Maya Tut: Character (P2) Texturing

 Catching Up: Texturing & Shaders

Here is my finished rendered pencil and rubber characters with textures and shaders applied to them.

Maya Tut: UV Maps

Catching Up: UV Texture Maps

Here is the finished render of children's play blocks that have been UV mapped using Photoshop.

This is the UV texture map as a net.

Maya Tut: Common Shaders

Catching Up: Shaders

Cermatic

Plastic

Silver

Chrome

Gold

Glass

Glow

Hidden Glow

Here are my saved render images of each type of shader shown in the Maya Tutorial. This will be the basics of all shaders of more complex models that I may come across throughout the course.

Maya Tut: Character (P1) Modelling

Catching Up: Modelling

Here is my finished pencil and rubber character models in Maya. They were surprisingly simple to create after watching how to model individual parts, and quite rewarding when completed.

Maya Tut: Geometry Types

Catching Up: Egg Cups

As I struggled with Maya before hand, going 'back to basics' was a necessity for not only the course but for my own abilities. Therefore I have started my Catch Up of Maya tutorials over the Christmas break to then start a fresh in the new Term. I struggled with the NURBS object as I hadn't used this technique before. I believe it was to do with Snapping to the Grid that created the strange miss-shapes within it.

Secret Lairs: Presentation

Secret Lairs Presentation

Secret Lairs: Creative Partnership

Creative Partnership: Secret Lairs

Kyle Kemp

Maja Gajowiak

Sukvinder Ghai

Lisa Huntley

Kyle:

Maj:

Sukhi:

Lisa:

I think that personally, I have connected much more with my secret lairs creative partnership person to person, rather than blogging our conversations. We have helped each other properly and have given honest and constructive feedback.

Secret Lairs: Digital Set - Texture Process

Adding Textures

Here are screen shots of me adding textures to my models so far.

The hardest to get right was the ground pane and understand the size of the scene in comparison to the map.

Secret Lairs: Digital Set - Grass Alpha Map

Dark Grass/Foliage

Here is my dark grass applied to my Maya scene.

^ .jpeg image of grass texture.

Secret Lairs: Digital Set - Prop Light Comparison

Beginning Lighting Test(s)

Renders of lighting tests to see whether the Hero Prop should glow or not.

^Colour Light

^White Light

Secret Lairs: Digital Set - More Alpha Maps

Adding Lighter Leaves

Here is the second Alpha Map of lighter White/Grey reflective textures.

Photoshop Image (As .jpeg)

I created this using a simple texture of a brush over layering a couple of times. 

I then used the lasso tool to get larger, leaf-like shapes.

Secret Lairs: Submission Disk Artwork

Secret Lairs: Digital Set - Hero Prop Modelling

Hero Prop Modelling

Here are screenshots of figuring out how to model my hero prop in Maya.

Restart<<<

At first I created a mesh to for the outline of my model, however this create many poly's that would increase rendering time. Therefore, I started again and created a more simple model to work from.

Film Review: Only God Forgives

Only God Forgives (2013) 90min

(Figure 1: Only God Forgives Poster)

Only God Forgives, is a Danish-Thai co-production crime thriller film written and directed by Nicolas Winding Refn in 2013. It involves the story of an American man named Julian, a Thai Club owner, who is the front of a massive drug smuggling operation. The story begins with his brother, Billy, who brutally rapes and murders an underage prostitute, who then sets the trail of on going murders throughout the film. From many online and written reviews, this film is a representative of the 'Marmite' category; as said by Alistair Harkness in his film review, ''It's a film destined to be either loved or despised. Both reactions seem equally valid.'' (Harkness, 2013) Therefore, this film can either grip you or loose you within long, eerie, silent pauses and eye-popping colours.

(Figures 2 - 4: Emphasis on 'Hands')

Throughout the film, there seems to be an occurring theme about 'man' and his hands, specially around women, murder and punishment. As Nicolas Wrobel states in his review; "The key images to understanding the whole thing are the hands and the sword, both of which represent crime and ultimately punishment. Such images tell the story, and help to define Julian as a character.'' (Wrobel, 2013) What Wrobel is saying, is that the many moments to where we see the camera focusing on Julians hands has a much more deeper and emotional meaning. As said by his mother, Crystal, later on in the film; Julian had murdered his farther with his bare hands, which could be the entire reason to Julians hallucinations of punishment about the loss of his hands. This act is also represented with the lack of ability for him to touch any woman but his mother, shown erotically when he puts his hand within the womb of his mothers corpse.

(Above, Figure 5: Crystal)       (Below, Figure 6: Disney's Cruella Deville)

In most situations within the film, the main antagonist appears to be Julians mother, Crystal. Wherever she is, she is covered with sickly, corrupted colours to fit and emphasize her odd, abusive and wicked nature, and is never seen without a cigarette. The smoking of the cigarette seems to be a symbolic act of such expression relating to Crystal, and has a much more significant meaning to first impressions. Whenever Crystal is abusive, upset, angry and so on, she lights up and inhales the cigarette smoke. It is as though she is slowly inhaling her emotions and hatred that seems to be slowly destroying her; both mentally and emotionally. Her cynical acts makes her the character of the film, with a hint of 'Cruella Deville' finesse.

To conclude, Only God Forgives is a film based on a hidden desire yet 'hatred' towards the female existence that create a very thick atmosphere to contemporary audiences. It leaves you with an  almost anti-climax yet overly dramatized emotion that don't always make sense. As Craig Seligman says in his film review; ''Ludicrous, awful, irresistible!'' (Seligman, 2013) From start to finish, the film fills you with thoughts of character, production and mood, and has a hint of resemblance from past films, such as; Black Narcissus and Suspiria.

Bibliography

Harkness, A. (2013) Only God Forgives Film Review URL At: http://www.scotsman.com/what-s-on/film/film-review-only-god-forgives-18-1-3028388 (Accessed on 10.12.2013)

Seligman, C. (2013) Only God Forgives Film Review URL At:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-19/five-star-act-of-killing-campy-god-forgives-movies.html (Accessed on 10.12.2013)

Wrobel, H. (2013) Only God Forgives Film Review URL At:

 http://www.starpulse.com/news/Nicholas_Wrobel/2013/07/22/understanding_only_god_forgives_and_wh (Accessed on 10.12.2013)

Illustration List

Fig. 1. Only God Forgives Poster (2013) From: Only God Forgives Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn [Poster] Denmark/Thailand. Radius-TWC. URL At: 

http://www.thewildbore.com/2013/08/review-only-god-forgives/ (Accessed 10.12.2013)

Fig. 2 - 4. Emphasis on 'Hands' (2013) From: Only God Forgives Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn [Film Stills] Denmark/Thailand. Radius-TWC. URL At: http://davechisholmmusicandcomics.tumblr.com/post/60325273517/only-god-forgives-hands-requested-by (Accessed on 10.12.2013)

Fig. 5. Crystal (2013) From: Only God Forgives Directed by: Nicolas Winding Refn [Film Still] Denmark/Thailand. Radius-TWC. URL At: http://xmedia.ex.ac.uk/wp/wordpress/review-only-god-forgives/ (Accessed on 10.12.2013)

Fig. 6. Cruella Deville (1961) From: One Hundred and One Dalmatians Directed by: Clyde Geronimi [Film Still] United States. Buena Vista Distribution. URL At:
http://skatingbuffalo.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/wicked-wednesday-cruella-deville.html (Accessed on 10.12.2013)