Burundanga Coffee Cup

Slow going

I am still animating and rendering.  Managing about ten to twenty seconds per day.  The project has to be finished on the 14th.  While this is going on, I have my old job at Global Rail Systems back doing advertising, webwork, video, animation, and graphic design.  They are going to buy a completely new computer system set up with my specs and the programs I will need, Dreamweaver, Flash, Carrara, Ableton Live.  One year at this job is going to give me so much education and real world learning that I have no doubts that one year from now I will be able to do AMAZING things with my own music, website, and a rock music video or two that I have in mind.

I lose one day on the tenth due to a doctor's appointment but I intend to make my November 15th deadline and post my animation in response to Alex Jones and Charlie Sheen's contest.  Going for a win in this!  Check back on the 15th to see the final result.

Animations take a looooooooooong time

I am in the process of redoing my film animation leader and credit trailer.  You know those short ten to fifteen second pieces of film that launch before a movie (the Lionsgate horror films have a great opener) and mention the film company?  I'm making one of those in Carrara 3.0.  I got into this program long ago when it was still being called Ray Dream Studio.  I'm not sure what version Carrara is now, probably 8.0 but I'm happy right now with 3.0.  My other computer is rendering a 15 second opener for "Coffee Cup Films" and an ending credit for the music video H1N1BS coming out in October.  I had originally rendered them in a square ratio and then the Flip Mino HD came in and duh... Ok, that means 1280 by 720, which means I have to redo the animations for high definition.  The opener is 450 frames and the ending credits are close to 1,000.  My guess is I'm going to be running the computer day and night for at least a couple of days. 

I just sent off a comment to RB from www.fastcompany.com about how it is going to be entirely possible for artists to become completely independent and very soon.  I have a Flip Mino HD camcorder, Ableton Live, all the musical instruments I need, M-Audio's Trigger Finger, a GNX4 digital interface, Carrara, and web design skills, not to mention a full fledged art studio set up for graphic design and illustration.  Using youtube, myspace, and facebook I fully intend to not only compete with the major labels but I intend to surpass them in strength one day.  Wipe those big $$$ mogul fatcats off the scene and send them packing to a real job where they have to actually do work.  

In the past, musicians got tidbits and nibbles from the record companies and were forced to spend most of their time on the road to earn money from merch in order to pay back the record company.  This is the reason most bigtime recording acts only produce an album per year.  They record 12 songs and spend a whole year trying to pay back their record company loan.  Almost the same as slavery or indentured servitude.

On the other hand, an independent can now record in their basement studio, spend ZERO time touring, and instead put that time into more and better recording.  The more an artist records, the better they become at producing music!  The old dinosaurs are putting out 12 songs a year.  Newer artists are putting out 30 to 40 songs per year and quickly becoming better at their craft.  Do this for a few years and you end up with a huge catalog of better sounding songs. 

How many bands do you know of today that are doing their own thing?  Post names and URL's if you got em.  What are your favorite indie heroes?  Share the knowledge!

Nightwatch / Daywatch

Wondering just what to get your favorite horror scifi freak this Christmas?  My recommendation is Nightwatch and Daywatch, which are the names of two DVD's.  They were shot in Russia with Russian actors and overdubbed in English and with subtitles.  FIVE STAR storytelling, acting, directing, special effects, you name it, it's incredible!!!  The movies are a series about an eternal struggle between the forces of Light and the forces of Darkness.  Also at play are 'the others.'  These others are not normal humans but are modern day seers.  What makes these movies different is that instead of pure shock or gothic tricks or gore, this movie's HORROR is culled from the consequences of sin and what happens when we ignore our responsibilities to other people.  These are modern day fairy tales, heavy on the allegory, hold the cheese.  As good as The Matrix series or 300.  Nightwatch is the first movie but both of them really belong together.  Now that they've gone both Night and Day I'm wondering what they'll call the next sequel. 

There is another sequel... right fellas?  Timur?  Anyone?  Oh pleeeeeease let there be another. 

and the Daywatch trailer, starts slow and then picks up some steam!