Guardian of the Dark Woods Collab

Hey, everyone. Benthekid here. I have decided to do a collab, with Crypto as guardian of a dark forest.

Description: Crypto is defending a corrupted diamond that is a part of the dark forest. The objective here is to try to retrieve the artifact without Crypto catching you. He's defending the diamond to prevent anyone who captures it from having unlimited power

Rules

1. You're free to use any animating and editing software you see fit.
2. You MUST use Crypto in your animation.

"Crypto's Sprite Sheet"

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B2CcYVB69-EmNXN2RWlVWGFFOFk

3. The background MUST take place at night in a dark forest.

"Reference"

4. You can only make 1 entry for this.
5. Your entry must be a minimum of 6 seconds and a maximum of 5 minutes.
6. If you want to enter, message me on Google Hangouts (I don't have a Discord, yet.)
7. The frame-rate must be at 15 frames per second.

Deadline: N/A

Hey dude! Nice that you're hosting a collab right off the bat! This actually is a pretty cool concept. Reminds me of the Defend the Diamond collab on Hyun's Dojo, but it seems like there is more flexibility in what you can do with cinematics, space, and story.

I got a few tips for you, just based on what I see here from the thread --

> The description could have some more info, specifically background information. What is this artifact? What does it have to do with Crypto and why does Crypto want it/capture the character who has it? Everything is more interesting with a solid story/concept, but so far, I'm not understanding the importance of the objective and if you wanna reel in animators, you gotta make it sound important!

> Seeing how the deadline is less than 10 days away, getting finished parts from 16 animators might be a little difficult. Unless it's like a 24-hr collab or you plan out everything way beforehand, the animators might need more than 10 days to animate something, especially since school is still in session for most. I'm sure if an animator animated their part at least 5 hrs per day (seeing how there's no specific length requirement), he/she could get it done within a week, but you have to consider the animators' lives and take into account that they're creating a part FOR THIS COLLAB/FOR YOU. Nothing wrong with a short deadline, but it being so sudden might deter some animators, who have a busy schedule.
One suggestion I have (you don't have to take it) to make the process go faster is to create a set map or compile map elements for the animators to use, to save the time for them to make a map themselves. Requiring everyone's parts to take place in a dark forest at night is pretty simple enough, but it can get hectic when people don't know what to use and confusing for the viewers of the collab (like how could Crypto be chasing a character in one forest and be in a completely different forest later?).

> Technicality-wise, I don't see any resolution or frame rate or transition requirement. This can be interpreted as you don't care or you don't have requirements for them, all of which are actually bad... It's best to stay consistent as possible so the final compilation doesn't look random and glitchy, unless you know what you're doing. Also, since you are advertising for animators to join the collab, it's best to be specific and at least sound like you have a plan to compile it all.

> I clicked on your SS and

Again, remember to be thorough (cross your t's and dot your i's)!

> I don't (want to) entirely believe reputation in the community play a big role in being a successful host, but it's difficult for animators to put hours of work for a collab that is being hosted by someone who is considered new to animating. It is important to have baseline knowledge of video editing (AE, Premiere, SV, Final Cut, etc) so people can trust you can do a good job at least compiling it. Since you're new to the forums, maybe in this thread introduce yourself and show some of your work, to prove yourself as a competent animator who has the potential of being a good host!

Collabs aren't easy, not even the 24-hrs ones. Everything takes a great deal of planning and patience, and you're bound to run into some conflicts that can be out of your control. I think my main tip overall for starting your first collab is to have a huge motivation and determination to see this through.
Wish you the best of luck! Completed MS collabs in MM are always a treat~