Stills of Pod Racer

Pod Racer

Here is the finished piece following the introductory guide to Maya by Digital Tutors (Click name for link). It was modeled, textured, rigged, animated (including dynamics) and lit by myself, i didn't use any of the files that accompany the lesson, however, it remains similar do to the imitative nature of the guide. The shadow for underneath the racer is missing, I had some issues with 'use background' layer, mainly it came out solid black. One solution i found on a forum appeared to work for others, however for me all that happened was i got a completely translucent layer and toying about with the settings in-between only gave me on of those two options, solid or invisible. I've not given up so watch this space.

The guide was very easily broke down, and i found it much easier to absorb than Andy's lessons, (this is due to the way i learn rather than anything negative towards Andy, so don't read into that anything otherwise). You can find Andy's blog here. I'm currently rendering some stills of the racer itself so you will be able to see it in a higher quality and higher detail than you currently can.

Sprawl 2 and I Am A Chain Reaction

A great new release has been made by Arcade Fire in shape of the video for Sprawl 2. Here is the typical version:



However there is an interactive version that can be found at www.sprawl2.com which is great fun. The movement and choreography of the dancers is interesting. I do not know enough about dance to comment on its style, however, it does remind me of the dynamo rhythm that was developed my Decroux (I have a small pool with which to relate too, so if you know any different, please drop me a comment). It was choreographed by Dana Gingras, with the group under the identity of Animals of Distinction which you can read about here. There is a great piece of work called 'I Am A Chain Reaction' which you can see an excerpt below, and this was taken from here. The rhythm of movement is slick and during the immobile moments i can't help but be reminded of keyframing. The hands, feet and head drive the trunk and the circular motion builds a nice contrast between the immobile poses and the mobile cycles. The animation was completed before, and projected from above during the performance with no compositing.

I Am A Chain Reaction from Presstube on Vimeo.

Back from the dead

It has been some distance yet again between now and my last post. Now to summarize the first term:

Context 3: My business idea was to stimulate the animation industry within the Birmingham area (My home town, and somewhere lacking in training opportunities of the kind). My catalogue approach was to establish my target audience and then tailor my images to its needs.

Client Project: I selected the YCN feel good drinks company brief and am currently building up different concepts through different marketing techniques.

Research Project: I am investigating the method through which an animator conceives a believable performance and have established three different approaches which are interlinked. Some names of the people who have influenced the research; Etienne Decroux, Jacques Lecoq, Richard Williams, Rudolf Von Laban, Ed Hooks, Angela Tinwell (to name a few). Ultimately, animation will only be progressive through development of techniques that explore interpretation of movement, and not advances in realism. For those of you that haven't looked at Angela Tinwells work should; The Uncanny Wall is particularly insightful. The message: realism is flawed.

For the past week I've been learning Maya, for which i have built and animated a Pod Racer, which should be available later tonight, (or tomorrow, as Motion Blur is desirable).