The Morphing of Kamila

Kamila the baby sister of Kalifa has the look that will melt the heart. It's the look I had pictured in my mind since day one. I just couldn’t get it right on paper because it is easier to draw what’s in front of me rather than what inside my head. That’s why a figure drawing class is also known as life drawing class because the subject is alive in front of us. There’s where we develop the skill of translating what we see onto the canvas or paper.

In the 3D world we are deprived of all traditional tools of ours. That doesn’t mean we cannot be creative. We still have the skill of translating what we saw onto the screen using the mouse or digitizing pen. It is difficult to create the model from nothing. The intuitive method is by morphing. I start by using an available base model which is on the left and shape it using the morph targets to make it look like on the right. The process is like clay modeling. An understanding of anatomy is a great asset to get the shape right. Finally the ethnic flavouring was done in Photoshop by painting the face map in 2D.

Unlike the other characters that I had done the reference for Kamila’s face didn’t come from war news photo. It was a photo from a medical news article about a bubble boy. But Kamila is a girl so some gender bending was needed. But for a 3-4 year old child the difference is not that obvious. 

The piggy tail hair was added from library. The colour was toned darker to match her Arabian look. There is no need to build from scratch since the element is readily available. But can the design be claimed as original because the original source is not my own? If it is just a pure cut and paste or tracing other people’s work than it’s plagiarism. To qualify as an original the work it has to go through an extensive creative process that represent my expression and not others. Like if the two characters above stood in a police lineup they will definitely be identified as two separate person. The left is a product of someone else’s expression while the right is my expression of the little girl Kamila. That qualifies as an original and an intellectual property that is protected by the copyright law.

 One thing for sure that the things I design from scratch for all the characters are the costumes. Kamila is a peasant girl whose parents live a simple and basic life. There are no sign of luxury in their home even in their clothing. There are no laces or embroidery. Just a simple plain coloured dress without flowery print. The other reason for the simplicity in design is because of emphasis. The emphasis for most of the character are their faces. It remind us strongly that they are humans.

Sometime we forget about the human element because we are too preoccupied with materialism. That is why in our modern wars like in Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia and especially Palestine we witness so much atrocities been committed. The soldiers who are material centric have forgotten about humanity. If the soldiers on the ground could easily forget that basic human perception then how about the one in the air or the ones who sit remotely in their bases on their computers and taking human lives like a video game. Then what about their leaders who hide cowardly thousand of miles away and ordered the killings without having to smell the death personally. At the end of the day the smell of the profits that matters.

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In Search of Siti Zahara

Siti Zahara is the mother of the boy-hero Kalifa. When I was writing the script I had no visual idea of her looks except that she is wearing a black hijab. But emotionally I could feel her with my words though in real life I could not relate anyone like her. Only after watching the film ‘Lion of the Desert’ I came to realize that the character that played the little boy’s mother matched Siti Zahara perfectly.

I grabbed a number of frames of her head shots and molded her face in Poser as close to her features but not to duplicate her looks exactly.  The base figure is Alyson a Caucasian which I morphed it into an Arab and became Siti Zahara.

I also used the same hijab design as in the film which is two piece. One is over her head and shoulders and the other is tied over and around the head with the knot at the back. The front neck is exposed because the situation in the script demanded it. The scene was in and near her house and she was dressed moderately. All the modeling was done in 3DS Max which can be quite frustrating with this kind of organic modeling

 

The morphing of her face is not that difficult if one was trained in sculpting or life drawing. It is just a matter of using the source as reference and manipulate your work accordingly. The facemap then need to be redrawn in Photoshop because it is not possible to paint directly in Poser. The main focus area is the eye makeup because Arab women have a certain way of doing their eyes. The process needs both software to be run simultaneously. The painting is in 2D but the facemap is in 3D. That will make most artists feel disorientated trying to shuttled between the two dimensions.

The draping of Siti Zahara was more challenging than Abu Musa’s. The thobe of Abu Musa uses a dynamic cloth which behaves like a real cloth that conform to gravity, collision and external forces like wind which means all the folds and creases are decided by the software. Siti Zahara’s thobe also uses dynamic cloth but her hijab is not. If I use dynamic cloth for her hijab it will loose all the folds that I modeled originally in 3DS Max because it will fall flat against her body. I have no other choice but to use conform clothing which wrap around her like a molded plastic. It will not conform to the law of physics but it will deformed accordingly to the poses of the character. Any imperfection will be corrected by my drawings.

By now I hope my artist friends would understand what I am getting at. It is not about free hand drawing or tracing or cheating. Art is a process and expression. Foremost it is has to be original because that constitute an intellectual property.

 

Technorati Tags: Siti Zahara,Poser Conform Clothing

The Draping of Abu Musa

Most of my artist friends probably been waiting long to see the full character designs of Palestine 3000 A.D.. I could not blame them since graphic novels are very character centric. But foremost is the drawing styles. Is it going to be Marvel, DC Comics, Dark Horse, Manga or some kind of Asian experimental? Well I don’t really care about labels because I am an independent. I am more prudent about message and expression. The message is quite obvious in the title but when it comes to expression I am more inclined towards grunge.

Before I could render those grungy  strokes I have to do my R & D. Previously I usually brag about my ideas came from out of nowhere because that nowhere is the future. Nobody really knows anything when it is  about the future. We just imagine based on present situations. Technology will evolve but humans will remain unchanged. So are the situation in Palestine if the world remain asleep.

Abu Musa is the forefront character in this Book One story. He is the father of the boy-hero Kalifa. A strong personality character which I had visualized when I was writing the script. His exact look did not come from out of nowhere. Like Kalifa his look was inspired by real people from news photos. Abu Musa was based on a photo from AFP source which was shot during Israel assault on southern Lebanon. I like the facial expression in the photo which is quite similar what Abu Musa will go through. But the model above of Abu Musa is having a neutral expression as most 3D models at its default pose.

Abu Musa’s face was done in Poser’s Face Room. The facial texture were finalized in Photoshop. No real 3D modeling been done because Poser is not a modeling program. The face was shaped using morph target of a library model called Ryan. Ryan has a European characteristic and I molded him into an Arab which is quite close to the AFP photo.

For the modeling of his robe I have to move out of my comfort zone which is Rhino 3D and use 3ds Max instead because it seems Poser’s Cloth works well with a quad base geometry that 3ds Max produce.

The modeling of the robe is quite simple by using  ‘Box’ modeling which starts with a simple box and the details are produce by extrusions. Overall it is like the draping process in fashion design. To add reality the ‘seam’ area need to be creased just like a real garment. So I made a study on how actual garments been put together. The objective is to make the robe look real with dynamics and not just a plastic mold around the character body like in games design.

The final geometry is then smoothed out by increasing the subdivisions which will increase the file size and slows down the computer. A large computer memory is needed to handle such complex geometry.

 

The geometry is then imported into Poser as a prop and assigned as a dynamic cloth. The character need to be posed in such a way it will show all the folds and creases during the cloth simulation. There is nothing much to it except tweaking the cloth settings to get the right folds and density. The only setback is the amount of time waiting for the simulation.

So why go through all the trouble for a graphic novel? I like a certain reality in my work especially when it adds to the drama. Just like classic artist Leonardo or the sculptor Michelangelo who rendered realistic visuals of garments. How the folds caught the lights and shadows. I could use a flat tone or texture from the comprehensive library of Manga Studio software but it is just not me. I don’t like shortcuts. But I like to break rules and disregard the norms. My work is not ruled by textbooks. I like to rewrite the textbooks. This is how real art are made.

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Facebook Insights – November 2010

Palestine 3000 A.D. has over 300 ‘Likes’ or ‘Fans’ in its Facebook Page finally. It is approximately fit over 10 buses of people which is still a small number. But history has showed us that such small number had defeated large armies. Unfortunately Palestine 3000 A.D. is not a militant group or affiliated with such entity. The only weapon it employs is art and loaded with sarcasm. It is not meant to be a pop culture which everybody want to have one. At slightly over 300 ‘Fans’ it can be qualified as a cult.

The largest fan base is still in Malaysia which is its host. United States has climbed to second place though it was not the initial market target but I guess it is natural because the emotional root started from there back in 2004.  The third largest fan base is Singapore which is encouraging. It followed by United Kingdom which I hope will grow more.  Surprisingly we have a few fans from Middle East but fans from Palestine itself is growing. Perhaps it is the language issue because Palestine 3000 A.D. promos are all in English. I guess it is the same situation in Indonesia which I hope to be the biggest fan of Palestine 3000 A.D. But I will promote heavily in Indonesia when I will be there next year. Palestine 3000 A.D. will be translated and published in Bahasa Indonesia which I think a fitting language to render the sarcasm of my writing effectively.  My Indonesian root is quite sure of that.

In term of age group the 25-34 group has been the largest since the beginning. When I was writing Palestine 3000 A.D. initially that was the age group I had in mind and hopefully the 15-24 group the second largest could be attracted by its visuals. There is a sharp drop in the 35-44 group. I hope it will improve in the future.

Female fans are around 33% while male fans are around 65%. Male fans have been a majority since beginning but female fans are 1% higher than males in the 55+ age group. I am not profiling anybody on these figures or trying to figure out the outcome. It is just a Facebook Insights and it may be totally different in term of numbers when Palestine 3000 A.D. is finally published but it does give me certain marketing directions.

To all who like Palestine 3000 A.D. I would like to thank you very much for the appreciations you have shown for all the work I had done. There are plenty more to come. It is long and hard work without any financial help. Everything is self-funding and armed with all the creative and technical experiences I acquired throughout the years. I ‘bleed’ in my work just like the Palestinians bleed. I can imagine how they felt to feel almost hopeless sometime. I hope my works for Palestine 3000 A.D. will reflect that pain so that the rest of the world could feel. Please show to the Palestinians that we will not fail them and will always support them the best we can.

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Caravan of Slaves

In our time we may say that slavery is something of the past. We probably thought it would never happen again and everybody is a free man and will always be. But if we stop being ignorant slavery still do exist. There are people who lost their freedom. People who live behind the walls and under the guns of the Zionists. It is the worst kind of slavery though they are not shackled, bought and sold like during the olden days. But human greed will one day brought back that kind of slavery. In 3000 A.D. is probably that time.

We will see human in chains and cages being sold in the market place. When thinking of such cages I always think about the rounded bird cages. Birds are always a symbol of freedom. There are free to fly where ever their wings may bring. The sky is the limit. For a cage is the worst place to be for any creature who want to be free.

Still inspired by the renaissance period I breathe some splendor to my cage design.  Though it may sound sadistic but it is just a reflection of what the Zionists felt about such inhumane situation just like the Nazis felt towards them. My thumbnail design rode on that feeling. I did the sketch once and my mind never shifted since. I knew that it would look great on the desert travelling in a caravan with its canopy, flags and the roving wheels. So much was the fantasy with pencil and paper. In 3D it was quite a challenge to  make the cage looks robust and secure.

In the caravan scene the cage is the main focal point compared to the other vehicles. Most of the drama happen here. The cage was easy but the door and its mechanism took a bit longer. It must look secure enough to hold at least ten people inside each cage. The wheel with it skeletal form with added lobster-like guard were also a killer. The cherry on the cake are the canopy and the flag. I could imagine how they bounce and flap in the wind.

The next design is the Engine Head that drags those cage units. Like the cage design this thumbnail was also done once and without any further changes made. It was not inspired by any other design. It was just a quick sketch from the picture in my mind. The top hood probably has some Roman root. The principal of the design is based on compact and power. Travelling through the arid landscape and extreme weather condition it is equipped with ample protections to shelter the operators.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Though in the scene the Engine Head mostly remains in the background but I did a lot of changes. Not that it really needs one but the design inspires many new ideas. I redesigned the front screen and added some sensors and lights. At the back I improved the look of the limb to give more 3D depth and engine details. The efforts will not go to waste because for the promos and animation sequences I will have more angles to play with.

The last vehicle in the convoy is the Trailer. This one took a number of sketches before I finally settled on one. The main shape is inspired by the old American trailer probably back in the 50s. The rest are totally new from out of nowhere. The Trailer is where the Slave Master and his men travelled in. It has the sense of comfort with all the security and provisions. It do not have an engine of its own but has its own Engine Head to drag it around.

 

Like the Engine Head the Trailer also remains in the background most of the time. Because of its roundness it seems to look more sci-fi but I added a bit of renaissance touch in some places. Since it is the Slave Master’s vehicle it look more luxurious rather than robust like the other two and much simpler to design.

All vehicles are set to go. The caravan will travel across the unforgiving landscape dragging those slaves to an uncertain future. But the sense of darkness is on the horizon. Is this how the future is going to be? Is the future generation responsible for such dark outlook? Or is it the fruit from the poison seed that was sown in the present?

 

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Palestine 3000 A.D. Official Logo

I was in San Francisco in 1996 with some studio friends taking a break after the conference in L.A. After a whole day touring we ended up at one of the comedy club by the Pier in the evening.  We enjoyed the stand-ups. So was the crowd of multi-nationals. There was a group of girls near our table. One of the stand-up asked them where there are from and what they do for a living? They said they are students from Israel. That sounded fine to everybody. Then they were asked what are they going to do after their studies? They replied proudly that they are going to join the army. The stand-up who incidentally  looked like he was from Hitler’s army responded by asking “Do you want my land?” The crowd burst into laughter. The students presumed that the whole of United States support the Zionists. By now I guess they have realized their killing career.

The Zionists propaganda machine really got into them. They thought they are doing something righteous.  Later when I was a living in Tennessee I found a website that is selling IDF (Israel Defense Force) memorabilia.  The propaganda machine is still hard at work. I have seen people wearing T-Shirts and cars with bumper stickers that support the Zionists. It seems hip to support the robbers and killers. While others who support the Palestinians are frown upon and even tagged as supporting the terrorists. The propaganda machine is hard at work bending the minds of the media and leaders of the so called civilized world.

The main objective of Palestine 3000 A.D. project is to untagged those labels they stamped upon us who support Palestine. We also want to attract others who are still ignorant about the issue. Others who are still in fantasy land who just want to be cool and hip. That is the reason that I place  much emphasis on style in the design. You still can be hip if you associate yourself with Palestine. Now your hipness has substance and not just pure fantasy.

The centre of that style has to be symbol or a logo. When I started designing the poster with the logo type around 3 years ago I was not into blogging or Facebook. I did not really care if the logo type was going to look good if it is reduced to a tiny thumbnail. I was just trying to stir myself up to write the script. Since I have started planning for the promo recently a logo design was high on the agenda. 

I did single line strokes based on the Palestinian flag and fit it inside a circle but the design looked weak. It did not have enough grunge in it as I did for the initial logo type. Then I realized that I need to add some body to it and came out with this  new sketch. It seems simple like it was scribbled on a napkin but it took a month to realized it. The design has room to grow because it will be adapted into other promotional medium.

Around 6 month ago I met a manager of an art bookshop for lunch. He briefed me on various ways how books are laid out on the shelves. He said it is important to have maximum exposure of the cover design no matter how it is laid out. Sometime the books are laid out with their front covers faced out and overlapped by other books they are promoting. Usually one third of the left hand side of the books are exposed leaving the main title two-third covered. If you do  not have any recognizable image or logo on that exposed one third customers may overlooked your book.

Hence that small logo must be prominent enough to be recognizable even at a glance. That means the colour and form demands a serious consideration. Not only it has to be loud enough but it must have a real meaning. That took me a couple of weeks in Photoshop to get the elements together to form a real balance in design.

 

The grunge still remains in the design. It is not meant to be glossy and shiny. Palestine is not a Disney story. There is nothing to laugh about when people lost their lives, families and homes. There is no perfect line in the design. The thick  grey brush strokes symbolized walls that divide the people and took their freedom away. But in Palestine 3000 A.D. those divisions are about confinement of a different kind. It also symbolized division among Palestinians. To be strong they need to unite no matter what differences they have among themselves. They should not fall into the trap of the Zionists who divide and conquer. They should not be any Hamas, Fatah or Hizbullah or any other factions. It should be just one Palestine. Raise your heads high and be proud just as the logo facing up no matter how hopeless lives may be. The worst prison is the mind. We have to liberate our minds. So I let those grey strokes  exceed the main circle of restriction and division.

Naturally human like to remain divided. We always like to find a reason to be different rather than common. We came from a single blood. It is too precious to shed even a single drop. But we always think that it is them and not us. In our comfort zones we always think that way. But I hope even for a moment you could touch this pain beyond your TVs, movies, games, and comics. Abandon your fantasies and embrace this reality. Listen to what this image speaks. We can help to make it louder.

 

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The devils came in a ‘Humvee’

Many years ago before the dawn of the new millennium I thought the world is going to be a much better place to live in with the advancement of technology. With all the new knowledge I was hoping that people could solve many problems in a more civilized manner. But sadly human conscience was left behind back in the 70’s. Technology became the integral part of the machinery of destructions. It helps to make efficient killing machines. Machines that can kill thousands in a second regardless of non-combatant, women and children. After a day work the killers can enjoy their fast foods and video games. Life and death became just a number in a score.

The war machines are glorified as technical supremacy that need to be placed on the altar. It is broadcasted all over the news media like new Christmas toys. This is how they sell democracy to the world. Anybody who do not agree with their ideology will be eliminated. It has to be done to maintain stability. The stability is not about freedom of the country or people but about money. Money that they can earn easily and lots of it without obstacles into their own pockets and just crumbs to the foolish common men . It is the hypocrisy of democracy.

The brilliant minds behind the killing machines thought they have made great achievements. All the years they spend in college finally paid off. Isn’t that look great on TV? Who could missed the Humvee on the news? Equipped with all the latest technology and cost around US$65,000 each and the armored one cost around US$140,000 each. They are more than 250,000 units in the US military. Crunch that out on the calculator. The number is so sinful that it has to be devil’s own. It could have solved the unemployment, medical, housing, poverty, education and the environment problems. But the people are more contented with misguided patriotism.

In Palestine 3000 A.D. I designed a Humvee-like vehicle which I code named it “The Bastard’s Rover’ named after the three ‘devils’ that rode in it.  Many may foresee that in the 3rd millennium that most land vehicles will not look like anything like today’s. It may not even run on wheels anymore. But as most of my designs for Palestine 3000 A.D. it is metaphoric.

So how to fit a Humvee into that era?  In design I called it bending the spoon without touching it. It is not the spoon that is bend but the mind. If you stop the mind from thinking straight then it will bend any way you like. Sometime it will go to the extreme that it loose reality. That was what happened last year. The Humvee lost it basic identity and became more like a spaceship. Perhaps back then I have not developed a style for Palestine 3000 A.D. After the style has been established I know I need to abundant the initial design and return back to the drawing board and came out with this new thumbnail.

The details were added in Manga Studio. It just took away the pain of buying special templates from the art supplies shop. The custom rulers in Manga Studio really help in drawing an accurate sketch over the original thumbnail. The design has to breakaway in some areas while maintaining the basic framework of the thumbnail. It has to bend more towards a non-aero-dynamic vehicle and more towards heavy metal as most structures in Palestine 3000 A.D.

The final output was imported into Rhino 3D as a background image to be traced over. I am more comfortable with Rhino 3D after more than 10 years working with it. The irony is during the early days with Rhino I was designing metal structures for a friend company. Then I ended up working for a metal factory down in Millington, Tennessee. That was real heavy metal in a real world. It still got a hold on me in the virtual world. I still can feel the machines. It breathe in the design.

Now the vehicle really fits the script. It is something not to be rationalize about. The mind has to remain bend. In that state you will believe that it is heavy. You will believe that there is danger. You will believe that the individuals that ride in it can cause major destruction. I named them ‘The Three Bastards’. You may named them the devils. If the devil came on horseback the world still called them the devil. If the devils ride in a super advanced vehicle they are still the devils. Why the world still glorified them as heroes?

 

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New Jerusalem – The Temple Mount

The Temple Mount or Mount Moriah or also known as The Nobel Sanctuary by Muslims is significant to Jews, Christians and Muslims. It is a place where great prophets had walked upon to bring just to the world. Yet bloody battles were fought just to win this piece of sacred ground. The conflict is still on-going and looks like it will be for thousand of years to come. It has gone through many transformations through out the centuries. It is impossible to imagine how it will look like in the third millennium.

In Palestine 3000 A.D. I visualize the Temple Mount is the only structure that survives the catastrophic war 500 years prior. What is left is al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock standing over a decayed ground. Some may disagree with my perspective  but it is a fiction that need not to be rationalized. It is just my expression. The Temple Mount will be used as a backdrop in the scene where the caravan of slaves enter New Jerusalem.

Backdrops are important in movies so as in graphic novels. It place the characters in a proper environment to add mood to the story. Blank backgrounds may be an easy and quick way to churn a graphic novel but it may end up like a newspaper cartoon strip. Palestine 3000 A.D. is not one of those.

For the backdrop of New Jerusalem I used a reference from a painting shown above by an artist David Roberts that was painted in 1839. I wanted a different view of the Temple Mount compared to what is commonly seen today. The southern view is the best angle to show al-Aqsa and the Dome of the Rock in close proximity. Though I have a 3D model of the Temple Mount from Google Earth but not all of my works use a 3d reference especially if there is no need for it.

This is a quick pencil sketch I did which I focused more on the decayed ground. I used many references from photos of cliffs and canyons for the rock texture while retaining the flow that I wanted. As for the building structures I make it more stylize to fit the whole design balance. The hole on the ground is meant to portray a screaming or a crying expression. It is a sign of my own displeasure against any kind of excavation works under the holy site.

The pencil sketch was then imported into Manga Studio EX to be traced over with blue lines. The perspective and rulers tools help to make perspective drawing much easier compared to the traditional method. The snap to the perspective and ruler tools though may sound digital but it still allow the artist to retain the traditional strokes. It really help when you are drawing with a Wacom tablet where accuracy can be difficult to achieve because you are not drawing directly on the screen unlike using the Cintiq.

The shadow areas were indicated on a different layer. But it is just a guide because I always do some changes when I render the real shadows. A mask area was added using the outline of the drawing. This was done to make it easier to insert a background on the bottom layer. This is not part of Manga Studio EX features but it is a practice of cel animators while working in a digital format for an easier composition.

The sky background was added using a previous work that I have done. With a bit of Photoshop filter it blends nicely with the foreground. Most of the sky backgrounds will be like this for Palestine 3000 A.D. It is dark and gloomy. It is a depressing environment that I hope I will never experience in my lifetime.The splatter brush stroke was added to add to the rage.

The final drawing is used for the Palestine 3000 A.D. blog header and also the header for the welcome page at Facebook. The layout will probably be different for the graphic novel. But the expressions that I have mention will still remain.

 

Technorati Tags: Temple Mount,Mount Moriah,Noble Sanctuary,New Jerusalem

The Making of a Hero

It has been a tradition for most figure artists to have some kind  of reference to draw figures. Either by using a real life model or a wooden mannequin like the one on the right. The tradition probably started during the early figure drawing classes. But tradition can be broken because it is still possible to draw a figure without using any references by understanding the principal of human anatomy. But if you want to breathe a personality into the figure then references are a must. Our imagination do have limitation in portraying reality. On the other hand a wooden mannequin do not have a real personality. It is good just for poses. It is a John or Jane Doe of the art world.

When I was writing the script for Palestine 3000 A.D. I have already build up the personality of each character in my mind. Personalities that I could describe verbally. But visually I was not so settled yet even though I have collected many references. Studios usually audition for models in this kind of situation where they can look at various angles and check out the posing skills of the models. For this project I need around 20 models. I certainly do not have a budget for that. Nobody is really interested to fund a project like this. It is not a fantasy story that entertains the everyday family. Palestine 3000 A.D. is a metaphor about a reality that most people like to look away. 

Wealth is not necessary about money. It is also can be of knowledge and experiences. My years of experience in 3D animation  is a big asset for me. All the CG tools are at my disposal. I can have all the models I want at no cost and they are available 24/7. But 3D models nowadays are too surrealistic. It is not the kind of character that you will see walking in downtown West Bank or Gaza. They are just great for a display on shops’ windows. To get into the reality I have to go to Palestine. The instant flight is by Google.

I was looking for a specific Palestinian boy. Not the one that is crying or the one that died or the one posing their smiles for the western journalists who want to show the world that everything is alright in Palestine. Out of the thousands photos I have browse through Google I found one that looks right. He was pointing a gun at the camera. He sure got my attention. But he was just posing because his finger was not on the trigger. He might be slightly older then the character I have in mind but CG technology can do wonders in making him look younger. Most of all I like his intensity. The young hero in Palestine 3000 A.D. may be a young kid but he is a strong boy. A tribute to all the brave children of Palestine. With the magic of Photoshop I removed the revolver that was partially covering his mouth. Brightened the shadows under his eyes and symmetrise his face. He is ready for the 3D world.

I am not going to model him from scratch. That procedure is time consuming especially when there are 19 more in line. The best choice is to use a face generator software. My favourite tool for many years for posing is Poser by Smith Micro which has a face generator module called the Face Room. The problem is it is not suitable for children faces and it looks so CG. The next choice is FaceGen  by Singular Inversion. I prefer FaceGen because the result is more natural. With the PhotoFit feature it makes modelling much easier. The procedure is to use a photo to shape the face. Once I got the basic feature then I tweak it to make it look younger. It has features to adjust the age of the model  or adjust the gender. But no matter young it gets the head proportion is not big as a child.

The problem with FaceGen is it generates only heads without the body. For a full body pose I need to export it to Poser. Trying to make those two to work together is like forcing a square peg into a round hole. Usually it needs a third software to smooth things out so that it fits well on the other end. I have to use my old and trusted software 3ds Max for this job. The head proportion was adjusted in Max and also the neck joint that is going to fit onto the Poser model.

With the help of Photoshop the texture was smoothen to make the boy look younger. The hair was then added in Poser just for reference purpose. Though it may not look exactly as the reference photo I am quite happy with the adjustments. The objective was not to make a replica of the actual boy in the photo but to make it look more to the boy I have in mind while retaining the intensity of the boy in the photo.

Around 31 head models were used to make the morph targets for the expression library. What it means in 3D jargon is I can make the model do facial expressions by mixing the morph targets which can be controlled by the dials in Poser. Each dial is created whenever a new morph target is added. I can always add a new morph target or expression in the future if there is a need. It may not be perfect but it is just for reference. The real reason to have a 3D model as a reference is because of the freedom to choose various camera angles and lighting. It enhances the mood in the story. In Palestine 3000 A.D. lighting is very crucial because of the noir style that I am opting.

The whole development took around one month. But I heard some people took 2 months to make it work properly. But that does not mean the next 19 models will take another 19 months. Once the procedure is perfected the rest will be painless. Most of the models will be used for many episodes to come. It is more productive in the long run.

The final stage is the drawing board. Not the traditional drawing board but the digital drawing board. This is the year 2010 and it is ethical to save trees that is to save paper. But the real reason behind it is to work in a digital domain where I can have more choices and flexibility. Mistakes can be undone at multiple levels and creative changes can be applied without dumping the whole thing. Yet the artist is not deprived of his traditional feel and procedures.

 Thanks to Photoshop for the layers concept. But the work below was not done in Photoshop. It was done on Manga Studio EX, another Smith Micro product. It is a software for doing comics but borrowed many of the Photoshop features and added all the comic tools. The blue lines drawing is for the lines indication while the red lines which is on a different layer is for the shadows indication. It feels very much like a pencil stroke but done using a Wacom tablet. The ‘paper’ can be rotated just like a compound light table for drawing better curve strokes.

This is the stage when I detached myself from the 3D domain and fully applied my expressions in a 2D  domain where pencil and ink can make most things possible without crunching numbers or cracking my head.

 Here is the quick inking that I have done. It is a mix of digital pen and pencil spread over various layers so that future changes can be done easily. I am still developing a style but it is quite close to what I have in mind.

  I prefer to make the good guys to look more human while the villains are more stylized or caricaturized so that we could connect easily with the good guys as humans. While the Zionist villains have more off-human features. People who acted inhumanely do not deserve human features. In Palestine 3000 A.D. I am the one that decides who is the hero. For the millions who wait the hero will surely come.

 

Technorati Tags: Palestine 3000 A.D.,Poser,FaceGen,Manga Studio

Self-Sustainable Living in 3000 A.D.

Living in the year 2010 can be unreal sometime. In this second millennium we are becoming more and more plugged to the system. All the energy and food resources are not within our control. Even our own homes are build by others. Yet we have or could acquire all the knowledge necessary to be self-sustainable. We spend nearly all our times working for others and a little or perhaps no time at all for ourselves. Are we really living in ‘The Matrix’?

To have a self-sustainable living is not a far-fetch idea. An architect named Mike Reynolds has been experimenting with a radical self-sustainable living in a desert in Taos, New Mexico for more than 35 years. But in our complacent lives we will always ignore such ideas unless a catastrophe happens. But in Palestine 3000 A.D. such situation did happen. After the great war all that remains is a hostile environment of acid dust. It was tough to visualize how things will be in a thousand years from now. Most likely something unimaginable but yet I need references of the present to link the story to the present situation in Palestine.

This hut-house design is one of the design that I can reveal here. It was inspired by Mike Reynolds’ Earthship self-sustainable housing. The concept is perfect for my story because in such apocalyptic situation people need to rebuilt and survive on their own. After reviewing various Earthship designs and typical old Middle Eastern mud houses, I came out with this simple design, a modest structure in an outpost:

Designing it with pencil was easy but the 3D modelling was quite challenging. The design is totally organic without any hard cubical shape. The structure uses three domes which are not hemispherical perfect by choice. The Earthship’s tyre element was abandon because it may ends up as a large mansion which will not reflect a peasant life. The domes connected together in a unique way using a small elongated sphere to form a connecting gateway. From the top view the connecting sphere is clearly seen in the centre.

 The final design do not faithfully represent the initial pencil sketch. The doors and windows are repositioned according to the script where the characters stand, walk, and even run. But certain elements from the Earthship design still remain like the gutter and the energy panel on the roof. I have added a silo kind of structure and also some kind of communication structure.It is possible to built the structure in this present day. Everything was done to scale. The glass windows and doors are not flat. The curvature follows the contour of the dome. That might be difficult for an individual to built. So is the solar panel on both roof. It might not be energy efficient to have it on a curve shape facing both solstices But this is the future. The technology probably a thousand times better then. Perhaps energy resources may be cultivated rather than bought.

Here is the wireframe view revealing the interior and also the human height reference. The interior is fully furnished but there are still some modifications to be done. The most difficult part of designing this structure is trying to keep it  simple.

The above are just the computer previews and not the final visual treatment. The hut-house is actually a crime scene in the story. As a great fan of CSI Las Vegas I had placed much detail in the design. Where things are positioned and how they look like. It is tough to decide not to be influenced by today's perspective and not to be too futuristic like Star Wars. Even as simple it may seems the design went through fifty iterations. That is damn a lot for a modest hut-house in a graphic novel.

Palestine 3000 A.D. is not just a futuristic fiction or just to remind us about the situation in Palestine right now. It is also a reminder about our own situation of being too plugged to the system. It is not just about energy or food resources but also our thinking because most of it are fed by the system especially the west. Perhaps we can never survive outside of the system but sometime we need to unplug. We need to free our mind.

 

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Sub-Razor: The Underground Rover

 The Sub-Razor is a military vehicle mainly to transport insurgents underground in Palestine 3000 A.D.. The sketch above is the second iteration that I have done recently for the graphic novel. I was not happy with the former window design which I have replaced with a round glass port hole. But the real main design obstacle is the top hatch which is used for entry and exit. It is also the same area where the landing chute is deployed. That will be a physical obstacle. But I do not want to fall into deep rationale when molecular synthesis is a norm in the future. I may sound Greek but it is better than a geek who speaks in binary.

The passenger compartment can accommodate four people including the pilot. In the story only three persons rode in the Sub-Razor during an escape operation. The space is quite tight and almost like our present day submarine. It also dives deep but in this case a subterranean deep.

The above is the final rendered model. The initial idea came out of nothing. 100% pure imagination. For functionality  I have to look into the real world and borrowed some mechanical suspension system design for the bottom half. The top half came from my right brain after a couple of mugs of thick hot cocoa and grunge music and remain sober.

Riding the Sub-Razor is like riding a roller coaster in the dark. The situation is intense. It is about ‘what is going to happen next?’. So hold on to your seat.

 

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Sub-Crawler: The Underground Spaceship

The design above is called the Sub-Crawler. It is a gigantic excavation machine that is operated by two operators in Palestine 3000 A.D.. The approach of the design is very much the film method that is to apply details only to the part that is visible to the camera. The top sketch is the first iteration where there are more details on the body. While the bottom design is the final iteration where there is no detail on the body because of it is buried in the ground. In the actual scene of the graphic novel the focus is mainly on the head. Much of the detail is actually in the interior where the controller room is located.

The final 3D design of the head is not faithfully the same as the 2D sketch. The sketch came from pure imagination while the 3D design is technically accurate. The final design only has one head light and one level of pilot lights. It is not practical to have the second level like on the pencil sketch.

The reason for the second iteration is because I was trying to find a proper spot to place the entrance door. I finally found a good spot on the bottom right of the picture. The placement goes well according to the script. That also give an idea the size of human head to toe compared to the machine.

The visual treatment for the final print is not the same as the 3D rendered picture above. Though I was tempted to show it but let save it for the final.

 

Technorati Tags: Sub-Crawler. underground,excavation,graphic Novel

The Bastards’ Weapon

There are a number of self-imposed restriction that I applied in Palestine 3000 A.D. One of it is the weapon technology. It is difficult to imagine a story of the future without major explosive weapons or even the typical laser like. Do warriors fight cowardly from the distance or face each other like brave old medieval knights? I prefer the later but with weapons of much advance technology.

I had look into old archives of medieval weapons but it did not sparked any idea. But I do love heavy metallic weapons. It is more masculine than the laser kind. So I peeked into my tool box where there are many solid metal devices. The spark of  inspiration came and I assembled a composite and add a game controller feature for a touch of technology. A new weapon was invented, a two handled sabre.  I named it the Bastard’s Sabre after the nickname of the three villains in the story.

The 3D modelling was challenging because of some of the organic form of the weapon. Some features evolved from the original design and that is expected. The handle is borrowed from some parts of M16 assault rifle. The controller buttons and wheels were carefully design so that it is reachable from both handle. If you are wondering how do the weapon function or what special technology it is designed upon then you have to wait till the graphic novel is publish.

 

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PEDD – The Future Tech Gadget

When designing for a futuristic story nowadays it is difficult not to introduce some kind of gadget. Pieces of the future that we hope to emulate. It is not surprising that many of our present day gadgets were inspired by futuristic works like Star Trek and many others. I myself could not shunt away from that idea for my graphic novel Palestine 3000 A.D.. Practically we humans need some kind of tool to help our everyday task. Unlike most of the social statement gadgets of present day, the gadgets in Palestine 3000 A.D. are real necessity for survival.

 The gadget above is called the PEDD acronym for Personal Encoder-Decoder Device an advance PDA. It is used to analyse things and also to synthesize things on a molecular level. In the third millennium the manufacturing of things are not done by factories but by individuals. The technology is so advanced that even a little boy like the character in the story could synthesize or emulate his own things. The question of where  and how he got it and how much it cost has no parallel to our present time. The reason that I introduced it is because it is an integral part of the story.

PEDD is the first 3D model that I did for Palestine 3000 A.D. It is actually the reason that I chose to have 3D references for the project. In the first scene I had tried various camera angles of the boy holding the PEDD. While doing the sketches I had a problem visualizing the PEDD in those various angles because PEDD do not exist in real life. Based on my pencil sketch I was quite sure that it is easy to be model in 3D for I had done 3D models for many years. I am glad that I did because in a 3D environment I came to realized many possibilities and corrected the perception of the initial 2D design. It could also be used as a promotional tool.

 

Technorati Tags: Palestine 3000 A.D.,Gadget,Graphic Novel