I just was watching youtube and people are just skipping voices. I want the audio voice.
I have a new problem it is the story. I did not write it. I just got started thinking it was the easy part and I could write it as I go but it is not working. So i will now try to think of 5 to 10 minutes around 2 scenes. Im hoping if the story and action is good It will keep interest.
That’s my plan
I do not have any good ideas at the moment.
I could see the main alien inside in an office chair, feet up watching some tv. Then an alarm sounds, red strobe light goes off and he gets up to go check the 3d satellite system to see what is going on.
Its not a whole story, but it could make for a decent opening sequence. It could change from relaxed scene to almost frantic/scared pretty quick. That change in emotion could keep it interesting for the first 45 seconds or so.
Thanks everyone for the info
I was going for a downward push like a wing mixed with a propeller effect. I will try this, what ever looks cool.
I like it MMoore500…well it gets my out of my box, Ill try it.
I have a new spider but I want to do a forth spider. No gears on the legs . I lost the files on the third spider changing hard drives. One more spider and that is it I got to get it right this time. This one the body sucks and the gears and the barbs do not fit. I just cant get it right not scary and mechanical enough.
So important when doing work like this to use some kind of internet backup and/or revision storage… I like Backblaze ($5/mo per machine for backup), and github+source tree ($7/mo for small private repositories, free if public). However there are many others, including Mosy Backup, Sourceforge, code.google.com.
…I want to learn what would make you want to keep watching.
I’m a professional programmer - amateur fiction author, so my comments are from more of a story than art perspective… Honestly, while art can always be refined, your art is more than good enough for me to keep watching. What I need is for a story to fit together. Cartoons (and research) shows us that human attention is (usually) to story, then sound, then visuals. This doesn’t change until the visual quality is so outstanding it’s shocking and we can forgive the story (Avatar, Oblivion).
A rule of thumb I really like (in almost everything creative) is to do a FULL low-fidelity prototype first, and only refine detail once the the whole prototype makes sense. The lowest-fidelity you can do use is prose or storyboard sketches. Both of these take a ton less time than modeling and animating, so doing this up front can save you lots of time. Likewise, if your goal is to make a story, I recommend after you plan the story, you do the whole animation in fairly low-fidelity before you spend time refining the models and lighting.
Here are some thoughts I had while watching the video…
I. You ask about making an alien voice. IMO, producing believable dialog is too much for a project you are trying to keep simple. It means writing, recording, “alien-ifying” and animating – all a ton of work. I recommend you consider just using repeating weird alien-sounds, and either use subtitles, or just let the visuals tell the story. Here is a sound-file that seems close to what I’m thinking. If you REALLY want to record and convert an alien voice, there are a bunch of tutorial videos on making an alien voice with Audacity.
II. In the beginning, the purpose of the alien looking at the solar system hologram is very unclear. It’s not clear whether he’s supposedly looking at a solar system map because he can see the object racing towards his planet, or whether that’s just a random thing he was doing at the time. This makes the motivation of the scene, and his character, confusing.
(a) if he’s supposed to be seeing the objecting racing in towards him, then the object needs to be highlighted much more prominantly on the solar system hologram. Try adding some kind of big swirling cursor around it, so we the viewers can see that he’s watching it approach.
(b) However, the background “elevator music” suggests it’s supposed to be a humorous situation where he’s just going about his day as something dangerous approaches his planet. In this case, just like mmore500 suggested, he shouldn’t be looking at a solar system hologram – he should be doing something mundane – like sitting in an armchair watching TV, standing at a kitchen sink doing dishes, or some other boring household task. Each cut could then focus on a specific mundane action, such as a funny camera angle on his fingers rapping on the armchair, or him trying to scrub a piece of dirt off a nearly spotless dish. This creates humorous contrast… A dangerous craft is hurtling through space towards him, and he’s oblivious to the danger, fumbling with a potato chip.
III. We need to know who this alien is. Visuals suggest he might be the only one on the planet (which could be fun). He could have the type of “real” job you might find in a remote rural section of highway, made funny because to do it in this interstellar setting, he has to sit around alone on this planet. For example, he could be a gas-station attendant (spaceships need fuel too!), he could be a postman, he could run a 7-11 style convenient store. He could run a car-repar shop. He could do all of the above.
IV. There should be a reason this spider thingie is landing on his planet. You don’t need to tell the audience right away, but there should be some reason. If you use my suggestion of eliminating audience understood dialog, then the artful challenge of the animation is to make this clear even when there is no dialog. For example, the spider could be coming to the planet to avenge the death of a tiny (yet identical) robot toy the man accidentally stepped on and crushed, or simply threw away. The spider could be coming to the planet just because he needs gas, but the alien could be afraid of him, throwing up all kinds of defeneses to protect himself – all of which the spider easily dispatches, creating tension because we think the spider is going to kill him – only to climax when the spider uses the gas-pump to fill up. … whatever it is… it needs to be something.
Yes I need to work on the story. I hoped an idea would come to me as I animated but it did not. I tried go get someone to write it but no volunteers. So ill get started on that.
I did look at tuts on the voice. I did not hear any I liked or sounded like they fit the caricature including my own alien voice.
Im finishing up a new spider now. I think I just deleted the files when i was cleaning up here,. It gets messy and i hurry and that’s.
Thanks for all the advice. Lots for me to consider.
Here is the old stuff I lost . Just a little practice with the spider.
cool. i think you should add a solidify modifier to the ‘wings’. also i don’t quite get where they go when they disappear. very cool though.
If you are looking for a collaborator, I’ll volunteer to author/collaborate on the the story. I’ll send you a PM.
I did a new spider. That’s it I’m done with number 4 no more spiders. hes got a rigged pop up laser in his head. And fan blades coming out of its body but I think ill change it to something else like a weapon or not. Its not textured I just wanted to post it.
How are people getting a image in the focused critique section/thread list where mine says ba?
I did a new scene but now I am reconsidering and going back to the day scene but I want to change the bunker and the ground. Now I have a night scene started.
Im thinking of a new character. he is on the drawing board but for the head shape I want to keep that. The body and textures are all open for ideas. It gives me something to to as I have no new ideas for the scenes.
http://www.pasteall.org/blend/22589
Any ideas? I was thinking he is like living bones.
Modron the new spider is different and the top opens but the blades still scale to nothing kinda like the Stargate Egyptian helmets.
I gotta say I liked your animation, it was weird, I didn’t get it, but I watched the whole thing without skipping ahead, which I have to admit I have never done. I always skip ahead cause I get bored after about 20 seconds.
I like your bone guy, I think he should be really lazy and clumsily slither around.
I think your work has a lot of potential, I really like the style its not boring or pretentious it is what it is and I truly enjoy that.
If your interested I would love to help out. I’m quite familiar with every step of the process, everything from crazy idea development to voice work as well as rigging special effects animation scripting and so on. I think your animation can be really cool, let me know if your interested.
All I Have is the caricatures and want a adventure that I can build on. So something can be put out before I am old. So 10 or 15 minutes to finish a short adventure with a success at the end but still have a
Story board start.
part one spider attack
A spider arrives at planet needsname
Buntu know this is trouble " A spider! Here! This is not good. spiders out here?(his voice lowers) This far out. What is on your scanners?
The prop scans with his prop and shakes his eye.
A spider lands and a quick fight a few laser blast from the spider… its over quick and the viewer thinks wow hes one bad dude.
Buntu speaks to eyeprop needsname Fetch for me the dun mammoth and bring him to the gray rock antenna station.
prop needsname fly’s off into a scene of the flat top hills and the palm looking trees but more dense. till he finds a space ship where he bounces on its back till the lights come on. After more bouncing and expressions the ship hums and climbs/ levitates up and follows the prop to a less dense scene, same hills, no trees. one gray hill with some equipment. Where they find Buntu monitoring a screen and adjusting controls.
In bewilderment Buntu speaks. “There everywhere how did this happen?”
The problem is the numbers the system is remote and the bad guy has lots of spiders. The good guys are few of course.
The mentor shows a moon with indication lights showing spider location. it looks like a earth city lights from orbit.
The quick version the get into the big brown ship and go to the moon where they exit and sneak to the village of rock people ( not your ordinary rock people) where they discover they have been enslave by bone head who likes dry dead things and is from a desert planet and cant live in humid conditions.
Its kinda a rocky moon. I hope to make the rock people burrowing creatures who bone head sends to find ore ( just valuable and rare used in making super lenses but has more value for being rare like a diamond and cutting). The power over the rock people… humm im thinking…water they are like him and to much water is bad and he gets them wet/ soaked and it makes them soft after about 15 minutes. He says he can make it rain where it has never raind more then a few small drops before.
The good guys are looking from a unique rock formation out over a desert sandy land and see animated burrows, burrowers and spiders…
My breakfast is done now will write more latter. hope you can read it as i cut and add and edit as I go.
I did some animating and it was not easy. interacting between to moving models. Here is the test i see some mistakes Im sure there must be more.
Character movement and camera work is good. All looks on track. Review your animation principles. In particular anticipation
I have been working on the scene and have two new models. I had a story but lost it. Humm? “anticipation” ya that is something to think about. I think i need to ad a second or two just before the spider jumps and redo all the fight.
The rig in this blend, if you move the main control on x axis the track moves and if you move the head control in z the tracks squish or flex. It was a lot of work. http://www.pasteall.org/blend/23450
I got burnt out because the last 2 animations looked bad to me but I want to try again.
Now my mind want to go right to how to solve or how to make better action but before I start thinking about it I want to collect as many ideas as I can.
The spider lands on top and jumps down and this is where it gets difficult for me. So now starting at the fight scene. 8 plus 2 legs and 2 arms just get to be a mess. Im thinking some hit and run action. Quick contact . The spider lands )the prop/ little guy is not here now). The horse looking caricature jumps out of the way backwards/ hops back. right there is where I want ideas for cool dramatic action. Rip the legs off and smash the spider stuff makes the viewer think this guy is a aggressive fighter.
All ideas are welcome
Thanks
Im thinking it just took so long to get these 11 seconds I did not want to redo as I saw the timing was not to good and weight distribution was bad.
Thanks
You must take advantage of the Open GL Viewport Render in blender when doing animation. Rendering out the viewport is very fast and will give you quicker feed back on whether the animation is fluid and smooth. Basically its a lot like blocking out the scene and the characters to get a feel for the timing of things. Most times playing back an animated character in realtime is slower when blender has to process everything. Do some google searching on the Open GL Viewport render option in Blender if you haven’t been using it already:)
Good Luck and keep Blending:)
Thanks I have used open GL often after reading this and it helps.
Now In this redo I find slow movements not so easy. I see here some obvious mistakes but I am focusing on the unnatural movement. I only want to redo this one more time or the story will never get started. I did get away for a time to clear my head.
super cool, man. for an alien voice, I would try using granular synthesis. and specifically the kind that combines multiple sampled wave forms. that way you can combine human and animal sounds, or other sounds into a new sound. I had a program on my old computer that did this, but Ii cannot recall it’s name at the moment. I will look around for it.