Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 Hi! I tried to reproduce "SkekUng" from the great movie Dark Crystal. The final composition ended in this: I'm not sure it is the best way to show it, but I thought that a scenery behind the character would make its shapes less readable (+ I'm very lazy). I wish I had more time to sculpt each of the skeksis and make a compo of them surrounding the crystal. A long time run project, not totally impossible. Hope you like it! 7 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
artman 184 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 I like it!!! Would fit perfectly in a Dark Crystal game! I know you are not 100% satisfied but I think it ended up really nice,congrats! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tony Nemo 393 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 Gorgeous in a grotesque way! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
digman 1,158 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 Great work! from start to finish. Thanks for sharing the process along the way... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Javis 520 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 Super great work man. Reminds me of when I was a kid. My dad rented a VHS player and the movie (Back when you could). All of my extended family gathered to watch it (we all loved Jim Henson, Frank Oz and Crew). Some 30 odd people all gathered to watch it around a tiny television. Anyway, I digress. Excellent piece, looking forward to your next. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chris_solo 34 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 brilliant work Garagarape! ...I'm not a big fan of the halo in the face and hand ...but it's my two cent ++Chris Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 23, 2012 Artman > Thanks! A Dark Crystal game would be great. I can imagine a kind of point and click game like "Oppidum" in the link below. http://crayonboxofdoom.blogspot.jp/ Yes, it's not perfect. I'll try to improve on the next piece. Laziness and rugby wounds beaten me hard Tony Nemo > Thank you. Yes, grotesque and kind of 70th rock'n'roll album cover style. The character is quite different from the original though. Big headed and more colorful. Digman > Thanks man! It is nothing compare to what you are doing for 3dCoat community. I'm a very poor technician; that means, I get used to some imperfection in softwares, even at work... It don't help developpement progress at all. Thanks for your numerous tests and tips on new tools. Javis > Your kind comment goes straight into my heart. I was a VHS epoch kid too, in France. And Dark Crystal, though it was considered mostly as a fantasy for kids (wich I disagree), had a big impact here. There is a lot of good things done in the computer graphics domain these days, but Froud and Oz movie has an atmosphere that I never found in other works. Thanks to the puppets, it has no "virtual smell". Chris > Thank you! Yes, because of the halo, it loose a bit of its sharpness. It was kind of flat without it though. But you're right. I have a lot to learn about lighting. And the sub-surface scattering is not perfect too. One hand is purple, the other one quite brown. Couldn't control it Carlosa > You exagerate! But thanks. Compliment feels good. I'll try to make good things in the next trials. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
angelia 2 Report post Posted July 25, 2012 Wow,really great! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wave of light 20 Report post Posted July 25, 2012 Excellent work. The colouring gives such a sense of age. Bravo. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 26, 2012 Fleeting time, Angelia, Wave of light, Thanks! I'm happy you liked it. This Skeksis almost sucked all my energy (you know, they do that to get younger). Gonna take a rest for a while then start a hard surface mecha. See you soon! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 26, 2012 Wave of light, I like "Dalek" on your web-site. Reminds me a bit of the Black Hole "Vincent" robot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidF 12 Report post Posted July 27, 2012 its very nice!! but Id love to see it rendered with displacement and a production renderer like vray. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 27, 2012 I can't use Vray in Maya. If I'm right, it is a 3dsMax plug-in... But yes, Vray gives great renders. For displacement, I'd like to try someday, but I'm more used to game asset using normal maps. So many things to learn! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DavidF 12 Report post Posted July 27, 2012 there is vray for maya...you could also use cycles Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 27, 2012 Oh really? Thanks! I'll have a look after I get my hand fixed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
michalis 129 Report post Posted July 30, 2012 Wonderful composition. Me like it!!! We have a zb4r4 thread, where I'm trying to propose a different workflow or UI for 3dcoat. It's dedicated to the hard time you had with drapery. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted July 31, 2012 Michalis, Thanks! I'll try to find the thread when I'm done with the project I'm working on at the company. Thanks to your last post on "finished works", I decided to give a shot to Blender. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
michalis 129 Report post Posted August 1, 2012 I decided to give a shot to Blender. Give a shot... LOL, you have to give your life Your small finger at least. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OrinDoomHammer 14 Report post Posted January 13, 2013 Im skekies and i know it! lol. great piece man blender is a PITA to get started in but when you get past the interface its pretty damn awsome. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
matty686 21 Report post Posted March 29, 2013 awesome Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zeddicus 9 Report post Posted March 31, 2013 I saw this movie in the theater when I was a child and it's still one of my top ten favorites. As great as CG is, there is still something to be said for doing it old school lol. Anyways I absolutely LOVE what you've done here with SkekUng. Beautiful coloring and the sculpt looks exactly like him. I'd actually buy it if it were available as a small figurine. Awesome work, Garagarape! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted March 31, 2013 Happy you liked it Zeddicus! It seems that you can buy a SkekUng figure; at least they sell some here in Japan: http://blogs.dion.ne.jp/orr_dg/archives/3076219.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ajz3d 781 Report post Posted April 1, 2013 Awesome model Garagarape, as always. I saw this movie in the theater when I was a child and it's still one of my top ten favorites. As great as CG is, there is still something to be said for doing it old school lol. Anyways I absolutely LOVE what you've done here with SkekUng. Beautiful coloring and the sculpt looks exactly like him. I'd actually buy it if it were available as a small figurine. Awesome work, Garagarape! "Dark Crystal" for me is one of those few films that have real magic in them and sadly this is also one of those that I barely remember from my early childhood. I really need to purchase the DVD and watch it again real soon. I have a big sentiment towards puppets, creature costumes and a lot of smoke pumped into the set. And while CG can do marvels, I think it's way too much overused nowadays. It's not only about CG characters, but the postproduction as well - e.g. film-theme-based colour hues or this damned high contrast. CG can either destroy the viewing experience or save it, when used wisely. My favourite example here being the new, non-Carpenter's "The Thing" flick after they decided to drop the animatronics they promised to the fans of Carpenter's "The Thing" and went all out with CG. Not a good move that was. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Garagarape 412 Report post Posted April 1, 2013 Totaly agree. But, bad taste rules! Well... not only bad taste. But it's true that velvet cloth and rubber (latex?) puppets have a great charm that is hard to reproduce in 3D (besides, I failed here, because the character looks like made of shinny plastic). There's something too fluid in 3D animated characters, and often a lack of weight too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
