zandoriastudios

The gate raises as high as the lid. So he should be able to reach in and pull out a fairy... He will probably have to pick up the cage and use both hands. Opening the gate and shaking a bit should dump out the last fairy. Figuring that the logistics of keeping a fairy in a cage should be similar to keeping a cricket in a cage, this is where I started

I agree too. needs to look more organic

Here is a WIP of a cage. I am basing it on an asian cricket cage--not sure if I want to stay with this or do something a bit more rustic....

The feedback so far has been helpful--because I can see that the story idea has provoked peoples reactions. I am about to start modeling, and will post progress of that next.

What is important is that it matches the way I imagine it. Thats why I'm saying that saying it is regrettable or a shame is a question mark. I want it to look the way that I imagine it. Everyone will approach the same subject differently--what is important to critique it, is not to substitute your own choices--but to understand the author's. Then you will be able to advise him as to how successfully he is accomplishing his objective. So, yes, I understand that some people will approach it with color; some people will start with happy fairies frolicking and then captured; Some will like to see the troll punished for murder; some will prefer that the fish are caught and released... Now that we have that out of the way, we have established that I will be doing it my way without regrets. Along the way, I would like to continue to get your feedback as to what is working and why or why not. Especially when I get to my animation, I will definately need feedback on the performance, because that is my weakest area...

Yes, it would look good. No It won't be... I want it to look unique. "A shame"? What is there to be ashamed about?--that I don't it to look like everyone else's???

No color! The whole purpose is to work on the "Dark Lead" sketch look!

I'm glad to see the range of reactions to the storyboard. It is true that I want you to empathise with the fairy. She goes frome rage/anger to fear/horror to grief/despair to apathy to sudden joy over the course of the events, and I hope to be able to convey that and have her take the audience with her. The troll isn't maliciously killing the fairies. he's just going fishing. So he is as indifferent to the fairies as a human would be to a minnow that he was using as bait. Minnows won't keep more than a few days (die), so usually when you are done fishing, you just dump them into the water. So there isn't any mercy in the troll either.... The troll could represent mans contradictory relationship with nature. Notice the troll enjoying the view and the fishing experience--but oblivious to the plight of the bait, or the fish.... The fairies emote feelings that should make the audience (and apparently that is working) identify with them...That life is cruel, sometimes merciless, sometimes merciful (she does go free in the end). The evil that crushes us, torments us, and ends us...might also be indifferent to us.... Lots of little existential stuff you can do with a "fairy tale".

Yes, there will need to be music, but I'm inclined to hire someone to do a score after I have a rough animatic, rather than trying to fit an existing piece to it.

I guess about 2-3 minutes, depending on the time I spend on each scene. Do you think that I should put the sketches into a story reel, or wait till I start blocking the shots and just see how it feels?

Storyboards. Thanks everyone for the comments--I hope this will turn out nice. I haven't done anything quite this ambitious, so I am happy to get any feedback.

Polygon programs often start with primitive shapes and then subdivide them to add detail, so it makes sense to have a primitive button. But A:M you model the detail directly. so the only time you need a cube is when you need a cube-- you don't start with primitives and add detail, you just start drawing the mesh that you want to end up with.

I was just explaining WHY it works the way it does, so that you could see the solution to how to make what you want. As for one-click, use the LIBRARY palette and import an already made cube whenever you need one.

for the 4points to be closed, they cannot be 1-spline. So all you need to do is break those open sides and re-spline one of the 4 sides without joining it into 1 spline (hold down shift when you attach the points).

I love how it's looking Colin! The hairy legs are the way to go! I love the spline work in the arms--I agree, those are great. My only crit concerns the arm band. This is not uncommon, and I am facing it it something I'm working on too. Right now the metal conforms to the arm, as though it is the metal that is pliable and the arm that is hard. The band should be hard, and the flesh of the arm should bulge out around it.

I would like to see some scales and bumps in the surface, so I hope you'll be experimenting with the displacement maps THe horns turned out nice!

Sure didn't take you very long to go back to your old ways....I think we need to save ourselves the long, drawn out process and just go ahead and ban you again.

My point is make the animation speak for you. Hell, record your lengthy post and have the character lypsync to it. Writing your long blogs about what is drifting through your mind is what drives people crazy--why not make yourself an animated avatar and have him read-out your lengthy pronouncements and musings? That would be more interesting...(not much more...)

"Thats a lot of talk...The talk doesn't match the dress" --Jay, on Project Runway [critiquing a designer who goes on and on about the artistic inspiration behind her simple black dress with a yellow stripe...] Maybe try focussing on the message/emotion/question you want to raise. Then you can craft an animation to illustrate it. Right now it seems you have too many threads with these points too consider, but not much in the thought of the animation to develop them. My advice: Don't TALK about art, CREATE it! Plenty of people can talk about your art after you have made it, but as the artist you should be concerned with making it. if all you do is talk, then you won't be able to create that work which is worth talking about. You seem to have a lot of philisophical, political, ethical, existential things that are on your mind, and also a desire to lead the audience to consider them. But you have to focus on crafting the art to do your talking for you.

Render to a .tga or .png with the alpha buffer checked. In Photoshop, that alpha channel will show up in the channels palette. Select the channel, click the load channel as selection, switch over to the layers palette and select the layer that your model/character is on and click the layer mask button at the bottom of the palette.

The proportions are on purpose. I did try a version that was more normal, but it looked too human (as in naked underaged girl!)... The story is just something that I thought up, but I won't give it away just yet.

Here is a sketch of a fairy for the cage....

I've been doing some experiments in duplicating my pencil style (Dark Lead sketchbook) in A:M http://www.hash.com/forums/index.php?s=&sh...ndpost&p=158839 I have an idea for a short involving a Troll, some fairies in a cage, and bass fishing....

that is a secret too....

Sounds like you are! Send a PM to Martin about updating your forum access