Toddler Tales!

Finally! Toddler Tales makes it way to my blog; and only two months after completing the project. The characters were all created in Illustrator and animation was completed in After Effects. We scrapped the first voice we had and got an eight-year-old to lay down the final audio. It sounds good, but it took hours to cut it all together into something cohesive. The client was very happy with the end product and I believe it is still airing on BET.

On a side note, I’m going to try and upload more of my examples to this blog, perhaps link to YouTube so users will be able to watch a High-Quality version instead of the little Blogger version… Hmmm, more on that later.

D.C. Motion Graphics Artists Meetup: PART DEUX!

As Promised, the second D.C.-area Motion Graphics meet is upon us. We had an alright turnout the last time around and I'd like to see even more people come out this time! I've fixed a few of the issues we had with the last meeting place and have found a venue that is Metro-accessible, serves food and is a little bit brighter.

The next meet up will take place at Johnny Rockets at Penn Galleria. Here's a link to their locations page:

http://www.johnnyrockets.com/locations/loc...=DC&orders=

There were some people that recommended this place for the last meeting, and I think it would be a better venue then the Palace of Wonders-if only for the Metro access and the fact that they serve food. as for the time, I think 6:30 on a Sunday would work best because people won't have to stay out too late on a school night and it shouldn't interfere with most weekend plans.

If anyone has questions or concerns let me know and I will address them ASAP. I will also have my laptop there if anyone wants to show off their reel and get a live critique.

See you there!

Nick Vaka

April 26 2009

6:30 PM
Johnny Rockets

2000 Pennsylvania Ave, NE, Ste. 10
Washington DC, 20006 USA
Phone: 703-626-9363

Free Time? Time to Train!

Logo © Sega Enterprises

So last week was a bit slow on the work front so I did what any freelancer should do when they find themselves with too much time (besides landing new gigs :D), I learned a new skill! I've started playing around with Cinema 4D. So far, I'm ecstatic. The interface is far more intuitive than other 3D suites I've used, and the integration with After Effects is a powerful tool. The end result of working with the software was this: A quick little logo animation with some simple materials and a camera. I didn't worry too much about specular highlights or reflections at this stage. I just wanted to get familiar with the tools and the interface a little. I'll put something a bit more advanced up in the near future, but for now, just letting you know what I'm up to. My next task (beyond getting more familiar with the material editor), will be playing with Mograph!