Progress report

Initially, I decided to make some silhouette's up for my gadgets using generic 'Steampunk' items and shapes. The end results are below, and although in some aspects there are victories, Alan and I both felt that the designs were forced and still didn't hold the logic and quality that I'm looking to achieve this time around





So it was back to the drawing board, and once again taking Alan's advice, I started to think a lot harder and with more clarity about what exactly the reason was for redesigning these gadgets. so to help me I decided to make a little check list for each gadget (3 of them - a mutual agreement that quality over quantity is going to be key here - positive decision) in my sketch pad. below is what was written down in my sketch pad, and is now blue tacked to one of my monitors to keep drumming into my head, what I'm supposed to be thinking about.

Proton Pack

KEYWORDS - Suck
Fire
Energy
Weapon

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS - A trigger/firing element
A Power source
Something to show it's on
Something to show it's firing
An attachment from power to receiver
An element of mobility

MATERIALS - Copper, Brass, Metals, Woods, Wiring

MECHANICAL INSPIRATION - Funnel
Strong Lights
Gears
Gauge
Lever
Wheels
Cables
Pulleys


PKE Meter

KEYWORDS - Handheld
Search
Alert

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS - Something to alert user of paranormal activity
Something to show a reading
Something to locate ghosts
Must be light enough to carry by oneself

MATERIALS - Wood, Brass, Copper, Glass, Leather, Wiring

MECHANICAL INSPIRATION - Compass
Gauge
Antenna
Bulbs
Bells
Cogs
Handles
Electrodes


The Ghost Trap

KEYWORDS - Suck
Contain
Capture

MAIN CHARACTERISTICS - Something to draw in the ghost
something to transport it from suction device to container
Somewhere to hold the ghost
Something to show the trap is full or in use

MATERIALS - Brass, Glass, Piping, Wood, Gems

MECHANICAL INSPIRATION - Gramophone
Funnel
Vacuum
Jewelry box
Pipes
Cables
Lever
Crank

Now, it was once I began to think of the objects more as characters with stories and meanings of their own, that their logic began to take shape, and it is then that I reattempted some silhouettes using this logic and designer thinking.




These are the initial shape silhouette's for The Ghost Trap.



Above are the Shape blockouts for the PKE Meter



And Here are the results of the shape tests for the Proton Packs.

As you can see, these shapes alone are not enough, so I decided to try my hand at adding some detail in with gray tones. Personally, the actual imagery based outcome I don't like as I struggled with this technique, although it shows whats in my head, and after today, I can chose one of each gadget and design them in colour with each of their special components being more resolved and detailed/textured.







So, now I have more of an understanding of what I need to achieve, as mentioned before, I think the next step would be to design the intricate parts that are are only loosely drawn on these silhouettes, individually in colour and texture, and then put them together in a space, to see what my final piece would look like.

Technology Of The 1900's

Looking back at the last post, we know that to achieve a realistic yet striking design for this project, there must be some understanding of technology and mechanics of the period around the 1900s.

As mentioned, games like Bioshock have managed to 'devolve' items whilst making them still stand as aesthetically and ergonomically readable.



The cars used around the 1900 era are a good starting point to look at how mechanical technology worked back in this period.
as we can see, the actual design (as is the same for pretty much all vehicles from this era that I have looked at) is an attempt at elegance. the curves and minimalistic structure, lead us to believe that this was built not only for purpose but style as well.



Another good place to look would be the industrial sector during this time. A lot of factories were moving away from 'steam' and coal based mechanics and utilizing pulley systems, and other systems which were almost more manual but cheaper to run than earlier machines. again, minimalistic structures lead us to believe that technology in this era was once again trying to move towards, purpose and cost rather than effectiveness.



The sewing machine above shows that size was also an issue when creating machinery during this period. this is something to take into account when designing my gadgets, as although they are fictional, it could be too unrealistic to have the technology required in such a small place. for example, the PKE Meter, is a small handheld device, but perhaps in this case, it may require 2 people to operate?



Obvious design patterns and components are quite common with the technology I've been looking at. You will notice a lot of gear/pulley like mechanisms on equipment, also a lot of pipe work and valve work. A lot of machinery, by today's standards (even the heavy duty machinery) seems, for lack of a better word, flimsy, and connective structures were clearly not understood to the degree in which they are today. what I mean by this is bolt placement, edge connection, component attachments etc. all look as though they could be disassembled or broken with relative ease.



As well as this, one last thing it was obvious to notice, was that the materials used to construct certain machines, are by far different to today's materials. Wood and copper seem to be quite popular materials in comparison to today's plastics and steel blends.

This is a decent amount for me look at, and make some conclusions and decisions at what exactly I could be adding or taking away from the original ghostbuster designs in order to create my 1900's gadgets.

Style choice

When thinking logically about a choice of style regarding my revamped ghostbuster idea, it's probably important to take into account, that the original ghostbusters movies, and cartoon for that matter, are comedies.
Being comedies, it makes my decision about choice of style, a lot easier.



If you look at the proton pack, despite obviously having an iconic and thought out design, it is what some, myself included, would call an over the top design. The way it's features seem so 'out there' and almost unnecessary makes me think that going for a realistic technical approach, would quite possibly look flat and unexciting. However, were i to use an approach in which I created outlandish and wild looking guns, i feel that i could achievev a style of gadgetry that fits the ghostbuster world, without comprimising its design.


For example. The game bioshock, is set from any point during 1945 to 1960. Despite bioshock being set in this era quite obviously in the past, the game and its elements does not feel unevolved.





Look at the 2 crossbow above. Now despite being blatently from an earlier point in time, the top one (the one featured in bioshock) looks far more interesting and thought out in terms of design. The way the designer has utilized the obvious markers of early to mid 1900 technology, and incorporated that into his design effectivley for style and practicality, is something i will be trying to achieve with my designs.

What Gadgets Am I Going To Use?

Well before taking longer than Necessary to explain which elements i've chosen, it would be easier to say, every item form previous post, bar the ecto1 vehicle. The reason being, that I feel I could give each other item, an equal amount of time and effort, with regards to design, all the way down to modelling, texturing and rendering. However, I feel incorporating the Ecto1 response unit, could cause me to spend too much time on one feature leaving the rest looking poorly developed.

So to summarise, I will be using the original designs and mechanics of:

. The Proton Pack

. The Ghost Trap

. The PKE Meter

. Ecto Goggles

. The Ghost Containment Unit

Combined with the use of 1900's technology (both fictional and realistic) to create designs, that would work (or at least appear to), are visually striking, and look fit for use in a modern adaptation of a latter day Ghostbusters movie.

What Does A GhostBuster Use?

Obviously, the Ghostbusters have an incredible array of gadgetry, but what exactly do they use that stands out of the world of normal props or equipment.

The Proton Pack


'The Proton Pack is a fictional piece of particle accelerating machinery created by Egon Spengler and used by the Ghostbusters. It is their primary tool in the 1984 & 1989 Ghostbusters films for "busting" ghosts. It has a hand-held wand ("Neutrona Wand" as scripted by Dan Aykroyd) connected to a backpack-sized cyclotron. The theory is that it fires a 'semi-controlled' stream of protons that neutralizes the negatively charged electromagnetic radiation of a ghost allowing it to be held in the active stream.'


PKE Meter


The PKE Meter is a piece of equipment created at the Paranormal Lab at Columbia University . It was used to track ghosts and give readings of Psycho Kinetic Energy. The PKE Meter is what helped Egon to develop the theory of catching ghosts. It has antennas with lights that raise up and down tracing the level of PKE (Psycho Kinetic Energy).




We also have the variation of the PKE Meter used in 'The Real Ghostbusters' animated series. Personally I feel that this version leaves a lot more room to play with as its design seems slightly more obscure.

Ghost Trap


A piece of ghostbusting equipment almost as important as the proton pack in the Ghostbusters universe, the ghost trap was used for detaining and transporting "busted" ghosts until they could be safely stuffed into the Ecto Containment Unit. Believed by some to entrap the ghost with a laser containment field, precisely how the trap works was never fully explained in the films.


Ecto 1


The Ectomobiles are the standard form of transportation for the Ghostbusters. The car is a 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor Futura Duplex Limo-style End Loader painted white and red with white walled tires with chrome hubcaps. A Ferno-Washington Model 23 stretcher that has been modified holds the 4 proton packs inside for easy remove when needed. While never explained in the movies, the roof rack that contains various items that are believed to be radar, sensor mics, infrared, and a satellite microwave uplink.


Ecto Goggles


The Ecto Goggles allow the wearer to see invisible ghosts and visually track PKE valences. Primarily worn by Ray, both Egon and Venkman are briefly seen wearing them during the montage.


Ecto Containment Unit


The Ecto Containment Unit, is where the spirits and other supernatural entities are kept after being caught in a ghost trap device.

SO clearly there's a lot to choose from and after deciding the next answer, which is going to be my chosen style, perhaps that will allow me to decide which pieces would suit adapting the most.

Chosen Idea - More Details

So I've decided to go with The Ghostbusters idea and bring the technology seen in the movies and original animated series back to the 1900's era.

The first things I'll need to be looking at are:

1. What are the best pieces of Ghostbuster equiptment ?

2. What style would be the best way to approach this transformation ?

3. What was technology (and also fictional technology) like back in the 1900s ?

4. What would be an effective means of presenting these when finished ?

In the next few posts, I'll answer these questions, and see what exactly the answers to the could be...

Advances On Major Ideas

After my tutorial with Alan today, we decided to condense last weeks ideas into a more streamline trail of thought. The idea now stands at taking an existing narrative or world, and either devolving it, evolving it, or turning it into something else in some form.
below are a few of the ideas I've come up with, which meet this criteria, as well as interest me, and give me what I feel, a full range of ideas to work ahead with.
















Now obviously, all these 'splices' can be mixed and matched among each other,if they would lead to a more creative outcome etc. so feel free to make any suggestions. It's time to start getting into this! ...

@ Alan & Phil (Major Project Idea Progression)

Looking back at the positives of my minor project, it was clear that there were some victories. For instance, my actual ability to model higher end more complex pieces, has definitely improved - I picked up a lot of useful skills with regards to that and also a lot more After Effects know how. Despite that, It became apparent at some stage in my project, that the design part of the actual piece, was missing a certain something. So with regards to that, I think my main objective this time around would be to carry my design dynamic throughout the entire 15 weeks, and see how this changes things.

After speaking to both Alan and Phil about some ideas for my Major Project, it seems that I will most likely continue in a similar fashion, with prop and object design/creation. That being said, the only thing to do now is to actually come up with an idea that doesn't limit me in regards to design ideas, yet unlike the last project, isn't so abundantly free, that my designs fail to take on a certain charm.

Again, after speaking to both tutors on Tuesday, my next step is to come up with my world, for which I will be designing. Alan proposed two choices in a sense.

Choice 1: Much like the character design project, come up with a hero, villian and sidekick characters, from a story with 2 or more fused elements. Without neccesarily designing the characters perse, use them and their personalities along with a synopsis to come up with a line of gadgets, props, weapons etc. that they could use.

Choice 2: Take an existing story (be it a film or novel) and reinvent the world in which originally existed, be it in an alternate time period or genre etc. and in the process, come up with a line of new props for certain characters in these stories.

NOTE: when I say props, as i said to Phil, I don't mean simple props such as tables and hats, but rather props with character and personality themselves; props that actually drive the story in some way. The McGuffin.

Now below Is a selection of the most popular types of genres which I can choose to fuse together. As well as a mix of genres, there is also the possibilty of fusing a genre with a particular time period instead. For example, a horror movie set in ancient rome (except not as terrible as that)



Also in the list below are examples of stories with certain characters and themes, that have been either put in a different timeline, writtennduringna different era or fused with another genre.



Now that you can see the 2 types of ideas I'm going for, I would gladly appreciate any ideas that anyone has.

Also, Thanks for the ideas so far Phil, Sometimes you get it right with the first go and I think you may have with regards to the Fisher Price, childlike weaponry. I shall look further into this

Chosen weapons & texts

Here you can hear the chosen texts and weapons I will be transcribing for this project.

Ideas And Thoughts

Something slightly different, to get my views accross. I hope you enjoy :)

Proposal for minor project

My first proposal stems from my last blog post. The idea of the robot factory has been an appealing one to me, since I began this course, and I finally feel as though i'm ready to take on the challenge.



after some thought and some initial sketch work (which will be put in the next blog post as a collective) I decided to move away from the futuristic or more obvious choices of themes for my environment (those choices being similar to that above, of a sterile hi-tech lab in the future)


My ideas came together and finally I think I have quite a solid plan for the piece. Imagine a robot factory, or for that matter, imagine a robot by any definition of the word, designed or invented by someone who has never seen any sci-fi or very little mechanical advancement of todays standards e.g. what would a robot factory look like If Da Vinci had created it in his era??



Above is an influence map of just the sort of ideas and styles I could employ for such an environment. At this early stage of deciding between projects, I haven't sunk hours of research into either of them, and have just gone with my instincts and what thoughts each of them provoke in my head for now.

My second idea is probably my favorite; Weapon design!



Above is the infamous lancer weapon from the Gears Of War series, and is possibly one of the most famous weapons in gaming history. However, its design, how it works, why it looks the way it does etc. began more than likely from tons of research and concepts.



So in essence, my proposal is to design from concept to fully rendered cg model,an array of weapons from 'The Lost Fleet' Sci-fi military series. The books detail specific new technology and weapons used by opposing sides to gain the upper hand in the battle. Weapons such as the 'grapeshot' or the 'Hell Lance' along with others will be taken from text to real life, and shown in full working order fully rendered as if it were going to be adapted into a hollywood movie.

So to wrap things up:

Proposal 1: To design and create a 16th century robot factory, as if designed through the eyes of someone who had never seen today's style of science fiction and someone who has little if any access to mechanical tech like that of today's. What would be in it to create multi-purpose robots, and why would it look the way it does?

Proposal 2: To design and create, in full working order, an array of weapons and tech, from The Lost Fleet novel series. Based on the descriptive text in the books, and the kind of environment/time period it is set in, what will the weapons look like? why? what makes them superior to what the enemy has?

I hope to find out more about where I'm heading with one of these projects today in my tutorial, perhaps it could even be a blend of the 2? really push the new, pre-futuristic machines used to create the robots, what would they look like? I'm all about ideas at the moment, so let's get to it.

Hello again CGAA community...

After a long and exciting, yet equally stressful summer, I'm back on the blogs and raring to go. Without wanting to waste any time, I've spent many a night in bed thinking over what kind of a project I'd like to sink my teeth into when I return as a mighty third year on the 19th.
Now, maybe I've been away from the computer for too long, or I'm finally brave enough to take on a project I've been wanting to do since I opened Maya: The Robot Factory.

I know what you're thinking (At least I know what Phil and Alan are thinking), but trust me when I tell you, this is not going to be your typical cliche piece. I'm yet to decide on the style, as I would like to sit down and draw a few things before I commit to a chosen style or influence.

I'd like to go out and just say, last term I tried my hand at character animation, rigging and all that 'cool stuff', but it was more to clarify something I had known from the very beginning of this journey, which is; it's not my cup of tea.

Clearly I have to learn these skills, and I have and will continue to, But as Alan already knows, my love for architecture and everything that is man made, leans me towards being an environmental kinda' guy. So with this in mind, I know now what I want to do when I leave this course, and now is the time to start addressing that fact and working to it.

So, stay posted for some initial visual ideas into this piece, as I just want to get down to it right now! It's been a long time coming, but hopefully with the right style and influences I can pull this environmental piece off. Stay tuned.

Cruikshank, Lowry, Hicklenton - Style!

This post is more for people following my Blog than anything. If you're having a hard time understanding where I'm going with this project this should clear things up. By the time the final concept is complete, It will all become clear (hopefully), but until then - here is the kind of thing I'm going for.

Now I'm not going to show visual images of Hell, as we all know what kind of things I'm going for by now, but rather some 'populated environments' by other artists.

This piece by George Cruikshank is entitled: The Worship Of Bacchus. The piece isn't MASSIVELY reliant on particular environmental elements (buildings, trees etc.) nor is it reliant on the human form in one particular instance. Because of this, it sort of sits in between the two. The piece demands being looked at as a whole - the 'Ant Farm' kind of environment is definitely evident here. When you do begin to break the image down, you can see the dozens of individual stories going on: people eating, dancing etc. etc. and this is how I want my scene to feel - a living environment!

Lawrence Lowry is a well known artist and this piece is entitled: Good Friday. It is more stylistically driven than The Worship Of Bacchus, however composition wise, it carries the same theme of a living, ant farm environment in a large space, driven by a story more than the actual architecture or human forms.

I hope this can clear up the questions I've been getting from some of my class mates, and you guys can start to piece together the concept art and see where I'm going.

Now While on the subject of style etc. Jordan mentioned an artist which my concept work sparked in his head.

The late John Hicklenton (without going into masses of detail) is a British artist most famous for his work on the black and white comic '2000AD'. His style is quite scratchy and action packed, with heavy emphasis strong shadow casting. Also, his use of colour is the kind I would like to use for my final piece - not too over the top, quite desaturated and dull.

Anyway, I hope now a few of you have a bit more insight into my project while it is still in this less visual stage. I'll be uploading my the rest of concpet art when it is is ready.

Who Will Be In My Hell?

This picks up from my last post and answers the question - Who will be in my Hell, and what will their personal Hells be?

I mentioned that I would be looking at fables rather than Biblical stories, however, upon thinking about it, I would like to go back and include specifically Biblical characters in my scene - It just makes more sense.

Ok so first and according to Christain beliefs, the most deserving soul, to be in Hell will be Judas Iscariot. Judas is the twelfth Apostle that betrayed Jesus and ultimately took his own life - ridden by guilt with what he had done to his master and saviour. Judas hung himself at sunrise (some unknown time after Christ's crucifixion), on a tree in the field he bought with the money made form betraying Jesus.

Judas' personal Hell is to hang from the same rope for all eternity, overseeing all those who now suffer in Hell because of his betrayal of Christ. His punishment sees him unable to show any signs of life - almost being in a coma of suffering, but unable to cry for help.

The second person to be in this Hell will be Sampson of Israel. Sampson is often read as a 'Hero' of sorts, due to the way the Bible is written, however in reality, what Sampson actually did was nothing short of attempted genocide. Samson was a blind Judge of the ancient Israelites, however when the power of God soared through him, he would use this power to seek out and slaughter heretic nations - most notably Sampson's final act of murder when he pulled the a Philistine temple by the pillars crushing the thousands of innocent people inside.

Sampson's personal Hell, will see him weak and frail, without his hair (the apparent source of his power and channel to God), his eyes remain gouged, as he lay trapped and bleeding under the 2 pillars he pulled down at the Temple Of Dagon - killing thousands.

The third person in this Hell will be Abimelech Son Of Gideon. Abimelech's father Gideon was a king of Philistine, and when he died, he left his throne vacant to the most deserving of any of his seventy-two sons. Abimelech brutally murdered all but one of his brothers to claim the the throne, however his younger brother Jotham managed to escape the kingdom of Manasseh (the ruling kingdom of the Philistines) and hideout for some unknown time. Upon his return, he slaughtered Abimelech who betrayed his own flesh and blood to reach the throne.

Scholars suggest that Abimelech was only the throne for a fortnight before being slaughtered, barely making his massacre worthwhile at all. It is because of this that Abimelech's personal Hell will see him weak and frail (like all of Hells inhabitants), whilst trying to climb upon an unreachable throne on top of a spire. The spire is shrouded in the skulls of his brothers, and un-climbable by any definition of the word.

Also dwelling in this Biblical Hell is Kane Son Of Adam. Kane, the younger of two brothers grew up in an empty world, being the son of the first people alive. Growing weary of toiling in the fields, Kane attacked his older brother Abel, bludgeoning him to death - committing the first act of murder on earth.

Because of Kane, the sons of Eden became a violent and blood-lusting clan. It is this reason why Kane's punishment is to be held in chains for eternity, being mercilessly beaten by the spirit of his brother.

Lastly, is the Pharaoh of Egypt whom Moses confronts in the book of Exodus. Many scholars agree that it is likely the Pharaoh who is never named in the Old Testament, is likely to be Ramses II. The powerful Pharaoh enslaved people of the Holy land to build his temples, pyramids and other structures, whilst slaughtering thousands more in a genocidal attack on Israelites. To cut a VERY long story short, Ramses (often mistranslated as Ramesses) and all his people were killed by the divine power of God and his plagues on the Pharaohs land.

Ramses' personal Hell will see him drained of all power, surrounded by the bones and bodies of all those of his own people he saw killed because of his stubbornness.

Now, there are more people who could be in this, but I fear for the sake of my project, at this current time, I'll keep the numbers down, judging on how I progress, and if the piece requires, more can be added, although I do not want to draw away from the main 'Environmental' factor here in this piece.

My Concept Art 'Pipeline' Suggestion

Ok, so I thought I'd post this up as I've started working on thumbnails for my 'Hell' concept art. After speaking to Phil, we agreed that the style of the concept art is going to pivotal to the final piece, and therefore I want to put as much thought into this as possible without eating into my production time.

My proposed 'pipeline' which will result in my finished concept art is as follows

- Research (what kind of Hell am I going for? A modern, Medieval, futuristic, etc. kind of Hell?)

- Composition (what is actually going to be in my resolved image and set, and how and where will it be placed?)

- Style (what kind of style will the concept and finished set be in? cross-hatch, cartoon, realistic, cell shaded, black and white etc.)

- Finished piece (A resolved concept art, showing my chosen composition and style, plus detailed concepts of any unseen models)

I hope this is an acceptable way to come up with my finished concept, as it is how I feel comfortable working, and seems to be the most efficient way of achieving the desired result.

Also, I think this way, I can show my developments as quickly as possible and move on through these stages.

I have some thumbnails which I've been toying with, which will be uploaded asap.

Styles Of Hell

After talking to Phil today about the approach I should give my transcription project, we agreed, that a large part of that journey should be finding the style of hell I wish to portray. Deep down I have an image in my head, but I want to break away from that, and start again, looking at other styles perhaps even fusing and blending different ones.

Hell became most well known during the Medieval period. It was originally used as a way to con people out of their money (although this isn't the time or place for my religious musings), however, as a concept, became very 'painted' and the image we have of hell today, although very different, started there.

As you can see in this piece by Italian painter; Fra Angelico, Hell was originally depicted as a dark cave like environment. The idea of a modern 'red firey Hell' is somewhat of a new one, and one we will move onto in time.

This image by Marcovaldo, Is somewhat similar in style, almost rudimentary in terms of shape and very reliant on mark making to establish it as a piece. Despite this, There were renaissance painters who approached 'Hell' in a different style to the two above artists.

This piece is based on the poem 'Divine comedy' and was drawn around the same era as the other two. This still has a similar feeling, dark - no loud fires, yet seems incredibly more something I would be inclined to look at when finding my style for this piece.

If I'm being honest, I will probably working more towards a 'modern Hell' but this background research is pivotal to stop me from re-hashing ideas and making cliché's.

If we look at the jump form Medieval to now, Hell can be seen two ways - A joke, or a gruesome Gothic underworld.

I hope find more visual reference like the above, as it is clear form one look - This is Hell. I want to give my Hell a purpose so to speak. No random mountain-esque models, everything should be there for a reason.

This is only a brief post, and I'll be looking into my chosen style a lot more in the coming days. Concept art will be a key factor in making my Hell be a relative environment. yay! not. Although I did learn form my narrative project, strong concept art makes modelling and the rest of the cg task a lot easier in the long run.