Bellwether – Episode 2 Trailer – A SCAD Student Partial Open Source Series
This project was in fulfillment of the SCAD animation graduate program as my final thesis. If you’d like to learn more about the project or read the published thesis, the link can be found below.
Here is the abstract for the thesis and the purpose of it all:
“One of the large problems I see in the industry today is the amount of waste after a production finishes. Often, assets created during production are either swept under the rug or get locked away in databases never to be seen again. While often this is done to protect intellectual property, I believe some of these assets can still be used to benefit both the artist and the artist community post-mortem, while avoiding damages and enhancing an IP (Intellectual Property). Rather than retain or archive production resources and intellectual property, I propose studios freely release these elements to the creative community in what I will call a Bellwether. This method would go beyond just releasing an asset for free by creating goals and a clear intent as well. This thesis focuses on how providing a Bellwether as open source content can be an efficient method for not only the community but also the artist or production house. The history of open source projects will be introduced in order to understand how they have contributed to the field in the past. Moreover, this thesis will analyze success and failures of current and unconventional Bellwethers from studios and projects such as Linux, Blender, Epic Games and Pixar. The visual component will demonstrate from start to finish how this method can be applied in a full short film production.” Abstract