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rtil
please forgive your useless sister.

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1 month left

Posted by rtil - March 19th, 2008


1 month left until school is out. it's always this time of the year flash takes a complete halt as i spend day and night finishing final projects. my main one is a 30-second 3D short i've been working on... i won't be plauging newgrounds with it for two reasons, one because i don't think 3D (generated outside of flash) really belongs, here and i don't think it's going to be that great.

the 3D pipeline is really something else. instead of having complete control of your canvas - like in 2D - you're completely bounded by what you know about the software. you could be the best animator in the world but become entirely handicapped in 3D software. and to make matters worse you're usually troubleshooting/debugging half the time, and half of those issues come from renders which you have to wait around for.

it's frustrating because i recently saw 'horton hears a who', and they're really starting to break the barrier between 2D and 3D. the movie had a very seussian atmosphere, which in its essence is very unlike a 3D environment. a world made out of polygons vs a world made out of noodles and limbless contraptions. but in the movie, everything came to life like it should have. it really was incredible. but i can't imagine how much work their team of animators and artists put into that film.

still, i think with the same budget a 2D seuss film would look more incredible and lively. the reason why studios like Blue Sky and Pixar are successful is because all their employees come from a strong 2D background. that's the mistake disney made - they literally fired all of their traditional artists and animators and replaced them with people who were only familiar with the software. and what did you get? horrible films that nobody saw or will remember. it's funny that they had to literally purchase the pixar name just to stay alive.

no matter how far 3D pushes the envelope, i will always pursue and try to keep 2D alive. there were two very short (but sweet) 2D segments in the horton movie, it made me really happy. there's a charm to a hand-drawn piece of work that something artificially sculpted will never have. i can't put my finger on it and i can't describe it in words, but there is life in a 2D image that a 3D one can never replace. you've got so many people today obsessed with realism and pixel-perfect high definition images. but we're getting to the point now where i'm looking at trailers for new games and movies and wondering how much more realistic can we get? it's not all that exciting anymore, and the box office can no longer rely on the audience being oohed and ahhed by CG because we've seen all there is to see.

realism in animation really inhibits the imagination. and i think the reason why is because it goes against everything animation is about - making visual comments about the real world through abstract ideas. you exaggerate things to make them stand out in your own style. and if everyone's doing photorealistic rendering work, how does that make you any different from the person sitting at the computer next to you? it's so mechanical, i really can't stand it.

anyway i think you get my point. it's probably a matter of taste to most people, but to me i see a lot more charm and thoughtfulness in the simplest sketch than the most detailed and realistic rendering of what have you.

that being said, here's a horrible render of my 3d thing. when it's done i'll probably shove it on my website if anyone actually wants to see it, then get right back to my best friend flash.

1 month left


Comments

Good luck with the 3D project!

thank you

I agree with you, rtil. Like you said though, it's all a matter of taste. I don't have an interest in seeing Horton Hears a Who (I've never really read any Seuss books) but a review I read noted that an "anime segment" in the middle really felt "out of place". So while you don't necessarily feel wowed by the 3D, others dislike the 2D. As for who's right or wrong, I don't think that's really the question but you make some really good points here and I happen to agree with them.

I don't think two-dimensional animation will ever die. Never. People learning the basics will never just jump into 3D programs right off the bat. I'll be sure to keep a close eye on that project of yours, it looks fascinating.

i thought it was rather unexpected, but not out of place. the movie was really 'random', and i think they were just having a lot of fun with it, and there's no harm in that. yeah, it was rather anime-ish, but i loved it. 2D won't ever die, but it's a lost art to a lot of people.

I will agree with you or you will bash me mercilessly forever!
that is quite a horrible render!

naw but i really HATE that new seus movie.. the whole point of seus was that its 2d and very hand drawn .... im annoyed at the exec or whomever that suggested 3d-izing seus' shit.... I'm gonna raise hell if they ever make a 3d version of my childhood favorite book, Harold and the Purple Crayon.

i didn't think i was gonna like it but i walked out of the theater pleasantly surprised. i agree that the suess world is more of a hand-drawn place, and like i said i think it would have been better as a 2d film, especially with a budget like that.

I totally agree that 2D has a certain beauty that 3D will never have and that games focused mainly on realism, picture perfection, and 3D imagery tend not to be as fun as 2D games. Good luck on your project and long live 2D!

thanks, and yeah i agree about the games. 3d games bore me very fast.

yea i totally agree with you in every single aspect... and disagree with luis (about the horton thing :P ) i watched the same story in 2D and now in 3D and it suited the atmosphere perfectly, and i still cant beliene how fluid facial expressions in 3D have become... still, 2D has much more freedom and expression and abtraction that i like and 3D doesnt have, it simply is too mechanical for me...

well the original horton film in 2D was on a pathetic budget compared to the blue sky film, that's probably why it pales in comparison.

ShirtTurtle, are you referring to this?

<a href="http://www.iwatchstuff.com/2007/10/24/horton-hears-a-who-poster.jpg">http://www.iwatchstuff.com/2007/10/24 /horton-hears-a-who-poster.jpg</a>

In which case, I completely agree. It seems to much now they're overusing the smartass characteristic as if to say "this character has PERSONALITY."

The panda character on the poster for "Kung Fu Panda" has the same expression.

<a href="http://hdig.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/kung_fu_panda_poster.jpg">http://hdig.files.wordpress.com/2007/
11/kung_fu_panda_poster.jpg</a>

It's as if to say, "I'm cool, like Shrek. Right?"

<a href="http://www.cinemaevideo.com.br/liq/upload/conteudo_editor/Image/shrek3_02.jpg2222">http://www.cinemaevideo.com.br/liq/up load/conteudo_editor/Image/shrek3_02.
jpg2222</a>(1).jpg

Just another marketing thing, I guess. Hell, I haven't seen Horton Hears a Who yet, but I will be on Horton not pronouncing an ounce of that smug characteristic in the entire movie.

if that's the poster he's talking about... it's a horrible poster lmao. for some reason movie posters got really awful in the 21st century

School is already out for us!! NANANANANAA

what the heck kind of school do you go to

You're still using 2d and 3d. Meanwhile, the rest of us have moved onto 8d. WAY TO BE STUCK IN THE PAST, MAN.

8d? are we trying to give children seizures

He's a retro animator :D

I study Maya part time.

In short.

I agree with everything you have just said.

have you used max yet? imagine that feeling times ten

Wow, I read all of that and I have no idea what you are talking about, seriously. Something about 2D and 3D but while I read it I wasn't really reading it, you get what I mean. Like when you're tired. Then, when I read "I think you get my point" I snapped out of that "not concentrating" state and though: "Uhhhh what, no".

I will read it again when I'm less tired.

you need to sleep more psi lmao

I was recently thinking just about this. See, my cousin is 8 years old and grew up with non of the classical Disney movies, only the 3D stuff. So it got me thinking, how much is she missing? I really do believe 2D animations have such charm and beauty vs the mechanical 3D.
For me, the 3D animations Pixar has been pumping out have been mainly good because the writers were actually funny and tried to accommodate for adult viewers who were taking their younger children/siblings/cousins etc (Shrek is a great example). But, it is in no way a superior animation style.
As for video games, I have always been a Nintendo fan. Graphics that were more cartoony were always my thing (super smash bros, Mario 64, Paper Mario, Diddy Kong Racing, etc), which is why I stayed a fan of the company.
But, you know, maybe we are all just old. Many of us here grew up with the 2D animations and the SNES, after all, so it could just be our bias.
Regardless, Disney is going to release The Princess and the Frog, a 2D movie soon that I will definitely take my cousin to see. I have a feeling that if this does good, 2D can still be saved. On the other hand, if Disney sees this as a flop....

yes, pixars strength is most certainly their writing. and if you see their 2d concept, it's far more interesting than the final 3d designs. and i don't think it has anything to do with bias. we most certainly weren't alive when the golden age of cartoons was at its peak in the 1960's, and when i was old enough to sustain memories, 3d had already hit the theaters. so i don't think has anything to do with being "old", and i doubt any of us here are that "old" anyway.

well, i agree completly 2d art has something that 3d will never have, in essence i think its the inperfection of 2d that makes it 2d.

a 3d image will always have the exact right poportions of the character , while with 2d even if you spent months working on your poportions of a single peice
there will always be small insignificant details that are wrong.

take a look at any of these screenshots, even though it is cellshaded and made to mimic 2d you can still tell almost instantly its 3d.

<a href="http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/naruto/images.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gsimage&tag=images;img;2">http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/actio n/naruto/images.html?om_act=convert&a mp;om_clk=gsimage&tag=images;img;
2</a>

yeah that's so 3d it's not even funny. but the 3d cel shaders are starting to produce more impressive renders.

anyway, i don't think people really notice insignificant proportional changes, and honestly i think keeping a character the same proportion throughout is really boring. eccentric and interesting characters have squash and stretch, and a good draftsman can balance that and form at the same time to make for a very lively character.

the best examples i can think of are basically every single character in The Thief and the Cobbler. none of those characters could be faithfully reproduced in 3d, and they all are very fluid-like, while keeping a strong sense of form and proportion.

3-d will never have the same effect as on children as a nice 2-D Tom and Jerry will. The Bulgy, correct shading makes it more realistic and less fun.

I can't put how I feel into words either, but I feel 2-d is making a comeback by putting more 2-D movies into theatres. If only they were as good in storyline and plot as some 3-d movies...

I do feel that some 3-d movies (like Cars) wouldn't have been as cool and fun in 2-d. Also it probably would have been more work to do the movie in 2-D. I have worked with cars before and all you can really do is tween them and redraw them at different angles, so 3-D could do most of that for you.

cars was just a segway and pixar treated it as a movie to finally get out of disney's contract. of course, disney bought them out after that but i'm sure they weren't planning on that before time. anyway, the problem with 2D and the box office is that executives aren't willing to hand out big budgets to 2D films anymore because they are more expensive to produce, and they always want to go with what's "big". that usually leaves it up to the 2D gurus to fund their own projects, and there's not a lot of them out there that have that kind of money, unfortunately.

something BIG needs to happen, like another lion king. if a 2D movie made that kind of box office money, people would drop their 3D software and go back to the light tables in an instant. ok im exaggerating, but they might double-take the next time they see a 2D film proposal.

Personally i like the original D.
The sequels are too complex for their own good.

personally i wasn't too fond of the original horton 2D film, but when it comes to the Grinch, the animated one is a timeless classic. plus they proved live action + dr seuss = yuck.

It doesn't matter if 3D animation isn't usual here. New things (or somewhat new, though. Think of neobender) are, or should be, welcome to newgrounds. I think you can go ahead and submit it!

it has to do with the fact it wasn't made in flash. its' the same reasons why i don't think that live action video should be submitted here. that's what youtube is for.

Thedo gave you Naruto Screen Shots... I lol'd.

hehe

I think at some point people will become bored with 3D seeing as it can only get so good until it looks real, and after awhile, people are just going to be looking for something new, and I think that's when 2D will "make a comeback." I do miss the days of 2D being popular though, some of my favorite movies were 2D cartoons. On a side note, I thought that whole "Disney firing their whole 2D staff" thing was just a rumor, and never actually happened. On another side note, what 3D animation software do you use?

no it is not a rumor, in fact most of my teachers used to work at disney as 2d animators and artists. after lilo and stitch, they just fired them all.

i use maya.

Yes my Animation Diploma used MAX.. Totally ghey.

Hated the program so much.

everyone here loves it (except me and a select few). i don't get it.

I agree on the fact that 3D movies don't really belong here.
Either way, you WILL be uploading it to your website of course, right?
Cause I'd still love to see it.

Good luck on well... your projects, and of course school.
I'll be looking out for more of your stuff.

yes, it will still be on my website, and that's it. i hate youtube and i'd never let it chunkify the video, it's made for widescreen anyway.

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