Tuesday, October 25, 2005
Friday, October 21, 2005
I took a tour of Rhythm & Hues studio today. I took a tour once before, but this time our group was smaller and more intimate. And we were able to ask a lot more questions. Boooy do I want to work there. They showed us some stuff from the upcoming Narnia film, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and it's looking sweet! They want everyone to know that they did the animation for Aslan and the other main CG characters, not Weta as the websites seem to suggest. Weta Workshop did the prop design and the character design, but the actual CG work was done at R&H, with some work also done at Sony and ILM. Sigh. I want a real job....
I think my biggest hurdle is my own laziness. It's really hard to get over it. I've been out of Berkeley for almost four years now, and it seems like I've been taking far too long to get my act together. Gotta work on my reel, gotta work on my reel....
My car is finally done! Now I just have to go pick it up. Hah, they said it would take one day, and it ended up taking two weeks!
BTW, everyone has gone and seen Serenity, right? My longtime readers will know how much I loved the show Firefly when it was on the air and how frustrated I was when it kept getting pre-empted by baseball and whatnot. Well, three years later, it's got a bigger following through the DVDs than the original fans. Which only goes to prove that had the network toughed it out (and not scheduled it on Friday night -- where shows go to die), then they would've had a huge hit on their hands. The movie was great. It's a bigger wet dream for fans than non-fans, but many non-fans say that after they watched the movie they want to watch the show. During the last tour of R&H, actually, I saw a tape for a scene from Serenity that they composited. I was drooling, and it would've been veeery tempting to sneak a look. For those of you that like character-driven sci-fi westerns, you definitely have to watch the movie. If you want some insight into the show, then the fan podcast is pretty good.
Alright, 10-4 peeps.
I think my biggest hurdle is my own laziness. It's really hard to get over it. I've been out of Berkeley for almost four years now, and it seems like I've been taking far too long to get my act together. Gotta work on my reel, gotta work on my reel....
My car is finally done! Now I just have to go pick it up. Hah, they said it would take one day, and it ended up taking two weeks!
BTW, everyone has gone and seen Serenity, right? My longtime readers will know how much I loved the show Firefly when it was on the air and how frustrated I was when it kept getting pre-empted by baseball and whatnot. Well, three years later, it's got a bigger following through the DVDs than the original fans. Which only goes to prove that had the network toughed it out (and not scheduled it on Friday night -- where shows go to die), then they would've had a huge hit on their hands. The movie was great. It's a bigger wet dream for fans than non-fans, but many non-fans say that after they watched the movie they want to watch the show. During the last tour of R&H, actually, I saw a tape for a scene from Serenity that they composited. I was drooling, and it would've been veeery tempting to sneak a look. For those of you that like character-driven sci-fi westerns, you definitely have to watch the movie. If you want some insight into the show, then the fan podcast is pretty good.
Alright, 10-4 peeps.
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
Now I'm getting a leetle less hours than I want at work, but I think I'll be okay, since the quarter's just started and includes the holiday season. Besides, even if I do lose my benefits, I was planning on not staying past the quarter anyway.
I originally hoped I would only end up working at Starbucks for about a year, though I knew that at the rate of my schooling, I would need two years at least. Ah, but one can hope. I'm somewhat sick of school at this point, and I can't wait to get working. I'm 26, and I've never had a "real" job. I'm sick of being poor, tired of having to rely on the generosity of others, and I'm ever so anxious to... well, get my life started. I'm in this inbetween stage where I'm older than a kid but still live like one. Sigh.
I "procured" a copy of the latest Nancy Drew video game Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon. The age level is 10 and up, so it wasn't hard. And it is addicting! It's one of those puzzle games where you "solve" a mystery by going around figuring out puzzles that will give you clues to the mystery. The animation was so-so (though I liked that it was stiff rather than disorientingly smooth) but the settings and textures were fabulous. Since I've been modeling my final project character, I'm more appreciative of how difficult it is. Just explaining to Matt today how I wanted a simple box created was hard enough. But I know my strengths and weaknesses, and for me, my strength (in the 3D world) is animation, followed by modeling, followed by a distant texturing, even more distant lighting, and way far in the back, rigging. So it's a good thing that Dave really likes texturing and Matt really likes rigging.
While I'm talking about jobs and 3D, I want to get something off my chest. My parents have been very supportive of my pursuing art... to a degree. They recognized that I had talent and definitely wanted me to pursue it... as a hobby. To them, art isn't something you make money at, it's something you do during the weekends and decorate your house with. My dad more than my mom knows that there are artistic careers out there, but they've never known anyone with one (other than my fashion designer aunt). So I've been stubborn, whiny, and argumentative, but mainly, I've gotten my way in pursuing an artistic career. My mother would be ecstatic if I told her that I'm giving up on art and becoming a lawyer/nurse/meter maid. Her latest argument has been that it's difficult to break into the animation industry, so I should instead spend my youth (relatively speaking) on something that's more stable and easier to get in to. The other week one of my teachers said this industry is hard and if he could, he would be a nurse so that he could work 4 days to support himself and then spend the other 3 days being creative.
Anyway, my point is, yes, it's a difficult industry to get in to, but I don't want to give up. I don't like how my mom wants me to give up before I even try. I know it's hard to get in, but honestly, who says I won't? It's in a way insulting, obliquely saying that I'm not talented enough to make it, so why waste my time trying. It's hard enough hearing about how tough it is from actual professionals without adding my parents to the mix. Am I living my dream or theirs?
That's one of the hardships of immigrants (or children of immigrants) that's rarely understood by the regular community. The stock answer is, I'm living my dream, this is America, it's my life. But we, the children of immigrants, know better. When your parents sacrifice so much and work so hard to bring you the opportunity to live out your dreams, well, you can't help but feel the guilt. This is horrible thing. It inspires a fear of failure (and a fear of success, oddly enough, because then you fear failing to keep up the success), and I think it makes people choose far too often the safe route versus their passion. I can't help it. I want to try. Even if I fail, I don't want to say I didn't even try. But what can I say, this subtle pressure is enough to mess with your head.
Anyway, gotta sleep. It's almost morning.
I originally hoped I would only end up working at Starbucks for about a year, though I knew that at the rate of my schooling, I would need two years at least. Ah, but one can hope. I'm somewhat sick of school at this point, and I can't wait to get working. I'm 26, and I've never had a "real" job. I'm sick of being poor, tired of having to rely on the generosity of others, and I'm ever so anxious to... well, get my life started. I'm in this inbetween stage where I'm older than a kid but still live like one. Sigh.
I "procured" a copy of the latest Nancy Drew video game Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon. The age level is 10 and up, so it wasn't hard. And it is addicting! It's one of those puzzle games where you "solve" a mystery by going around figuring out puzzles that will give you clues to the mystery. The animation was so-so (though I liked that it was stiff rather than disorientingly smooth) but the settings and textures were fabulous. Since I've been modeling my final project character, I'm more appreciative of how difficult it is. Just explaining to Matt today how I wanted a simple box created was hard enough. But I know my strengths and weaknesses, and for me, my strength (in the 3D world) is animation, followed by modeling, followed by a distant texturing, even more distant lighting, and way far in the back, rigging. So it's a good thing that Dave really likes texturing and Matt really likes rigging.
While I'm talking about jobs and 3D, I want to get something off my chest. My parents have been very supportive of my pursuing art... to a degree. They recognized that I had talent and definitely wanted me to pursue it... as a hobby. To them, art isn't something you make money at, it's something you do during the weekends and decorate your house with. My dad more than my mom knows that there are artistic careers out there, but they've never known anyone with one (other than my fashion designer aunt). So I've been stubborn, whiny, and argumentative, but mainly, I've gotten my way in pursuing an artistic career. My mother would be ecstatic if I told her that I'm giving up on art and becoming a lawyer/nurse/meter maid. Her latest argument has been that it's difficult to break into the animation industry, so I should instead spend my youth (relatively speaking) on something that's more stable and easier to get in to. The other week one of my teachers said this industry is hard and if he could, he would be a nurse so that he could work 4 days to support himself and then spend the other 3 days being creative.
Anyway, my point is, yes, it's a difficult industry to get in to, but I don't want to give up. I don't like how my mom wants me to give up before I even try. I know it's hard to get in, but honestly, who says I won't? It's in a way insulting, obliquely saying that I'm not talented enough to make it, so why waste my time trying. It's hard enough hearing about how tough it is from actual professionals without adding my parents to the mix. Am I living my dream or theirs?
That's one of the hardships of immigrants (or children of immigrants) that's rarely understood by the regular community. The stock answer is, I'm living my dream, this is America, it's my life. But we, the children of immigrants, know better. When your parents sacrifice so much and work so hard to bring you the opportunity to live out your dreams, well, you can't help but feel the guilt. This is horrible thing. It inspires a fear of failure (and a fear of success, oddly enough, because then you fear failing to keep up the success), and I think it makes people choose far too often the safe route versus their passion. I can't help it. I want to try. Even if I fail, I don't want to say I didn't even try. But what can I say, this subtle pressure is enough to mess with your head.
Anyway, gotta sleep. It's almost morning.
Monday, October 17, 2005
Hey Anonymous! Just out of curiosity, are you someone I know or are you some random websurfer who's glommed onto my blog?
Not much more to report today. Pip (or Frankenpip as Whateley likes to call her) is still in the shop, getting the airbag light turned off and other little things. It would only take a day, eh? Funny, it's been a week! Hah! Well, at least they're paying for my rental.
I've got a bit of a NAT problem with my bittorrents, but I'm not sure how to fix them. I've opened up various ports but they're "closed" according to those pinging websites, and I tried binding MAC addresses, but it just gets an error. So all in all, all I'm getting is at most 15 kB/s, and average 7 kB/s. Yes, it takes me a whole day to download one episode of Everwood. It might be better for me to just watch it when it shows on TV. But I'm trying to cut down on TV. I was just going to save the episodes until I had time to watch them, but when they're right there on your harddrive... well, it's hard to resist.
Not much more to report today. Pip (or Frankenpip as Whateley likes to call her) is still in the shop, getting the airbag light turned off and other little things. It would only take a day, eh? Funny, it's been a week! Hah! Well, at least they're paying for my rental.
I've got a bit of a NAT problem with my bittorrents, but I'm not sure how to fix them. I've opened up various ports but they're "closed" according to those pinging websites, and I tried binding MAC addresses, but it just gets an error. So all in all, all I'm getting is at most 15 kB/s, and average 7 kB/s. Yes, it takes me a whole day to download one episode of Everwood. It might be better for me to just watch it when it shows on TV. But I'm trying to cut down on TV. I was just going to save the episodes until I had time to watch them, but when they're right there on your harddrive... well, it's hard to resist.
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
I got a haircut recently from the Vidal Sassoon Academy. I figured, hey, it's right by where I work, it's cheap, and I could use the hair cut. So I got this trendy layered-do, but it took 3 HOURS for the student to cut my hair! I mean, when the front office lady said to expect 2 to 3 hours, I thought it'd be closer to two than three. When I get the time to style it properly, I'll take a picture and post it on this here blog. Anyway, I did get a nice haircut, and next time I'll be sure to schedule it better so that I don't end up being late to class. And if I can help it, I will try to get a person who seems to be a fast learner.
Anyway, on other issues... well, I found out that I'm pissing off my manager by being late a lot. Well... not late a lot. Usually I'm there within 5 minutes of the start of my shift. There were a few times I was 10 minutes late. And geez, the same day that my manager "warned" me about my constant lateness, one of the shift lead pulled me aside and told me that she "wants all of us to hustle a little more in the mornings so that we can be ready to just serve customers when we open the doors." I got a bit pissed off at that. First off, it's frickin' 5 in the morning. Second, I think I was moving at a decent pace. I've been at the job for over two years now (omg kill me) and I've become very effecient with my movements. And I refuse... REFUSE to run around for this job. They do not pay me enough to do that. They're lucky if I even speed walk. And that's the thing. If they want crappy quality at a hurried pace, I'll do it. But I have this... I don't know... weird sense of pride in my work (as sucky as it is) and I want to provide quality rather than breakneck speed. I feel like yelling at the corporate office that we are not a fast-food joint, and to demand that during a rush a customer should be in and out the store in 3 minutes is... well, it's not realistic. Unless they want crappy fast-food coffee. Hell, I can make fast crappy coffee. (Oh, you want soy? Well, it'll be mostly soy. You want fresh espresso? Well, it's been pulled sometime that morning!)
Anyway, my readers (including you, Anonymous, who I have no idea who you are!) please feel free to comment. I hope that when I get a job at a studio, they won't jump down my throat for being 5 minutes late. Hell, I might even be so happy to be there that I will be there early just to tinker with the equipment before other people arrive.
Anyway, on other issues... well, I found out that I'm pissing off my manager by being late a lot. Well... not late a lot. Usually I'm there within 5 minutes of the start of my shift. There were a few times I was 10 minutes late. And geez, the same day that my manager "warned" me about my constant lateness, one of the shift lead pulled me aside and told me that she "wants all of us to hustle a little more in the mornings so that we can be ready to just serve customers when we open the doors." I got a bit pissed off at that. First off, it's frickin' 5 in the morning. Second, I think I was moving at a decent pace. I've been at the job for over two years now (omg kill me) and I've become very effecient with my movements. And I refuse... REFUSE to run around for this job. They do not pay me enough to do that. They're lucky if I even speed walk. And that's the thing. If they want crappy quality at a hurried pace, I'll do it. But I have this... I don't know... weird sense of pride in my work (as sucky as it is) and I want to provide quality rather than breakneck speed. I feel like yelling at the corporate office that we are not a fast-food joint, and to demand that during a rush a customer should be in and out the store in 3 minutes is... well, it's not realistic. Unless they want crappy fast-food coffee. Hell, I can make fast crappy coffee. (Oh, you want soy? Well, it'll be mostly soy. You want fresh espresso? Well, it's been pulled sometime that morning!)
Anyway, my readers (including you, Anonymous, who I have no idea who you are!) please feel free to comment. I hope that when I get a job at a studio, they won't jump down my throat for being 5 minutes late. Hell, I might even be so happy to be there that I will be there early just to tinker with the equipment before other people arrive.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
