Grand Space Opera 2D Entry: ryanberg

[blurry6]

Hey folks!

Looks like there's a LOT of great stuff in this challenge. I've 'lurked' in the BG forever, but decided to buck-up and actually test my lame artistic abilities for this one. Here's a quick rough to test out a 'yet-to-be-worked-out-composition' that's been spinning around my head,...I have yet to really capture it, but here's a sample of my 'working-thru' the process. Hopefully, I'll get happy with the basic layouts soon,...not much time left :)

My 'vision' of a SPACE OPERA,...particularly the word 'opera', seems to denote a sense of tragedy,...of love lost,...of turmoil,...In my head I see a couple in their last moments of being together,...the future uncertain, say what is possibly their last goodbye,...(sniff, sniff,...:) In any case, I'm going to either put a battle in the BG, or a space fleet taking off,...or a city in ruin,...etc. SOMETHING that says "this is the last stand",...In fact, I'll go with that theme,...The Last Stand,...

http://blurry6.50megs.com/05a00b40.png

[blurry6]

oops....:)

[V_Shane]

That could be a bit more intense with the right angle and dramatic perspective applied. Think of it as a comic book panel if that helps any. It might also feel more vivid if one of them were dinstinctly alien (breaking that "race" barrier that love overcomes).

[blurry6]

http://www.cgnetworks.com/challenge/entries/6/5407/5407_1102311038_medium.jpg (http://www.cgnetworks.com/challenge/entries/6/5407/5407_1102311038_large.jpg)

Here's another sketch,...working on the camera angles mostly. Pay NO attention to the hanger and that lame ship in the BG - it's going to change.

I kinda liked the 'alien' idea,...thought I'd give the girl and her attendant ears and a sleek bodysuit, and the guy's buddy some bulk and a cro-mag brow...not sure if I'm sold on it, but it kinda works.

I need to add more DRAMA,..after all this is an OPERA! I'll work on it,...let me know your thoughts :)

[dhenton9000]

I like the hangar.

If you include a open shuttle door (complete with stairs) behind the women, then we'd get the idea that they are leaving soon. A bit more narrative. A variation on the old airport goodbye routine.

[walrus]

Blurry - i like what you're doing here, and how in the midst of all of our spaceship battles and world-destructo-devices, you have chosen to emphasize the emotional connection between two people. That can carry a lot of weight, more than the largest mothership! :-)

Because of the more extreme camera angle, I feel that the first shot has more drama in it than the more recent one. I like the tension in the pose of the main female's body - the reaching out, the leaning forward - but it doesn't feel like any of the other characters have quite that level of tension. Maybe the person holding her could be straining a bit more, maybe her guy could look more plaintive, trying to explain, yearning, reaching out, shrinking back, something! And the older man with him, what's his take on this whole scene, i'm not reading any emotion at all from him. If you're going to go with the more classic definition of opera, the emotions are often larger than life, so my advice to you would be to make it all larger. Good luck with it all!

-mike

[blurry6]

Blurry - i like what you're doing here, and how in the midst of all of our spaceship battles and world-destructo-devices, you have chosen to emphasize the emotional connection between two people. That can carry a lot of weight, more than the largest mothership! :-)

Because of the more extreme camera angle, I feel that the first shot has more drama in it than the more recent one. I like the tension in the pose of the main female's body - the reaching out, the leaning forward - but it doesn't feel like any of the other characters have quite that level of tension. Maybe the person holding her could be straining a bit more, maybe her guy could look more plaintive, trying to explain, yearning, reaching out, shrinking back, something! And the older man with him, what's his take on this whole scene, i'm not reading any emotion at all from him. If you're going to go with the more classic definition of opera, the emotions are often larger than life, so my advice to you would be to make it all larger. Good luck with it all!

-mike
I absolutely agree with you Walrus, and had EXACTLY what you mentioned in mind for this piece. However, I didn't really want to take the time to convey all the emotion of the characters as I'm still not sure of the camera angles,...but I'll be gettin' to it! I also agree with your assessment of the most recent sketch: not as dramatic as the first example, but I DO like the fact that it allows me more 'room to maneuver' in creating a compelling environment,...it's a balance. I might go back toward the setup of the first, but pull-back from the characters a 'little' bit to allow more of the BG to come into frame,...still gotta figure out what I'm gonna do there,...still gotta find ANY time I can to work on this thing :) Thanks for the comment.

[blurry6]

http://www.cgnetworks.com/challenge/entries/6/5407/5407_1103648757_medium.jpg (http://www.cgnetworks.com/challenge/entries/6/5407/5407_1103648757_large.jpg)

What started as a quick sketch of a possible vehicle for the image turned into an experiment with a technique I saw on a clip of one of Ryan Church's Gnomon videos. I kinda like the technique: basically, establish mid-tones and base color as a flat and then using Painter's glow-brush to bring out highlights and details. Of course, I went a little HOG-WILD as you can see, and I haven't finished this pic, but as an experiment, it was kinda fun to play with.

As for the basic silhoette of the vehicle, I kinda like it,...still need to resolve a lot of design elements, but I think the basics are OK,...this sketch has some wonky perspective and is not nearly as clean as the 'technique' I played with require, but overall it's 'OK' and is developed enough to share,...

[AirbORn]

I like the concept, but it does not feel grand enough or important enough, in the sense that the story that is taking place in your concept doesn't feel importent enough. I am assuming you are trying to protray two important people who, though their speration, will change the course of history. To heighten this emotion I would create two enormous crowds trying to keep the two people seperated and have the two people being seperated stretch their arms out as far as they can with all their strength to hold onto each other. This I think would be a beautiful and touching composition, which you already have, you just need to heighten that feeling through the visuals.

[YeeWu]

This concept sounds pretty operatic :)

I agree with AirbORn about the crowds. While I don't think enormous crowds are really necessary, I think the lovers should be restrained by more than one person each, and more dynamically (like having the person behind the guy have his arms locked around the guy's chest or something) to give it more tension.

Good idea, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how you solve the camera angle :)

[blurry6]

This concept sounds pretty operatic :)

I agree with AirbORn about the crowds. While I don't think enormous crowds are really necessary, I think the lovers should be restrained by more than one person each, and more dynamically (like having the person behind the guy have his arms locked around the guy's chest or something) to give it more tension. I'm with both you and AirbORn on this. It does need more tension and emotion. I've been toying with the idea of a 'sacrifice' - the guy or girl playing the role of an 'offering' to some galactic-god, or molevolent alien race,...some ceremony with a big crowd, burning torches, priests, the whole nine-yards,...but hasn't that been done to death?

I was also thinking of a 'surrender' - the scene is a battlefield, or devasted kingdom of some type (read: burning buildings, craters, smoke, fire, you know the drill) the guy being taken away in shackles by the big-meanies (read: molevolent aliens from above), and the two young lovers struggle to be with one another,...YECK!....It could be OK, but still,...YECK! This is a GRAND SPACE OPERA!!! There's gotta be some action, and a scene as described above is like walking into the theater during the end-credits - you missed all the good stuff.

So, I've been working on another scene :) It's not ready yet, but it utilizes a similar camera angle, and let me tell ya, this baby's got ACTION! I've already had to expand the canvas SIX times to cram in everything and I'm still tryin' to sqeeze it all in. Spaceships, robots, explosions, burning buildings,...and of course, our young lovers. a basic sketch should be ready in a day or two,...might have to edit it, but it should be cool. Stay tuned!


Good idea, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how you solve the camera angle :)Me to,...:)

[blurry6]

http://www.cgnetworks.com/challenge/entries/6/5407/5407_1104567953_medium.jpg (http://www.cgnetworks.com/challenge/entries/6/5407/5407_1104567953_large.jpg)

Here's an idea I had,...it might be a little TOO complex, but it was kinda fun. Real rough,...still a lot to do, if I even bother with finishing it. I'm not a fan of the composition,...maybe too much going on. Let me know your thoughts.

[walrus]

Hey, Blurry, how's it goiung? Happy New Year! I see where you're pushing this pic, and I like that you've really started to incorporate an entire world into the image. It sets u8p a very different emotional relationship to have the male and female characters with their backs to each other. He's now going one way, she's pulling to go in another, and so it's almost like she's being kidnapped. There's none of the yearning that I really liked from the earlier shots. To recapture that, perhaps pulling them together and having their bodies face the same direction could help (even if she's looking over her shoulder at the pursuers.)

Also, having them at the center of the composition really anchors the shot and makes it very solid... But that might not be what you want for a scene of frenetic pursuit. Shoving them to the far left could unbalance the composition (in a helpful way) and put some distance between her and their pursuers. Right now she appears closer to them than she is to the guy she's with, which also sets up a stronger emotional tie with them than with him.

anyhow, hope any of this helps. Good luck!

-mike

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