Sometimes a trip’s final destination is second to that of it’s journey. I believe this to be very true at times and at other times, on par. With every trip I take, whether it be across country or just a few hours north, it’s always the random places I stop and investigate that intrigue me most.

To relate, Thatgamecompany released “Journey” on PS3. I was skeptical. It’s a pretty game, but that is never enough to hold my interest. Once the glitter fades, there is not much to love if that is the basis of it all. (This holds true to most of life’s situations)

Journey did not disappoint, while it is a work of moving art, it is also an unbelievably clever social experiment. Much like Wall-e, a word is never spoken. And yet, emotion is felt. The difference would be in that you are exploring this world… and you come across another, who is also exploring. But you cannot speak to them in terms of a language you…or me… can understand. It is all blips and bloops, a visual language of “hey, look here” or “look what i found”. It’s the equivalent of throwing a rock at someone and trying to get their attention.

And yet, it works magnificently.

A language barrier is destroyed by using no single language alone. It’s all visual. It’s… emotionally beautiful and the story is still conveyed perfectly. A simple story of a character’s journey from a barren, soulless desert, to a mountain of light. You discover beautiful lands as well as unwelcome, tundra-like terrains… and at one point, you all but give up on your journey… with your companion (who you never know who they are) also… well I won’t say anything to ruin the story.

Terribly moving. A work of art. Nothing short of precise: quality: art.

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So between the last 2 talented souls, my assisting character of the story is taking a good… no, GREAT shape and likeness! From the sketches and using a little creative liberties, I’ve combined my vision with the general dimensions and shape of Gale’s drawings. Working with Todd Danielle, I was able to get her to look pretty damn close in 3D as her 2D drawings.

Here’s a few images from Maya.

And one more of my sketches over the 3D version, fine tuning some of the Characteristics that separate it from a model to someone with Appeal and who is believable. Charisma! It has to feel real or it’s a waste of time to animate at all. Animating a character is not making him/her move. It’s much more than that. Give it life, relate to them, … even feel the need to care and love them. That’s animating.

I just wish I had more time to work on this lately. I’m almost ashamed at the lack of progress I’ve had in the past few months. Life gets in the way, they say… but this is my life! Let THIS be the thing that gets in the way!

I will share more again soon. BIG THANKS to those who’ve assisted me thus far!

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I’m fairly satisfied with this having been out of the painting/coloring loop for awhile and it feels DAMN GOOD to be showing some effective lighting. I want to really rely on the computer monitor as my light source while having a slightly lower light from the outside, making the room seem even darker when night is brighter.

More soon. Crunch time at work! Need my rest

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TO LIBERTY!  My second location, the meetup of friends, is at Ellis Island, where The colors shift from the sad, lonely blues to the fresh, HAPPY blue of the sky and colorful grass, water, city skyline.

The Arrival, many people coming off the boat, they clear, as Nick comes off, looking around for his friend after viewing his pamphlet, like the NYC hermit he is.

A happy, excited, awkward arrival to Ellis Island.

He finds his friend, whose new to NYC, but looks and acts much more comfortable and welcoming, like they’ve been traveling their whole life, exploring and enjoying everything this world has to offer, without hesitation or regrets. This is represented by the stance, the colors, the solidarity.

Silliness occurs!

We just wanted to do silly things, like have the statue of liberty hold a coke or being able to simultaneously jump in the frame. This was quite a feat. It took many tries since it was on a timer. Honestly, the best part is BECAUSE it was like that. This was some redic fun and I can only imagine the amount of people who saw us trying to do this over and over again.

They leave the island, only to have a sad event. I will keep this silent for now, as I wish not to ruin anything. I only wish to convey the up and downs, colors, layouts of such moments.

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So it’s been awhile and i’m not happy about that. So i’m taking inspiration from my good friend Christine and gung hoing forward. I don’t have alot of time these nights (It’s crunch time at work for the next few nights) but I figure if I keep the ball moving even a little bit, it’s better than nothing.

GALE WILLIAMS! She is what it’s all about when it comes to getting cleaner sketches done. She took my second main character and drew her up with good proportions and nice colors.

Beautiful Turnarounds. Thanks Gale

As far as setting, I decided to focus on the room tonight, the one “Nick” will be resided in the beginning and the end. This is his creative location, the place he can be/do anything he wants. It’s where his ideas breathe, take life, and run.

But for some reason, he hasn’t felt that in awhile. His room actually feels like a prison, something that is confining rather than releasing.

The walls are covered in photos of his previous outside engagements, memories, and joys.

He puts them up to remind him, but “life got in the way” and he’s without these creative feelings anymore.

Life became routine. It no longer had freedom.

But then, he gets the chance for exploration, much like Carl Fredricksen, getting back that feeling he once had (or in Carl’s case, never quite got to experience).

A couple extra photos for reference deal with the window in the room. I want it to be blue, raining, NYC/Brooklyn apt style. Tiny, on top of each other, and claustrophobic. This is a tiny detail, but it’ll go a long way in setting up the first scene. So many people in one place and yet you can still feel alone. It’s quite an unbelievable feat in my opinion.

This is where I leave off for the night. As far as colors, painting style, and how I could like it to feel, a couple more references from the best.

I love the mood of these tones and I will be heavily using it to contrast the later colors, which take place outside and near the statue of liberty. BRIGHT! HAPPY! Like having a mouth full skittles and realizing they’re ALL BLUE SKITTLES! (The best!)

Some video of the statue of liberty along with the ferry I’ll be using for my short. I’d ignore the audio, unless you’d like a tour.

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Time for the room sketches to give it some life.

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This feels good! I had so much passion for this when I came up with the story and I want to keep it alive and fresh. A little a day goes a long way.

Art is by Gale Williams, Color test by me.

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To see the highlights, check out http://www.nicklogic.com/blog/?page_id=164

And one of my favorites:

The modeling is going well on Project Liberty. The next post will show my progress. So much going on!

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Motivation is pretty easy to find. It’s hand in hand, walking down the street, with inspiration. Don’t tread too far from inspiration and motivation will never be further than an effort’s length away.

The beauty? Motivation breeds motivation. Others around you will want to do it too.

Now all they need to find is that pesky inspiration…

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Here’s a picture of my screen when I work sometimes, since this post is so short and lame.

OH! And here’s my new business card

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