Introducing Mr Burton

Just a very quick update for my proposed film. Luke Burton (from the 2nd year) has agreed to co-direct it with me, so look out for any updates from him on his blog:

http://hatedinthenation.blogspot.com/

Untitled Project - Ideas

Ok so Iv been researching narrative ideas for inspiration for my own short film.

As I grew up in a small town, achohol, drugs, partying and violence have been a part of everyday life for me. While Iv not partaken in any (cough, cough), I have witnessed first hand how these things have had a massive impact on a community, good and bad. I have seen how it creates relationships, destroys families and effects social status. How alchohol can make a night out, while secretly ruining lives. How drugs inspire and expand the mind, while creating their own brand of social misfit. And how violence depicts an age of degenerate sheep that just cant say no to their peers. While this might be expected anywhere, its the fact of 'small town mentality' that give its younger inhabitants an almost pathetic choice, be cool, or dont be.

I have realised that in places such as my hometown, having a good time has a price.

I want to create a narrative that describes what Iv mentioned above, but without fitting to a standard drug film cliche. While the massive question is on the eventual issues with mental and physical health, I also want to depict the change in social status and personal wellbeing of individuals facing such problems, including the good times one can have with the right self control.

While I have no definitive storyline or structure, I feel like the below images suite what i eventually want to achieve.











In the next few weeks im going to attempt to write a base storyline, maybe even storyboards and a rough script. Ill keep you updated.

Generation Kill

So Iv just started watching the debut season for this new piece of gold, direct from the series masters, HBO.



From what iv seen of the show is highly impressive, and contary to what the trailer dictates, it isnt just action and americanism. The show is split into two conflicting perspectives; the macho, american stereotype like soldiers, that want to get in their and kill the enemy.... and a actually intelectual focus on the realities of war, what they do to the mind and body of a soldier, debate on the war in terms of it being just and fair, outside and civilan perspectives and the terms in which the mission can be completed. This mass conflict creates a tension in the show, mainly between the soldiers but also seen in almost everything the war touches.

As for production quality, well expect a series from HBO. Audio and visuals are very slick as usual, while some of the stars can be recognised from other HBO's (True Bloods Alexander Skarsgård makes another HBO return) acting on a whole is fantastic. You immediately get a sense of knowing with the characters, you know what type of person they are and which 'side' (the conflict i talked about earlier) they lie on within seconds of meeting them. Some are obviously more harder to get, but thats because of a more mysterious approach being played, something thats still highly believable.

Anyways to wrap up..... WATCH GENERATION KILL.... HONESTLY.

Dragon Age: Origins

Dragon age origins, a fantasy based rpg from bioware has been released recently. The story is set in the land of fereldon, while the infamous blight is taking place again since the last one 100 or so years ago. The blight is a global fight between civilisation (i would call it good but the game doesnt depict it like that) vs evil. While creatures from the depths of hell, or darkspawn as there called, battle to wipe out the world, an organisation called the grey wardens swear to protect the world from evils wrath. As they have done for thousands of years. Now fate brings the grey wardens to a new recruit, one that will become, unknowingly, the worlds only hope.

So iv been playing playing away at this since it came out last week, and i cant begin to tell you how good of a game it is.



Although quite familar in idea, origins breathes much needed new life into the rpg scene. While the quest, loot, collect and level up systems are pulled from any slash and hack adventure, dragon age excells in other aspects.
Firstly is the world in bioware have created.... its quite literally jaw dropping. The pure depth & detail that the developers have gone into is amazing, and it doesnt just stem to visuals, a whole back story is created for this virtual world. One in which is mature, deep and highely exporable. Not only does everywhere in the game feel like a new world, but even characters have a feeling of belonging there, which in a game sense is really hard to do. For example there is huge tension between races (human, elf and dwarf) which makes the games quite nod at racism actually believable. Stuff such as this litters the in game world and you feel like YOUR an actual part of it, of a grand scheme so to speak.

One of the best things about the game is the idea behind it. The origins. You can select one of 6 bg stories for your avatar, 2 for each race. While there mostly noble or begger options, each one is entirely unique in its narrative. I have played as both a dalish (noble elf) and a elf in midst of poverty, each one giving me a complete new start to the game (approx 2 hours of 'tutorial quests'), each with its own story and reason behind the next part of the game. After you join the grey wardens ranks however, the origins merge into one and play out the same story, well more or less the same anyway.
You see bioware do like the whole consequence thing, and this time they have it down to a tee. There is no moral compass, no indication of whether or not you just killed that man for the greater good or not, no guide into the decisions you make. Instead your thrown into the 'wilds' so to speak to figure it out on your own, and mostly such game altering decisions are so morally grey its very easy to make a snap decision, good or bad. Personally i love this aspect, as i find im always on edge, looking for key info that will help in these decisions....... thats how a game should be played in my eyes.

Anyways if your a fan of kotor, or mass effect then this game will blow your tits off, just be prepared for the 150+ hour gametime (main plot and some side quest/exploring), my arse, fingers and eyes sure were not!

A hard, but yet old man.

Taken



They took his daughter. He'll take their lives.

For another fast paced, hard man based thriller, this film was actually really bloody good.

Pierre Morel's 2008/2009 film stars Liam Neeson, a former MI5 spy who has his daughter taken by some very nasty french folk. The film follows an easy enough strategy, man has kid, kid gets taken, man kills everything in his way to get kid... and so on.

Although the plotline is predictable, the film surprises in many ways. The locations are all shot perfectly which gives the film a sense of realism, camerawork is neat and tidy, while frantic in climatic scenes. The cast is also very proficcent, adding even more to the realism factor.
Also without giving away the story, the plot is better than your average 'bourne style' romp, with Neeson employing clever tactics that would outsmart james bond himself. And as for his daughter.... she gets a really rough deal. Theres no cuddly overtones here, just a gritty image of what youd expect human trafficking to really be like, which is terrifyingly dark.

On problem i did have was with the ending, and while ill try not to reveal too much.... its absolutely fucking ridiculous to say that a man who has killed countless of people (even in the name of saving his daughter), some rich and powerful, doesnt see ANY consequences.... any at all.

This film would have been a 9/10, but the ending pushes it down to an 8.5.

Another BEATflex concept

Im really liking my C4D today.

Dub Concepts.

So me and a mate are starting abit of a collective. Not sure whether its gonna continue as just me and him or if were gonna introduce any other djs, but i thought id start designing concept art for the project.

As im a jungle dj, and he's a dubstep dj.... were gonna team up and spin a variety of jungle/dubstep/dnb/reggae/dub/ect.

The first stuff iv come out with is below:



Dub Concepts, probarly the name of our group.



ParlourBEATflex, my dj alias.

The toys of the future.

Project Natal - Xbox 720

Microsoft announced this very recently, and everyone is going nuts for new info and rumours. Its looks utterly..... amazing. Not only does natal bring full motion capture into gaming, but also in depth voice recoginiton, minority report style menu systems and a character called milo who is extremely annoying... and even more clever.



The above looks really cool, but also really linear. Hopefully it could also feature some specific point movement that draws thin lines.



I dont like milo. But the tech behind it is amazing, this is potential for games like no other... where players can actually interact on a intellectual level and, as seen further in the video, visually as well. Imagine a FPS, where you can see yourself (as in YOU not the in game character) in mirrors and water....

Next gen concepts

District 9... not 13.

District 9

While little green men begin to invade our screens more and more, District 9 trys to be original in yet another alien based film.
The newest outburst from peter jackson poses us with a question; What if aliens came to earth as immigrants, poor, starving and stranded? From this, district 9 takes form as a documentary style affair, depicting scenes as if they were a film crew running about. Its actually refreshing as far as major blockbusters go.

Well ill not ruin the story but the documentary style angles do get changed about half way through the feature. And unfortunately thats where the films style starts to diminish and holes begin appearing in the plot and presentation. While i do give praise to the main actor, his southern african accent does flaw him slightly, especially when the film is trying to be deadly serious. He isnt helped by bits (and i mean small bits) of stupid writing however, and worst of all, the whole undertone of the film is cheesey and simple.

All in all, its worth a see. Not as big as the hype made out, but not a shambles either.

A Summer of Film Thinking

Among other things iv been watching alot of films this past few months, and as im still undecisive on what I TRULY want to go for next year (either moving image or web design), its been fueling ideas on making my own short.

....... ill get back to you on that.

Theres also a film shoot going down in my hometown. Im hopefully getting involved, with either editing or concept art & special effects. Ill keep you updated, they have just started shooting so i should recieve something to play about with soo.

Waking Life

I came across this film the other day and was literally blown away.



Its very hard to keep up with it, especially when tired or drunk so watch when you really want to think about the world we live and dream in.

Apart from sparking debate the film has another strengh. Its anamation. Im really glad im not bothered about doing anamation because it would be very hard to beat Waking life's style and uniqueness.

Final user interface!!!

Simple i know, and im struggling to master my latest track so unfortunately the only audio is with the video.

Hope you like!

http://www.swfcabin.com/open/1242815258

Crash, burn and probarly fail.

Why do computers seem to meltdown when deadlines are to be met?

Completely my fault for leaving things to last minute i know, should of had things uploaded and on disc a week ago...
Im not sure if it makes the difference but ill try and get to waverly when its free today and sort it for a late hand in tomorrow.

Logo

Ok i think this is the design for my logo, its way simple and easy to implement into any website or interface visuals.



the logo says Hekt, which is short for Hectik an 'alias of mine'. Im also playing about with my Y3 productions logo. If i get anything decent AND different to the above ill upload it regardless of what im using for the brief.

User interface ideas

Im thinking of modelling a computer station... based on my very own!

I think this would be the perfect interface because theres a designated area in which components such as AV would appear in... focusing the user and making the whoile interface much easier to navigate. Also the need for buttons to change content comes easy enough within a rendered computer model and although it could be considered as a boring solution to the brief a wee bit of personalisation could makes things a little more interesting.

Im finishing of my proposed model now... and will upload as soon as i can.

Identities Module: Ideas and conceptual work

As the submission deadline approaches i think its time to get everything uploaded onto the old blog, especially as i have not completed my user interface, uploading will give me chance to piece eveything together properly.

So looking back to when the brief was set, I firstly began collating together visual works to construct a mood board. As the brief is on MY PERSONAL identity I found images that represented myself, my interests, hobbies and my style of work.

This is the finished result:



The mood board can then direct me towards the concepts for the identity brief. Using this I can already think about points within my project like the audio specification. A rendered turntable would solve the audio problem and fit within my general mood, as would a film which includes me playing my own turntables.
The rendered model idea is something that has been done before though, and although the concept isnt unique to my identity, turntablism is a massive passion of mine so it probarly has to be included. Looking at the possibility i search for models already done and posted on the web. I found the below image:



This model has been done extremely well and considering my lack of skill within 3dmax i doubt ill be able to create something as visually nice as that.

Essays and decisions dont go well together

Im now desperately stuck.

Iv written as much of my essay as i can, started drawing my plans together for the presentation on monday, and yet i still havnt decided what route is best for me to go down next year.

Its driving me insane so I think the best approach is to lay down my reasons for wanting to do each and figure it out from there.

MOVING IMAGE

This subject has been a new one to me from this year, iv always been interested in film but studying and creating it is a different matter.
I have throughly enjoyed the work however, and felt competent enough within the field. My 'sort of' natural ability to realise what looks good (in terms of shot type and progression of story) is niggling at me to go forward with the subject. Plus i find editing quite easy, and actually really furfilling, although theres always the chance that the deeper into film i go, ill eventually realise im completely rubbish at it, in terms of a professional level.

ONLINE ENVIROMENTS

The world of online enviroments has been known to me for quite a while now, and although i feel a certain level of ease within website design, im now beginning to feel abit bored of the subject.
A few years ago i set up a website design company with some online friends, gaining some real insight into the industry. I thoroughly enjoyed my experiences within the field, and reached a level of design in which would give me a certain head start at a professional level. However i realise my heart has gone in and out of it so to speak, meaning that while i could possibly excel at the subject, im not so sure ill be happy with it as a career path.

VIRTUAL ENVIROMENTS

Finally with this subject comes an easy decision. Although i was very interested at the prospect of 3D animation and virtual space design, iv now found it to be extremely difficult, time consuming and unfurfilling (at least for me anyway).
I think i can safely say im not going to be doing this subject.

So now i must read back what iv written about a thousand times, and somehow come up with a decision for the 24th. FANTASTIC.

Dairy of an Avatar - The End.

Ok so iv been playing secodlife (on and off) for just over a month now, and i have to be honest and say it hasnt been exactly thought provoking. I still have the exact same quims and quieries as the first time playing this delightfully pointless game.

Now, when i say pointless I fully understand the 'point' of the endless virtual space in which secondlife presents. I realise the fact that some people arent confident enough to lead a successful (first)life, and that some people love social interaction so much so that they would gladly lead a second, but the extent that the developers of the game have gone through to make this virtual world as realistic as the real one is well..... pointless.

Im probarly not making much sense so its best to explain what adventures my secondlife have endured, then perhaps this question of point and need will start to focus.

Let me start by saying the world is absolutely massive. So massive in fact a month of playing couldnt give me at least an idea of how big it is.
Not only do you have community created town(ish) looking areas, complete with parks, beaches, bars and shops, but a powerful search engine, in which anything you can think of typing will result in pages of mini worlds to explore, much like websites on the internet i suppose. The funny thing is (again much like the internet) most these virtual worlds relate to porn, spam or get rich quick schemes.


The above pic really doesnt do justice to the space

As i have explained in earlier posts, not only are these virtual spaces open for browsing, you can work within each one, add content yourself and if your really good at the old computer coding, even create a mini world yourself. All this is alright, its add massively to the gameplay but I feel its brought down by one single fault. LINDEN.

The money system (otherwise known as linden) within the game is so needed, but yet so pointless its unreal. I tried working many jobs within the game to try and build up some sort of bank account, but within a month I havnt even got past 100 linden. Most of the jobs are shocking aswell, as said in a earlier post a common job is dancing in a spot, and as you cant move while doing it you literally have to spend days dancing away in order to afford something as simple as a new hairstyle.

While there is alot of free stuff to get your hands on its mostly rubbish. And aftere deciding your going to do things the free way, theres not a whole lot you can do, walking about and talking to randomers who want to know you less than you do them isnt the greatest use of my time. So yet again i need money to have fun.

Anyway im gonna have to draw up my conclusions otherwise ill be ranting on about this forever.

I believe that while secondlife has a great deal of content, playability and lifespan, the essence of it as a GAME is flawed.
Secondlife should be left to the devices of social misfits, coding geeks and people who feel unlucky within there first life. Rather than a game i suppose its a tool, uneeded and mostly pointless.
For those who would argue that its a great social invention, look up msn or facebook.

Dairy of an avatar - Part 2

After exploring what seems like an endless virtual world, i finally got a job dancing at a 'popular' virtual bar. This job paid me 6 linden every 20 minutes and after i was about ready to do my first real shopping trip.
Many of the shops dotted around offer premium clothes/skins/hairstyles ext ext ext. One i found even offered the chance to give me a real looking genitals. Fantastic.
Then i found something which really intrigued me. A shop selling vehicles.



Well the above car costs about 500 linden. Looks like iv got much more dancing to do.

3D Holographic Projection - The future of motion picture

Today i was thinking about the thing that intrigued me the most about the multimedia course. I have to say, my best memory of open day is Simon showing us the 3D projector.

Looking through you tube i found a few clips that demonstrate the technology and its possible advances. The first is a Virgin Media showcase, in which Richard Branson gets 'downloaded' right onto the stage. Check it out below:



Then I came across this catwalk show featuring kate moss' holographic twin. This really blew my mind (even though my opinion on kate moss isn't exactly positive) and seemed somewhat beautiful.



Imagine the possibilities of this within commercial use.. far distance communication will never be the same again, not only will people be able to talk to each other from around the world, but actually see a 3d representation on them... Meetings wont have to actually be attended, advertisement options will increase ten fold... new art will litter places without actually being there... interior space and design would be changeable at the touch of a button, I MEAN IMAGINE! As above in the kate moss video, there definitely would be an audience for a artists use of this projector... and I'm not even going to talk about what it could mean for the games industry. It would take literally days to finish this post.

Some more examples are below.

Dairy of a Avatar

Ok so i finally got the chance to fire up secondlife, make an account and attempt to rule the virtual world. AS IF.

After completing the short registration, and throwing myself into the THEpond community, i quickly realise how im going to need alot of money, patience and ego to become even the slight bit successful. After struggling to create a avatar that resembles me in any way i decided to really try a '2nd life' and i recreated my character into a girl, a much easier option (as most male avatar look quite femine anyway).


>

The next half an hour was filled by bumbling around, getting to know the controls and realising that this virtual world offered everything a real one does... and more.
Apart from the obvious social interaction, scripting offers the user the chance to build anything they want... from mansions to shops, which can even sell virtual things to other users.
At first i hated the system, as i thought i would have to buy 'linden' (virtual currency) for real money. After a while a few friendly people (bearing in mind my avatar) showed me that virtual currency is obtainable through job seeking, survey taking and much more, which opens this virtual world into... well... a 'real' world.

Did i mention you can fly?

Even with all this in mind, im still not sure the average joe needs a program like this. I know that for some people social interaction is daunting, but something like this doesnt solve any problems, its surely unhealthy to spend all your time playing with your 2nd life rather than dealing with problems with your first. The question im really asking is... When does a SecondLife become a persons first????????

Anyway the program is quite fun and slightly addictive... but i cant see myself loggin on every night. In my opinion people should lead a successful real life... before concentrating on a second. I can see that some people would just use this as a social site, but with the likes of facebook.. why bother?

I think thats enough virtual living for one day... ill try and keep you updated on the happenings of my second life within the next four weeks... After then who knows, it could grow on me and completely destroy my first life, but, somehow i doubt it.