Habemus Logo! part 2

This time, animated but without any sound effect added...

I think things start to look a bit more coherent now and I`m certainly glad to be able to put my ideas into practice after such a long time of thinking and re-thinking, sketching and erasing pre-production process. Just goes to show what I have always known about the way I work...if I don`t get it in just the right way I feel I need it to be...no work will get done. I need to figure it out first and then combine the pieces of the puzzle into a coherent whole...and after it makes sense in my head, the possibilities are endless (so I like to tell myself, anyway)...

(M)ask NOT! part 4 plus bonus!

Aaaaaah...what a fine day this has been...for AV(I)! Let`s see:

1. Good deed of the day that will ensure our accession in to the ` oh so holy and righteous` aerial kingdom of the pearly gates...check!

2. Doing some work on the project....check!

Ladies and archbishops, gents and nuns...I`m proud to present myself as...me! Having participated in the much anticipated sequel of fellow student Steven`s oeuvre Fun in the Square, I hereby provide the precious (preciousssssssss) video:

Numero 2...this is a draft of the video presentation of the avatar. The music will probably be the same (an excerpt from Ligeti`s Requiem, just like with the intro scene I`ve posted earlier), but I`m thinking of adding some text and overlay some images in some of the sections of the video. I changed the colouring of the mask and the overall tint of the animations, so as to make sure the elements that make up the showcase will form a harmonious whole, not just thematically, but also in terms of chromatic choice.

(M)ask NOT! part 3

Ok, so quick changes to the mask, and a bit of tinkering with the lights...and...voila!...something that looks more akin to what I want.

Next thing on the `to do`list: trying out different, and, hopefully, mind-blowing, camera-angles!

(M)ask NOT! part 2

What I`ve been trying to do these past days was making a more personalised mask, using it as a material for the 3d surface, and molding the NURB surface to give it a more `face-like` look. The problem now seems to be that I can`t get the light projector to cast the images unto the mask. I mean, it does so, but I think because of the texture, the reflections are barely visible. So, I`ll probably have to redo the colouring of the mask (maybe go for a darker range of colours?)

IDeas, please!

Well, haven`t had an entry for quite a while now. Let`s see, what progress have we made? Actually, not too much, apart from the theoretical one. Didn`t manage to get my pixilation done as I wasn`t satisfied with the initial idea/story and I couldn`t come up with a new one yet. But, hopefully the next weeks will prove more fruitful.

What I have been thinking about is the avatar and some ideas for the general display of the box showcase. As much as the avatar is concerned, I was thinking of something along these lines:

The expressions change as the spotlight moves from side to side, but in a very subtle manner. The expressions themselves should be charged with different and contradictory meanings and messages. I`m not sure whether or not I`m going to use pictures of a single person, or several, but the overral look and feel, with the now infamous (I hope) chiaroscuro would be similar to this sequence of Turkish artist Tarkan `s clip, Verme.

Now, for the display options...I have two ideas so far. One, is to display the elements of the box in a circular, possibly mandala-like shape. That would mean not just a circle, but several layers within the circle, so maybe you could have a story within a story, as the elements that make up the box not only tell something visually as a whole, but also broken up in different segments, areas within the circle. Also, the logo could be displayed in the middle, or, alternatively, the avatar could hold centre stage.

The second display option is a sort of sequential, timeline based unfolding of the elements of the box in a sort of story. The idea is to create a connection between the objects that follow each other, each of them being somehow the effect of the previous ones. I have attempted something along those lines a few weeks ago. The main `story` can be followed by reading the diagonal, from bottom right to left, but it also branches out, signaling turning points within the story.

And the modeller said...let there be...

...a humanoid figure. I guess that`s what the end result of our trials and tribulations on this week`s Identities seminar is. Well, he/she/it is very friendly, even in this `ready-to-be-pat-down` position, reminescent of the jolly times we have at the airport security check-in.

So, having enjoyed the making of Sweetie (that`s ...its name), I set myself to work on what seems a rather ambitious task, for today at least. I wanted to make a figure in this posture :

Well, it seems I have a hard time with the bent arm and leg. I think using bones would solve the problem, but, although I`ve been experimenting with the bones in 3D Studio Max, I haven`t got round to adding `flesh` to them. So, it`s back to the tutorials...

Shaping destinies...and marine life

3D Studio Max...a name that rings dear to some, and geometry to others...Luckily, today`s seminar has made it all cutsie as we embarked on a noble mission of recreating the gratious movements of an.......ahm....octopus.

I didn`t manage to get the thing up and going during the seminar, so I thought I`d have another go at it while at home. I think it is quite ok, although I`ve yet to complete the rest of the tutorials (it is a gruelling long list of videos, it is!) and hope to be able to acquire enough know-how to successfully complete my Identities project (apropos Identities, I should really check the documentary The Century of The Self).

What I did besides what we were required was to try and play a bit with cameras. I haven`t been through the tutorial just yet, so it is more of a trial and error exercise, and it looks a bit....odd? Well, baby steps, baby steps...easy does it...here is my purple octopus!