Day 16 - helpful warning

I don't know if anyone is actually reading my little blog but if you are and your a 3D artist I have a word of warning that could help you in the future. Always get a writen brief fully scoped out before starting any job. In this scope you have to specify that as many changes following delivery are allowed for one round free of charge. Any subsiquent changes that are not related to the first round will inncure an hourly fee. I am currently stuck between two parties where the one paying is not actully controlling the job, lets let this sink in for a minute. The people requesting the changes have no connection with money and don't care about any consequences of them never locking anything off. Also both parties are making changes and blaming each other. To make things worse I was given the wrong data to start off with which caused a re-render, which I had to wear......... I am getting absolutly screwed - to solve this I should have demanded a writen scope with one round of changes like suggested. GOD DAM IT !!!!

Day 15 - another Draft of 'Monty Biggs'

Following some helpful comments regarding script formating and dialogue comments I decided to do another draft of 'Monty Biggs' - download here. I also changed the Child in the crowd to a baseball batboy (well batgirl to be exact). I did this for a few reasons, one was it was easier to get the child closer to Monty and the other was I had a great thought about the name of this Batboy which worked on many levels (you will have to read script to find out)

Kyle did another drawing for me of the Pitcher - AWESOME !! Kyle have a real knack of taking descriptions and making them reality.

Day 14 - 'The List'

I don't know if any of you are list people but I have to say - I am. Time is everything and I like to manage it through lists. I often write down what I need to do then priortise it as often I have so much on things can often get forgotten.

Here's the big list for getting a job at Pixar -

1) Tweak and streamline my website - it needs some attention.

2) Rewrite another draft of 'Monty Biggs'

3) Start storyboarding Monty Biggs with Kyle (illustrator)

4) Finish all the Hollywood Camera Works dvd's (currently watching number 3)

5) Learn to draw (hehehe) - yeah I know it's a lot bigger then a list number but I am going to put it in there anyway. Enrol in some courses (once I have some more cash)

6) Start to write a new script about an idea I have been working through

7) Go to SIGGRAPH job fairs

8) Try to obtain US visa - or at least research it before applying for US positions.

9) Start hitting the large companies for any position that can benefit my journey to becoming a Director. A position like Layout TD would work well as I would work directly with Directors to blockout shots and create the scenes.

10) Complete full Animatic for 'Monty Biggs'. Including sounds, and voiceovers.

more to come later..............


I saw 'Horton Hears a Who' today - man and it was cool. The animation was incredible and the lighting and rendering were some of the best I have seen. Great job by Dreamworks, really a step above ICE AGE 1 & 2.

Day 13 - resume

I decided today to do some housecleaning on my website, with the main focus concentrated on the profile resume section. Check it out, if you Can suggest how to make it look more professional just let me know. Things I still need to do to the website is - upload Quicktime options for showreels, Divx is not always used by people, especially in large organisations. I'll address this Quicktime issue tomorrow.

Re - 'Monty Biggs' I have be showing my script 'Monty Biggs' to as many people as possible, so far it has gotten a very positive response. I will need to keep refining the script especially focusing on how to write a correctly formatted script.
Storyboarding will start soon. Kyle (illustrator) has been busy lately but hopefully he will have some time this weekend.

Re - 'AlienNation' - I am still modelling the Alien robot which is actually taking most of my time up. This is such a big challenging project but one I am looking forward too getting stuck into. As soon as I get the money in the bank I will be post some freelance positions in some forums.

Other news - I purchased a Wacom Bamboo tablet today. I have always had a tablet when I was working full time but since I have gone freelance I have been without. With the jump back into ZBrush the purchase was crucial. So far the tablet has been great and I don't regret not buying the more expensive Intuos at all.

Day 12 - hump day

Well today has been absolutely painful. My new power house of a machine decided to keel over and not let me boot into the windows partition. I have a new 8 core MacPro which I decided to run XP 64Bit using Boot Camp, only problem is that boot camp doesn't support 64bit. I actually got it working pretty well until now. I think I have to start again and reinstall. So there's a waste of a day. I have been trying to render some files on my older machine and going from 10GB of ram and 8 cores down to 2GB and 2 cores has the strange side effect of causing instant tourettes syndrome where I swear at everything and everyone regardless of the mood.

I do have something positive to say about today - those videos Hollywood camera works are awesome !. I am trying to watch as much as I can, then when I have finished the 6 episodes I will start all over again (and again) so it will really sink in. It's incredible having worked in the commercial animation industry for almost 10 years I have done a lot of camera work but have never been formally trained. Watching these vids now in my journey is perfect for me as soon I will be producing an animatic for my 'Monty Biggs' script, and these vids will really improve my skill set and anything I produce - Highly recommended :)

Day 11 - Hollywood Camera Works DVD's

http://www.hollywoodcamerawork.us/

I have borrowed the 'Hollywood Camera Works' dvd's off a good friend of mine. Apparently these dvd's are pretty dry and can be droning, but contain a lot of good information. Cinematography is something a wannabe director has to learn and something I am looking forward to mastering. Over the years I have done plenty of camera work but never have I been formally trained of even done a tutorial. I guess my education has come from my ex-bosses yelling at me.

I start watching right now - so tomorrow I will let you know if they are worth it or not.


'it's not the destination, it's the journey' - the first blog post explaining my aspirations

Day 9 / 10 - all Alien'ed out

Well for the past 2 days I have been finishing off the Aliennation robot modelling. Tomorrow morning I will quickly finish the hands and move onto Lighting. I need to integrate this alien (robot) into a high res background plate of the city for a proof to show client.

Also today I ordered a WACOM Bamboo tablet. Every company I have worked at has always given me a tablet to use but since I have gone freelance I have been without for a few months, and seeing as I am about to venture back into ZBrush I have no choice but to fork out the cash to get my own. I went for a Bamboo over the Intuos because after speaking to many other artists they all say the Bamboo is just as good (and is more portable). So when the Bamboo arrives I will take the above model and start ZBrushing detail(which will add heaps to the overall look)

Future Aliennation -
Below is an image of the robot when it gets angry (nice ha). The face area opens up the this inner scary face extends out of it. The end model will be a crazy complex rig but should look really cool. So I have to model this inner section as well - fun fun

more WIPS to come.......

Day 8 - Script 'Monty Biggs'

As you all know I want to become a director so I have started to write new scripts and revisit old ones. Well I have decided to release my script of 'Monty Biggs' for everyone to read. Please note that it still needs a lot of work (formating), but I am happy to let people read it now so I can get some feedback of how to improve what I have done. It's a 3D animated short movie that I would like to eventually make, which should run for around 10min in length. For this 'Monty Biggs' script I am going to take it all the way to a completed Animatic (2D) , storyboarded with camera moves, voice talents, and soundFX. This Animatic should show my talents as a Director without the massive task of actually producing the movie. I am choosing to do this as I would prefer to have 3-4 different scripts turned into animatics rather then 1 completed short. Really it's all about story telling for me now rather then showing a nice render. Don't get me wrong I would love to make the movie but for my journey I think I will learn more just doing animatics (hey my reel is already full of nice renders, and an animated short)

Link to script :)

Day 7 - Applied for Layout Supervisor

I meet with Rubidium Wu the Director of 'Aliennation' (music video clip) today and we scouted some locations throughout Melbourne City, also I did a little more modelling (see image). This job is going to be awesome, I just hope I can deliver what I want to deliver (i.e live up to my own expectations).

........but the the big step today was that I applied for the Layout Supervisor position working on the new animated feature at Animal Logic (think it's about owls??). I decided to apply to go back to Animal because I felt this position would be a great step forward to becoming a director. Doing layout means a lot of camera work, which I have done in the past but never on a feature. I feel working directly with the Art Director and Director on a feature would force me to lift my game and I think I would learn a great deal about movie making.

Note - at this point in my life I have realised any step I make has to be a positive step forward, no longer will I apply for jobs just because of the money. Any job I take will have to fall under 1 of 2 categories, either I will learn a great deal about directing or it will be a fun job to work on. Sure money constraints will mean I will have to whore myself here and there freelancing but for sure when it comes to a full time job I am very adamant that it is going to be a learning experience or a fun one.....lets revisit this dream statement in a month or two shall we.......lol :)

Day 6 - WIP 2

It's getting there..........slowly. I would say I am around half way there for the basic modelling. I can't wait to get this mesh into ZBrush and really add the needed detail and fix what I have quickly done in 3DSMax. If some of you are wondering why didn't I just add the muscles in ZBrush that's because ZBrush works better if the mesh is flowing the same direction I intend on painting (well pushing in ZBrush).

Also today I absolutely overloaded with 'Makings of'. I watched the making of Madagascar, Toy Story 2, Robots, Iron Giant, and Surfs Up (again). Plus I watched Robots with commentary on - which was kinda cool. I am studying as much as possible the art of storyboarding in the form of an Animatic. The Iron Giant DVD went into some detail of their animatics, and I have to say they looked incredible.

Day 5 - Aliennation

I spent the day in front of the computer creating the monster that will be used in the Video Clip. It took me 6 hours to get only this much done (and I consider myself quick). It should take me a couple of days to complete. THen over the weekend I will do some ZBrushing to add cool detail and refine the over all shape. I will upload more WIPS as I progress.

Oh - I did manage to do one thing today that could help with my quest of landing that job at Pixar - I entered 'The Yomp Experience" into the Siggraph Asia - Computer Animation Festival. I have no idea how it will go but it's worth a stab.

Day 4 - Music Clip brief

Today I meet with an up an coming Exit Films Director by the name of Rubidium Wu . The meeting was to discuss how to deliver a high quality CGi video clip on a shoe string budget. So now as the producer and lead I am on the hunt for some freelancers willing to jump on board seeking a quality production over a paycheck (not easy).

Regardless of the money I am very excited about working together with Rubidium. His passion for creative high quality work suits me at the moment and I am looking forward to getting started on it tomorrow morning.

If he gives me permission I will post details of the job along with WIPS as I go alone for all to comment.

Day 3 - Oh my

I just read an interesting article about becoming a director at Pixar, and how many within the company have had to leave to realise their dream of Directing. It's called the 'Secrets of Pixar's inner circle' - its a great read. It kind of takes me back to one of the original points I made in my first post "It's more about the journey to reach what I assume is the pinnacle of the Animation industry". Being able to create something original and entertaining is far more important then an actual job position. So that said back to my journey !


DODGE JOURNEY

Speaking of 'Journey' - my last freelance job was for XYZStudios where I did the Lighting and Comping Setup for a 'Dodge Journey' Spot. I was brought on board to get a render look for the car in a white environment and reflecting a 2d drawn world - I think it looks pretty cool. You can see the final commercial here

Day 2 - 'surfs up'

Day 2, today I decided to watch 'Surfs Up' again. If anyone hasn't seen it I can not recommend it enough. Out of all of the Animated movies out there it rates way up there on my list of greats. Visually it is incredible, and don't get me started on the waves, they are freekin awesome !!, the vegetation doesn't go unnoticed either, its very stylised but still looks incredible. I also love the story and how Chris Buck and Ash Brannon brought it all together, but most of all I love the camera work. THe movie was shot like a documentary using a hand held camera for a majority of the movie, used in an animated film it looks awesome and really adds a personal touch lost when when the camera in Keyframed. Watching the making of 'Surfs Up' today and was astonished that the Sony Pictures solution to getting a hand held camera was similar to what I did for the Technical Short at Yomp Studios. Mind you SP's solution was a tad more complicated and involved a million dollar motion capture studio, where as my solution involved shooting a complex pattern pinned up on a wall, whilst listening to the audio so I could play out the scene as the camera man. In the end I would track the footage I just shot in BouJou to get a hand held camera in 3D. Where as SP's solution was real time so the camera man could see on a massive screen what was happening (I was very jealous), but both solutions had similar results.

On another note - a friend of mine sent me a link to do a 'Story Boarding' illustration course at https://www.schoolism.com/ I checked it out, this course interests me a lot as it is exactly what I need to expand my skill set as a Director. At $1000US for an online course it ain't cheap, but my mate did the 'Digital Painting with Bobby Chiu' course and was raving about how much he loved it and how much he learnt, so I would be crazy not to do it.

Speaking of Bobby Chiu - if you havn't heard of him take some time to check him out. I love his work but more importantly I love his passion for the art of illustration. He does pod casts (search on youtude) which are very (VERY) inspiring.

Oh and I rewrote my 'Monty Biggs' script again. Plus I added this Blog link to my website (crap....the pressure is now really on).

Day 1 - the journey begins

So whats first ? I am going to focus on the Position that I am going for 'DIRECTOR'. I have plenty of experience in Directing whether that was my title or not (not). Being a Studio Manager / Lead 3D Artist you are sometimes given the chance to dramatically change the direction of the production. Many times I have been able to take a commercial from client meeting all the way to delivery. Even though I have some skills I need to show my own creations, so I have started to write some scripts and revisit some old scripts I did many years back. Also I think it important that everyone understands that you are only as good as the people you surround yourself with, I can guarantee if you took the support system away from the big directors in Hollywood they would collapse in a babbling heap (point and case recent writers strike). An illustrator by the name of Kyle Van Aspren has joined me to illustrate and board a script I am writing called "Monty Biggs". Monty Biggs is a short 10min animation about a baseball'er who will do anything to become the Hero (I will post scripts when complete). Even though Kyle has been out of the drawing game for many years the stuff he is doing for me is absolutely incredible, I seriously can't believe how much he has inspired me to keep pushing (See image of Monty Biggs on Left). When hes ready with a website I will post a link.

Another talent contact I have is another illustrator 'Edward Del Villar' - great friend and huge talent. His site is http://puckstudios.com/ . Hopefully he can join me to help with one of my scripts.

Also when working at iloura I read a fantastic script done by the lead at the time called 'Sweet Dreams'. Nothing came of this script and has been shelved until now. I plan on taking this script and directing with an illustrator an animatic storyboard.

Today's Step - 'Check Pixar's Website'

I visited the Pixar website this morning to check the 'Career Listings' and found an Art Director position. All reads well for me to apply until I get to the "- Excellent ability to draw and paint.". So even though I surround myself with awesome talent I still need to get some of my skills up because these guys aren't always gonna be there. I have found many short drawing courses to get me headed in the right direction. I need basic sketching skills to help get my ideas across as a Director, form, layout and understanding 'colour script' is my first target.

it's not the destination, it's the journey

This blog is my way of seeking out an enjoyable path to where I want to be in the future. My name is Arran Potter - I am a 3D artist living in Melbourne Australia (South East Coast of Australia). I have been thinking about what to do to get my dream job and I came up with this - a public blog, entered daily (where possible) with the steps I am going to take to reach my goal.

The Goal - A Job at 'PIXAR'. When I say Pixar I don't neccessacerily mean Pixar, you could very well replace the name Pixar with Blur, ILM, BlueSky, DigitalDomain etc. It's more about the journey to reach what I assume is the pinnicle of the Animation industry. Some ground rules - what kind of job ? I am going to be aiming as high as possible 'DIRECTOR' (let me get back to that later). I feel that if I aim as high as possible then if I fall short it aint so bad at all.

Firstly I have to say I am not a total noob in this Animation game of pushing pixels, in fact even though I am only 33 my colleges consider me to be an oldtimer (must be the gray hair). I have been working in this industry for around 10 years now and I feel I have made the right steps to always move forward. Being based in Australia the opportunities are somewhat smaller then the US but that hasn't stopped me from working at some of the biggest companies over here such as Animal Logic and Digital Pictures iloura .

So what does "entered daily with the steps I am going to take to reach my goals" actually mean ? well instead of making a few big leaps and being shot down or knocked back I have decided to take a different approach, I am going to take many many many little steps, in fact I plan on doing one thing a day to achieve my goal of landing that job at Pixar. For example one day I might update my reel, another I might contact a college for a reference, another day write a new script or update an existing script etc. With each step and blog entry I put myself out there more and more.....BUT should I fail that doesn't matter because it's more about the journey and what I will be doing to better myself then it is about a job at 'Pixar' (oh wait.....don't get me wrong this is about the job)

There will be many people telling me I am a dreamer, but hopefully a few of you will support me where you can, because to be honest either way it doen't matter because the more people that tell me I won't be successful the more I want to prove those people wrong.

First things first - here is my personal website - http://www.arranpotter.com/ if you have DIVx player you can download my latest reel and also a Technical Showcase Animation Short I created with a small team at my last fulltime job at Yomp Studios. On my presonal website you will also find a shot breakdown link which will have all the jobs and what my part in the production was.

Direct link to reel - (50MB)(http://www.monkeyobarrels.com/images/ShowReel_2007_stage6version.divx
Direct link to recent Technical Showcase Animation Short - (210MB)
http://monkeyobarrels.com/images/YompExperience.divx

RIght now it's 9:30 at night and I am typing away on my home computer with plenty of freelance work ahead of me, 2 kids asleep in adjacent rooms and a supporting wife lying in bed behind me reading a trashy celebrity mag, life is quite good at the moment.

I think that's enough for now for an intro - hopefully you should all get the idea. Much more to come..............