This is not a joke. It is finally finished. Granted, we got lazy with a few things… but we just wanted to see it done. And now, finally, it is complete. I look at it now and see so many things I could do better, but really can’t be bothered and just want to move on to the next thing.
So on that note, please enjoy and I sincerely hope it was worth the wait (doubtful).
Yes, you heard me right. It’s nearly done. Now before you get too excited, keep in mind it’s been “nearly done” for a long time now. However, this time it’s actually really close. There is a small amount of VFX work left (one spell effect and some environment lighting), and then it’s just about finishing the sound effects and music.
I hope it will be done this month. That is definitely possible. Whether it happens or not, we’ll see. But I’m going to try. It’s been over two years working on this thing and I just want it finished. Judging from this blog post though, I seem to be procrastinating by talking about it, rather than just doing it.
Also after all the hooplah with the new Star Wars movie, we’re in the mood to make a (hopefully less VFX-heavy) short film with lightsabers and lasers and pew pew pew! Hopefully that will motivate us to get this one done as quickly as possible, though it will likely be a little while before we get the next short done (let alone started). It will probably also be a more expensive endeavour, but could be really cool.
The Beast is the name I have affectionately given to this last shot, as it is the longest single shot in the film (10 seconds) – which is a lot of keyframing… especially at 60fps (why did we decide to shoot it like that…?!). It’s also a lot more time consuming, as instead of using 2D elements and moving them around to look like they’re interacting in 3D space, I’m using 3D elements and a virtual camera. This makes certain things easier, but ultimately makes it harder for me to animate and control elements (more due to my lack of experience than the elements themselves).
The good news is that it is the last shot left on the film… sort of. There’s still some finishing touches and things to fix up on other shots, but for the bulk of it, this is the final one. So that’s exciting. Although it’ll take a while to do just this shot, so don’t hold your breath. Then there’s still sound effects and music to finish.
It’s getting closer though… and oh my, I just realised, it’s been almost a year since we filmed this. We filmed it on the 18th of December, 2013. So it looks like it will take over a year just for the post-production. That’s a little depressing. But it’s also exciting because that means it’s almost Christmas! Hooray!