Archive for October, 2009

Halloween Hijinks at Zoic [Images]

Posted by Erik Even in I Design Your Eyes on October 30, 2009

Serenity o' lantern

It’s the night before Halloween, and the ghouls and witches at Zoic Studios are showing off this year’s coolest costumes. Tonight: a Zoic Halloween get-together, with costume prizes and free treats.

Wanna work here? Of course you do. Quit your job and get really good at Maya.

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

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Re-Imagined ‘V’ Prompts Cheesy 80s Nostalgia

Posted by Erik Even in I Design Your Eyes on October 26, 2009

A cheesy 1980s rubber-mask David Icke Visitor from V.

I was 16 when the original V miniseries (if two episodes constitute a “miniseries”) premiered in 1983 on NBC, the network best known at the time for Knight Rider and Remington Steele. I liked V, if only because it was so much better than the original Battlestar Galactica, or any contemporaneous sci-fi show (Tron rip-off Automan, bizarre shape-changing drama Manimal).

Apparently, NBC’s Fall slate for 1983 was one of their least successful ever. (We Got It Made? The Yellow Rose? Anyone?) Good thing they had V, which did very well and led to both a sequel miniseries (V: The Final Battle, 1984) and a short-lived regular series (V: The Series, 1984-85).

This, despite the fact that V was pretty darn cheesy. One the one hand, it wanted to be a serious parable about the rise of fascism in the United States (right down to the Visitors’ swastika-like symbol); on the other, it featured bizarre 80s costumes, haircuts and makeup, subpar special effects, and Willie the Friendly Alien (a pre-Freddy Krueger Robert Englund). It also relied on the tired old War of the Worlds solution to an alien invasion: bacteriological warfare.

The new, re-imagined four-episode V miniseries premieres next Tuesday (11/3) on ABC. As a special bonus for Firefly flans and Zoic fans, the series features Firefly vets Morena Baccarin as Anna, the leader of the Visitors, and Alan Tudyk as FBI agent Dale Maddox. Zoic also handled the effects for the miniseries; an in-depth post will be forthcoming.

Also, on Sunday the Channel Formerly Known as Sci Fi will air an all day marathon of both original V miniseries.

Learn more: YouTube preview for the new ABC re-imagined series, intro to the 1984-85 TV series. And speaking of Firefly, Captain Tightpants Lives Again!

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Google Crowdsources 3D Work with ‘Building Maker’

Posted by Erik Even in I Design Your Eyes on October 19, 2009

Google Building Maker screenshot

Google wants to enhance its Google Earth global mapping product with three-dimensional representations of pretty much every building on Earth. But how can even the $32 billion web search daikaiju manage such a feat?

  1. Outsource the work to Indonesian orphanages?
  2. Use Google Nuclear Arsenal to flatten all existing buildings, allowing Google to create 3D models as the new buildings are constructed?
  3. Turn the creation of Google Maps models into a puzzle game, and cloudsource it?

The correct answer is (c).

Google Building Maker is a browser-based web app (based in Google SketchUp; Google Earth installation required) that lets you build 3D representations of buildings around the globe, using image resources provided by Google. Your work will be eyeballed by a Google staffer, and if approved will become a permanent part of Google Earth.

The app works by showing you several photos of a building (one you choose or one chosen for you), taken from various angles. You manipulate and resize a 3D bounding box to show Google Building Maker what image elements will go where on the 3D model — a task that will undoubtedly be automated within the next few years, but which right now requires a wetware engine (that’s you). The app assembles the model, which can be composed of a number of rectangular or triangular shapes, each skinned with a portion of a photo.

I can’t currently play with Google Building Maker, because I can’t install Google Earth at work. But let me know how you enjoyed it in the comments.

Some people think Google Building Maker will help the “terrorists.” I would call such people “brain-impaired Philistines,” but that’s unfair to the brain-impaired. And Philistines.

Via Google’s Lat Long Blog (with video); via CG Society.

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Fireflies West Riders Return to LA [Images]

Posted by Erik Even in I Design Your Eyes on October 16, 2009

Susan Northcott with cake frosting on her face.

On 10/14/09, the Fireflies West cyclists arrived back in Los Angeles, concluding their journey at The Mill in Santa Monica.

The group of 25 directors, production company staffers and agency executives completed the six-day cycling trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles, raising money for a Leukemia charity.

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

For more information: Fireflies West on Facebook; Fireflies West Takes Off to Benefit Leukemia Research.

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Fireflies West Takes Off to Benefit Leukemia Research

Posted by Erik Even in I Design Your Eyes on October 7, 2009

fireflies_630x354

On October 9th a group of directors, production company staffers and agency executives will set off on their bikes for a six-day cycling trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles in the inaugural “Fireflies West” ride. Participants include riders from RSA (the original founders and supporter of the ride), The Mill L.A., Restless Films, Zoic Studios and advertising agency 180, to name a few. In total 25 riders will cycle down the coast of California in hopes of raising awareness with the goal of raising funds for a Leukemia charity.

Fireflies West is a sister-ride to the annual 1000 KM event held every year in the French Alps, which culminates with the Fireflies riding triumphantly down the Croissette in Cannes during the International Advertising Festival in June.

Director Jake Scott, founder of the Fireflies ride, recalls: “In June 2001, five guys got together to ride across the French Alps for The Catherine Lewis Centre at Hammersmith Hospital in London. We did well, and we were asked if we would do it again the following year. The last night of the second year’s ride we had to descend the final mountain in the dark. The moon was hidden, and none of us had lights. As we entered the forest it became virtually impossible to see. And then suddenly thousands upon thousands of fireflies appeared, hovering above the road, as if to guide us through the darkness. It was the most magical thing you’ve ever seen. As we came upon the first town light they vanished and we were safe. What’s incredible is the gene that allows fireflies to glow is helping researchers track the effectiveness of anti-cancer drugs—much like it helped us descend the mountain.”

“For those who suffer we ride,” is the motto of the event and is based on the dedication to the belief that the riders can fight cancer and save lives.

Donations for the event can be made at the Fireflies site. To sponsor a specific rider, visit www.justgiving.com. For more information, contact Bryan Farhy, Executive Producer at Restless Films, at bryan@restlessfilms.tv.

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Zoic Hosts 3D Industry Salon

Posted by Erik Even in I Design Your Eyes on October 6, 2009

Closeup of "Medusa," an interactive stereo display sculpture from franklinlondin.com.

Yesterday evening, Culver City, California’s Zoic Studios hosted an exclusive salon event, featuring an open discussion of the history of, and trends in 3D entertainment;  plus an exhibition of stereoscopic (3D) art.

Leslie Ekker, Zoic’s commercial creative director, hosted the informal, free-of-charge event, which attracted about 60 entertainment industry professionals.

Electronic stereoscopy pioneer Lenny Lipton discussed the history of stereoscopy in film. Lipton is recognized as the father of the electronic stereoscopic display industry, having invented many of the current state-of-the-art 3D technologies.

Johnathan Banta, Digital Supervisor at Sassoon Film Design, discussed the conversion of 2D moving images to 3D. His most recent work includes the films The Brothers Bloom, Quarantine, Milk and Public Enemies.

Digital effects animator Franklin Londin spoke about new autostereoscopic displays, which do not require the polarized or anaglyph (red and blue) glasses formerly necessary for 3D. Londin brought to the event his brand new digital stereo camera from Fuji, soon-to-be-available om the US, accompanied by a stereo picture frame.

Londin also brought a collection of his amazing sculptures, integrating 3D photographs displayed through illuminated viewers.

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

A number of 3D books and stereoscopes were on hand, for attendees to attempt to ruin their vision trying out.

Ray Zone, film historian, author, artist and stereoscopy pioneer (the “3D King of Hollywood”), explained the functioning of a 1950s-era 3D slide projector. Franklin Londin used the projector to show stereo slides from his collection.

Zoic provided food and wine for the participants. Based on the success of this first attempt, the VFX and digital production firm intends to host future salons, although no specific plans have been announced.

Learn more: Zoic Studios; stereoscopy and anaglyph images on Wikipedia; a biography of Lenny Lipton (he invented Puff the Magic Dragon!); Johnathan R. Banta on IMDB; Franklin Londin’s 3D display art; Ray Zone’s web site (wear your red & blue glasses); UPDATE: read this story on Computer Graphics World.

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