Damnit!

Stupid multi-sub-object material! I don't understand how to use it and my teacher gave me the most useless walkthrough of it. I'm so freaking frustrated with this right now!

I'm off to find me some tutorials that might actually EXPLAIN how to use it.

Distractions

Okay so school's back in session and I'm stuck in the middle of homework. My curresnt class is 3D Character Modeling (or something to that effect) so I'm working in Max to build my own human. It's coming along, though I don't look forward to doing the mapping. I am having trouble keeping interested in it though. I don't think I like character modeling. I'm not having any trouble with the actual work, I just think I'd prefer asset production: vehicles, furniture, weapons, etc. I feel better knowing exactly what area I'd like to work in and character modeling just isn't it.



Unfortunately, my real problem is in the class itself. My school has a habit of cannibalizing its students by hiring them to teach. I don't mind so much if the school hired people on years after they've graduated and had a successful career in the industry, but unfortunately, my teacher in this class only graduated here a year or two ago and has never gotten any real experience in the field, besides a few side project with friends. That's not enough lean on while teaching a class. On top of that, he's using tutorials online, instead of teaching us from his own personal knowlegde. I can find tutorials online without spending $50,000 on tuition. On top of that, we have one assignment in class - build the model. There aren't even any intermediate deadlines; finish the head, finish the hands, etc. My grade depends on one single project, pass or fail. I'm more than halfway through class and the teacher is just now checking to see how we're doing. Too bad I won't get a grade on that progress though. Now, I have no problem with the teacher himself; he seems to know what he's doing and he's nice enough. The class (and maybe the school) just needs an overhaul to be more effective.

Some clarification

I guess before I get too far into this blog, I should explain what exactly the Prototytan Project is. It consists of two parts - the first part is short term - hopefully completed by August 2009. I'll be modeling a few of my original design Transformers for use in my demo reel to help me get a job in television or game animation. I've started one model, but being the first one, it's slow going as I realize my desings don't translate into 3D perfectly and things need to be tweaked.

The second part of the project is a lot more involved because of the amount of work that needs to be done. As I said before I'm writing a fanfic, but I plan on making it ain comic format (inspired by a lot of the photo -comics posted here. They've done some great work and convinced me my story would be better in art instead of prose. Of course, a CGI comic requires a lot of modeling - the 12 Prototytans, and 12 Autobots and Decepticons each, along with sets and props. That's a lot of work! Of course, the Transformers won't be highly detailed or modeled directly after toys. If you want more accurate stuff, check out this guy, his stuff's great but way beyond my talent.

Unfortunately, I'm back to school tomorrow after a week off and now I've got to concentrate on homework instead of the PP. Looks like I need to crack down on the weekend, which won't happen until after March is over - I'm getting married in three weeks!

Insignia

Any good Transformer fan knows that a faction starts with an insignia. You can't have an Autobot, Decepticon, Maximal, etc without a little robot face on it somewhere (or an M in the case of Minicons). So as soon as I started modeling, I created this guy - it's actually the first thing I ever made in Max.


If it looks familiar to you, congratulations. It's a stylized combination of the fve minibot repaints from 1986. The visor is from Outback, the mouthplate is from Pipes, the crest is a combination of Hubcap and Swerve and the rest of the face is rounded out by Tailgate. There is a reason for it being made this way which will be related at some point in the story. Yes, that's right, I'm writing a fanfic, deal with it.


As you can see from this picture and the title image, I'm going with a cel-shaded look most remiscent of the Energon series. I want this to look like a cartoon and cel-shading looks good with minor details. I've tried numerous techniques for getting it to look right and I think I've settles on the one I'm going to use.

Now I just need to pick a color for the thing.

The Beginning

I'm a huge Transformer fan. I've followed the series since it's beginning in 1984 through the latest incarnation. When I was flying home in 2004 for my grandfather's funeral, I got the idea to write a Transformers story featuring a third faction, one I've called the Prototytans. I came up with a group of original Transformers and designed each one with a new body. But my art has faltered over the years and every attempt to draw them out just ended up frustrating me.

Then I enrolled in school at Collins College pursuing a Bachelors in Visual Art with an emphasis in Game Art and I'm learning how to model in Max. Forget drawing on paper, now I can build in my computer. It seems to be a perfect fit together.

So now I'm on the way to a September 2009 graduation and working on my portfolio and demo reel. I've decided the Prototytans will be the focal point of my demo reel to emphasize my talent and interest in asset production and animation. I've decided to post my progress in this blog to keep me motivated and let my friends and family and anyone interested follow along.