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Botcollector: So what
exactly was involved with making this animation?
Michael: 4 people total helped on making the VW clip. Stan Fuka made the VW bug in
Lightwave, not specifically to become a Transformer, but for a Rainbow project where they needed a new bug. I decided to make a Transformer out of
it and cut it up to make the robot pieces. I then started building the legs
and body of the robot in 3D Studio Max. Thuan Do, another talented artist
and big Transformer fan, saw what I was doing and wanted to help. He
modeled the arms and head of the robot. It was his idea to model it based
on the Autobot Jazz, as I am more of a Prowl fan. Thuan Do also
textured (painted) all the robot pieces to look like kind of dusty metal. I
textured the VW bug and tires to try and make it look like a real car. Carl
Coss helped light the VW bug and shoot the "live" footage of me walking down
the street. I then tracked the "live" footage in Max, animated the sequence, added dust effects and lens flare.
Botcollector: How much
time total did this whole thing take?
Michael: I'm not sure how much time was spent on the clip, as it was worked on in my spare
time and on weekends. I would guess about 3 to 4 week's worth of work for 1
person working eight hour days. I think it took the 3 of us 2 weeks to do
the whole clip.
Botcollector: Any
thoughts on the experience as a whole? Best parts, worst parts?
Michael: Well, if I had known so many people were going to see the clip, I would have spent
a lot more time cleaning up the animation. I basically just roughed out what
I wanted to happen and never finished it. There's also a lot of "little"
details I never went back and fixed, ie the visible blue balls on the ground.
[the blue balls were used as landmarks for a process called "motion
tracking," a vital step when laying animations over real life
film. It keeps the animation frame in "rhythm" with the
underlying action, so that it moves along with the camera, making it
seem actually IN the shot, rather than staying completely still, much
like a fly or mark on the lens would look otherwise]
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Team 52 gives us the
highest quality CG/Real Life Transforming animation to date! 
