March 6, 2021 : Linus and Lucy

A normal Holiday tradition of mine is to relearn Linus and Lucy on piano (commonly known as the Peanuts theme song). Sadly, I haven’t done it the last two years. As such, I challenged myself the last month and change to spend 10-15 minutes a day on the song – even learning a slightly new arrangement. Below is the end result.

It’s far from perfect – with a few rough spots – but overall I was happy with it. I recorded it to keep myself honest with achieving my goal, but I also used it as an exercise in composition. The video wasn’t not nearly as theatrical as other piano pieces of mine, but it was fun nonetheless.

posted by Pi Visuals at 10:33 pm

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February 24, 2021 : The Heart of Batman Documentary

It apparently came out in 2018, but there’s a documentary about Batman: The Animated Series – and DC just put it up on their YouTube Channel.

The history of the show’s development was really cool, with plenty of insight and interviews from all the key players… and even a Kevin Conroy sighting!

Throw in some character sheets, tons of stills and Boards, and a bunch of 2.5D parallax effect on photos; and it’s a nice stroll down memory lane.

posted by Pi Visuals at 10:04 pm

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February 5, 2021 : Lightwave 2020 Will Have A Learning Curve

I finally got Lightwave properly installed – thanks to UrbanExile and with absolutely zero help from Newtek support (ugh). Unlike previous upgrades, it looks like I will need some time to study and learn about the new version. When opening up a previously created Scene in 2020, Lightwave creates new files and source directory folders. More importantly, the scene looks different, with the Textures/ Shaders (and thus renders) affected.

I am a little torn about this. To be honest, at the moment I don’t have the time to learn new software. One of the reasons I like Lightwave is my familiarity with it and how it fits into my pipeline so easily. Then again, these changes could signify Newtek actually improving the software. It’s worth pointing out these changes could very well have taken place in Lightwave 2018, but I skipped that upgrade.

In either case, it looks like they didn’t focus much on having satisfactory customer support… awful.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:27 pm

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January 15, 2021 : Adding C4D To The Arsenal

I still haven’t installed Lightwave 2020, but it’s on the To Do list. Also on said list is getting more familiar with Cinema 4D. I’ve used the program on and off over the last few years, but I wouldn’t call myself a regular (or proficient). That said, the software is great for motion graphics and complements After Effects really well.

As such, I am trying to make a more concerted effort to use it. I have identified a few professional projects where I can inject some C4D work in the pipeline. It’s not intended to create anything Earth-shattering. Instead, I want to give the final video some added flair. The goal isn’t to become a master but to get more fluent.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:19 pm

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December 30, 2020 : Lightwave 2020 – In The Arsenal

I finally got around to purchasing Lightwave 2020 this week. For tax reasons, I planned on doing it before the end of the year – and I did just before the deadline!

The last version I had was 2015… so yeah, it’s been a while. I haven’t installed it yet, nor do I have any plans to use it in the near future (or projects to use it on), but I’m excited. Lightwave is far from industry leading, but it fits nicely in my pipeline for certain things – and I always advocate using what works.

posted by Pi Visuals at 9:59 pm

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December 11, 2020 : Tis’ the Season – For This Year’s Holiday Card

During the Me and Me wrap up, some time was allocated to this year’s Holiday card:

The lift was minimal, compared to previous years; but it was nice to hop into Photoshop… it’s been too long. Small projects like these serve as a good break.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:42 am

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November 29, 2020 : Well, What’s Next?

Whenever I complete a project, there is a mix of emotions. Obviously a sense of accomplishment is there. However, I start to feel a certain anxiousness because I know a question to myself always arises: What’s next?

In the short term, there’s usually a list of items related to the recently finished project: uploading it, sharing it with peers, potential submissions to festivals (ugh), etc.

The past few weeks, I’ve been preoccupied with that along with a few non-Me-and-Me related things. Still, I’m starting to wonder what is next. At the moment, the answer is “I don’t know.” I’m always hesitant to jump into a new project, knowing I need some time to unwind; but couple that with the limited time I currently have to work on new projects, I’m not surprised that I don’t have an answer to the initial question.

At the same time, not working on much of anything is weird and won’t sit well with me. Therefore, I’d like to think I will try to occupy my time with something, even if it’s not intended to amount to anything. In the meantime, my goal is to enjoy the Holidays… and I’ll probably purchase and install the new version of Lightwave before the end of the year (for tax purposes).

posted by Pi Visuals at 12:51 am

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November 12, 2020 : ‘Me and Me’ Complete!

My new short, Me and Me, has finally been certified “Done”:

The last month was spent wrapping up loose ends and endlessly tweaking things. Since there wasn’t much of a deadline, I found it tougher than usual to put the pencil down.

That said, I liked how it came out. I will probably touch on a few pieces in future posts; but for now, I’ll just savor the feeling of a job well done.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:28 pm

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October 30, 2020 : Deep Dive Into Akira’s Animation

I’ll be honest, I’m not really a fan of Akira. I found the story to be both ‘bleh’ and confusing. Plus, I also could never get past the main character’s name (Dick Army… I mean Kaneda). As such, I’ve only seen it once and pretty much moved on.

I remember the animation being solid, but not enough to save it for me. The video dissects the big intro action scene and gave me a better appreciation of the movie:

It’s pretty technical, but not enough to prevent someone unfamiliar with animation to enjoy it (and appreciate the work). I still won’t say I like Akira, but I might at least give it another watch one of these days.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:53 pm

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October 17, 2020 : Making Some (Sweet?) Music

With animation and editing for the short nearly complete, I’ve moved on to the music. The music won’t take as prominent of a role compared to prior projects.

I only have three musical pieces for the short, each one about ten seconds. Still, the recording and mixing (both within the song itself and into the short) takes time.

The music component is the last major hurdle, and it’s easy to rush through this part just to get to the finish line; but that’s never a wise decision. Particularly with audio since it can easily ruin an otherwise solid project.

posted by Pi Visuals at 11:54 pm

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