stuff to look at more closely..

Oktava MK012A "Bello Nero" with Hypercardioid Capsule

Revolve Camera Dolly

Series 2 Costumes??

Randomly surfin' the web and came across these peacoat like jackets.. suddenly thinking costume ideas for Series 2.

http://www.rei.com/product/833306/marmot-backroad-fleece-jacket-mens-2011-closeout-peacoat-small?preferredSku=8333060005&cm_mmc=cse_froogle-_-datafeed-_-product-_-8333060005&mr:trackingCode=6B597C6C-655A-E111-BC1B-001B21631C34&mr:referralID=NA

http://www.google.com/shopping/offerdetails?q=mens+pea+coat&docid=3683073199898985235&ved=0CAcQxhA&ei=zYfcT7DkA5KMwAWJSQ

The Power of Imagination

A 9 year old boy makes a cardboard arcade.

Music for Trailers

Found this site while surfing YouTube for random music to edit to..

I Can Has Key?

Who returns handcuffs without keys?! Well, I learned the hard way.. never lend out props without some sort of insurances. Wasted a few hours hunting down the website I bought these from.. 'bout 5 years ago.

Yuil Model M-03 Solid Bar Handcuffs..
http://www.handcuffwarehouse.com/yuilmodm03so.html

Luckily the website sells spare keys.

UFO!!

Gotta love YouTube.. you can find anything!!

VR Comic Book??

Since commissioning a few concept drawings for series 2.. I've been thinking about making episode 4 (series 1 originally had 4 episodes planned.. not just 3) into a comic book. It would allow me to finally wrap up the story and characters.. as well as, setup series 2.

http://comicartcommissions.com/

Microphones

Maybe using a shotgun mic isn't the way to go to nab dialog.. especially in my cramped sets. I'll be starting a list of suggestions for alternate mics..

Oktava MK-012

They're Alive!

Here I am with Adam setting up the cockpit sets for Pandora Machine's "The Prometheus Trap."  Even after a couple of years in storage.. both sets weathered it pretty well.. and surprisingly went back together with little resistance.

Lenses

Relatively inexpensive FX lenses..
http://www.lensbaby.com/

Think I'd like to try and emulate a more Kubrickian style in the new "Venus Rises." Play with mirrors and rotate the camera 360 degrees.. simulating a centrifuge.

To-Do List for 2-25-12

1. Finish up promo book. Scan hand drawn blueprints.. scan a page or 2 from script that's heavy with hand written notes.. include climatic scene between Sam and Nathan from episode 4.

2. Build new story teaser. Render CG in HD aspect ratio. Have a new narration recorded.

3. Remaster past episodes with new theme music.

4. Finish dialog/music mix for "Resist," Part 1.

5. Start new website. Include a 'comments' section.

6. Build a new YouTube channel specifically for VR. Upload "Crossroads," Part 1 and behind-the-scenes clips.

7. Build teasers for episodes 2 and 3.

8. Make expansive blooper/bts reel.

9. Play through Mass Effect 1 and 2 to be ready for 3's release!

Hi-res Planets

$394 - 3D Model - Hyperreal Solar System Pack - LightWave 7.0
http://www.the3dstudio.com/product_details.aspx?id_product=75774

$97 - 3D Model - Venus - LightWave 7.0
http://www.the3dstudio.com/product_details.aspx?id_product=75189

$97 - 3D Model - Mars - LightWave 7.0
http://www.the3dstudio.com/product_details.aspx?id_product=75287

$247 - 3D Model - Hyperreal Dynamic Earth - LightWave 7.0
http://www.the3dstudio.com/product_details.aspx?id_product=46615

New Characters for Series 2

Main Character is a woman.. mid to late thirties. Her husband mysteriously vanished (presumed dead) and left her with an overwhelming amount of debt.. and ownership to a salvage ship. Having to feed herself and her son.. she took over her late husband's job and assumed the captain's role. She now scrapes together a living ferrying supplies between Venus and Mars.

Adolescent (main character's son). From his perspective, he was torn away from everything and everyone he knew to help his mother operate and maintain the salvage ship. He's rebellious and resentful over being trapped on a spaceship indefinitely. When he's not fixing some aspect of the ship, he spends most of his free time surfing the info-net (VR's form of the internet) seeking out interaction with kids his own age.. especially girls.

Muscle. He's a paid mercenary hired by the main character to help pilot the ship.. but mostly he's there to intimidate employers who might otherwise take advantage of an inexperienced woman captain.

Suit. He's a liaison for the mega-corporation that owns the salvage ship. He's there to observe the main character and to be sure she does everything in her power to pay off her debt (in a timely manner) without unnecessarily risking her only collateral.. the spaceship.

Military Brat. Female, early twenties, a private in the Mars Defense Directorate. She's assigned to the 'Suit' as his bodyguard. She sees the position beneath her.. but had no choice in accepting the assignment since she's on disciplinary review. She's an outstanding pilot.. overly aggressive.. which has gotten her in trouble more then once. The adolescent quickly becomes infatuated with her.

Corridor Concepts

Robotic Arm

I'm been toying around with the idea of building a full size EVA pod for an actor to sit in. For it's manipulating arm I was thinking 'bout simply re-painting a toy.. and having it interact with a scaled down prop piece of the spaceship's outer hull. If it proves to look too 'fake,' I could go as far as degrading the footage to make it look like a video feed from the pod - itself.

Purchasing link..

http://www.amazon.com/OWI-OWI-535-Robotic-Arm-Edge/dp/B0017OFRCY/ref=sr_1_5?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1330116356&sr=1-5

Early Set Ideas

Picture dump to get the creative juices flowing..

New Spaceship Ideas

Been thinking about the new hero ship for series 2. She'll be a salvage ship.. patrolling the space lanes for broken down/stranded spacecraft and towing them back to port. Sorta the 'AAA' of the future :) It'll need a way to pull the other ships.. I was thinking a giant claw.. which led me to remember the Leonov from "2010: The Year We Made Contact."

Costume T-Shirts?!

Could possibly use this to make simple, custom t-shirts for characters.
http://www.zazzle.com/

It's been awhile since I've priced anything.. but this could be a quicker/cheaper method over buying the blank printable iron-ons and making the shirts myself.

Picking a Web Host

Looking for web hosts today. The feature that matters the most to me is how well it supports joomla. Second is customer service.

A quick google search gave me this link..
http://www.joomlahostingreviews.com/

Which in turn directed me here..
http://www.hostgator.com/

My templates of choice..
http://www.rockettheme.com/

Not as pricey as I first thought :)

Think I'd like to emulate this nice clean design for the new VR website..
http://www.eveonline.com/