Work in Progress - September 2008

Work in Progress - September 2008 from Paul Caggegi on Vimeo.


Ladies and Gentlemen, this very special WIP episode features for the first time some work NOT by me. Nevertheless, I am extremely excited to unveil it.

I first got in contact with Kynan a couple of months ago on a small local-ish forum called the DLF (That's Digital Laborer's Federation). Kynan posted a pretty sweet model for a demo he was working on. I was really running low on time and I really wanted this story to take off ASAP, so I contacted him and asked if he would be interested in modeling some characters for me, based on my concept sketches. Kynan sent me his rates, and I agreed to let him go ahead on Marcus.

He returned a render to me almost immediately. I knew then I had to pony up the dough to allow Kynan to complete his vision for all three sand boaters. He interpreted the designs faithfully, but took a few liberties where he felt necessary. In my opinion, it only served to improve the characters. We discussed points on Corben, for example - what kind of scarring should he have? How old should he appear? What parts should be modeled, and which parts will be left to textures to tell the story?

Here's a bit about Kynan Stephenson:

3D Background:

I originally started modding games like Jedi Knight when I was about 16, mostly creating models and assets for MP Levels using a mod community program called JED. Later I moved from JED into 3DS Max v1 (its certainly changed a lot from those good old days). I formally studied 3D for 2 years at AIE (Academy of Interactive Entertainment) in Canberra in my early 20’s. I am pretty much an all rounder dipping my fingers into Modeling, Texture, Rigs and Animation but probably my strongest area’s are in the model pipeline so Model, Texture and Rig. I’ve pretty much been a hobbyist 3D guy since my mid to late teens and have only moved into fulltime freelance work over the last 18 months.

The Rest of my work Background:

From the ripe age of 18 I started in the IT world working as an IT consultant for the Australian Govt. mostly working as a software analyst and later moving onto more technical roles in systems and integration analysis which are fancy talk for "I'm one of the guys who knows how a lot of the systems work both from a technical and a business perspective". I have pretty much contracted to the Govt. on and off for the past 9 years so I have been really lucky and picked up a lot of useful skills.

These days I’m pretty much splitting my time between the 2 areas, if I find a good IT contract I will jump onto it for 3 or 6 months still doing the freelance 3D in the background and then spend 6 or so dedicated months on the 3D side of things which is what I enjoy the most.

Kynan is extremely agreeable to work with, and obviously knows his trade. He models in 3DS Max and Z-Brush, and he does his texturing in photoshop. He knew I was working in Blender, so he went above and beyond and downloaded a copy of Blender to test the importing of an .obj file exported from Max, vs a .3ds file.


As you can see, he has modeled the sand boaters for me so far. I have someone re-working some of the vehicles right now, so as I revise the script for an eighth (and possibly ninth) draft, all the nuts and bolts are being screwed on in the mean time.

I've received great feedback in my decision to get some help in on this. I will still be doing the rigging, texturing, and final animating (all in Blender) but in order to speed to those steps, I hope you understand I needed the help.

If you wish to get in contact with Kynan, and think he can help you with some 3D work, you can email him at: Kynan_S@Condor3D.com

Originally posted September 25th 2008

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Thanks for the advice... but screw you Hollywood

So I went back and watched my animatic from the fresh perspective of having my pitch be poo-poo'd by "Hollywood". Dan, a commenter on the blog (you can find Dan's work here: www.goofygraffix.com) was confused as to my ultimate goal. He writes: "I had no idea you were shopping it around... I thought this was a personal project that would be available on DVD..."

Thanks Dan for making me realize I was probably confusing my audience with pitching. Also thanks to Matt (author of www.houseofmove.com) also for the encouraging words last week. He did seem to dwell on the backstory and not ask about the actual story... but I also admit I think I pitched the wrong story.

I've discovered that a pitch is a difficult thing to craft.

In this week's podcast, I address some of the comments and give special mention to those who sent me encouraging comments.

I've been reading a very extraordinary book: The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell. It is an eye opening look at the historical connection between myth, religion and our story's heroes. Part of solving the pitch (to Hollywood) is to understand the Hero's journey, and use that journey to pitch the story.

The encouragement alone could have been enough to keep me going with this. The pitch seminar taught me that I must be a good salesman, and package my product in a way that makes it appealing for the buyer. But it also told me that I was learning how to pitch it a very narrow market, and that there are those of you out there who would see this thing because it is NOT hollywood, and to you folks - you are the audience in my head; the audience I am ultimately pitching this to, and who will ultimately "buy" this thing. And by "buy", I mean believe it, like it, watch it.

My progress report this week reveals that I'm getting a bit of help with the project. Love it or hate it, I hope you don't think I'm cheating here, I know you're gonna be wowed next week when you get a peek at Marcus and Corben as they are looking right now.

I'll be taking a brief hiatus after next week's post, but there's a couple of real-life issues I can't avoid and need to pay attention to. But when I return in mid-October, I am endeavoring to wow you with a quantum leap in progress. In the meantime, if you wish to comment, or get in touch with me at all, please feel free to email me at: flawedprefect@gmail.com I am always happy to hear from you.

Cheers,

Paul C

Originally published September 17th 2008

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I pitched to Hollywood

You've all heard the expression: "Those who cannot do teach instead".

I've been doing a lot of teaching and preaching on this blog. Yesterday, I had the chance to put my money where my mouth is, and attend a seminar entitled I sold my screenplay to Hollywood.

It was run by Steve Jasmine and Karel Segers. You can find out more about them at The Story Department blog.

I quote from the page they put up weeks before the pitching session:

WHAT ARE WE LOOKING FOR? We need scripts with a great concept AND a strong story. If we think you are almost there, we will ask you to work with us to make your film a cinematic experience for as many people as possible. Cinema is about connecting with people. We are not looking for screenwriters who just want to tell their own personal story.

And so I thought I had what it takes to "sell" my pitch to them as a Hollywood blockbuster that would make them loads and loads of money. This week's podcast features the pitch session recorded on 13/09/08. I played them my trailer, then read my pitch to Steve, who then proceeded to give me feedback.

The best thing about this was it was in front of about 20 people - 12 others who were pitching their ideas that day. I got to gauge their reactions to both my pitch and Steve's comments.

Suffice it to say... I do not have what it takes for Hollywood to be interested in my film. I took a lot away from this pitch, however, and it may be of great help.

You may think I am giving away the ending in my pitch (warning - it contains a lot of spoilers) but I've simplified a lot just to see if the gist would grab Steve Jasmine. Due to the fact that I am re-considering some major parts of the over-arching story, some of the things revealed are no longer relevant, so take from them what you will.

The biggest problems with the story (according to Steve) are:

• It is hard to believe society will forget the past, as if we start from a clean slate
• I pushed the boundaries of what is plausible too far
• I am forcing the audience to accept my reality
• There are too many "what ifs"

As I listened to other pitches, I discovered mine is but one of many that begin in that horrible setting of a dismal, post-apocalyptic future. This is the single most important point I could take away with me: Audiences do NOT want so see a world where we are in a bad place. It is not inspiring, it is not escapism, it is not entertaining. Life is shit, so why go to the movies and pay me money to see something that is even worse?

Fair point.

Some more recurring points resounded when others read their scripts:

The inciting incident should not be one of chance. We need to know that we were able to overcome anything that God, the universe, the Devil, your mum - can throw at us and still be ok. We need to have been able to succeed.

The hero should be someone we BOTH Admire, AND identify with.

The hero should not start at a point below "OK". ie: a crippled hero; one that has to fight jsut to get to the level we see every single day - that does not hook audiences. We want to see someone who appears to be just like us, then rises to discover they have a greater power within themselves.

Two things he THEN said which went against everything I had been taught (and this will really fry your noodle as it did mine) and I am gonna bold and italicize these words for maximum impact: The Hero ALWAYS gets what he wants. The Hero NEVER changes.

The greatest most attractive stories to us are ones where the world as we know it is in great peril, and is saved, and then goes back to the way it was.

THAT is the Hollywood movie formula which will make a story great.

Now the unanswered questions: Should I sell my script to Hollywood? Or are there other markets in which a story about a group of heroes trying to forge a new life in a hostile place will sell?

Can I pitch my story so it addresses all those issues above?

Originally published September 9th 2008

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Actor Feedback Session

I apologize for the length - it is probably the longest episode of the process diary I've recorded yet. It is, however, packed with interesting info, a few spoilers, and some great general banter from an excited cast (and some hangers-on) plied for comment with some wood-fired pizza and a bottle of 2006 Shiraz.

The voices you hear are:

• Jane Newton - voice of Minauld Wallace
• Osman Kabbara - voice of Sal Wedge
• Adam Ring - voice of... every other extra
• Sam Ardazinski - Jane's husband
• Robert Caggegi - my younger brother

We watched the 17 minute cut of the pilot in animatic form, then I recorded this discussion (available via podcast on the iTunes feed, or by clicking on the heading of this blog post).

The comments were quite surprising. First, the actors concentrated on their own performances, then they went into the details of what they didn't understand and why. Finally, Jane revealed a shocking statement that she didn't know that the title of the series is CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT.

This session was extremely helpful. The story does not need structure revision - with which I am extremely relieved about - but there were certain plot-points and beats the actors did not get on first viewing. The various comments ranged from points of character relationships, to what they were referring to in their conversations. Most points will be addressed in the next script draft. Some made me smile, because I thought "that is exactly what I think should be a mystery at this point".

My plan now is to take two weeks to revise the script. In the meantime, models are coming to being finalized. For the sake of expediency, I have actually hired a character modeler to take my concepts and flesh them (or mesh them?) out while I fix up the script and the overall structure. There will be more about him later this month, and I look forward to showcasing hims work. He will provide you with the first glimpse into the world of Character Development like I never dreamed possible.

On a related note to story-telling, I attended a seminar last weekend. It was entitled "The Hero's Journey" and was run by Karel Segers of Ozzwood films. I learned about the most famous of archetypes - the Hero - and in relation to my own story, I had to re-evaluate who stood for what archetype.

I will go into a more detailed explanation on this in a later podcast this month, but watching it through, I discovered that each character is a hero in some way, and each goes on all or part of the hero's journey.

I hope you enjoy hearing the feedback. I highly recommend you keep it for later listening, and when the pilot is finally released, you listen back to this feedback session to see what the actors had to say before I went and changed it into the incarnation you will see.

Originally published September 6th 2008

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