Our own Malefico — Claudio Andaur — has co-authored a new guide to movie production, focused around the Licuadora short film, Mercator.
Recently well reviewed at Blender Nation, check it out!
At the Bit Films blog, our compadre Chris Perry has posted multi-stage details of his cool project to create a Digital Cinema Package for The Incident at Tower 37.
DCP is the digital cinema distribution format, delivered via hard drives which plug directly into theater projectors. Realizing that “we’re really just talking about some fancy conversions to a non-proprietary format,” rather than resorting to expensive commercial solutions, Chris set out to mine the resources free/libre software offers the independent filmmaker.
Bassam’s small contribution was to cry “FFmpeg!” when Chris wished, “If only there was a tool to automatically output PNGs from a QuickTime movie…”
Check out the climax and how-to, or head to the beginning for Making a DCP, Part 1.
For some the calendar is based on the sun; for some, the moon. For we of the Tube project, the calendar is loosely tethered to the inscrutable workings of the Hampshire College academic year. Hosted as we are by its Computer Graphics Incubator Space, the project has fallen under the influence of local rhythms. In the crunch to get ready for the ambitious schedule on which we embark with the start of this new term, the blog has fallen a bit quiet — so there is a backlog of cool developments to relate!
Tube is in part an experiment in distributed collaboration, with a team spread all over the globe, but we also have a great and growing cluster of people collected at the “drome”. Look out for numerous additions to the ‘team’ page, including several satisfying adjustments to the chromosomal divide. We have also been very pleased to welcome Jarred de Beer back from South Africa for a second stint, upgraded from Intern 3D Generalist to Senior Vice Volunteer. And in more good news, yesterday his travel papers came through, so Pablo Lizardo joins us next week from Argentina!
Before things really heat up around here, Bassam and I took a little holiday to visit family in the UAE. On the way back, a long layover in Amsterdam allowed us to drop in at the Blender Institute where the Durian open movie is underway.
Ton kindly made us coffee and invited us to Durian’s morning meeting. They are hard into the grind, and we wish our brave compadres all the best with their fantastical enterprise!
Updates about the exciting progress of our own work will follow soon, stay tuned.
Calling all students (18+) and recent graduates:
Applications are open to join Bassam and his crew for Spring internships, hosted by the very cool Bit Films Incubator Program at Hampshire College, Massachusetts.
Helmed by Chris Perry, formerly of Pixar and Rhythm & Hues, the program draws together a number of interesting projects and a lot of talent, so although the internships are unpaid, it promises to be a very stimulating and fruitful space.
The internship period runs from January 25 through May 14. Please note that applications are due (via email) no later than Monday, January 4 at 5pm (EST).
More information at Bit Films. Still have questions? Comment!
Calling all students (18+) and recent graduates:
This summer, Bassam will be working on Tube as a visiting artist in BitFilms’ very cool new collaborative studio program. We are not yet legally allowed to reveal its site, so must offer only the clue that BitFilms exists “at the intersection of industry and academia”, somewhere in the midst of Amherst and Northampton (Massachusetts).
The BitFilms studio will host several interesting projects and a lot of talent, so although the internships are unpaid, it promises to be a very stimulating and fruitful space. Please note that since this was a sudden development, time is short to apply. Intern applications are due (via email) no later than Tuesday, 19 May at 5pm (EDT).
From the FAQ: Interns will get to work on cutting-edge non-commercial graphics and animation projects under the mentorship of professionals in the field. Interns will have access to a fully-equipped workstation and substantial computer animation production infrastructure. Interns will receive a signed, written evaluation from their supervisor(s) at the end of the internship period acknowledging their contributions, as well as a credit in each final production they worked on.
More information at BitFilms, internship link at top. Still have questions? Comment!
- Affiliated Organizations:
- Blender
- Bitfilms
- Hampshire College