What i've been up to...

So thesis is completed. Degree has been earned. What have I been doing with my life since graduation?

Well, besides getting a fun part-time job at a sex shop, I've been working on my reel on and off. In the 8 months since graduation I have added three new pieces, and touched up a few others.

First I made this piece to show off what I know I can already do, and do relatively well. I'm really happy with the way it came out. I just grabbed some random model from the internet and got to UVing. It was fun and I got it done pretty fast. It feels good to do what you love, do it quickly, and do it well.

Next it was time to challenge myself a bit. This was my first attempt at using sub-surface scattering to make a cartoony little girl. All of my other projects are more photo real, so I was trying to show that I can make something like this as well. I like the way she looks, but the way I lit it, she seems more doll like than I'd like. I definitely need to work on my lighting skills.

Finally I made this guy. He was a bitch to UV and even more complicated to texture. So many individual pieces! But that's what i wanted to get from this project. It ended up being more of a burden and less fun, and once again can use the help of much better lighting that what I can provide, but I like it. 

With these new pieces in my portfolio I'm hoping to land a job sometime soon. I had actually stopped searching/applying for a few months. But then an animator from South Park came in to my part time job after pulling an all-nighter to finish the season finale of the latest season. We spoke for about 20min and she gave me her contact info. She really inspired me to start trying again, and so I am.

My friends all around me are getting their first jobs, I feel like its my turn. Fingers crossed!

Screenshots from the final product!

I know that I stopped posting for a long while... but that is because I got into the full swing of production. Now the film is "finished". If I ever feel the drive to, I would like to go back and fix a  lot (almost all) of the animation and truly finish it. But considering this took me a month to render... I don't know...

Still I am very proud of the final product! Here is a link to the youTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR4iTVD2niM

And below are a few screen shots.

What do you think? I really love the way it looks!!!

~Sam

I gave up on fur

So I gave up on having Billium be covered in fur. But his texture is a lot better now, and he is actually something I can be proud of. He is also successfully fully rigged! He is literally the first thing I have fully rigged in over 3 years, so I am really happy. Next up is Charlie... uh oh.

In other news, my sets are completely put together now! Well, one needs a sky, but hey. Now all they need is to be lit, and a friend of mine has agreed (after I bugged him about it enough) to help me out on that front. Though I am told that to be the texture artist that I wanna be, I should become better at lighting myself... We will see how that goes. Also another friend has agreed to do my score. I have the upmost trust in what he can do, so I am super excited about that as well! I am getting a lot of help on this thing, and I don't think I will finish without it.

Success!

Billium is done, after MONTHS of crying/cursing maya fur...

More coloring

I'm coming to the end of all my coloring, which feels really good! It willd efinately all be done by the end of November. Next all I have to do if light everything. Then I am going to stop production in the interest of making myself a new reel with all of the pieces that I am most proud of. Anyways, here are some screenshots.

I've colored Charlie!

Here is is with his color map on. The texture is not done, of course... but its nice to have at least this much done.

P.S. Here he is with a quick bump and specular map!

I'm also getting a lot further on the fur for Billium. Here is the  last screen shot I took of him. His feet wont be furry in the end, so please ignore that!

 And lastly, this is a mushroom tree. Isn't it pretty?

Color Tests 2 and 3

The Leafrets and Iadinos in thier natural habitats. Can you tell which is the main charachter versus the background creatures?