And we come to the end of another month. The video is still in progress, which tends to be “one step forward, one ‘Oh wouldn’t be cool to do this too’ step” followed by a “halt to catch up” step. Which in way is good, it means I’m not sick of the project yet.
Here’s some random images.
As you can see, she’s had a bit of a makeover.
Not much else to report. Thanks for stopping by, and see you next month.
Well, here it is at the end of April. I’ve been working diligently on the new project, and in fact posted a “trailer” to YouTube since I haven’t uploaded anything there since last October. And you know what they say, out of sight, out of mind! Gotta get them views and them likes! Well, not really, but you know.
Anyway. Trailer here:
So, that means the new project will actually happen, which is progress. Considering all the projects that just didn’t work, or stopped for other reasons. Things need to move forward.
And here’s a blog exclusive, a picture of a couple of cast members. This image itself will not appear in the finished video, (but both of the folks depicted will) so…I guess this makes it an NFT? Maybe? Not sure how those work and don’t really care.
I know you’ll probably want an autograph, but she’s due back in makeup, and he keeps wanting to be Jell-o. So they’re not around as often as I’d like.
Ah well, the problems of a production house. Thank you for stopping by, and see you next month, I hope!
Damn, that went fast. And…? Well, I did a bunch of drawings for another website (Hello, Sorial!). And I worked on some stuff for a project of my own, as well. Behold:
Work on the rest of it proceeds, but as always I have no idea when it will be finished. Not a bad bit of work for the month, I think.
And that’s it for March. Thank you for stopping by, and see you again soon, I hope!
So, October is basically over. We completed one 30 second movie, and maybe some work here and there.
Here’s a Halloween picture.
There’s a possible other project in the works, though I mostly work on it more out of obligation than real enthusiasm. It’s based on the image below:
That was created many, many years ago in Caligari TrueSpace (RIP), a 3-D animation application. Adapting it for my current animation setup means a lot of cutting, duplicating, recreating and reusing. It can be fun, and it keeps me (mostly) out of trouble. Will it be any good? Will there be anything else to it? Gather ’round kids and stay on camera, we’ll all learn together!
See you next time, and thanks for stopping by.
So, another very short video. Ideas for anything long-form are very thin on the ground these days, so anything is something…even if it’s less than 30 seconds.
I recently updated to the subscription version of PhotoShop and was just sketching around, looking for ideas, and this guy (and his friends) kind of showed up. So here they are.
Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by.
So, nothing much to report. Nothing really concrete, anyway.
I’ve been messing with Acid Pro, which was originally was produced was Sony Software but is now published by Magix. Not all that enamored with Magix, honestly. I upgraded both Acid Pro (and Vegas Post, also once by Sony and also now by Magix) earlier this year (March or so). But now there are new upgrades to both, and you’d think, “You upgraded only a couple of months ago? Here’s an upgrade for FREE or at least very cheap!”
Nope. Around $150 for Acid (and $300 for Vegas). Sorry, no. There used to be (and really ought to still be) some kind of loyalty benefit for those who have upgraded within a certain time period, but I guess I’m a victim of old thinking.
As for Acid itself, I’m trying to get it to cooperate with what I want to do. However, like almost every software I’ve ever used, it’s a struggle between what you want and what it will permit you to do. VST instruments appear or don’t based on…something I cannot discern. Data is clearly written, but no sound comes out.
I use Acid because I paid for it (see above) so I hesitate to jump to a different platform, even a free one. (In fairness to Vegas, it’s mostly okay.) But sometimes you have to take the plunge.
I also went against my instincts and signed up for the Adobe “Photography” bundle, where it’s a monthly charge. I’m not really happy with that decision, to be honest. It seems much harder to find the simplest things.
Here are some works, which I could have done with CS6 (I’m pretty sure). Maybe I’ll find some hidden gems. There is a “Sky Replacement” feature which seems to work really well, so there is that.
These were both mostly hand drawn.
Robert the Cat (TM) cameos in the second one as you can see.
In other Robert the Cat (TM) news: well, he’s still here. He loves receiving affection and attention, and while he he doesn’t know how to dispense the same, he’s…learning, slowly. The other day, rather than napping in his cat tree, he lay near to me. He reached out his paw and touched my leg. Mind, he had his claws out, so it wasn’t comfortable for me, but still I guess that counts for something. Doesn’t really tally against the constant biting and slashing, but then one can’t have everything I suppose.
No real ideas for any animation projects. Things occur to me, and I’ll work on them a bit, but then they flitter off.
Speaking of which, thanks for stopping by, and we’ll see you again next month.
One of the big things on YouTube in recent months (early 2022, for those of you in the future) has been “The Backrooms.” These are short film clips taking place in an odd, yellowish series of corridors. They are, of course, inhabited by a series of strange monsters.
They follow the tradition of “found footage” movies, a genre I find mostly annoying, but they’re interesting.
I decided I wanted to do something similar, with a single static scene of a corridor. And by “similar” I mean something that generates the same sense of vague unease. My corridor is toothpaste-green, rather than custard yellow, and the camera stays put.
It was a fun thing to try and figure out.
Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by.
The title for this just kind of struck me, and I like it: it doesn’t imply a direction or a course of action, it just means that one set of knowledge was given out from A to B. But who is A, and who is B? That’s for someone else to decide.
This was a project that came about from desperation–I’d finished and posted “The Path” and there were no ideas that jumped out at me. I was genuinely in a panic state; had I exhausted all that I thought I had to say?
But this one poked out, I thought, “Why not?” and I basically enjoyed working on it. The third act revelation (if that’s what it is) came to me one night when I was just falling asleep. I immediately thought, “That is a stupid idea, don’t do it,” but I did anyway…which probably says more than I intend.
Anyway, here it is. Enjoy, and thanks for visiting.
So here we are the end of another year. What’s happened this month?
Got a toothache which I thought would lead to another tooth pulled. Fortunately not, the oral surgeon had some different ideas which seem to be working.
Finished the animation project. Link is below.
I feel completely drained of any creative ideas. “The Path” took so damn long that it took all the ideas with it.
I’ve been messing around with Blender, and am kind of slightly getting to know my way around.
Other than that, a typical month. And we will see you next year.
Well, here it is again, the end of the month. This month has been a pretty productive one, as the animation project is finished (aside from a couple of sound bits and some timing fixing.) So there’s that.
On the bad side, my struggle with the bottle is in full flower. That’s not good, but I’m unsure how to fight it. I know I can, and I have, but it keeps coming back.
Anyway, it’s now officially the Christmas season, which typically depresses me. But I’ll try to be of good cheer.
Anyway, that’s it for now. See you next month.
A Planet That Has No Sky 