Lenore, Big Headed Kitty, Roman Dirge and more...

I have always been inspired by the strange and macabe. There are many artists that are really original and are constantly amusing to me. One of them is Roman Dirge. His most famous effort was the comic series called Lenore. I was recently turned on to a stash of short webisodes of Lenore animation. These are stories from the comic that Sony had turned into flash shorts. It consists of the whole set of 26 episodes ever created. Check them out before they are gone forever.



Lenore Stash




Roman also created some other comic stories. One of these was previously unknown to me. It's called The Cat with a Really Big Head, and One Other Story that Isn't as Good.

Now as you can imagine this discovery sent us for a loop as our site is similarly named. The truth be known we were unaware that there were other similarly afflicted cats in the world. Roman's cat is not the hero of our site. He certainly has a much "bigger" problem than our "Big Headed Kitty" has. We wish Roman's cat all the best and hope the swelling goes down. We really do.
You can get a copy of The Cat with a Really Big Head, and One Other Story that Isn't as Good here at Amazon. If your interested in Lenore...You can get the comics here.

Craft Animation delivers new plugin for Maya

Craft Animation has introduced a new plugin for Maya. This is not mentioned in Maya Plugin Power. Check it out...

If you hate splines you are not alone. Make one little change to the spline and everything along the path gets changed!

That's because splines work in percentages. What if they didn't? What if you could actively 'drive' the node along the spline? What if you could program 'waypoints' to stop, slowdown, wait etc.

Craft Spline Speed-Controller does just that. If you change the length of the spline your 'waypoints' will stay in the same place. Each waypoint gives you the option of programming a speed change, a stop or a delay. The possibilities are endless. Below are a few case studies.

SIGGRAPH 2008 Los Angeles

It's time to start saddling up for SIGGRAPH 2008. Prices for airline flights are not getting any cheaper with the fuel situation in this country. Don't procrastinate Register NOW. Don't wait till the last minute or you may find yourself without a SIGGRAPH sanctioned hotel and reasonable airfare.

Don't get stuck booking the Milner... Trust me on this...



The Evolution Starts Now

SIGGRAPH 2008 is evolving along with the computer graphics and interactive techniques community. We're dissolving the borders between traditional SIGGRAPH programs to create a more fluid, interdisciplinary conference. And we're offering presenters more flexible options for sharing their work.
Join us in Los Angeles in August for the highest quality, most timely educational experiences the community has to offer, presented by the most powerful and most engaging leaders in computer graphics and interactive techniques.

SIGGRAPH ASIA call for participation

Thought I would mention SIGGRAPH ASIA 2008. They still have open calls for participation. I think it's exciting that they are holding an Asian event.

The first ACM SIGGRAPH Conference and Exhibition on Computer Graphicsand Interactive Techniques in Asia opens in Singapore on 10 December 2008.

For four fascinating days, SIGGRAPH Asia 2008 will extend the horizons of innovation and excellence. It will feature creative, scientific, and educational work that provokes thought, explores ideas in innovative ways, addresses contemporary issues, interactively engages viewers in discovery, and stimulates their intellect and imagination.

All members of the computer graphics community in Asia and throughout the world are invited. Reserve your exhibit space now. Submit your work for consideration when the online submission system opens in early February. And in early July, when online registration and hotel reservations become available, make plans to be in Singapore for this historic event.

Call for Participation
Now Available: Online Submission forAll SIGGRAPH Asia 2008 Programmes

Giant Killer Robots and those that TRY to protect us

Watching the Marvel webisode from the previous post reminded me of a really funny CG short I saw at SIGGRAPH 2007. It was called The Recent Future Robot: Helper Z. I have no clue as to what all of the title means but it made me laugh. I usually come away with a few personal Best of Shows. This was one of them. Maybe I was in a mood but I really couldn't stop laughing. Just goes to show that if you have a good story or clever idea it can go a long way. Check out The Recent Future Robot: Helper Z here:

CG, Iron Man, and why I'm not a casting director.

I saw Iron Man this weekend and it was great. I had a few thoughts...

Director Jon Favreau has always gone on record as saying he likes to keep the use of CG to a minimum. If an effect can be done by practical means then he prefer it do be done that way. That seems reasonable. I certainly won't hold that against him. When he needed his CG effects he went to ILM. The film is entertaining, fun and engaging. That's what's really important. The transition between practical and CG effects is seamless. I have this really bad habit of watching a film for the visuals alone. Watching a film always becomes an unavoidable game of "CG or Practical: You Make The Call" or "How would I do have done that effect?". I am breaking myself of this habit and just enjoying the film as it was intended. It's hard. I'm progressing in baby steps. I am trying to save those games for the DVD release now.

If you'd like to see Iron Man with Spiderman and the Hulk check out this full CG webisode clip from the Marvel Kids ... Very nice stuff.




What made a bigger impression on me was Robert Downey Jr's performance as Tony Stark. He was really terrific. He WAS the movie. It just reminded me of my lack of vision for casting. I think I have a fertile imagination but I am not able to make the connection between actor and character. Oh sure, Pierce Brosnan as James Bond that was easy... Daniel Craig as James Bond now that was visionary. He wound up being one of the best 007's in decades even as people complained harshly. I stay neutral now. Ever since I predicited dread and doom for Die Hard because someone thought Bruce Willis would make a good action star, I recognize my deficiency. I would not have had the vision to pick Robert Downey as Tony Stark. Now I can't imagine anyone else in the role. He owns it.

That's why I'm not a casting director.

I received my copies of Maya Plugin Power

Well, two days to go before the release of "Maya Plugin Power" on May 9, 2008. I got my copies on May Day. I have to say that for all the struggle... It turned out great. I am very proud of the final result.

They finally changed the cover image to the proper one on Amazon.Thanks to all the people that help me get this book out the door.

Cheers,

Mark

Smith Micro releases Poser Pro with Maya support

Hi,

Poser has become a very popular program and it screams to be used in a larger production pipeline. Intergration of Poser with higher end packages has been dubious at best. There have been solutions for integrating Poser with Maya, Max, and C4D. Reiss Studio created a plugin called Body Studio that allowed for the export of Poser files to Maya, Max, and C4D. interPoser Pro is an app from Kuroyumes Development Zone for integrating C4D and Poser.

http://www.reiss-studio.com/

http://www.kuroyumes-developmentzone.com/products_interposer_pro.html

I don't know much about interPoser Pro but from C4D users I have talked to it's great. My experience with Reiss Studio has been less than stellar. I have owned Body Studio for Maya for years and have never gotten it working correctly. Their customer service is terrible. While upgrading it for possible inclusion in Maya Plugin Power I was charged 3 times for the software. repeated attempts to remedy my problems have fallen on deaf ears. Their custmer service is a huge joke. I would be happy to document my problems for anyone interested. Their total lack of interest in returning my emails ultimately led to their exclusion from Maya Plugin Power. This was a real shame.

But I digress... SmithMicro is now the company name attached to the developement of Poser(SmithMicro is Efrontier). They have announced Poser Pro. Below is a portion of their press release from the website.

Poser Pro includes PoserFusion™ plug-ins, which enables hosting of both animated and static Poser scenes in Autodesk® 3ds Max®, Autodesk® Maya® and Maxon's CINEMA 4D. Poser Pro supports COLLADA data interchange, which permits the import of 3D data and the export of Poser scenes with character rigging and blend zones, morph targets, texture information, lighting, cameras and other scene details.

This mean that Poser now includes native plugin support for Maya, Max, and C4D.

I can't yet confirm this but Reiss Studio may have sold their plugin technology to SmithMicro. If anyone can confirm that I would love to hear about it. If that is the case I am sure SmithMicro didn't purchase Reiss Studios lousy support.

Here is a link for more info on Poser Pro.

http://www.smithmicro.com/default.tpl?group=news_full&id1=433&id2=13

and check out this blog for great info on Poser Pro

http://www.poserpro.net/blog/poser_pro/


Anyway you slice it, this is great news for those of us interested in incorporating Maya and Poser.


Stay Tuned,

Mark

Anzovin Studio Releases New Plugin

I haven't had a chance to look at it yet but if The Face Machine is half as helpful as The Setup Machine 2 is, it's going to be great. I'll write a report on it as soon as I get my hands on it and test it out. In the mean time you can check it out here





Cheers,

Mark