Four: Lighting the Biolab

  As well as completing the incubation chamber today, I thought I might play around with lighting.

  The biology branch of the lab will have several incubators. In the middle will be tables for scientific apparatus, clutter and research notes.

  I find that using a spotlight (below) provides a more dramatic light than using an area light (above) as the light created is much more confined. The spots on the roof see ma little off.

  What the spotlight appears to produce well however is a light from the isolation unit. Creating a stark shadow of the unit's doors. The light inside is confined by being made unable to pass through the glass, the light created from the door is being produced by a more specifically-aimed spotlight to preserve the strength of the light. I may need a third light however to illuminate the rest of the room. This trick can be used in other areas where the light may be different ,such as the adjacent office or the corridor - two shafts of light projecting themselves on the wall opposite the windows looking out into the darker corridor.

The new arrangement of the lab is going to mean some changes to the movement of the camera as it navigates the room. With proper lights in the room I can experiment with how to portray the glass.

  Some time in the past few days was also taken to sketching some posing research, how Four might move as she walks, runs, and a few minute movements that would sell the character..

Major Project: Four is the Priority

  Nulla dies sine linea was what I was telling myself this time last year. After a discussion with Phil on the current direction, I feel confident at present that a lot of the prepatory work for the environment and the story is done. The script is ready, the world has been crystallised. What remains now is the beast in question. I had the chance to do a bit of drawing after the discussion but my evening was busy as I soon found myself off to London for the night.

  So to uphold my personal promise, H took the chance to use my sketchbook on the train with the drawings above. Phil and I discussed that a touch of axolotl could be investigated. Dumpy body, alien features and a thick tails, it seemed useful. While on the train I sort of realised that giving the tail some kind of sail may restrict its movement. So I played with a vertical and a horizontal arrangement. As well as sails, I considered the sails could form a prong, and that maybe instead of big bulges of fat, the larva could have its eyes covered in a thin membrane (which on reflection may look creepy but this larva's adapted burrowing though soil, it'll need to protect its eyes somehow). Experiments, ideas, it was a better use of my time than waiting an hour or browsing the internet while I sat on the train.

  With the larva's body, I'm inclined towards the fatty consistency of 29 and 31. It seems more in line with the overall idea for the body than the direct segmentation of 28 and 30. The page above however is currently a work in progress. The intention is to create an orthographic sheet for the two grub/larva phases and the cocoon phase.

Major Project: A Bit More Base Design

  I looked at more base designs. I went back to my concepts and looked at the city featured in the film Logan's Run. Using the primary shapes that the city features, I looked into possible alternative layouts. The reason I am so focused on the exterior is to get an idea of the shapes that will determine the interior rooms. I might go with an arched layout for the biolab and the corridors, as these are large structures that will take up a sizable part of the base. Curved corners on the various squares was a popular design element of the late 60s and the 1970s. Colour-wise

In terms of base design my next task is looking into room layouts and working out the arrangement of props. In terms of colour palette, many sets are white with bands of bold colour such as orange, red or green. Colour banding could provide some advantage as certain installations colour-code their different departments for easy navigation.

Major Project: Bug Thumbnails

  Today's been mostly about my bug. I had this though after discovering a scanning electron microscope (SEM) photograph of a hydrothermal worm. These seep-sea worms are tiny, the size of bacterium but the thing that intrigued me most was they had jaws and teeth. So I wondered, to add to the chill factor, if Four could have this kind of mouth, that opens to reveal another mouth.

Figure 1: A hydrothermal worm (Crassous)

  Beyond this, I want to refine the adult form so I can get a good sense of the larval form. I'm leaning towards the blobby slugs Ginger and Fred from Splice as inspiration for when Four first emerges from the soil.

Figure 2: Perhaps the definition of ugly-cute (That Was A Bit Mental, 2015)

Image References

• Figure 1: Crassouls, P., unknown [A Hydrothermal worm]; Crassouls 3 PhC-C; available at https://www.fei.com/uploadedImages/FEISite/Content/Image_Gallery/Images/IM_20100225_Crassous_3_PhC-C_lg.jpg (last accessed 3rd October 2016)
• Figure 2: That Was A Bit Mental, 2015; [Perhaps the definition of ugly-cute]; Splice Pic 6; available at https://thatwasabitmental.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/splice-pic-6.jpg (last accessed 3rd October 2016)

Major Project: Creature Design Ideas

  I've had a look into some possible creature designs. Phil and I have spoken that this creature could be from swamps or marshes. One creature that came to mind looking at pictures of micro-animals was the mosquito. Which fits the brief of something horrid and something that could fit the marshy biome that the moss grows. Thumbnail 15 shows three possible stages of maturity based on a diagram of how a wasp pupa becomes an adult, where it seems to 'grow' into the adult shape from your typical grub.

  One key thing I might include: This creature is intelligent, and needs to open the door. Because it is much larger than your standard insect, normal insect feet might not provide enough support. So I've looked into perhaps giving it digits to help spread the weight and as a tool for communication.

Major Project: Initial Creature Design

  Today was my first minor project tutorial and the general gist was that while the script is getting there, it is coming up time to consider my world and my creature. While I had some early sketches, there was an issue that they all had some regality to them. Which is the opposite kind of response to the creature that I am after, as it is supposed to be only the scientist that admires it.

 Extending from the larval form, I looked into creatures like the Tardigrade or water bear. One of a number of micro-animals; creatures so small they can only be seen with a powerful microscope but this is to their benefit - they look incredibly alien and grotesque. As along with standard insect elements, the bodies of these creatures often feature large prominent hairs. The use of micro-animals also allows me to better explore any development of the grub phase as the grub elements can echo in the juvenile phase. I might be able to assemble a creature using bits of various micro-creatures, as they tend to be quite compact.

Breaking Out and Settling In

  With some of the workload at Butch Auntie lifted, I found I had a little time to tweak Colo Colo - I figured if I was going to specialise in CG modeling I'd need practice. The UVs still need a little more work but other than I have considered that the model is just about ready to take into Mudbox for texturing and normal mapping. The only areas that still need tweaking are the toes and the inside of the mouth.

While working on the UVs I gave the crotch a little tweak to smooth hings out where the thigh meets the hip. However this retion I am concerned might be a little stretched.

  During a break at lunchtime, I decided I'd see if I could add to my sketching ability .However by the time I was done with 2 I realised I might be in a rut drawing the same musculature and body types over and over. 3 was an attempt at an unconventional creature that I tried with 7-10, where I would draw a random set of lines and decipher a being from them. I feel like 8 and 10 were the most successful as they're less human-like than 7 and 9. Though I did like the way 9's lower half came out. This could be a technique I could practice further in future sketching sessions.

Major Project: Crystallising the Creature

  Butch Auntie has kept me busy, and helped me brush up on my modeling and animation skills. But I've had to balance that with considerations over what I'm going to be doing for the coming year. I feel confident with the scientist and will look into script drafts before returning to university. While out I still felt deeply inspired by the London Aquaruium and ended up considering the creature to be some kind of aquatic creature. However I may be getting ahead of myself

  This made me realise I need to consider the environment this base is going to be in, the planet this creature will come from. Is it barrren? Is it lush? Is it full of alien flora? Is it cold? Is it hot? These questions would help determine what the creature may look like as it has to fit the world it comes from. And that led on to question if the research station would be in orbit or an outpost on the planet (where we might be able to see outside). The decision of ground or orbit will also influence the interior. It could be like the space base in Ridley Scott's The Martian with polytunnels and a prefab assembly. It could be like the inside of the International Space Station. These will help build what the lab could look like inside but I've kept to suggestions and decided to avoid the iPod feel. I am however tempted to include overhead pipes, which gives the environment a slight industrial feel.

  Working out a script might help considerably in understanding the world. Both the one the creature comes from and the one the scientist makes his livelihood in.

Sketchbook: Fish and Aliens a Colourful Mix

  I was still felling inspired visiting the London Aquarium so while they're not the best studies, I decided to draw some fish, thinking it might help with inspiration over the creature that will appear in the film. Although I was also inspired by watching James Cameron's Aliens on Sunday night (somewhat fitting given Weyland-Yutani's obsession with acquiring a Xenomorph for use as some experimental bioweapon reflects one idea that the creature in the project could be there though some big company looking to use it for commercial purposes.). Halfway though, as demonstrated on the right-hand size of the page, I decided to see what beasties I could fashion out of fish parts. It still feels a little generic at the moment but with time, revision and further inspiration will come something distinct.

There are some truly bizarre creatures that lurk under the surface of our oceans. Not just the classic bizarre creatures like the Angler fish. While at the aquarium I encountered two species of shark in particular: One swam like a manta ray and the other, the aforementioned Nurse Shark, had catfish-like whiskers attached to its nose. Unfortunately I only had my phone camera which takes terrible pictures in low light conditions.

  Still it gave me a few thoughts on how to make a creature that was otherworldly and grotesque. Sketching while watching James Cameron's actionised sequel for Hollywood's most iconic kill-happy alien monsters may have also contributed towards a bit of inspiration. To ad a bit of ferocity maybe adding a touch of shark or eel to the creature is going along the right lines.

Sketchbook: Plotting a Course for Year Three

  With the hot late-July Summers hitting the country I had the chance to explore and head out into the sun. During a trip into London I got back into sketching, The drawings on the left-hand side of the above image were life-drawing attempts on a miniature of a fountain commissioned sometime in the 18th century. The drawings on the right of the top picture were partially inspired by the kind of outfits that became popular at that point in time, a time when English dress (termed Côte Anglaise) was very popular on the continent.

  Later on I thought about refreshing my character design skills, building an understanding of humanoid forms that are not strictly human-like in proportion. The structural sketches, done today, were based on how I felt after last Friday's art-stream session. I tried a hand at map-making, as over the past two years I have found I like an analytical approach to designing something be it a character or a world. And city maps can demonstrate a location's character (I had the good fortune to talk about this in detail on the stream), something I may try developing further in my third-year project.

  However as the half-finished nature of both suggests, I lost steam during the broadcast. Whether or not I will work on them again will be something to decide, but the lack of momentum I felt has made me inclined towards finishing the Minotaur painting half-made on the stream before this one.

(Yes, sketch 14 is an attempt at Totoro. I am quite fascinated with Studio Ghibli's works)

Sketchbook: Birds Of The Natural History Museum

  Attending New Designers 2016 yesterday, I had arrived in London a few hours early to get the most out of my visit to the capital. One thing I decided to do, as I had brought my sketchbook, was to investigate the Natrual History Museum. As I had mentioned in a previous post, I was keen on drawing some birds for a change of pace, fortunately the museum has quite a nice collection of  them. And while the current display wasn't as impressive as a previous year's exhibition showcasing a display of around 100 taxidermied hummingbirds in flight,

  Granted these aren't as finely tuned as my previous drawings as I only had an hour or so and I wanted to focus on body shapes or profiles rather than fine detail drawings, but these sketches did give me insight into these animals, who all share common anatomical features that evolved with the express purpose to maximise their flight capabilities.

  I also took time to investigate how wings work, as it is something I want to improve on. Fortunately one of the museum's longstanding displays shows how a bird's feathers and muscle connect to the bone. And I was able to work out the primary shapes that are assembled to make wings in this case. There's still some variation to investigate this is a foundation, as wings - be they bat, bird or whatever other animal - are usually a form of arm in some shape or form.

  Stellar's Sea Eagle, a bird of prey found in Northeastern Asia was the crown of my visit. Asian hunter of the sky, as can be seen in comparison to the more familiar dodo, and the budgie-sized Ou, is enormous! A giant of the eagle world that took my breath away with its massive talons and grand wingspan.

  These photographs taken of the way bird wings are constructed were particularly inspiring. And I think they could go a long way to improving my anatomical understanding when it comes to drawing and designing wings.

Sitting in the same exhibit as other great birds, the humble tawny owl.

  Outside the bird exhibit, the Natural History Museum has a beautiful display of sea-monster fossils, most prominently the Pliesiosaur, and the dolphin-like Icthyosaur. I also took a visit to the dinosaur wing, took some photos but didn't do any sketches as the museum was roughly an hour from closing for the day when I visited.

Sketchbook: Bird Experimentation

  Lately I've been finding that one of the best times for me to pull out a sketchbook and doodle for a bit comes from train journeys to and from London. As the streams, creative writing, plans for next year and online networking have been taking their toll a little on my free time. Regardless, as these sketches from last Friday demonstrate, I thought I'd try mixing up my creature design skills by sketching some birds. Granted they still have features of other creatures I've drawn so what I might sketch next time I have time is more normal-looking birds; eagles, ravens, magpies, finches and so on. Mainly to diversify my design palette from quadruped mammals, lizards, dinosaurs and scary monsters, as I've been seeing magpies and squirrels more than I used to since moving to Kent.

And quite frankly I probably draw too much nasty so might do a bit more cute. Both to balance out and that such a path is a skillset all on its own.

Post-Colo Colo Sketchbook Doodles

  With no university projects on top priority and much of my time spent working on a project for the studio  Butch Auntie, I admit this page has gone a little quiet. When I haven't been building and tweaking in Maya, or when renders are on the go, or when I have ten minutes such as at lunch, I try a bit of sketching. Colo Colo was still fairly fresh on my mind so I made couple of sketches relating to how the body could be improved. When it comes to making a better version this summer, I might try polishing him up in Mudbox.

After the design success of Nian and Colo Colo, I've considered focusing on creature design. Though of course that's not deterred me from sketching other subjects. The human form takes time and dedication to master. And sometimes these creatures need somewhere to live.

My hand-drawing skills have gotten a little rusty, and the technique I learned in 2015 regarding facial structure still needs time to embed, but I might be getting somewhere.

I reached the end of this year's sketchbook a few days ago, so I got a new one. I think I prefer 20cm2 layout sketchbooks, they're not as narrow as an A5 and they're not as cumbersome to carry around as an A4, but they're perhaps the best of both worlds. So on Friday I christened my new sketchbook with a pair of alien bugs. They're lacking in your typical bulbous abdomen because for a man-sized bug it seemed redundant; why store all your organs in a bulb emerging from your backside when your torso is now large enough to fit them all comfortably?

Adaptation B: A Core Body

  I had a talk with Phil today on Colo Colo's direction after the advice Alan gave me on departing from the rat-chicken look, but this one (admittedly due to the creature it has taken influence from) may seem a little too 'cute', though I will look into head studies, where the ferocity could be brought back such as the use of the staring eyes of a chicken.

  We also got talking on the 'horror' aspect of the creature and the related story. We explored horror  coming from the abhorrent, discussing a lamprey for a tongue and I was shown a couple of stills from David Croenenberg's 1986 rendition of The Fly featuring Jeff Goldblum being turned into some...horrid...thing. It did however give me some thoughts on the creature. Being inspired by rats, what's to say that it doesn't look like its been reanimated. We talked about it being small enough that it could be to walk across its victim without much notice. So I think I have a basis, I just need to shore up the details: The crest, the texture, the tongue and the mouth. If rats can vary between looking adorable and vicious, then this creature also has a chance.

  If I go down this path, the final product could be both interesting and disturbing. Maybe tapping into some of that Roman Polanski vibe I had managed to invoke in my From Script To Screen project last year.

  Less gruesomely, I took some time to observe the motions of these running lizards ot get an idea of how they run. I have an idea looking at videos provided by nature documentaries as well as still references, so I think I can crack the creatures actually moving about.

Adaptaion B: Looking Into Alternatives And More Drawings

  One of the discussions with Alan regarding the adaptation project was to look into alternatives for what I could work on. I decided tonight to return to the source material to see if I could find a location or event that more closely ties with the novel's themes of death, rebirth and a war between numerous VR versions of Hell.

  I went back to an earlier extract, that described the opera house as that is where a key character dies (spoiler alert, although does it count if it is at the end of chapter one?) and is reborn inside one of the Culture's ships, a vessel called "Sense Amidst Madness, Wit Amidst Folly", unfortunately despite the  rather interesting name, the character spends much of the chapter she wakes up in a simulation of a bedroom. There's an endless continental European landscape outside her window but the room itself, while described doesn't sound like it could keep me going. Same goes for the landscape and we see none of the rest of the ship.

  What these earlier chapters did affirm was my estimation of Veppers' position - the man is confirmed to be the Sichultian Enablement's richest, most powerful CEO: a rather nasty combination of the wealth of Bill Gates, the playboy attitude of Tony Stark and the aspirations and the "I can buy my way out of a prison sentence" mentality of Lex Luthor. I also looked into more architecture for Iobe and got intrigued by the mention of cantilevers. Give nthe terraced nature of the city I am now thinking about the lower half being a series of platforms jutting from the cavern wall, supported by buildings that rise through multiple levels.

  However I did find a possible alternative in the following video. It is a construction sequence connected to a 2004 art project book for a structure called a Globus Cassus. A megastructure built using the material of the Earth's interior to create a shell with an internal surface area twenty times greater than the Earth's surface

  It is an ambitious design, and the ending card makes me wonder about making an adaptation of Globus Cassus. The current issue I face with adapting Surface Detail is that the amount of story I'm covering in comparison to the entire book is very little, while I could potentially portray the full construction sequence of Globus Cassus as a narrative. Perhaps starting by showing rockets or shuttles deploying the four initial structures and then various perspective shots showing the different phases. But this project already has an animation and possibly some publicity tied  to it which might limit creative freedom.