The Vanguard Project

The Vanguard Project is a project sponsored by NewVision Animation Studios that is focused on developing a 3D scanning system designed to work directly with existing 3D software.  Because of their extensive Python API’s, this system is currently being developed for Autodesk Maya and of course, Blender.

There are currently 3 confirmed team members and we’re looking to add a couple more.  Because of technical limitations the team will be restricted to the studio here in Rochester, New York, but we’re always happy to hear what you guys outside of New York have to say.  We’re currently working on a project page for the NewVision website to keep people updated with project progress, which will be up and running by the end of the weekend.

Blog Changes – Help Choose a New Name!

There has been a lot of progress with NewVision Animation Studios lately, and I’m starting to think it’s time to seperate this blog from the company – they both have very different visions and I want to be able to preserve both.  The “NewVision” blog will move over to the company website soon, and I’ll be posting about updates with the company and projects there, while this blog will continue to talk about Blender and general 3D stuff .

I’m having a contest for you guys to choose the new name for this blog – just email me with the name you want, and then I will put a poll up for you to vote on.  I can’t wait to see your ideas!

Saw

So I watched the first of the Saw series last night.  I loved it.  I know this has nothing to do with anything 3D, but I wish more movies today has more elegant plots than boy meets girl, boy looses girl to other guy, boy wins girl back.  The ending to Saw completely blew me away – I’m still geeking out about it.  Is it just me or do other people feel the same way?

NewVision Animation Website

So I’ve had my domain name for over a year and still haven’t managed to get a website up.  The wait is over!  I just got a simple website done nothing too fancy right now.  The next step is to organize my portfolio and get it up there – right now there’s just an anticipation page.

http://www.newvisionanimation.com

Check it out!

9

I say 9 last Wednesday – I’m still blown away.  I absolutely loved it.  Granted, it would have been nice if the storyline was a little more developed but it was extremely well done visually.  5 stars from me!  If you haven’t seen the trailer you can see it here:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0472033/

On another note, Project Durian is well underway.  I’m personally not as excited about this one because I’m not a huge fantasy fan, but it looks like it has a lot of promise.

Exciting Stuff

It’s been FOREVER since I’ve blogged – I haven’t even kept in touch with the Blender world .  Even so, I’ve had a really exciting summer!  I’m working on a film project with a production company in Upstate New York and I’m having a blast.  I can’t say much but when I can I’ll definitely let people know more – I can say we’re using Blender though!  I also got a writing contract to write a book on lighting and rendering with Blender (using the upcoming v2.50) – it’s projected to come out mid-2010, so keep your eyes open.  How’s everyone else’s summer been going?  Send me a comment, I’d love to hear from you!

I’m on Twitter!

http://www.twitter.com/blndr08

Check it out!

Essential Blender Book

I’ve spelled this out a bunch of times – I had to move the file to a different server because everyone was having problems.  To get the PDF of the Essential Blender Book go to my Tuturials page on the blog and click on “Essential Blender” under Community Tutorials.  Here’s a direct link:

http://www.newvisionanimation.com/files/essential-blender.pdf

I don’t mean to sound rude, but I’ve been dealing with this problem for a very long time.  It works fine now and I’m still getting emails and comments about where to download it from.  Enjoy!

CMS Project Delayed

I regretfully have to postpone the CMS project for a bit – I’m currently working on a website with login capabilities for a national organization as well as a small CMS system for the same people.  Luckily I can develop everything simultaneously, just not as efficiently as I had originally hoped.  I’m also re-designing the underlying structure of the CMS project (again) – I’m not going to post a completion date until I’m sure that I can get something out by then.  In the meantime I’ll just say “in the near future”.

Blender Conference in Argentina

Pablo Lizardo enlightened me on a Blender conference held in Argentina at the Facility Mathematics, Physics, and Astronomy (FAMAF).  There will be workshops, merchandise sales, seminars, and many more activities to participate in.  If you are in the area, go ahead and check it out!  The conference will take place on June 29-30, 2009.

For more information, check out the website at http://www.cheblender.org/.