Meg Didugu

Wanderlust (2022)

Meg Didugu — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 01:04:34 +0000

This storyboard was part of a group project in Professor John McIntyre’s storyboarding class. The team comprised Mengni Shen, Arundhati Pethe, Yixao Qin, and myself. I came up with the story, and once I had written the beat board, Mengni Shen and I divided the beat board in half and made the storyboard. Arundhati Pethe worked on the visual development of the main characters in the story, and Yixao Qin handled the production aspect of the project. We collaborated successfully and made this silly and funny story about a bunch of animals attending a jungle party.

At a lively jungle party celebrating the end of summer, a boastful hummingbird returns from vacation and annoys the other animals with its antics. When the bird’s bragging and bothersome behavior push them too far, the bear and friends decide to play a trick, leading to a wild chase through the festivities.

Emotional Arc

Meg Didugu — Tue, 09 Jul 2024 16:21:00 +0000

The Emotional Arc animation was created as part of Professor Jose Luis Silva Andrade’s class, Drawing in Motion. This assignment aims to showcase the arc between two extreme emotions through animation. The idea I chose to pursue involves a girl walking into the kitchen feeling exhausted and sleepy. After sipping coffee, her body language and emotions change as she becomes energized. To start the assignment, we first filmed a live-action reference. I recorded myself acting out the emotions I planned for the animation and used the live-action footage as a reference to create a 2D frame-by-frame animation on my iPad using Procreate.

Cuckoo Clock (3D Modelling)

Meg Didugu — Sun, 07 Jul 2024 16:15:00 +0000

The cuckoo clock assignment requires students to create a 3D model of a cuckoo clock using Autodesk Maya. The project emphasizes understanding cuckoo clocks’ historical significance and traditional design elements, developing design skills to conceptualize and model intricate mechanical parts and decorative features. Students will use Autodesk Maya to model components accurately, such as gears, pendulums, and the cuckoo bird mechanism, and then assemble them. The assignment culminates in a detailed presentation covering the design process, challenges faced, and the final 3D model, highlighting technical and aesthetic aspects. This task aims to blend historical appreciation with modern technical skills, resulting in a functional and visually appealing model.

I’ve decided to create a Bubonic Plague-themed cuckoo clock. The design focuses on the grim reality of medieval times when the Bubonic Plague was rampant. The clock depicts a plague-stricken household and includes various elements representing or connected to the Black Death.

Conceptualizing the Cuckoo Clock

Lighting the Cuckoo Clock in Lambert

Cuckoo Clock: Final

Cuckoo Clock: Cuckoo Bird

Cuckoo Clock: Revellers

Cuckoo Clock: Clock

Cuckoo Clock: Genre Scene (1)

Cuckoo Clock: Genre Scene (2)

Cuckoo Clock: Genre Scene (3)

Cuckoo Clock: Transition, Weights and Pendulum

Cuckoo Clock: All Characters in Lambert

Cuckoo Clock: All Characters with Shading

Swiss Army Knife (3D Modelling)

Meg Didugu — Sun, 07 Jul 2024 13:26:52 +0000

In this assignment, students must create a detailed 3D model of a Swiss Army Knife using Autodesk Maya. The task involves understanding the complexity of the Swiss Army Knife, including its various tools and features. The assignment will test the student’s ability to translate a complex real-world object into a digital model, focusing on their attention to detail, technical skills, and creativity.

Understanding and Modelling a Swiss Army Knife was quite challenging at the beginning. I had to rely on images as I did not have the knife physically. I downloaded the pictures of the knife from various angles and drew the shape and tools on paper to understand the basic shape. Once I did that, I imported the images I downloaded into Maya and attempted modeling with the help of my professor’s tutorials. The first attempt could have been better. There were issues with the number of ridges and the spacing between them. I also needed help with the geometry of the surface. With the help of feedback from my professor and peers, I was able to learn more and understand the object better. Reaching out to my peers also helped me see how they deconstructed the object.

3D Model of Swiss Army Knife with Wire Frame

3D Model of Swiss Army Knife in Lambert

3D Model of Swiss Army Knife Rendered with Lighting and Shading (1)

3D Model of Swiss Army Knife Rendered with Lighting and Shading (2)