Wow, the character and his expressions look amazing!
It’s very nice, i like it ++++, very clean animations, the world is well done, the atlmosphere should be improve but it’s already nice.
Hope to see the parts 2, 3, 4 …
GOOD JOB !
Nice, Like it well done.
Hope to see more. :yes:
Woah. Thanks, all! =D Glad to see after a year of nothing, people are still interested in this thing. =D
Still working on it. Render is progressing nicely. Musical interlude is half way done, but a lot of work still to do. What movie would be complete without a musical travel sequence?
Dan
Keep @ it,
you are an inspiration, and a true artist 
need anything? architecture?
aliens?
effects?
Thanks! Sorry about not getting back to you on Google, by the way. I’ve been struggling just to get food in my mouth lately, so busy! I’m taking too much on! AHHHH! =O
Oh well. =)
The biggest challenge so far seems to be getting character animation to look right. I’ve got a pretty complex fight scene at the end…and a little bit of a scuffle in Part 3. Oof. We’re in for a trip, let me tell you. =(
Hopefully no one laughs too hard when the ridiculously cheesy acting and animation comes out. =\
Dan
Just ask a friend to make the moves for you, use him as reference, then animate it on that, That’s what I do, you get a few laughs wile your doing it but it works.
Wow, I really like the opening shot with the ship sailing through space.
Looking for help to improve my character animation techniques. So I went for the gold and tried a cliche spin/flip defensive move thing that almost never gets used in real fights.
The character’s weight seems off, and the spin doesn’t seem right for some reason, but I can’t pin it down, sadly. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Hope you’re all doing awesome.
Dan
The only thing I see, is that when you move a limb in or out while spinning, it changes the rotation speed,
like a ice skater spooling up*
and also your “center of mass” needs to be tugged by the forces of the limbs moving,
think about throwing a ball, and it’s curve through the air,
now think about your actors motion based on his center, following that curve, no matter how is tucking, his “total velocity” is still traveling a direction, so his “center of mass” needs a clear arc, and all spin can be done after you have that…
this is a regular flip,
the only difference from the two, (a back flip and a back flip 180) is the pre-twist to one side before “launch”
You’re right. It seems that Leth’s center of mass’s arc is what’s off. In this case, he kind of doesn’t feel like he’s falling, just sort of…moving up and then down in a very linear fashion. Hmm… I think the problem is most noticeable in the falling segment, actually.
I should try to adjust his trajectory a bit, too, probably. Maybe add some horizontal movement, as he did push somewhat backward when his left foot left the ground. Thanks. =)
Updated. Guess it’s better, now. But it still doesn’t feel right. Probably have to do some more tweaking.
Dan
it’s so great , u are so Talented & have a creative Technique
شركات التسويق,شركات التسويق الالكترونى ,التسويق الإلكترونى,
seo egypt ,نشر موقع ,اشهار المواقع
Hey Dan,
Can I refer to a comment in one of your previous posts
“The character is 3D, but I find he moves more naturally when you add a noise modifier to his armature animation.”
How do you do that?
You can apply that in the graph editor. The modifiers are at the bottom of the properties panel (N)
It feels like the bodily momentum of the character is changing in mid-air, especially towards the landing. It’s almost like his hip gets caught on something invisible and it slows his descent.
It’s a really ambitious and cool bit of animation though, hats off to you for even giving it a burl and getting it looking that good!
Hey guys. Sorry about not keeping up with this thread more and answering your question, Hatchnet. But someone else helped you, so that’s okay. =)
Quollism, you’re right about the hip thing. This was such an ambitious idea to animate this, that I think I probably bit a little too much off to chew. 
But oh well. It’s still going to be a couple of parts before we get to a scene that requires that move that we’re okay for now. =)
Still working feverishly on the movie, as well as on a commercial project I’m doing for someone, so time is at a premium, unfortunately! But hopefully you’re all doing well and are staying happy. =)
Dan
Umm… Part 2 already?
Anyway, crits and comms on part one:
- Walk cycles looked a little rough.
- Narration sounded a bit off somehow.
Opinion:
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Dude, your character model and texturing make this protagonist (I guess? I’d need to see part 2 and 3 to know what’s up <— shameless plug) super intriguing and mysterious. His eyes and expressions are incredible. He looks somehow sinister but benign at the same time.
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Your camera work is superb and feels effortless for ninety percent of the screen time.
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Your environments and rendering are beautifully executed. The spaces seem alive and like there’s more behind the assets you can see on screen. I’m curious as hell to see what more this place has in store. The coloration, particularly of the main character, is also very pretty.
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Part 2 please.
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On the backflip animation - it looks pretty fluid. Honestly, if you stuck it into the middle of a bunch of other crazy shit happening, the little hip twigs and other things wouldn’t even be noticed, it’s just the central discussion at the moment, like when an artist mistakenly points out artifacts and mistakes in his own work thinking he’s doing anybody a favor. Your tweaking is bearing fruit and making it look even better. The rig could use a bit of work as the deformation (particularly lower back) actually drags my eye more than anything else - otherwise, sick, and the fluidity of his cape is pretty nice, and the character pulls it off well, whereas most of us probably imagine tripping like a motherfkr on that thing.
Anyway, I hope to post some comparable art (different style, probably with less grandeur than what you’ve done here) in the next few months and maybe we can compare notes and race.
Wow. =) Thanks for your very nice post. I’m glad to see Plagarus is still getting views. I’ve been working on it in my free time. Unfortunately, I haven’t had much time to do so, as life has continuously gotten in the way. Between projects for clients (which I need to do to pay my bills), and helping out people in real life, it seems this movie really has taken a back seat. As it is, Part II is extremely rough at this point. The initial dialogue scene is very, very halty and the flow and pacing seems too off to really release at this point.
As for the jump/flip. You like it, huh? Thanks. Not bad for a 7 foot alien man, I guess, right? 
All I really need is a good week or two of pure work on just this project to get Part II out, I believe. But with distractions around the house and people always saying I should do more, as well as working just to scratch together a living, Plagarus has consistently taken a back seat, I’m afraid.
(Warning! Self-indulgent ego moment!) I’m extremely pleased you got the sense there’s more to the scenes than just what’s visible. While there actually isn’t in reality (what’s visible is all that’s presentable at this point), there is considerable back story behind all the action and dialogue. Even the main character’s species is extremely fleshed out and fully designed. I’ve worked on this universe for the better part of 15 years. It’s been on my mind almost every day for that long. After that much effort and time, there’s a lot of stuff to show. So I’m so happy you feel like there’s actually a real world behind the scenes in the movie, because there really is a lot behind the scenes that hopefully one day will be explored more fully in a movie. =)
(Sigh. Self-indulgent ego moment over.) =D
Anyway, I’ll keep on plugging away on this until it’s done and we can start Part 3. Thanks for keeping the interest in this, and hopefully everyone’s doing awesome! =)
Dan