I scrutinized on the references very much. Another major inspiration was the Ultraman Mebius & Ultraman Brothers theme song Mirai. The melody feels so hopeful, genuine, and heroic that it got me much into the Ultraman mood. For the model, over 100 hours spent.

Copyrights go to Tsuburaya Productions. This is a student project only and is not affiliated with the company. No profits were made from it.

Total polycount: 14,076 polys.

Below are old work-in-progress screenshots as well as detailed shots.

Previous WIP from October 2, 2009:

Around 80 hours ~~of sleep deprivation~~ spent on modeling and mapping, I must say I'm extremely proud of the outcome. There are still places that I might minorly tweak, but here are the images as of the past Wednesday (9/30)! I am dying to see this animated! ＞ｗ＜

Shots has been crossposted at UltramanLAH! Forums

Gestures, human and beast!

2009-10-01T19:19:00.001-07:00

Here are some figure drawings I did during the past month. Have to say I'm a bit rusty >< But.. let's fire it up!! All done in ball-point.

And then more giraffe drawings from the past two weeks, sprinkled with bits of improvement! There's simply too many, so I just selected a few to show. Also all done in ball-point.

Once again, let's FIRE IT UP!!! ＞ｗ＜

[114] Animal Gestures

2009-09-16T20:04:00.001-07:00

For our Intermediate 2D Animation, we were required to go to the zoo and pick an animal to do gestures on. I chose the majestic giraffe! They're such gentle-looking creatures. They're all 1-2 min. gestures, and at most 5 min. for any long drawings. All done with ball-point pen.

[129A] Ultraman Taro!! ...WIP

2009-09-16T14:30:00.000-07:00

Time to revive this blog. For our intermediate(?) Maya class, our first project is Ultraman! We get to choose which family/member to model, and I chose Taro ♥ The research ~~(and the stumbling upon some unexpected crack stuff)~~ has resurfaced some many nostalgia and caused me to adore the characters to no end, so I've been very compelled to do Taro as much justice as possible XD Honestly, I would never have expected to be this excited about Maya as now. TAROOO!

Current WIP. Almost 13k polys and around 40 hours spent.

Prior to modeling, we all had to create a model sheet.

Swan Feeding

2009-07-10T01:12:00.000-07:00

Wannabe concept art ~~not really~~, inspired by St. Stephen's Green and lots of David Lanz piano (♥!). Originally twas gonna be just a boy, but since it's Ireland inspired, he became a fairy. My scanner does something strange to the lines' color, so I camera-shot it.

Paris 2009 sketchbook excerpts

2009-07-01T14:32:00.000-07:00

I cannot believe it's over, but I am back from my Paris trip. You can read about the adventures from our SJSU Paris 2009 blog. As posted there, though the trip [has ended], it's only the beginning of a new journey in art. The class has helped me mature a lot in how to approach creating art and become more intelligent, and I'm extremely thankful for John for selecting us all for it.

Below are some spreads/pages from my sketchbook.

(Collaboration with Gus)

The last one is an Ireland page. I traveled with a few other classmates to Dublin during our free days in Paris.

Quick Fanime2009 caption

2009-05-30T02:48:00.000-07:00

Artist Table with my buddy Rei at Fanime2009 this year was awesome and totally busy XD

These are my -Super Smash Bros Brawl bookmarks-, among the other merchandises:

Alrighties, won't hear another word from me until I come back from Paris on June 30th! You can follow what's going on in the trip at http://sjsuparis2009.blogspot.com/ :)

113B - Final

2009-05-20T14:18:00.001-07:00

Acrylic. 10x21 on illustration cold press.

Here is my final painting for my Illustration class. Obviously there are many changes (more like additions) done to the original design... Can't say I'm satisfied with the final result. The perspective and lighting was tricky, but the class has made me more critical on design choices. I will practice more in the future! :)

Maya - Thunderhawk FINAL

2009-05-17T18:38:00.001-07:00

Copyrights go to GAMES WORKSHOP Ltd. This is a student project only and is not affiliated with the company. No profits were made from it.

The final product of my Intro to 3D (Maya) class with a total of 39,130 Tris. I had hope for more time on it. Here are close-ups without texture to show the geometry.

Below is me playing around with the Paint Effects:

Maya - Thunderhawk WIP 2

2009-05-04T05:07:00.001-07:00

Edit: Merged WIP posts together.

Current WIP project for my Maya class. We're to model a low poly-count war vehicles from Warhammer (though some steered off with real-life vehicles). Mines is the Thunderhawk Gunship. I found the plans/blue prints from Warhammer 40K Imperial Armour Vol 2 Space Marines & Forces Of The Inquisition. Copyrights go to GAMES WORKSHOP Ltd. and this project is not affiliated with it.

There are way more details than the previous WIP, I assure you. It's 5AM.... Total of close to 37k poly count, even though our original goal was it keep it at 10k. *LAUGHS*

More details and mapping will be added to the final thing.

WIP from May 1:

Plein air [4/26]

2009-04-26T18:32:00.000-07:00

Plein air I did couple hours ago. AGH! Caterpillars dropped down from some branch while I was painting, and one landed on my pants! That's freakier than flies and bugs on the ground combined. O_O

We were supposed to use the palette we chose for our 'tidepool' painting... though I was kinda off. It should've been a bit more saturated (more orange). If I touch it up later tonight or tomorrow, I will reupload a new one.

113B - Tonal Render

2009-04-24T00:29:00.000-07:00

So this is my pencil rendering for my 'tidepool' project, basically an environmental piece we're gonna paint. Mines is based on the Sierra Nevada mountain conifer. I didn't render it as finished as I wanted...

This was my quick Photoshop study.

Admittedly, some of it are altered in the paint process (like, RIGHT NOW)... The leaves in the front will actually be much more silhouetted.

Sunbur-- I mean, plein air paintings.

2009-04-13T12:30:00.000-07:00

It looks like all four seasons, doesn't it? :P Completely unintentional though. Edit: Reuploaded.

I painted the "spring" one yesterday with an intuitive palette. The remaining ones are paintings I did over spring break (around 2 weeks ago). The "summer" one is also intuitive, while the "autumn" is a complementary palette and the "winter" is monochromatic. They're all 3-5 hours, around 5x7 inches. I tend to struggle with landscapes that are more airy in space, as oppose to a close-up of trees...

After doing these, I have a new respect for landscape artists who paint outdoors, because painting from life is harder than I anticipated. But there were numerous times, such as yesterday, where families would come up to watch me paint and comment. I was especially happy when the kids would ask their parents to come look and saying it looks good. That in itself is a compliment. That is, if the kids were able to walk away with something from watching me, no matter how my painting turned out, venturing out to paint was worth it.

113B - Painting exercises

2009-04-11T15:29:00.001-07:00

More spamming. These were some of the acrylic exercises for my Intermediate Illustration class in the past 2 months.

We started with just a white egg, then moved on to three eggs with different extreme values, and finally a decorated egg of your choice. I chose Kirby because who doesn't love Kirby!?

Then an object from our chosen environment (our final project). This is a sequoia pinecone, which was easier to paint than the leaves.

They were all in the A/A- range, yay! I apologize for the lighting of the shots, once again.

113B - Tree & Plants studies

2009-04-11T01:04:00.000-07:00

More past classworks. This time these life sketches are from this semester. All done in graphite pencils.

Few tree studies 2 weeks into the Intermediate Illustration class (so around February).

Some plants studies for the week after. Much better! :3 I'm alright with putting in values for objects, but for landscapes I'm still having some issues...

Happy Easter!

Art51 - Pokeball & Jigglypuff

2009-04-09T20:20:00.000-07:00

Done 100% with NURBS around a month ago for my intro to Maya class.

We had to create a Pokeball and Jigglypuff out of Nurbs with no instructions, and sounds/lighting were not required. But... Pokemon's too fun to pass off the opportunity ^^ Sound effects are from Brawl.

The only error I have is that the "beams" aren't supposed to cast shadows, but I'm only 2 months into Maya, so I don't know other techniques yet...

113A Color Rendering

2009-04-09T18:49:00.001-07:00

The big acrylic project from 113A class during Fall 2008! This is the color rendering of the b/w painting you see here. Like most, I entered the class with hardly any painting skills, and this project has taught me a lot in terms of paint application and attention to rendering.

I apologize for the light glare... no matter how many times I snapshot, it won't go away. Maybe I'll try again later. Any tips for a good shot? ♥

Detail shots:

Around 30-40 hours only, surprisingly. 94/100. My one solid A in the class. Thanks Cameron! :)

Winter 2008 sketchbook pages

2009-04-08T13:48:00.000-07:00

Here are excerpt pages from my winter sketchbook, as required from those who had just entered the program. Argh I wasn't aggressive enough!! ><

We weren't supposed to draw stuff "out of our head," but well... :P Despite the lack of pages, Bunny said they were good starts. The latter left page is a combination of two pages, as I only liked a section in each.

And this is completely irrelevant winter sketchbook, but I sketched it for a friend and thought it came out really nice. It's Ike and Zelda based on the Super Smash Bros Brawl universe (c) Nintendo, HAL Labratory, Intelligent Systems. I LOVE THE GAME!

Fall 2008 Portfolio - class projects

2009-04-08T11:32:00.000-07:00

Here are the class projects, sketchbook, and drapery spreads.

Note: The email on the pages is no longer the one I use. Please do NOT contact me through it.

Projects from 112A and 113A.

Comic project from 112A and digital works for Art50 and 28.

Random perspective studies.

Draperies!

Fall 2008 Portfolio - Figure Drawings

2009-04-08T00:54:00.001-07:00

Greetings! This is Tiffany speaking. I suppose I'll grace this blog by posting my Fall 2008 portfolio, the portfolio I entered SJSU's Animation/Illustration program with.

Below are excerpts of figure drawing studies.

Note: The email on the pages is no longer the one I use. Please do NOT contact me through it.

1-2 minute gestures.

5-10 minutes.

20-30 minutes.

Hands, Feet, Heads studies.