Dead Letter Office: A Study in Animation

Dead Letter Office is an experiment in story-telling through computer animation; investigating world-building through nineteenth-century Victorian culture infused with the folklore of White Socks and set in a fictional city. This manuscript documents the output-oriented approach behind the creative project and is divided into two parts: conceptual development and technical execution. The first half will talk about the world in with Dead Letter Office takes place, the evolution of the storyline, and how it draws from its historical influences. The second half will be a breakdown of process and assumes a basic knowledge of Atodesk Maya 2012, placing stronger emphasis on modeling, texturing, and rendering, as well as the creation of a streamlined workflow by utilizing third-party MEL scripts and stand-alone programs. It is not a step-by-step tutorial, but rather aims to discuss different options in 3-D animation, explain the reasoning for my choices, and hopefully share suggestions on general good practice.