B-Movie Entry: Mark David

#101

I’ve been able to start on the landscape now. At this stage it’s got that computer-generated landscape look about it - most probably because it’s a computer-generated landscape. But I’ll be adding a bunch of tweaks and details and so on which I hope will make it look nicer.

I’ve been tweaking a bunch of other details too, working more on the lizard and the poses of the spacemen. I’ve also been playing with DOF blur in my renders but am having trouble getting enough detail to be sharp if have both front and back blur turned on. So I might be doing a bit of post work there

  • Mark
#102

The way the lizard looks at the astronauts is exactly like in the classic sci-fi movies! Add a stop motion like animation and it passes as an original without problems! :smiley:

I like the composition and poses… perhaps you could try opening the monsters mouth showing some teeth to make him look even more dangerous… :wink:

#103

Agreed that expression is fantastic, the landscape looks like it’s made out of polystyrene like in the old star trek series which is perfect for a b-movie. Fantastic.

#104

Xion-Cajou
Thanks Semih. I sure remember seeing lots of those stop motion monster scenes as a kid. As for this B-movie, I thought I would make it a real (normal-sized) lizard with fake horns glued onto it, in the spirit of some other films I watched as a kid. To do it in the style of those old movies I should really have it projected onto a screen behind the action but in the end I couldn’t resist merging it more into the scene.

That is a nice idea to open the lizard’s mouth more though. Thanks for that :slight_smile:

handlebar
Thanks Steve. Between the old Star Trek and Lost in Space episodes I think there is plenty of inspiration for this challenge.

#105

I got rid of the fog generator and put in some clear skies. This will give me the opportunity to put in one of those double-moon backdrops or something like that.

I’ve also now had the chance to make the guy up the ladder turn around, but because we are seeing him from below we are losing some of that effect, so I’ll probably work on him a little more. And of course I’ve put some colour into the space suits. Those white space suits were making the whole thing look a bit drab, in my opinion

  • Mark
#106

This one is beginning to look good nice work.

#107

Nice work on the lizard monster, good detail on the scales and eyes.

#108

Yeah - nice updates!

I love the colors! Nice retro style and suits the theme perfectly. The way the liz glance with curiosity on the guy with the antenna is priceless. You’re coming along fine here now, good to see!

#109

Dann-O
Thank you! Much appreciated :slight_smile:

Korendo
Thank you for the kind words! I was keen to have a go at modelling something like that

Gunilla
Hey thanks for that. I’m glad you like the colours. Hopefully I will also get the chance to add some strangely-coloured plants

#110

Here’s more of a close-up of the lizard/monster. I could work on this forever, and maybe after the challenge I will keep tweaking and improving it. But since there is the rest of the scene to finish I will leave this guy for now. Although I might open its mouth a bit, thanks to a suggestion from Semih

I want to start adding some detail to the rest of the scene now, putting in some foliage and perhaps a couple of moons in the sky. If I get the time I might also splatter some dirt around the seams of the space suits

  • Mark
#111

Hey Mark,

Really great updates! Love the composition and colors for the image, and cool backdrop mountains, with all of the exgerated geography of the old B-Movies matte paintings, great :smiley:
The lizard rocks!! :thumbsup:

Great work and waiting for more updates!! Cheers!! :beer:

#112

Great update on the scene comp! Those pastel colors gives a feel of mars-like environment, suits your concept pretty well, excellent work, man!:beer:
With the DOF gone, there’s now much more to see and I definitely support your Idea about folliage and dirt on spacesuits, a very “must-do”!
You’re working really fast now, I’m sure you can make it in time!
Good luck, my friend!
:slight_smile:

#113

Hey Mark,

really great updates. :bowdown:

The lizard looks great and I like the astronauts a lot.
Personally I would move the astronaut kneeing in front of the lizard a bit to the left so that there is no overlap. This way it may look like that two different shots where composite together. But that are just my 2 ct.

Looking forward to see the final image. :wip:

Torsten

#114

Ferx
Cheers buddy. I’ve turned the guy on the ladder around a lot more so he’s more engaged in the scene. Thanks again for that suggestion. I hope you prefer it now

varma
Thanks mate. Yep, I agree - a bit of of dirt should be my next step and I don’t think there is much work in that either

Russel-Nash
Hey thanks mate! Much appreciated. You make a smart suggestion to enhance the composite look by separating the lizard and the astronaut. I guess I’m being a bit untrue to my original plan of making the whole thing look extremely fake. I was planning on making the lizard look like he’s being projected onto a screen so I would show the edges of the screen and so on. Now I am working on some levels of integration of the elements which are probably beyond what those old B-Movies would have tried. I still don’t know which way I will go, but thank you very much for your idea :slight_smile:

#115

I made a plant last night. Nothing too fancy because it was intended to be clumped a reasonable distance from the camera. I don’t know if this will go in or end up in the rejects folder at this stage

#116

Here’s how the whole scene is looking at this stage. I’m trying out a small clump of the alien plants here in this version and am now thinking the uniformity in their scale (they are all instances of the one model) is making them look far too boring. So that’s one thing I want to fix.

I also don’t like the look of the ground at this stage so I will either scatter pebbles over it or else give some serious thought about its material. Because as much as this is a B-Movie, the current surface looks too computer-generated, in my opinion.

Finally, I still want to dirty up the seams of the spacesuits so I’ll do those next. They are made of simple bits - very uncomplicated meshes and so the UV work should be done in no time

  • Mark
#117

Hey Mark,

Cool !! like the new pose for the astronaut on the ladder, he is in the action for sure ( and will be the only that survive :D)

Perhaps you can add a big rock on the foreground on the left corner with one strange flower growing from a rock’s crack ( and the rock made with polystyrene of course :D… ). Another minor detail is the color of the light from the spaceship door, a bit like the sky, maybe some yellow illumination.

Here are some of the most great B-scenarios ever :smiley:

startrek-gorn.jpg
STAR_TREK_077_
STAR_TREK_047_
gorn_kirk_cannon-1261321585.jpg
72654.png
KirkyGorn.jpg
gorn2.jpg
star-trek-mugato.jpg

Great work and waiting for more updates. Cheers!! :beer:

#118

Yeah, coming along nicely now: The plants are a nice addition, especially if you, as you mention, make them less uniform. I wonder what they smell like? Perhaps this could be one of those fab “smell movies” that was popular a while back? The ones with small pads to scrape off smells from at certain points in the story… quite B don’t you think? :slight_smile:

Will there be an electrical beam emerging from the antenna?

#119

Your scene is really coming together and the plants greatly add to the overall look. Very cool progress!
The links Fernando posted should be the perfect inspiration, especcialy the big white Rhinocer-Ape in the last link… :smiley:

#120

Like you plant, your placement of it makes sense too, just wish I could see the nice details better without distracting from the real drama of the shot. Could some of them be tilted at different angels from the base?