Blender has some training DVDs coming that look presented, assuming as much work was put into the DVDs as was put into this trailer.  Venom’s Lab – Training DVD Teaser from Pablo Vazquez on Vimeo.

** I’ve had the durian fruit a few times.  It STINKS…  but tastes amazing.

Thanks to Des Duggan for getting me to check this out.

1. Efficient use of effects. It’s not just what you can do, but how you use it.
2. Story with meaning. In a time where films rarely follow their core message… it’s refreshing to see an exception (including Pixar).
3. I was almost lucky enough to work on it. Almost. :\
4. Oh yeah, and it’s got aliens!

The film was directed by Neill Blomkamp, a Vancouver Film School graduate who is a VFX veteran from The Embassy, who directed the popular Citroen commercial.

Long story short, Neill was supposed to direct the Halo film, but that was put on hold (indefinitely?) and so Peter Jackson assisted Neill in turning his short film, “Alive in Jorberg“. into a feature film. District 9 was green lit with a budget of $30 million.

On September 29th I attended a Siggraph talk with Image Engine, where spoke on the making of District 9. Image Engine was one of a handful of studios in Vancouver that worked on the film. While Image Engine focused on the creation of the “prawn” characters, The Embassy was working on the large robot and little critters. Goldtooth Creative worked on some of the 3D user interfaces shots and WETA, since they were busy with Avatar, was only able to contribute to a few shot elements, including the mothership.

The original intention was to use prosthetic suits for the alien prawns w/ CG face overlays. Peter Muyzers recommended that Image Engine be allowed to create the creatures entirely in 3D. In the end, about 300 alien shots were created by Image Engine. The aliens were acted out by a grey suited actor and then replaced by a CG double, which was created in Maya. It was noted that the grey suit provided a great reference for lighting. Nuke was heavily used in the production as allowed for much of the CG lighting to be adjusted in real-time.

People at Goldtooth and Image Engine both noted how the use of the “Red One” camera sometimes produced warping of the frame during fast camera moves. This was often difficult for the tracking software and forced them to fully recreate the scenes in 3D in order to do touchups. The warping effect was referred to as the “rolling shutter“.

The 300 alien shots felt like a lot more. This and many of the other tricks, including filtering footage through VHS recorders, were testiment to Neill’s efficient use of FX. He understood that 3D is expensive and when some shots were pushed through the pipe, he was quoted saying that the cost was “a snowmobile or 2“. Like Fight Club, Neill used used FX to help tell a story, not a story to show off pretty effects. The crew at Image Engine expressed how much of a benefit it was to have someone directing that spoke their language.

I hope to see more movies like this and nearly everyone who’s seen it agrees. Would Neill be able to produce double the quality with 60 million? Anybody ready for a District 10? We’ll see.

FXGuide has a very detailed breakdown that includes before/after shots organized by studio.

[thx Dan Lyle]

I just ran across this video at odforce.net.  A VERY slick road generator.  Now what CAN’T this program do.

…

Almost as big as these man made beasts. How can a digital puppet guy like myself not be blown away by a machine that walks with the wind?

And more kinetic sculptures over (where else?) Dark Roasted Blend

I’ve put just under 10 hours into the game and although the new turn-based like targeting system (aka “VAT) is pretty satisfying, the game is pretty repetitive. Glad I took the time to play it as now I’m more sure than ever that I want to avoid most first person RPGs.

You like the open world RPGs?  Then you’ll probably like this game.  However, if life demands your attention, don’t pick this one up or:

1) You won’t get anything done.  You’ll constantly be late for work.  You’re wife will leave you (though this is more tolerable to spouses than “WoW”).

2) You’ll snap out of a trance, 10 hours in, and think, “Where am I? It’s 2am?” and set out to burn the drug-like media before it tempts you into more game time.

Checkout what the Escapist has to say.

Thief?    Hmm…   yeah, I still haven’t played that one.

They have finally made this talk available in a format that doesn’t require RealPlayer.  That means I can finally share it!

If you are not inspired, then you must have already lost hope.

Here’s some informative reviews of some of his books:

http://teampub.wordpress.com/2008/04/05/maverick-the-success-story-behind-the-world’s-most-unusual-work-place/

http://positivesharing.com/2006/05/book-review-the-seven-day-weekend/

This one time… from nelson boles on Vimeo.

Thanks to S. Clee for this one.

Patrick Smith, creator of VectorPark, has a new game called Windosill.  Procedurally animated characters look over you as you move your little cloud puffing cart through physically dynamic worlds that blur the line between 2D & 3D.

If that didn’t make sense, just do yourself a favor and go checkout Windosill.

If that’s not enough, view some of his older toys at VectorPark.