As well as the original movie that we were all wowed by (found here http://vimeo.com/7809605 or here http://www.jamesshaw.co.nz/blog/?p=285 with teasers), by Jorge Seva, aka Alex Roman I found some of the making off which have some interesting shot breakdowns including compositing below and the 2nd, more interestingly, the original sourcing, modeling, texturing, lighting and finals etc on his Kahn’s Exeter short film.
Very interesting stuff. I love the comments online that he must be doing something amazing technically, and am pleased to see he likes to keep things simple. So less about the technicality of it all and more on the artistry. The approach of visualization as a photographer is one I can relate to, but one that is all to often forgotten in archviz work.
Granted this is an existing building he visualizes so easier to identify compositions that work, as these are the ones that have already been photographed by professional photographers. Often it is hard given a sketch by architects to visualize where the good compositions might lie.
We have some great debates at work whether this type of work is creative given it is an existing space and it is a facsimile of what already exists, or whether creativity lies in visualizing the non-built to this level. Is it a technical exercise in bringing archviz work in line with photography? Many architectural colleagues I have shown it to fail to see the point with the comment “why wouldn’t you just go there and photograph it?”, which is a good point. The technical brilliance is lost on them.
To this end there is a really interesting aspect of CG work evolving that we will see juxtaposed over the coming years (although has run through many creative industries over many centuries). Creativity and technical brilliance working hand in hand, and splitting of some awards in this manner (Avatar and 2012 spring to mind; dubious stories, but awarded technical marvels). I’m going to sit on the fence on this one as I can see valid points for either side. Needless to say I find Alex Roman’s work inspiring on a number of fronts, which is surely a part of artistry in itself?
Great little clip with, I assume, After Effects motion graphics over the top. Lovely idea!
“This video was created for the Earth Day. A ode to the work of Jacques Languirand. The video will take part of the Globo Logos event that will take place in differents festivals all around the world.”
The recently completed Green Lighthouse, the first public CO2 neutral building in Denmark, will be showcased at the forthcoming UN Climate Conference (COP15) being held in Copenhagen in December. Our film, commissioned by Velux, will be played to demonstrate the building’s excellent intelligent and sustainable design.
Here are a few pictures that Andrew put on the blog (www.squintopera.com/blog/?p=302) from the making of the Moon project. We took the footage in an adjoining warehouse space using bags of concrete as moon dust and a hired space suit that Andrew wore for the shoot.
Andrew taking his first steps.
Green screen.
Andrew fidling with the camera and showing the green screen visor that was later comped out by tracking and replaced with a CG reflection.
Ollie our director (wearing mask) taking Andrew through his first steps.
Final Comp.
Comping in the moon lander with live action.
Close up showing comped in visor reflection, tracked and added in Shake.
Live action with comped in 3D elements surrounding and in reflections. Modelled in 3DS Max by my workmate Nic Hamilton.
Pretty slick piece of animation this. I always love the ambient occlusion style renders, there’s just something purely 3D about them; such a great descriptor of form. To be harsh it is a little matrix like and the font my workmates insist is looking a little dated. The storyline resolution is a little lacking as well, almost trailer like in it’s “there’s more” message at the end. But hey it’s pretty nice none the less!
Especially like the end sequence with the introduction of colour bleeding through as a collection of memories. Nice subtle gradients of colour in this when the “machine” is introduced back. Be great to make some time to work on something like this.
Here’s more info…
Artificial Paradise, Inc is an experimental film anticipating a future where a major corporation has developed an unique software, based on organic virtual reality, which holds all the lost memories of humankind. A user connects to this database of the forgotten…what is he searching for?
Production : Condor
Director / editor / compositing : Jean-Paul Frenay
Main 3D artist / compositing : Sandro Paoli
3D artists : Sylvain Jorget and Sébastien Desmet
Additional 3D operators : Otto Heinen and Okke Voerman
Sound Design : Seal Phüric feat. Neptunian8
A great little video that Alex Roman put together. I have seen the stills before, but seeing it as a moving image is great. I’ve been an admirer of his work for a while now; great use of high res materials and lighting within scenes.
We’ve been discussing whether this is possible with a client led project, as often these types of beautiful renders are compromised by relentless client changes and clients wanting to show every detail possible in every shot of the film. It would be nice to work on a project where detail, atmosphere and experience are key rather than explaining an architectural project like the documentation process does.
Below are some teasers Alex did beforehand. Some extremely nice stuff. Enjoy:
This is a very funny click from the Popcorn Comedy nights (www.youtube.com/user/PopcornComedy#play/all), in this particular instance at the Doodle Bar (www.thedoodlebar.com). As part of the Popcorn Comdey evening they show a number of clips from people that post them, and random stuff from the web, as well as live acts. Very. very funny!
Video from The Prodigy’s new music video by Corin Hardy. Good tune (ah the memories). Here’s a link and a bit more info:
“The New Directors’ Showcase (the NDS) is a must-see event at the Cannes International Advertising Festival.
The Showcase has a reputation for finding the next big thing in directing. And, guess what, everyone in Cannes wants to see the next big thing.
The famous directors named here have all been featured in the NDS at some time. It’s helped launch some significant careers”... www.youtube.com/user/NDS
Really nice music video. Here is a blurb and link from their youtube feed…
“The New Directors’ Showcase (the NDS) is a must-see event at the Cannes International Advertising Festival.
The Showcase has a reputation for finding the next big thing in directing. And, guess what, everyone in Cannes wants to see the next big thing.
The famous directors named here have all been featured in the NDS at some time. It’s helped launch some significant careers”…. www.youtube.com/user/NDS
