Rodney

Thanks Rich! Now... all we have to do is find another person that wants to chat too.

I'm a bit confused here. (rather common so don't sweat that) I haven't been keeping up on everything posted about Distortion Boxes but I did see a few hints that folks might be starting to confuse things a little. It may just be me that is confused but I'll offer this: I've always considered A:M to have two Distortion features... one for modeling and one for animating. Have I been looking at that wrong here? As far as I know, Distortion Boxes (the temporary ones you use to mold your Model and/or the permanent ones assigned to Bones for animation) do not appear in a modeling window unless you are in Distortion Mode (in Modeling Mode or Bone Modes I believe they should not appear).

In the original Distortion Box's properties (under Objects in the PWS) look for the Resolution setting. You can then change the number of CPs in the box in the X, Y and Z settings.

A very cool and subtle effect. I'm not sure if anyone looking at that without prior knowledge would have any idea that a distortion box was used to get that effect. They'd be guessing how you did it. IMO that generally is the absolute best kind of effect.

In a perfect world... to accommodate everyone I was thinking along the lines of running a 24 hour event. (think beyond chat here... an A:M TV channel... live... with commentary) In theory, a 24 hour event would allow international Users/Users Groups to take charge of a specific time slot and push areas of interest to them specifically. No one has to stay through the entire event and should there be enough interest, portions of the event (i.e. demos) might be recorded for posterity. As an incentive to those working behind the scenes they would have access to the schedule and any resources well in advance of the event. I'm thinking long term here. The 24 hour event might um... best be scheduled bi-monthly or quarterly at the beginning. The bare-bones'd Wednesday night chat would still be weekly. Note: We would likely ask A:M Users to make their officially public announcements and releases of their films on Wednesdays to hype up the event and really make it worth while to attend.

As we move toward the new ToaA:M we may be looking to promote a weekly chat. If A:M Community itself can't handle the volume we'll look for other options and hang outs. What preferences in days and times does everyone have for chatting? Way back when we use to have a Wednesday chat. BTW: Liveimpact posted the following via chat a few months ago and it seems like a neat tip so I thought I'd post it here: Thanks Liveimpact!

Something to consider as well is that the term "3D" applies more to images popping out of a screen at us these days than it does 'computer animation' so the term 3D doesn't work too well. Not that his is the model to follow but Scott Christian Sava still seems to be doing pretty good with his CG comic effort. Apparently he raised some $11K+ for the fifth book in his series (133% funded on Kickstarter with 6 days left to invest) Granted, Dreamland Chronicles is not a one-man production.

Well since you paint such a gloomy picture of comics future there is only one thing to do... damn those torpedos... full speed ahead! Yes, (unfortunately) you do. Heroes are born of great causes they can't escape even if they wanted to. There was a time that comic books were special. Now they are mostly private and personal. They certainly aren't very profitable. But... neither is independent animation! If you want to be rich become a doctor. If you want to be an artist... you really really really should be a doctor. As far as CG comic books go... perhaps the stars just haven't aligned right yet for it. Comics have always been kicked in the dirt, devalued and poo-poo upon. But if folks think you are a corporation perhaps you could make that work for you. If you've got an animated story worth chasing perhaps you should pursue that. But even then, don't even think about quitting your day (Wannabe) job. Keep it going in one capacity or another (License it for a community project or something). The only real question worth pursuing is: "Given a perfect world... with no obstacles... what do you want to do?" - Rodney (a member of the "Be Largento" club)

I greatly appreciate this topic being bumped this up to the top of the forum again. These shorts are great for viewing again from time to time. Wonderful job everyone and great editing Robert. Please take another bow. As Robert suggested, there is another community project in the works so get ready!

Mark! I just returned home from traveling to find my copies of Wannabe Pirates #1 waiting for me. To put it mildly, it was a great read. You've got skills my friend. I am impressed with the cover price given the full color and level of quality. Thanks for keeping that price low for the fans. Do you have any plans for a Wannabe Pirates CG Primer or Sketchbook in the far flung future? You've already got the makings of a 'making of' Wannabe Pirates series that'd I'd love to collect. P.S. Second issue ordered!

...and here is another oldy but goody that expands upon the Tech Ref write up! http://www.hash.com/daily_dose/feature_foc...istortionboxes/

Hey, I remember that cartoon spin out. What was the main character's name... Bombob? Now those were some fun characters! In my wanderings I stumbled across this image where David Walker was experimenting with Distortion Boxes for use in "Tin Woodsman of Oz". I don't recall them being used in the final facial rigs but the tests sure produced some nice extremes:

One at a time though right? Not one exported model for each frame of animation automatically? Here I was interested in only the final distorted mesh with the original bones. Think of Bruce Banner morphing into the Hulk... with A:M spitting out a model for each frame in the transformation. As the export was all or nothing, usually what I'd do is pick every sixth model created in the sequence and delete the rest. My thought at the time was to use these key poses/models to move into and out of. Sorry... we are straying off topic. Back to Distortion Boxes. There use to be an online tutorial for basic Distortion but it went away with the move to the new server. I think the content from that is distilled in Holme's tutorial on Animated Distortion Cages however. Page 209 of the Technical Reference has a short write up which hints at the power of Nested Distortion Cages:

You are getting very good at this... and perfectly demonstrated. I like how you've got the wireframe showing to demonstrate where the Distortion Cage is positioned. When I was experimenting with Distortion Cages my immediate goal (before I got distracted by something else shinier) was to have a super car peel out from a dead stop and take off like a bat out of hell. I was looking for Tex Avery style squash and stretch but realized I'd have to rig the wheels separately with a different set of Distortion cages to gain the full effect (distorting the body and tires separately). At that point I just set the experimentation with distortion cages aside for sometime later when it was actually needed. Added Off Topic: Something that I don't think we can do anymore in A:M but could before was to export sequential models (one for each frame) out of an Action. If you think about the results for a moment given Robert's current demo, this would create a distorted robot at it's current location for each frame in the action. I think we can still do this with .PLY format and perhaps a few others but not .MDL format. The beauty of having the .MDL format was that the rigs were still part of the exported/distorted/sequential models and could still be used with reusable actions.

Gives a whole new meaning to the term "Squash and Stretch" does it not? Very nicely done Robert.

I'm pretty sure Giulio Porta's tutorials have been linked here in the forum before but it's very possible that some have not seen them. They are especially useful to those who are new to A:M. For instance, here is a tutorial on modeling (and texturing) a very basic Eye: Glass Eye Tutorial Guilio provides extensive information on Modeling, Rigging, Texturing and Animating with a focus on Fish, Birds and Humans. The tutorials have been used at Northern Virginia Community College's Annandale Campus. Check it out: Spring 2011 Syllabus, Tutorials and Resources

Looking good! Transitions/effects like that will take your animations to the next level.

Sherm Cohen has posted his latest video on Storyboarding: The Key to Powerful Storyboards The video runs right at an hour in length and explores the world of storyboarding through analyzing film (among other things). This is very useful compositional and cinematical information from someone who not only works in the biz but teaches many of the industry's artists and animators as well. I'm not sure how long he'll keep it online so... go check it out! Added: For those of you that have debated the pros and cons of attending art school Sherm has a pretty fun pitch at the very end of this video that talks about the price and what some others have said related to his videos. My recommendation: BEFORE you attend any of these expensive schools buy Sherm's Storyboarding videos. Disclaimer: I have not purchased them... yet.

Have a great Birthday Arthur!

Impressive!

Happy Birthday John! I sure do miss your superheroes.

Too much fun John. I couldn't resist playing with your project file and have come to the conclusion the effect is very doable in A:M for anyone with the time and inclination. I've attached my adaption of your project file for those who care to see what I changed from yours. One of the first things I would suggest doing after simulation (and saving the full simulation!) is reducing/deleting the extra/unneeded keyframes. The remaining keyframes can then be used as extremes to inbetween and retime as necessary. The secret of the effect seems to be compositing more than anything. I was tempted to composite the unshattered window over the top of this animation to come a little closer to the effect but I think I've satisfied my curiosity for the time being. At any rate... here's Thom getting into the game... ShatterWall.mov animatbreak_altered.prj

Favoring the right has been a standard practice since ancient times where the favored position with respect to the noble of a house was reserved for guests of honor. Where this gets confusing is where the audience's perspective appears to place the favored position to the left and many an embarrassing moment (and opportunity) has been created when someone carelessly set the scene wrong. This practice can be seen throughout the world in protocol matters; placement of flags, order people enter and exit cars (due to seating arrangement), etc. and is so absorbed into our language that most never stop to consider it. We may be 'right or wrong' or have certain legal rights, undergo rites of passage, or get left behind. Placement of people and objects may be one of the original standards all others deviate from. In modern photography a primary rule of thumb is simply to find the best lighting for the given subject. An actress might have had her hair done in such a way that right-side lighting would be wrong or they might have a favorite pose or be self conscious of a percieved blemish or deformity, "This is my good side." In these cases, negotiation begins and taste and subjectivity can easily trump protocol (i.e. the customer is always right even when they are wrong). Jason, I haven't had a chance to look at your videos yet but am looking forward to it. Lighting is such an important element in any scene I'm glad to see you tackling it here on our behalf.

Another late arrival with the warmest of well wishes... Happy Birthday Myron. May you enjoy many more of them!

I can't view it now but look forward to seeing it when I can. Congratulations to you on the occasion of releasing another Splenegene production! Edit: Got to see animation (without sound for right now). Looking good!