Diabolus Domi - A Freekstorm Entertainment Production

[MrFluffy]

http://www.freekstorm.com/blogimages/diabolous-domi/Diabolus-Domi-poster.jpg
Dare you leave your little darlings home alone on All Hallows Eve?
or
A demonic little ditty dreamed up by two dastardly parents with a devilish
desire to exploit their nearest and dearest in the name of making a
dazzlingly dreadful Halloweeny-fest.

[MrFluffy]

Some BTS:

http://www.freekstorm.com/blogimages/diabolous-domi/20091003_0220.jpg


http://www.freekstorm.com/blogimages/diabolous-domi/20091003_0225.jpg

http://www.freekstorm.com/blogimages/diabolous-domi/20091010_0232.jpg

[MrFluffy]

Production Notes:

9/08 Initial ideas for movie solidified and script started
10/08 CGI creature started
16/08 Thread created
1/09 Bought Props
6/09 Rehearsals Filmed
7/09 Script reviewed in light of rehearsals for pace and story tweaks
10/09 Bought TASCAM DR-100 to allow sound recording while using steady cam
12/09 Shooting script completed
19/20/21 Shooting

[MrFluffy]

Anything Else

[Brian P. McQuilkin]

Kick ass poster!
I've always wanted to exploit my kids for a movie, and almost did this time 'round.
Good luck with it!

[Christian Vincent Jung]

That's a great poster, looking foreward to see more CGI and greenscreen acting - if there will be? :D

[Noel Evans]

Look forward to it mate.

[Rodney V. Smith]

Welcome back Richard. You should do quite a nice job in this festival. Will we be expecting another family themed movie?

[MrFluffy]

That's a great poster, looking foreward to see more CGI and greenscreen acting - if there will be? :D
Thanks Chris,
No greenscreen this time. I'm going to be in matchmoving hell for this one :)

[MrFluffy]

Kick ass poster!
I've always wanted to exploit my kids for a movie, and almost did this time 'round.
Good luck with it!
Thanks Brian. Cheap actors Eh :evil:

[MrFluffy]

Welcome back Richard. You should do quite a nice job in this festival. Will we be expecting another family themed movie?
Hi Rodney,
Not this time. Still using the kids but you're not going to want to let your little ones watch this :Drogar-Dolar(DBG):

[AmyO]

Yay for exploiting the family! Welcome back!

[DarkElastic]

It will be really nice to see how much you have progressed since QuestFest MrFluffy, so I am looking forward to another family caper. Good luck.

[TMerry]

You're secondary Logline Totally slaughter me... that is REALLY funny!

Wish I had grown up with parents like that! :-) :-)

[MrFluffy]

You're secondary Logline Totally slaughter me... that is REALLY funny!

Wish I had grown up with parents like that! :-) :-)
I think our kids despair of us :)

[MrFluffy]

It will be really nice to see how much you have progressed since QuestFest MrFluffy, so I am looking forward to another family caper. Good luck.
Thanks.

Built a dolly for this one so we can get away from fixed camera shots. It should also make the matchmoves easier.

[AmyO]

You're secondary Logline Totally slaughter me... that is REALLY funny!

Wish I had grown up with parents like that! :-) :-)


I think our kids despair of us :)

Too true. But, look at it this way, we've got "home videos" that family and friends WANT to see.

[Brian Parker]

Nice. Welcome.

[MrFluffy]

Shooting script completed ready to start production.
Were hoping to have the film completed over the next 2 weeks.

[MrFluffy]

Ok, I think the universe has it in for my movie.

For one of the scenes we have a short chase through woods.
I have a woody garden that is quite quiet so it makes for the ideal location for the shoot and we planned the scene for shooting yesterday evening.

Just as we get set up the neighbours music system starts up. They were having a party, so we hadto scrub the shoot.

Tonight we got everyone together to shoot it again.
1. Jet fighters circle overhead for about 10 minutes
2. Then about 5 chinooks (large helicopters) fly over (slowly) takes another 10 minutes.
3. Then a neigbour starts playing football against the wall (thud thud)
4. Then another neigbour starts horseriding in their field (whoop whoop whoop).
5. Finally (when its pretty much too dark to shoot) the wind picks up and the mic is full of white noise and can't pick up voices over the leaf rustle unless the mic is so close it's in the shot.
6. Apparently its going to rain for the next week.

ARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGG

Just wanted to rant.

Still I have only one scene left to shoot, so its not too bad.

[DarkElastic]

Ah, filmmaking, the best way to turn grey or lose all your hair!

[Rodney V. Smith]

For exterior scenes you can go ahead and shoot and then just ADR. if there's no dialog then it shouldn't be such a big deal. For replacement wound you can just take the actors outside when it's quiet and even at night, have them do their running an screaming and record that. That's the worst case scenario of course and how you can still make full use of everyone's time.

[MrFluffy]

For exterior scenes you can go ahead and shoot and then just ADR.
Thanks for the suggestion, but it cant be done. One of the cast is a 5yo :)
and there is real dialog in it, not just screams :grin:

[TMerry]

Did you get the re-shoot?
(without the Apocalypse Now airships aboard and the calvary circling?) Hee Hee.
How's it going? Details please..

[MrFluffy]

Did you get the re-shoot?
(without the Apocalypse Now airships aboard and the calvary circling?) Hee Hee.
How's it going? Details please..
:)

We havent reshot the scenes yet due to other things getting in the way. Ive been fighting with the CGI package as well trying to get the monster to do what I want.

Its getting there, but it will be tight for the deadline.

[Marlon Ladd]

Sounds like you've had a rough go of it. Just hang in there. It'll work itself out. Just keep pushing that wall (obstacle) and it'll buckle.

[MrFluffy]

Well, I’ve been through hell to bring you this Demon Movie.
No end of software problems but I’m now rendering the creature effects and that should all be wrapped tomorrow. Then its on to the final After Effects compositions for VFX and compositing, then sound.
For a while it was touch and go as to whether I’d have to pull out. But now it looks like we’ll make it ok.

[MrFluffy]

Posted some BTS shots

[cinealma]

Very cool. Glad to see you're going to be able to finish it up. Now it's pedal to the metal!


John G.

[MrFluffy]

I appear to be scaring the wife!

http://www.freekstorm.com/blog/2009/10/pretty-freekin-scary_20.html

Wha ha ha ha ha ha

[MrFluffy]

Uploaded. Now the waiting begins.

I Wish I knew what the next Fest was going to be so I could get started on a script.

[Matt Harris]

i like your BTS shots, the dolly track is sweet. did you make that?

[MrFluffy]

i like your BTS shots, the dolly track is sweet. did you make that?
Sure Did.
The track is plumbing pipe, as are the seperators and connectors. The base is wooden with 8 roller skate wheels. Works really nicely, although in the end, I didnt inlcude any dolly shots in the movie, it broke the pace.

[EditPhish]

I have to give you a lot of credit for giving an attempt at a 3D monster throughout the movie, but honestly, it felt like being trapped inside Playstation 1. I don't want to sound mean because I'm sure it was a lot of work, and you get credit for that, but because the monster looked so cheesy, it took away from the experience in a big way.

The sound needed some work too. Levels didn't seem to be right during certain scenes.

I gotta say, it started off strong, with a good look when she was skipping around the backyard. I think practical effects might have been a better route. The little girl was cute and she acted well. The story itself wasn't at all bad - it was really the monster itself that brought the whole thing down.

I know 3D is time consuming and difficult... and I know no one else attempted it like you did, so thumbs up for that.

[xxrotinivol2]

You took a risk. You went for it. Mad props. The shots were beautifully composed, well-lit, the acting was good, script works. Overall, I enjoyed watching it. A lot of great things happening here.

I love the opening with the absolutely adorable girl running around in the leaves. You nailed the color and the drab look: something dark and sinister is about to happen, and here is this poor little person trapped in the middle of it. She's unaware, we know some stuff is about to go down (beyond the fact that it's a monster fest movie).

However, this short reminds me of how every decision needs to be spot on, but when one decision--use of the on-screen monster--is less effective, it can negatively impact the viewing experience and take away from the other amazing things going on. The Demon CGI work was an obvious risk that took a lot of time to composite and do, but it didn't work for me. Little me would recommend having less with the monster, and in those effects shots, really perfecting the look, do Extreme CUs, short shots, etc. Maybe get one MS really looking good. More with the actors, less with the monster, and this short would've really been cooking.

Thank you for submitting, sharing your vision with us, enjoyed watching it.

[Shaun Patrick]

Mr. Fluffy, kudos. Great color grading and shot composition.

As someone who is just getting into Maya/Blender, I have to give you major props for the 3D character. The model was really great and what impressed me was the light matching--especially in the scene where the monster moves from the dark room to the top of the stairs.

As others have mentioned, the monster's movements are little awkward but I'm sure you'll keep working on the project.

Thanks for sharing.

[MrFluffy]

However, this short reminds me of how every decision needs to be spot on, but when one decision--use of the on-screen monster--is less effective, it can negatively impact the viewing experience and take away from the other amazing things going on. The Demon CGI work was an obvious risk that took a lot of time to composite and do, but it didn't work for me. Little me would recommend having less with the monster, and in those effects shots, really perfecting the look, do Extreme CUs, short shots, etc. Maybe get one MS really looking good. More with the actors, less with the monster, and this short would've really been cooking.


Thanks for your kind comments. This was my first use of CG in live footage, and only my second film, so I'm glad you enjoyed it. The CG does need work, but if I wait until I can do it perfectly I'll never actually make anything. So I see these fests as a way of perfecting my techniques for all aspects of film making.

Once again, thanks.

[MrFluffy]

Mr. Fluffy, kudos. Great color grading and shot composition.

As someone who is just getting into Maya/Blender, I have to give you major props for the 3D character. The model was really great and what impressed me was the light matching--especially in the scene where the monster moves from the dark room to the top of the stairs.

As others have mentioned, the monster's movements are little awkward but I'm sure you'll keep working on the project.

Thanks for sharing.
Thank you Shaun,
The CG took around 200hrs. A big learning experience with plenty of false starts and problems. I really glad you enjoyed it.

[Shaun Patrick]

Like I said, I have a lot of respect for what you did. Those 200 hours definitely show on screen. Please keep me updated if continue to make changes as I would love to see the progress you make on the character.

[xxrotinivol2]

Dang, well great start. It's difficult to balance the whole risk-taking/experimenting thing with getting a finished product that is amazing in every single aspect. Keep it up, looking forward to seeing where this all takes you.

[Dauntless]

Nice work on the CG effects!... I know it takes alot of time, good job man. The only thing I know that helps sell the shots is to add a little bit of movement to the scenes with the CG element.. The little bit of motion blur really makes it come alive... but then you have to use a matchmove program which will add even more time spent.

[Mark Johnson]

Character animation is a bitch and I applaud you for taking it on. I'd suggest next time going ahead and running the scene with someone (or even yourself) playing the part so you can use it as a timing reference (key framing without timing references often generates "slo-mo" movements. Just put the footage in the background of your viewport as a reference after you set up the character. You don't have to try to match the reference character.... just use it to get the major timing of limbs etc. down.

Anyway, I enjoyed this and can't say enough for putting in the work to create it. I hope your little actress had a ball making this!

[MrFluffy]

Nice work on the CG effects!... I know it takes alot of time, good job man. The only thing I know that helps sell the shots is to add a little bit of movement to the scenes with the CG element.. The little bit of motion blur really makes it come alive... but then you have to use a matchmove program which will add even more time spent.
Thanks for watching and the suggestions. I was behind in the rendering so I had to disable motion blur or it would still be rendering now?

I'll remember that for the next time.

[MrFluffy]

Character animation is a bitch and I applaud you for taking it on. I'd suggest next time going ahead and running the scene with someone (or even yourself) playing the part so you can use it as a timing reference (key framing without timing references often generates "slo-mo" movements. Just put the footage in the background of your viewport as a reference after you set up the character. You don't have to try to match the reference character.... just use it to get the major timing of limbs etc. down.

Anyway, I enjoyed this and can't say enough for putting in the work to create it. I hope your little actress had a ball making this!
I'm really glad you enjoyed it. I did a lot of reanimation to prevent either slow-mo, or super fast animation problems. The suggestion about having an actor do the parts is a good one. They did something similar in District9 so I'll be trying their technique in the future.

Thanks for watching.

[jasonthewho]

I couldn't even imagine trying to do the kind of cg work you did for this. Obviously, it's not perfect, but since I have no idea how to give you pointers on it, I'll just say congrats and keep on working at it.

As for the other elements, one thing that bothered me was some slight camera shake in the opening scene outdoors, especially in the close-ups on the object. There's also a black frame at 1:21.

The first shot of the sink sits too long for me with nothing happening. If we were panning or dollying slightly I wouldn't care, but as is it gets a little boring.

This was an ambitious project, and you completed it, and that's awesome. I'm definitely excited to see you grow as you get more experience.

[mrcheapyasui]

Like everyone else said, mad props for doing the CG. Its tough to make something look good when everyone is used to seeing Lord of the Rings graphics! I'm sure you have a much greater appreciation for hollywood effects that most people do!

My suggestion for making the monster more realistic would be to make twitchier movements. Some parts he is moving at a constant speed so it kinda looks like he is hovering in space or something.

But yea good job on doing the CG, I tried to learn maya once, but gave up!

[kennethhurd]

Well done! I know nothing about working with CG and I usually don't like to see it in horror films, although I felt that you used it in a way that works. I think that the look of the monster works well since the two lead characters are both children. It added a lighter tone and made the film more fun. Good job! What did you use to create the CG monster?

[Charli]

Cg monster was cool and creepy.

[TMerry]

Hey Richard, fun film! YOu did a great job on the 3d monster. That must have been an undertaking I have visited you blog/site in the past so look like your making great improvements with every new film. The initial shot of the monster appearing got a good shock from all the womine watching with me in the living room. Excellent CG work, I thought at times the monster was a bit too clear, and that took away some of the mystery from him, also as far as scale is concerned he seemed smaller then human size, not sure if that's what you were going for. YOur little actress was excellent, what a cutie. When I first started watching I thought, "how in the heck did that kid pull off that accent", then it dawned on me that that's her natural voice LOL!

I bet that was quite an undertaking doing the motion tracking, matchmoves and integrating the special effects, so you get extra credit from me just for attempting that. I look forward to your future productions: Good Work!

[Chris_Keaton]

I would like to judge this, but I can't watch it through my Quicktime player?

[MrFluffy]

As for the other elements, one thing that bothered me was some slight camera shake in the opening scene outdoors, especially in the close-ups on the object. There's also a black frame at 1:21.

The first shot of the sink sits too long for me with nothing happening. If we were panning or dollying slightly I wouldn't care, but as is it gets a little boring.

Thanks Jason. The shaking was due to the gale that was blowing. The tripod was weighted down and it still wobbled :)

I didnt notice the blank frame. Thanks for pointing it out.

Glad you enjoyed it.

[MrFluffy]

My suggestion for making the monster more realistic would be to make twitchier movements. Some parts he is moving at a constant speed so it kinda looks like he is hovering in space or something.

Thanks for the comments. He does kind of glide, getting good movements was much harder than I anticipated, but I learnt a lot, so next time I should do a better job.

[MrFluffy]

Well done! I know nothing about working with CG and I usually don't like to see it in horror films, although I felt that you used it in a way that works. I think that the look of the monster works well since the two lead characters are both children. It added a lighter tone and made the film more fun. Good job! What did you use to create the CG monster?

Thanks Kenneth.
The monster was created in Mudbox from a basemesh. It was then moved to Softimage for rigging, animating and rendering.

I cheated a bit and used locked off cameras. That meant I didnt have to matchmove. I did create a virtual set which was measured to the real set and used that to get accurate virtual camera placements so that all the movements would correspond to the real world and actor positions.

I hadnt done any of this before so it was quite a thrill when it actually worked!

[MrFluffy]

Hey Richard, fun film! YOu did a great job on the 3d monster. That must have been an undertaking I have visited you blog/site in the past so look like your making great improvements with every new film. The initial shot of the monster appearing got a good shock from all the womine watching with me in the living room. Excellent CG work, I thought at times the monster was a bit too clear, and that took away some of the mystery from him, also as far as scale is concerned he seemed smaller then human size, not sure if that's what you were going for. YOur little actress was excellent, what a cutie. When I first started watching I thought, "how in the heck did that kid pull off that accent", then it dawned on me that that's her natural voice LOL!

I bet that was quite an undertaking doing the motion tracking, matchmoves and integrating the special effects, so you get extra credit from me just for attempting that. I look forward to your future productions: Good Work!
I'm really glad you enjoyed the film. The monster was scaled so that it would fit with having kids in the film, and who says that a monster has to be big to be scary and dangerous :)

Thanks for watching.

[MrFluffy]

I would like to judge this, but I can't watch it through my Quicktime player?
The final version was authored in Quicktime and I have checked this on two sperate PC's with Quicktime and Quicktime Pro. Do you need to download it again?

[Chris_Keaton]

Someone directed me to another viewer I'll try later. Thanks


The final version was authored in Quicktime and I have checked this on two sperate PC's with Quicktime and Quicktime Pro. Do you need to download it again?

[Edgen]

Very ambitious film! Although the character was obviously CG, i bet you had a blast making this film with your children. it's something I'm looking to do one day.

Good luck and looking forward to seeing your next film.

cheers!
/j

[cinealma]

Perfect film for a monster fest. You had some nice shots. Really like the opening sequence in the yard with the wind and leaves.

I can appreciate the work involved in the CG monster. Looked really cool. However, for the film as a whole, I think it would have been better served with a real actor in makeup playing the part. The monster looked cool, though.

Always love to watch entries from across the pond. There's always a certain something about them that's different then the stuff here in the states.

Good job. Thanks for sharing!

[ramsaur]

You're CG creature was cool but it didn't fit in with the real world as in it's looks, but still really cool! And when showing it from shoulder to head it floated instead of walking. Where are the parents by the way? At the beginning of the film when the girl was skipping around it almost looked like it was sped up a bit? You're lightning fx weren't too bad. You're editing was pretty decent as well as camera work, but good job for doing a one man crew. So when the girl sees a big scary monster she doesn't run, but crawls and hides in a corner? Man If I were her I'd be screaming and running for my life. But this one was pretty cool, again, definitely a monster film for your CG creature.

[Horncastle]

Once again, a really good entry from you and your family! The opening scenes are great - lovely colours and framing, the tyre swinging in the wind, the little girl's feet running across the screen. Great acting by her too. Not sure if the sparks added much. Compliments for the CG although as others have said it doesn't work throughout. The first scene of your monster in front of the mirror does work very well though. Big brother doesn't really look scared enough when he turns to face the monster. I really like the framing of the bottom of the stairs with the arched doorway against black (at about 3.12) but I think we really needed to see the little girl move into it more - the way you have cut it now she sort of appears like a ghost. Just a few more frames at the start would have done it since we just catch the silhouette of her shoulder at the beginning. The little girls scream doesn't quite convince either. The score was good throughout. Great job overall on a very ambitious project.

[Chris_Keaton]

That kid needs to learn how to properly wash her hands.

[Chris_Keaton]

But seriously it was another cute film. Not sure that's what you were going for, but it was. I was afraid that dude was going to shoot the girl. I mean you seriously have to mind your backstop when you are shooting. Overall good job.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Yup, the shot at 3:13 was gorgeous!
Taking on such a task (full CG monster) must have been daunting at times, so job well done for that! Cute little girl. Making films with your kids is really great. Patience is what it's all about.

Some tightening could be done here and there but overall it flows pretty well. Very cool monster.

Nice job,

MAH

[Sprocketboy]

The kids are great. The innocence unknowing sister and brave brother taking on the devil with a shotgun. Awesome. I allowed my 6 year son to watch it and he loved it. I had to show it to him 2 more times.

Your CG devil is nicely modeled but I wish you try to render it with HDR lighting to match the lighting in surrounding you shoot in. I'm sure whatever 3D software package you are using has it. Most do.

This is a fun watch. Thanks.

[ZazaCast]

BANG! Really nice job. Enjoyed the film but would agree with most comments above about the monsters movement and the brother shooting towards the little girl...THAT was scary.

Congrats to the whole family and again, great job on creating that monster!

[MrFluffy]

Very ambitious film! Although the character was obviously CG, i bet you had a blast making this film with your children. it's something I'm looking to do one day.

Good luck and looking forward to seeing your next film.

cheers!
/j
Thanks Edgen,
The kids love it most of the time. After an 11hr shoot they get a bit tetchy :)

I cant wait for the announcement of the next Fest :)

[MrFluffy]

But seriously it was another cute film. Not sure that's what you were going for, but it was. I was afraid that dude was going to shoot the girl. I mean you seriously have to mind your backstop when you are shooting. Overall good job.
Thanks Chris.

[MrFluffy]

Yup, the shot at 3:13 was gorgeous!
Taking on such a task (full CG monster) must have been daunting at times, so job well done for that! Cute little girl. Making films with your kids is really great. Patience is what it's all about.

Some tightening could be done here and there but overall it flows pretty well. Very cool monster.

Nice job,

MAH
Thanks for the encouragement.

[MrFluffy]

BANG! Really nice job. Enjoyed the film but would agree with most comments above about the monsters movement and the brother shooting towards the little girl...THAT was scary.

Congrats to the whole family and again, great job on creating that monster!
Thanks Zaza.

You know the funny thing. Over here the first thing people ask is "Why does he have a shotgun in the bedroom", but none of the Americans ever ask that! :)

Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for commenting.

[Michael Anthony Horrigan]

Thanks Zaza.

You know the funny thing. Over here the first thing people ask is "Why does he have a shotgun in the bedroom", but none of the Americans ever ask that! :)
I didn't want to touch on that myself. :lipsrseal



I don't even know anyone who owns a gun.

[MrFluffy]

The kids are great. The innocence unknowing sister and brave brother taking on the devil with a shotgun. Awesome. I allowed my 6 year son to watch it and he loved it. I had to show it to him 2 more times.

Your CG devil is nicely modeled but I wish you try to render it with HDR lighting to match the lighting in surrounding you shoot in. I'm sure whatever 3D software package you are using has it. Most do.

This is a fun watch. Thanks.
I'm really glad that you and you son enjoyed the film.

Softimage does do HDR and I did some test shots with it. Unfortunatly I simply ran out of time so I was unable to do HDR or even spend additional time on the animation. I worked pretty much non-stop from the moment the fest was announced. Hopefully as my workflow improves I will be able to do more, quicker and that should improve the results.

Thanks for watching.

[MrFluffy]

I don't even know anyone who owns a gun.

The odd thing is that I do! ROFL

[Blaine]

When using a CGI monster you film is going to rise or fall on the strength of that monster. Unfortunately, yours was a bit thin...I'm sure that had to do with how much time you had to create it, though.

You told a coherent story that I could follow beginning to end.

This was yet another "Child in Jeopardy" film. I'm really surprised to see how many people went this direction. On the other hand, I'm sure it's nice to get to work with your kids and put them in "the movies." I'll bet they had a blast.

My biggest quibble with this was when he used the shotgun to kill the demon with the little girl BEHIND it. In that position, I would have been worried about injuring her, too.

[MrFluffy]

My biggest quibble with this was when he used the shotgun to kill the demon with the little girl BEHIND it. In that position, I would have been worried about injuring her, too.
Thanks for your comments. She was safe, have you never seen Supernatural, the gun was full of rock salt :)

[ZazaCast]

Thanks Zaza.

You know the funny thing. Over here the first thing people ask is "Why does he have a shotgun in the bedroom", but none of the Americans ever ask that! :)


LMAO! That's because I have 2 shotguns within arms reach of my bed...you never know when a stray zombie or devil might wander into your home. :shocked:

[bruceallen]

Mr Fluffy

Wow, that's an insanely ambitious film. Good heavens man - model, rig, animate and composite and humanoid character in that short a time period?! Crazy!

First off, your outdoor shots look really cool. You set up a lovely color look and good job with the kid. The brother was good. Wanted to see more emotion from him - he just went through an emotional rollercoaster and doesn't look like he broke a sweat.

If you're planning to use the film as part of a VFX reel... which I'd hope, given that you put 200+ hours into it, here's my 2c on how you can take things further.

Personally I'd put HDR at the bottom of the list. There are other things you can tweak that don't increase render time.

First of all, tweak the animation and get it really great. It is good for rough but you want to get it really fantastic or it'll drive everyone nuts. Since the creature is anthropomorphic, people expect perfection. Shoot footage or use a mirror for reference. Render out with motion blur of course (or use ReelSmart motion blur in AE).

Once the anim is looking sweet, then try to sort out the 3d texture issues:
- Rework the textures and up the resolution and detail in the chest area. You can also see texture stretching around the shoulders.
- increase the bump mapping a lot. Consider even displacement mapping to break up the silhouette.
- think about having it reflect an environment map (you could use a blurred copy of your backplate). You'd be surprised how much a little reflectivity could help.
- maybe increase specular a little, too?
- place a few more subtle lights in your scene. You have the key lights down pretty well and the dynamic lighting when the critter is doing the energy thing are great. Try doing things like placing lights that only affect the specular, or a very dim light to simulate the red carpet below in the last shot
- shadows for the floor would be great

and the compositing issues:
- some of your shots seem to have a grey outline. Maybe you're rendering premultiplied and importing as straight?
- if I were you I'd change the color of the electrical arcs. Add a little glow and maybe try a more desaturated cobalt blue? Since all the other blues in your film are greenish I'd expect the blue to be greener. At the moment it says "default filter settings". Maybe try adding the effect before you color the shot?
- try a little light wrap to make your character fit better into the plates
- color the character more to match the back plates
- for the "critter appearing out of the black smoke" stuff, try to incorporate some shot stock footage (or film ink in water yourself) to break up the cg smoke and make it feel more organic.

Lastly, you don't have to do this for EVERY SHOT to start with. Get one shot looking awesome so you can put it on your reel and move on from there as time allows.

Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com (http://www.boacinema.com)

[MrFluffy]

Wow, that's an insanely ambitious film. Good heavens man - model, rig, animate and composite and humanoid character in that short a time period?! Crazy!
.....
Bruce Allen
www.boacinema.com (http://www.boacinema.com)
Hi Bruce,
Thank you for taking the time to leave such a helpful and informative comment. It’s really appreciated.
The project was beset with problem, both practical and CG.
I made a mess of the modelling as originally it was supposed to be a low poly model with a high density displacement. But the software choked completely and I ended up trying to do it with the high poly model. That was a disaster. So in the end I ended up doing poly reduction on the hi-poly version while keeping the details levels as high as I could. This broke the poly layout for joints etc .
You live and learn. Next time I'll use a medium poly with a displacement, and allow more time for rendering.
Animation was tricky, thanks for the suggestions. Next time I’ll animate against an actor, that way I can get the movement timing right. It will be rotoscoped but better than non referenced animation.
Good advice on the lighting. I’ll play around with it. The next time I’d like to use image based lighting and I’ve now got a silvered HDRI globe to help with that.
The grey outlines were due to the AO pass not lining up with the diffuse. I still don’t know why it wouldn’t line up. I tried doing it several times and it just refused to play ball. I think it was rounding errors in the software causing the camera to effectively move between passes :(
Check on the lightning. It was the defaults. I simply ran out of time.
Still it just as important to know what wont work as what will, and I sure got a lot of that this time :)
Thanks for watching.

[killacam]

I always look forward to your films because I know they'll have some fun VFX work in them. nice stuff. maybe some color correcting would have helped to match the cg work more? I liked the model a lot but I do agree that maybe he glided a little in parts.

[MrFluffy]

I always look forward to your films because I know they'll have some fun VFX work in them. nice stuff. maybe some color correcting would have helped to match the cg work more? I liked the model a lot but I do agree that maybe he glided a little in parts.
Thanks Killacam,

Hopefully the next fest will give some opportunities for some VFX.

[Marlon Ladd]

Nice film and very ambitious. I thought you had a great premise and excellent cinematography. The little girl did a very good job. The guy that played Sam did okay, but when he fell and was supposed to be unconscious, well that was not very convincing. Looked as if he laid down and his eyes were still blinking once on the ground. I must give you kudos for creating the monster and I think a little more work on him (like in the above mentioned thread) and you'll really have something going. The electricity bolts were pretty spot on. I think you did a good job of creating suspense and I thought this piece was very professionally done with alot of potential. Good job.

[MrFluffy]

Nice film and very ambitious. I thought you had a great premise and excellent cinematography. The little girl did a very good job. The guy that played Sam did okay, but when he fell and was supposed to be unconscious, well that was not very convincing. Looked as if he laid down and his eyes were still blinking once on the ground. I must give you kudos for creating the monster and I think a little more work on him (like in the above mentioned thread) and you'll really have something going. The electricity bolts were pretty spot on. I think you did a good job of creating suspense and I thought this piece was very professionally done with alot of potential. Good job.
Thanks Marlon, much appreciated.

[lawriejaffa]

Diabolus Domi is that really spicy pasta you can order at the cafe-bar in Vatican City! While Domi Diabolus is the hottest and most orange faced foundation wearing Opera Tenor to hit the Las Vegas music circuit for yeeeears!

Righto - so this film basically appears to be entirely centered around an experiment in CGI - of both electrical bolts and a beasty! I think the experience will obviously contribute to a better and more 'acceptable' standard of cgi - but its not on display here. This is very much indicative of your own work in progress towards a more convincing monster.

With the story focussed around this creature, its hard to avoid it in providing feedback. As the film's subject, its also the weak point unfortunately. Not convincing but i applaud the ambition!! Perhaps colour grading, (stronger contrasts, less illumination overall) could lend more realism to the beasts appearance. Certainly worth a try.

The kids try there best but its fairly unconvincing that junior can take that shotgun to an infernal demon.

It kind of smacks of a Dad film - dad and the kids making a film - which is quaint and cute, but often times horrifying to inflict upon a public audience! (This isnt!!!) But it teeters as a form of self indulgent experimentation not quite ready to be unleashed to the discerning public.

If you'd like any help with grading ideas - give me a pm!

A sterling effort nevertheless!

[MrFluffy]

We have taken the horrific step of unleashing our creation on the unsuspecting and discerning public. What's more - we have done it in HD!

I guess we'll just have to see what the death toll is :)

If you want to see the HD version you can do so on our YouTube Channel.
http://www.youtube.com/user/freekstorm

[Tom Marshall]

Thanks Kenneth.
The monster was created in Mudbox from a basemesh. It was then moved to Softimage for rigging, animating and rendering.

I cheated a bit and used locked off cameras. That meant I didnt have to matchmove. I did create a virtual set which was measured to the real set and used that to get accurate virtual camera placements so that all the movements would correspond to the real world and actor positions.

I hadnt done any of this before so it was quite a thrill when it actually worked!

Nice choice going with Softimage. I spent some time with it and love the program.

Very ambitious short, especially since you said you hadn't done it before. Mad props for having the guts to go for it and congrats on how well it turned out. The great thing though is all of the advice you've gotten and how it will help you improve on future CG animation projects... :)