2011 Machinima 48HFP - Team WarTechnica's motion poster

Quickie Update...

Just to update on what I'm up to....

I have a new clothing pack that has been certified - should be in the Reallusion store in a couple of weeks - the Bikini Babes Collection.


I also have a new Freebie available over at Cool Clones - a Zippered top and Jeans. It uses the free Casual clonecloth base. If you like, please help yourself. A login may be required to access the Download section. :)


Movie-wise? Hoping to flesh out my Resident Evil inspired short this week and get into production when I get back from my short trip. I've finally caught up on VOs for people - yay! This probably means that I'll see if there are any more roles available but I'm not going to take on too much because I really want to finish a film of my own soon. It's been way too long. :)

Other things not to forget...

If you've got iClone and have ever used or been helped by the iClone Wiki, please consider participating in the Wacky Wiki Commercial contest. There are great prizes to be had and if you take first place, you'll also get some great exposure to the TMU community. Deadline is September 10, 2010.

The Second Annual Ollies at TMU has come around again! Please nominate your favorite films, actors/actresses, modders etc for any films uploaded to TMUnderground between July 22, 2009 and July 21, 2010. Please see the link for more details on how to nominate and the categories available. There is also a 'For Your Consideration' thread in which directors have listed their works so that you can browse through to jog your memory or just enjoy. Deadline for nominations is August 21, 2010 at midnight GMT.

The third annual MachinExpo 2010 is accepting submissions now! Put forth your best work, no matter what the platform, length, or genre. The Expo aims to share and showcase bold, creative and innovative works which represent the best that machinima has to offer. Please follow the link for submission details. Deadline is August 31, 2010 at midnight GMT.

Alrighty, that's it from me!
'Til next time! :)

Well, I've put out something...

But it's not a movie. With a little bit more free time and a little encouragement from iClone seamstress extraordinaire, Alley, I decided to go for my CCD certification and made a small clothing pack for the ladies - the Chocolate Martini Collection. I won't lie - it was a PROCESS, but it was still loads of fun and now I find myself really enthused to make more.

I just got word that my pack has indeed been certified so expect to see it in the Reallusion Content store in about 3-4 weeks.

'Til next time!

It Figures...

Long story short - I'm not going to get my entry finished in time for Reallusion's Sci-Fi Movie Competition. I'm so bummed. Beyond bummed. But man, did I try! Of all the competitions, this was the one I was most looking forward to - anyone who knows me knows sci-fi is my thing! :) But as others can relate, RL tends to rear it's ugly (yet necessary) head at every inopportune moment to thwart my efforts to get something completed. Grrr! *I shake my fists at thee!*

So here's how the last few months have gone. Attempted to get an entry in for the 'Pinhead: Get A Job' competition. Failed to get an entry in for the 'Pinhead: Get A Job' competition. RL got in the way as the deadline loomed closer and closer. Phooey. They had a great turnout though - that was some pretty good competition. Maybe next time?

Anyhoo, knowing I'd still have the course to deal with, I waffled on whether I should still try for the Sci-Fi comp. With some encouragement (thank you, Darth and Jorge) I decided to just go for it. So, I'd get an idea, scour the net, build, hack, tweak, buy and assemble my props and sets - only to find that a) my idea wouldn't get finished to my satisfaction in the time I had left b) something won't animate/texture as I'd like and trying to fix it would take way more time and effort than it's worth or c) the plot wasn't good enough to win (IMHO). And let's face it - if I'm spending every sparse, spare moment I've got on a film, I want it to be good. Not just OK or 'meh' - good! I want to be excited to watch my own film. If I'm bored with it already and I'm still creating the darned thing, how can I expect others to enjoy it (let alone hold it's own against other talented animators)?

So what movies may never see the light of day? Well, first there was the "Iron Man" tribute. Clone boning and retexturing the sucker (while trying to maintain animation ability over all those tiny flaps and stuff - oy!) took forever. It looked awesome... until you tried to make it move. :( Then you've got gaps at every joint and limbs at skewed angles - it was a mess.

Ok, so very limited mobility with the Iron Man suit so it's either clever camera angles, lots of tweaking and script changes or come up with a new plot. New plot - "Iron Man/Terminator" showdown. Less Iron Man suit, more Tony Stark, throw in a T-800. Fast forward. Tried to replicate Tony's home foyer overlooking the sea with curved glass windows that I could shoot out as the T-800 comes looking for him OR his work room down below - found another gray hair. A good modeller I am not - that stuff takes time, skill and a helluva lot of patience! 1 out of 3?

I think my plots (and hence my sets) were a little too complex for my own good so I thought let's simplify it down. Enter idea #3 - just the T-800, arriving in his little glowy ball of electricity and robbing some ignorant soul of his clothes with typical Arnie tact (thank you, Killian). Weeks of building, hating the builds, caving and buying decent looking props, re-assembling, pathing up the wahzoo... and STILL nowhere near done. But besides that though, the plot wasn't engaging me. As a movie tribute, it was fine but as a piece that could stand on it's own, it just felt 'meh' to me. So, too much invested not to finish... someday, but for a competition, it needed to have a little something extra.

So now I've hit mid-June. I've got just over 2 weeks left. Situation looks grim. Updated the ol' widget with links to some of my freebies and there I find my "Vertebrate Evil: Excretion" outfit from last year's comp. An idea starts to formulate. What if I tried to do the movie that I couldn't last year 'cause the project kept crashing? I've got more RAM now - hopefully the ol' computer can handle it. Load it up, cross my fingers and hip hip hooray, it opens! But 2 weeks??? :( All I've got is a sparse, extremely high poly set (before I knew any better) and a now defunct plot. It's not great, but hey - it's a lot more engaging than the previous ones. A few all-nighters, copious amounts of coffee (because apparently I'm now immune - nooooo!) and some sugar in whatever form I can obtain it and I might JUST squeeze it in.

But then I had to think - voiceovers? ambient noise? soundtrack? post? 2 WEEKS?? So nix the VOs altogether or do it all myself... again... (last resort I swear - not fair to drag others into this insanity). And then I've learned a thing or two from Stuckon3d's classes that I didn't know back then so they HAD to be modified otherwise I'd hang my head in shame. And of course, others *hack* *cough* Animatechnica *wheeze* Allpoint *sputter* are bringing their 'A' game and raising the bar so you know what that means. So, rendered several shots, started to edit, not feeling it - something's missing. Tweak, revamp and yes, finally - the excitement is BACK! *insert maniacal laugh*

That was yesterday.

Today, RL had other plans for me. A good chunk of the time I had left has gone bye-bye. Rightly so - you've gotta have priorities in life, but man!?! :( I won't do a rush job. I hate, hate, hate half-assing things and ruining a perfectly good idea.

So here's where things stand. This iteration of my film won't be completed by the deadline. But, it also won't be abandoned. I'm gonna finish this badboy - take my time and do it right. I'm excited about this one and that's what's key for me. It can stand on it's own and it'll be a challenge to create but I'll learn a lot in the meantime. And without the deadline, I'll stress myself out a little less and maybe drink less coffee... hmph... nah! :)

Ok, that's what I'm doing for me. Now what am I doing for other people? Rage's voiceovers for 'MEG' are getting wrapped up this weekend - finally! After months, I'm finally seeing the end of this darned laryngitis and I couldn't be happier. Animatechnica's VOs for 'The Nobbit' (this film is going to be so wrong, lol) are going to get wrapped next week. I know there's a couple more VOs in queue so I'll be getting those done as soon as possible. Also, hopefully (fingers crossed) I'll have some work to do in RL with my volunteer work so really looking forward to that.

Alrighty, think that's the last few months of my insanity in a nutshell. If you've stuck it out this long, you're awesome... or just as crazy as me! :D

'Til next time!

Not Too Long Now...

It's been a long, long time since I've made a film for fun. I'm way overdue - I've got the itch! :) My latest course is about to wrap up in a few days and then I have a 20 day stretch before the next one. That's 20 glorious days to make a film. Not a lot of time at all, but hey, I'll take what I can get! So now the question remains - what to make it about? Hmmm...

Well, I'm going back to where it all began! Yep, I'm going to do another Pinhead entry! The latest Pinhead Project - "Pinhead: Get A Job" launched back in February. The deadline is April 30th which works out perfectly with my tight schedule. Now whether or not I can pull together something decent in that short of a time remains to be seen, but I'm sure as heck gonna try! So if anyone else feels the itch and wants to scratch, head on over and check out the site for more details. There's also some very cool prizes available donated by Reallusion, Smartsound, Pinnacle and Prodad - now that's motivation!

So what else is going on? The voiceacting front is still going well. Rage has done a wonderful job with his 'Grayskull' series and his latest installments of the sequel, "Rise of Hordak". The performances by the voiceactors are awesome and the storyline engaging. Go grab a bowl of something tasty and settle down to watch!

I've also recently finished my lines for Killian's and James Eastman's "Conquest: Blackstar Rising" (ok, it was yesterday - yes I was one of those holding up production, lol!). This is going to be an awesome movie with a kick-ass cast - can't wait for it to be completed! If you've seen any of Killian's past Odyssey movies, you know you're in for a treat. Definitely keep your eyes peeled for this one!

And now for a bit of drool... Have you seen 3DXchange 4 yet??? I can not wait to get my hands on that jewel of a program! With the range of models and characters that we can now import and modify and create and export - the possibilities are truly endless! And that's exciting because now, I can expand the realm of what I thought was possible to achieve in my films and actually strive for bigger, better and bolder! This is a dream tool! And I thought I was chained to my computer desk before - ha! :P

'Til next time!

A Little Tweak Here...

And a little tweak there. And boy have I been doing a lot of that! :) With the school year back in full swing and now the next course I'm taking, free time is scandalously short. :( It doesn't mean production has stopped for me - it just means it's switched gears and slowed to a crawl. But I'm still having fun, nonetheless.

The voiceacting front has picked up a bit for me which is awesome. A few weeks ago, Raven2angel's "Echoes" was released with mostly positive feedback on many aspects - set design, atmosphere, facial animation, and the VO work. I was really glad to have been a part of that production because the tone was something a bit different from what I had attempted before and I found it a bit of a challenge. But it seems to have all worked out well so big kudos to Raven for her vision and attention to detail. It really made the script come to life. And also kudos to my co-actor, ESROTU (Mike) - he had a wonderful voice for the role so I hope he continues to do more voiceacting.

I'm also really pleased to have a role in Rage's upcoming "MEG" production. I've almost finished the script and it's been really engaging. Half the stuff he's planned, I don't know how he's going to pull it off, but I know that he will somehow and it will be a sight to see! :) Also keep an eye out for his soon to be released "Grayskull Ch. 2 - Rise of Hordak" - it's going to be good, folks! Other VO roles include WX_IVAN's "Sting of the Scorpion" and act3scene24's "Untitled", so I'm gonna be quite busy!

So yeah, I'm squeezing in the VO stuff because it's doable right now. Now as for my own films? Again, haven't abandoned but it's just taking a long time. I have started up production again on "Well Done" and here's where that tweaking comes in. When I wrote the script a while ago, it was before iClone 4 came out. In my films, I like to challenge myself to attempt things that aren't necessarily so easily done. Now that being said, what I had set out to attempt in the script before might have been challenging in iC3... not so much in iC4 anymore. iC4 has a lot of introduced features that really makes it possible to easily achieve what I had planned and even more. So with that, I was at an impasse. I need and want to respect the fact that I already have the VO work complete and I still fully enjoy the story. Now my challenge is to find a way to take what I already have and somehow take it even further. I've been introducing a few new scenes that complement the original script without having to rewrite any of the dialogue. I think these new scenes will give it the 'freshness' I was hoping to achieve initially.

I also hope to continue the set building for "Hide And Seek" - this is where my training with stuckon3d's awesome tutorials are really going to be of use. I'm going to try to implement all that I've learned so far into this project so it should be interesting... once I get the time. :)

And finally, I decided to abandon my website. Before I became aware of this animated stuff, I got my feet wet with fanvids for my favorite tv shows. That's where I practiced my video editing, the art of storytelling, study of camera work etc. Anyhoo, the site where my videos were hosted over 3 years had some server problem and they lost all of my files. Not just mine, but a bunch of others' as well. They said they were trying to restore some of the files but asked if we could notify them personally if we were affected and they'd try their best to help. I didn't make a fuss. I didn't get mad. I just did as they asked, left a post, and waited patiently. One week, goes past. No reply. So I left another polite request to find out what was happening. Two weeks - no reply. (Yet I saw other posts were being addressed - by people who made a stink about things.) Three weeks - no reply. After TWO months - still no reply! FILEDEN - do not walk - run away from this company!! I mean, really! Does someone have to cuss you out before they're important enough to deal with? Am I still bitter? Maybe. But a simple acknowledgment that either A) they're working on the problem or B) they're sorry but they can't them back - would have sufficed and I would have been fine. It's basic customer service. AND after 3 years, you'd hope that meant something. There was no cause for my posts to be ignored. Anyhoo, I digress! :)

So yeah, about the same time I was having this issue, I got my mitts on WidgetCast and the lightbulb went off in my head. I still had the low-res versions of my videos on my computer - at least it was something. So I said to myself, "Self, why not just put them all in a widget and stick it on my blog instead?" And so the tweaking began! I uploaded those files to a NEW host, poured over tutorials to figure out what I was doing with WidgetCast and I'm happy now to have all my past works as well as current projects all organized in one tiny widget for display. After all the work that went into managing the site, I find this just awesome. So the widget is complete and you can find it on the right. Feel free to take a look through if you've got some time to kill. Keep in mind - the quality of the works will vary. Even then, the goal of my projects was to focus on or learn something new - sometimes it worked out well; other times, not so much. But that's where I came from and I wouldn't be where I am today if I didn't start out with that back then. Hopefully I'll continue to get a bit better with each new project, one tweak at a time. :)

Back At It...

Finally! Finally I have a bit of time so that I can get the creative juices flowing once more and get a film or two done. Well, at least started. :)

So what's on the agenda? Well, first off the bat, I've got a few voiceovers I've promised some people so that's getting taken care of immediately. They're interesting roles so it should be a lot of fun. The plan is to get those done by tomorrow. I'm all prepared for a long night. Sipping the coffee as we speak. :D

After that, I want to start working on two projects that are burning a hole in my brain - "Well Done" and "Hide And Seek". Both shorties, but both with some aspect of filmmaking that I really want to practice. "Well Done" I've mentioned before but "Hide and Seek" actually was an idea I've had from before my first released film. It was one that I had previously dismissed as not going to be made but it's been calling to me recently. Yelling actually. And when the muse speaks...

I've also had the pleasure of attending several of Stuckon3d's classes, a worthy investment for those looking to get more out of iClone - highly recommended. I've learned so much and that knowledge has only served to fuel my ambitions to do better and more challenging things. Part of the delay with "Well Done" is because I'm waiting for the Lighting class which is coming in early January. Lighting is so key to that project that I want to get a better handle on it because I'm not satisfied with it as it is. It's lacking something. Can't quite put my finger on it but I feel it. I'm sure that after a class with someone who really knows how to light a scene, I'll be in a better position to achieve what I want.

So, yeah. That's my little update in a nutshell. I doubt I'll be posting again before the weekend so I'll just take this opportunity to wish everyone a Happy Holiday - Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Hope everyone stays safe while enjoying the company of family and friends. And a special shout-out to all the friends I've made this year in the Machinima community - you've provided entertainment, support and inspiration which is greatly appreciated. I am very grateful to have found and be a part of this community. All the best! :)

Forging On...

Just had to say - I'm kinda happy but kinda wary at the same time. If you'd remember my post back in June, "History Re-imagined", you'd remember that I was all excited about a real life location/myth in which to ground my initial attempt at a feature length movie. Some main action sequences and events I had brainstormed beforehand seemed to fit perfectly within this structure.

Then I caught wind of the '2012' movie soon to be released. I personally had never heard of the whole 2012 issue and further yet, didn't know a movie about it was being released around the corner. I was really disappointed because my setting also touches on the 2012 mythos and I was thinking that creating it now would be a moot point - surely the 'big boys' would do it better.

But I'm hearing bits and pieces of a ho-hum response to it and that's leaning me to rethink my decision. From what I'm hearing, my vision is going in a totally different direction than theirs, with less focus on the destruction of the world bit. I haven't seen the movie yet and I don't intend to in the near future 'cause I don't want an unintentioned influence on how I develop my own film.

So I'm thinking I'm going to make it anyway - besides, I'd already purchased some props and developed some characters unique to this project so it'd be a shame for them to go to waste. Anyhoo, I had put the project on hiatus when I was still in the brainstorming phase so there's still a ton to flesh out. Don't be expecting it out anytime soon. This baby's gonna take a while.

'Til next time!

It's Been Rather Quiet...

Yeah, I know - silence for months! Yeah, this course I'm taking has completely consumed my life. I go to work, I come home and work on my assignments, I go to class, I come home and work on my assignments, I go to work.... you get the gist. I think my friends even forget what I look like, lol!

But nonetheless, I'm still iCloning - everyday in fact! It's just that it's all for the assignments and there are deadlines and due dates and really not enough time in the day to meet them all but I still try.

But in three weeks, this round will be over and I can get back to the moviemaking for fun! Yay! First order of business - only because I have yet ANOTHER deadline - I decided to cave and try my hand at one of the Star Wars Uncut scenes. I blame Biggs and Dulci. :D I had to grab my scene early cause the choices were running low but I can't even think of starting it until maybe a week before it's due (you only have 30 days). So I'll have to try and whip that one out quick!

Secondly, I'm going to be working on my "Well Done" short - finally. It'll be nice to actually release something again - it's been far too long. Still not 100% sure how I'm filming it but I just hope to try something new and learn something along the way that I can take with me into the next project.

Other than that, I've been dipping my toes into the voiceacting world and having a blast. I was fortunate to snag a role in Killian's Odyssey series - "Episode 6: Secrets and Shadows" that was released recently - excellent episode! I've accepted a few other roles as well in films yet to be released. It's really cool helping to bring someone else's vision to life so yes - definitely something I intend to keep up.

And coming up this Sunday, I'm honoured to be participating in the "Women in Machinima" panel at the MachinExpo 2009 in Second Life along with Dulci, Sisch, Ingrid Moon, Tari Akpokiete, Kerria Seabrooke, Chantal Harvey, and Kate Fosk. Beyond the panel, it's a day of sharing and appreciating accomplishments in Machinima, that spans various platforms, with your machinima peers. You may not choose to attend the whole thing but it's worth it to pop in and take a look around. Watch a screening or two. It should be fun and I hope to see you there!

Well, that's all the update I have time for! 'Til next time! :)

Still Waiting ...

... for iClone 4 - it's torture! But I will be patient - I'd rather I wait and they work out all the kinks than get stuck with a buggy product in haste. But, it's still torture. :)

In the meantime, I've been keeping myself busy. I had my first "official" voice acting gig release in Alley's "The Incidious Wedding" - a short comedic skit. I had a lot of fun doing it, but I have to say it was weird hearing my unaltered voice in someone else's movie. It was exciting not knowing what was going to be done with it and watching the script come to life. I was also fortunate to get a role in Killian's upcoming Odyssey Episode 6 - get crackin' buddy - I can't wait! :D

As for my own projects - they're still on hold until iC4 is released. But I am working on scripts and costumes. My sci-fi "unnamed" flick has been running rampant around my head - still don't have a concrete plot, but I'm working on it. I've gotten a jump on my outfit for "Well Done". Still learning my way through the Clone Cloth design but I have to pimp Anima's wonderful resource again - AnimaTechnica's Production Diary - hats off to you, Gabe!

This week he graciously shared his method for clothing design - something that many newbies and even non-newbies struggle with. His insights will definitely help raise the bar in people's films as to the appearance of characters. Not only that, but I feel having this guide out there will help inspire people to actually give designing their own clothing a chance because they have something concrete and easy to follow. I follow his thread closely and try to integrate as many tips and strategies as I can into my style of clothing and set design. I don't want to be an "animaclone" but I want to make my own approach a little bit better.

Anyhoo, here's my latest clothing project for "Well Done" - trying to capture a western essence. I've still got more to add in the way of accessories but all in all, I'm happy with it so far. :)

Got My Fingers In Many Pies...

And damn don't they all taste good - I can't just eat a piece of one!

So my mind has been brainstorming over a few film ideas - I'm up to 4 at the moment. Sure some would say it's better to work on one to completion then move on, but I can't. I'm both a multi-tasker and a procrastinator. If something happens on that one film to derail me for a while, I need alternatives to work on. Be productive with my time, while alleviating the dry spells.

Besides, two of them are shaping up to be quite lengthy (for me). They could end up taking me 6 months or more to get done - way too long to go without cranking out a finished film. "Well Done" seems to be in the running for being the next one finished. The script is finished and the very awesome Goofparade has already completed the lines (thank you!).

I'm really just waiting for iClone 4 to come out so I can get this thing started. I'm trying something a bit different with this one and some of the new additions in iC4 will be a great help. In the meantime, the set is a simple design so that won't take long but I need to start tackling the clothing - that's going to take me a while, I think.

Other than that, I recently finished my first voiceacting endeavor for Killian's Odyssey series (I hope I did OK). If you haven't seen the series yet, go check it out! I have to say I had a blast, getting into character and figuring out how to deliver the lines. I went and got a new microphone, the Apex188 - my headset just wasn't cutting it anymore. And wow, what a difference - night and day! Only downer was that it only comes with a shock mount and not a tripod so I have to balance it on it's edges to keep it stable. But yeah, had fun this go round so it's something I'll probably open myself up to do again for other people's films.

Speaking of other people's films, I've got a ton to watch so that I can do my voting thing for TMU's The Ollies and Bitfilm. Tons of good machinima here so if you haven't seen them, you know what to do!

'Til next time! :)

To Share Or Not To Share...

That really is a big question that has been weighing on my mind for years and some recent events have bought it to the forefront. I'm not talking about freebies and such but more so ideas, strategies, tips and tricks. Now being a teacher myself, I think I come to it from a different perspective - it's more natural I guess to share. But in a community, is there an implied obligation of sharing regardless of what is asked? Is the betterment of the community more important than the benefit of the individual? Do individuals not have the right to hold on to their secrets that they've worked hard to develop without being frowned upon?

Anima's Production Diary. Gabe is generously offering some of his strategies on how he creates his awesome sets. In doing so, he gives up some of himself, some of what makes his films 'his' for the betterment of the community. Now in the grand scheme of things for him, these may not be valuable, 'keep it close to the vest' secrets. But what if we were talking about his clothing designs? Now that is something that I'm sure everyone is impressed by and definitely would like a blow-by-blow to know how to replicate. He may choose to share or not. But with something like that, for me, I'm thinking it wouldn't be fair to ask to put him in the position where he might strongly want to say no but feel community 'obligatory' pressure to say yes. And I'm only speaking for myself. Maybe it's because I try to put myself in their shoes and try to empathize the gravity of what I'm asking against what I would like to know. How important is what I want to know, to that person?

I've seen a few posts on YT for instance, not necessarily just for machinima, where a viewer was impressed by something in a video and asks the innoncent question "How did you do that?" Now that 'something' may have been a complex procedure, perfected over weeks or months - that person's pride and joy. They would prefer to not just give it away on a whim - it's a part of themselves that is for them, not the community. So they politely decline to share that information and then the asker posts an irritated reply or nags them again for an answer. And that's what upsets me - when people don't respect the right of a person to refuse. Does anyone have the right to begrudge them that?

I'm not saying not to ask - that's just my personal hangup (which I know I should work on). I would just feel bad imposing on someone and possibly putting them in an uncomfortable position. I'd rather research and struggle to figure it out myself until I truly feel I can't get any further without asking.

But what I am saying is that sharing should be voluntary, not obligatory and people need to respect that. We should all do our part to help the community rise as a whole, yes, but not at someone's expense through pressured compliance.

Inspiration Out Of Nowhere...

It's strange. In reading Anima's Production Diary, I remember that his workflow was props first then the story second. Meaning that the story didn't really develop until it emerged from a prop he had created. I thought that working that way would be impossible for me. I always work the other way - have my story fleshed out first, then figure out how to make the props I'd need.

That was until today. Today, oddly enough, I was inspired by a prop. Nothing really spectacular at all about the prop itself, but I just felt compelled that I HAD to find a way to use it in a film - someway, somehow. It's actually kinda embarrassing, the more I think about it, that such a prop has been such a source of inspiration for me - but oh well!

So all day today my mind has been mulling it over - wondering how I can take something insignificant and bring it to the foreground. Then I sat down about 3hrs ago and wrote the lines for a shorty flick. And it is short - but I'm so excited about it. All the filming details aren't fleshed out yet at all but dialogue has always been a key hurdle for me and that's all done!

And even though it's short, it's still going to be a challenge to pull off well, I think. It's like with the less frills you bring, the more what you DO have has to measure up.

And then I come to my perpetual nemesis - voice acting or no? I know what you all will say, but letting go is hard for me, dammit! :) The tone, pacing and delivery of those few lines are key to the whole piece and I can do it perfectly because I know what I want but alas - I'm not a guy. Curses! :) BUT I think this time, I can do it. I'm going to release the iron grip a little bit and allow someone else to do the voice overs for me. No voice morphing this time.... wait... can I take that back?! D'oh!

In any case, I want to wait until iClone 4 comes out before integrating the voice work. I want me some in-program facial animation controls to tinker with! Can't wait! But I can work on the set, perfecting my lighting (also thanks to anima's diary), and designing the wardrobe in the meantime so I can hit the ground running!

'Til next time!

AnimaTechnica's iClone Tutorial...

Shameless pimpage but it so deserves it! If you have iClone, just starting out or have been mucking around for a while but think you can do better, AnimaTechnica's Production Diary is a MUST READ!

Gabe (animatechnica), creator of "The Expedition", is generously offering a detailed tutorial to how he sets up one of his awesome scenes, full of tips and tricks to get the very best out of iClone.

Take your iClone production to the next level - follow the thread!

Freebie G3 Outfits...

Are now available for your downloading pleasure at CoolClones. I've designed three so far - you're welcome to all of them. In addition to the two pics I showed in the previous post (which you can now download - Grey Dragon Gown Download Here, Tan Outfit Download Here) there is also a third dress Golden Flower Gown Download Here. Enjoy!

Practice Makes Perfect...

Well, maybe not perfect but at least better. :) Thought I'd get some more practice in with CloneCloth this weekend. I have to say, I think I'm starting to get the hang of it a bit. Perhaps more accurately, it doesn't scare me as much. :)

I completed two outfits this weekend - one for him and one for her. I'm offering them both up at CoolClones as freebies (just waiting for them to get approved). I'm hoping to make my way through the various cloths and get practice with each of them. It's kinda exciting finally designing my own wardrobe - stepping away from just changing the colours on the original outfits they provide.

But I have to say, designing is deceptively challenging. Creating a simple neckline could take an hour or more depending on the shape, getting the seams to match or maybe adding trimming. Trying to add the illusion of depth and texture to an outfit is also a big challenge that I know many struggle with. But I'm finding that in designing my own outfits, I'm also learning a lot about my photo editor - integrating features I've never used or understood well. Hopefully the more I learn, the better grasp I'll get on this designing thing. All in all, it's good learning fun. :)

On Vacation...

Leaving in an hour... still packing!!! Oy! Catch you all in a week. No internet where I'm going - Nooooooo! How will I survive?

Stay safe!

Vertebrate Evil: Excretion - iClone Movie Tribute...

I finally got it done - and before I left on vacation to boot! :) For a Plan B, I'm really happy with how it turned out. In some respects, this version is actually a bit better at showcasing the clothing - which after all is the main focus of the competition.

So here it is - now to finally get some decent sleep! Please watch in HD if you can by double-clicking through to the main YouTube page. Thanks for watching!

Got A Plan B...

Well, I'm feeling a bit better. Wow, I was pretty bitter yesterday - walking around with a scowl on my face, lol. But now, I can sit at the computer and not glare at it with seething betrayal because I finally have a Plan B. It's simple, yes. But I think it'll get the point across while still being engaging. That's mainly why I was peeved - everything about Plan A was linked so well to the poster that I couldn't think of any viable alternative. I had to tweak the poster a tiny bit to match this new version (and no - the boobs stayed the same, lol!) Glad I hadn't officially posted it yet. Something told me to wait until the video was done first, just in case. This version will actually have minimal iClone footage (serves it right... hmm... am I still bitter?). In any case, I think I'll be good to get it done by the end of next week so I'm ok with it. Yay!

Bridge Washed Out - Must Detour...

Why can't things run smooth?

I'm at an impasse. I've started my vid for the competition but now I've run into some memory issues. My ram is taxed passed its limits and now iClone keeps crashing when I try to open my project. I can't get in to work on it anymore. So I'm trying to scope out some new ram (I hope that's the problem) and get that installed. Problem is, the nearby stores don't have the one I want in stock so I'm going to have to order it online to have it delivered. That probably won't happen until Tuesday earliest so I'm losing the whole weekend.

Now that's not taking account the additional elements that I had planned for this video - elements that I'm basically learning as I go, will take quite a bit of time and that I need the renders from iClone first before I can even start them.

Tack on to that that I'm going on vacation for a week which means that's a whole week I can't work on it, that leaves me with just under 3 weeks to get it done. In some respects, my "Pinhead in the S*** " is technically a lot simpler than what I'm attempting now - and that took me almost 2 months! :(

If left to my own devices, I would move the coffee maker on top of my printer and I would work on it day and night for the rest of the summer (yes, I am that crazy - ask my friends) to get it done in time but that would be at the exclusion of all other responsibilities which simply isn't fair to those people. And my peeps would break into my house to stage an intervention by kidnapping me in the middle of the night and leaving my butt in Amish country. *Oh the torture!*

So here I am - what to do? For a second - only a split second - I thought about compromising the scope of my film. I would not be happy with it but it would be for the sake of getting it done on time. I quickly nixed that option because I think my idea has grown from just being a piece to compliment a poster to a piece that could stand on it's own.

So here is where I'm going to detour - I'm going to make two films. One, my original vision that most likely won't be done by the end of August and another, much simplified, that iClone will be able to handle at present and I could probably bang out within the week before I leave. I'm going to take the day to think up a new script - probably same premise (to go with the poster) but a totally different approach. I still aim to have my original version completed in time for the Machinima Expo - thankfully, I've got an extra month for that so it should be doable. Wish me luck.

'Til next time! :)