Showing posts with label 3d modeling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 3d modeling. Show all posts

Monday, March 28, 2016

Game & Simulations

Games, Sim, VR & More

Using the video game engine, Unity3D, aNm can create custom 2D or 3D games, simulations, or other immersive environments.

Custom 3D & CGI

Creating Art in Three Dimensions

Whether you need photorealistic still images of everyday object or customized and fully textured and 'rigged' human characters, aNm can create them with artistic precision.

For you indie filmmakers, consider the added visual depth by adding "CGI" - machinery, aircraft, vehicles or home/office equipment, humans, creatures...we do it all.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

aNm Sponsors Local 3D Event

alterNative Media is dedicated to encouraging, supporting, and cultivating 3D talent in the local Oklahoma City metro and surrounding areas. With that in mind, aNm is happy to be one of the sponsors for the Oklahoma Electronic Game Expo and Multimedia Conference ("OEGE") - April 11, 2009, at the Oklahoma City Community College campus.

Check out our banner, as well as the other sponsors at the OEGE website:

http://oege.catblog.occc.edu/wordpress/sponsors/

Look for us at this exciting event and be on the look-out for many other opportunities to promote 3D modeling/animation/simulation/video games in Oklahoma !

Monday, March 09, 2009

aNm Listing at OFC Production Guide

A quick look at some recent activity at the Oklahoma Film Commission, suggests there are many big things on Oklahoma's film-industry horizon.

(See the link here for more info.)

As a gentle reminder - especially to all of you about to undertake a film or production project here in Oklahoma - aNm has many artistic and technical services to offer filmmakers and TV production studios, including (but never limited to):

  • Traditional illustration / concept art
  • 2D animation
  • 3D models, animation, & simulation
...and many more.

alterNative Media is listed under "Animation - Computer" at the Oklahoma Film Commission's online Production Guide database at http://www.oklahomaproductionguide.com/listDisplay.php?id=10575. Of course, you can always see examples our work at aNm's online Gallery or with the slideshows here at the aNm blog.

Keep alterNative Media in mind as you begin production and put our creativity to work for you (remember: work smarter, not harder). Contact us today for initial consultation, quote, and milestone schedule.

Monday, June 09, 2008

aNm Shows Art at SoonerCon 08


aNm is proud to showcase some 3D art at SoonerCon 2008, "a fan run multi-genre convention held annually in Oklahoma City."

The event also included a exhibit room where vendors set up various booths and tables. aNm was also proud to support this event by sponsoring the SoonerCon program book.

Native American Tribe Uses Video Games for Learning

 

The Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana gives other Native American tribal entities something to 'shoot' for: creating an immersive 3D environment to increase education and awareness of Indigenous culture. The tribe worked with Red Knight Learning Systems to create a 3D simulation for their Coushatta Heritage Center.
Red Knight developed 3D simulations and interactive exhibits for the cultural center. Click HERE to see examples from Red Knight. Technology such as this is readily available and much more affordable these day. Thus, tribes should begin looking towards solutions like this one to help foster learning and cultural continuance.
As a shameless 'plug', aNm has the technology and ability to offer tribal nations the means to create their own 3D models, simulations, and video games. If you are a tribal nation, museum, or cultural center, contact us today to see how we can use similar innovations to promote and sustain Indigenous culture.

aNm Sponsors Local 3D Event

 
aNm is proud to offer sponsorship support for the most recent Autodesk Animation UserGroup Association ("AAUGA") event at PL Studios, Inc. in Downtown Oklahoma City.

This event - "An Evening of Visual Effects" - held on June 5th, 2008 was an extreme success and the attendance was somewhere in the 150+ range.

The goal of AAUGA is to bring "together local artists, creative professionals, art enthusiasts, educators, and students to learn about the breakthrough tools and techniques being used around the world to further stimulate creative growth locally." Special Guests from Autodesk talked about MotionBuilder and Toxik and gave exclusive demos on how to best use these tools in the industry.

alterNative Media is excited to help support events such as this and we feel that the level of excitement and involvement is growing daily by leaps and bounds. Perhaps it is time for Oklahoma to develop it's own regional conference on 3D art, media, & development. When this happens, aNm will be there to help facilitate this event.

aNm continues to strive towards building a viable 3D studio in Oklahoma with a main purpose of garnering outsourced projects in the film and video game arenas.

Contact us today about how you can be a part of the aNm team!

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Digital Natives

It's been growing and gaining momentum for some time now...

Native American artists and storytellers are beginning to bend new tools and technology to Our cultural needs.

Throughout history we would adopt new / emerging technological advances - such as glass beads and German silver in place of natural quills and abalone shell adornments - and infuse the medium with our particular cultural values, information, meaning. Similarly, Indigenous people are now using digital media (such as 2d and 3d animation) to tell our stories.

A recent article in Native Peoples Magazine by Kade L. Twist (Cherokee), "brave new worlds - Indigenous Animation Movement Rising," outlines this phenomenon. In the article, Twist mentions several Indigenous digital artists including, Joseph Erb (Cherokee), Nathan Young (Pawnee/Delaware/Kiowa), Roy Boney, Jr. (Cherokee), Wathene Young (Cherokee/Delaware), Matt Mason (Cherokee), Anthony Deiter (Plains Cree/Ojibwe), and Joseph Lazare (Mohawk).

(On an unrelated note: this list seems rather Cherokee-heavy, doesn't it?...where are the Caddo digital artists? Oh wait...I'm right here. Heh.)

It is not only refreshing, but vastly and personally rewarding, to see other Natives working in a similar medium (digital art / media).

The Native Peoples article also mentions the Onida Nation's Four Directions Media, which operates Four Directions Productions (4DP) and Canada’s Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) as bigger, power-house contributors within the digital realm.

This is exactly what we need more of: Indigenous people creating Indigenous content especially in digital media. Just like me, these individuals are working hard to make this a reality and we can use all the support we can get. That's why it's good to see an article that celebrates this work.

Friday, August 31, 2007

Mayan village in 3D

Technically "Cool"

A recent issue ("Digging for Details" Volume: 30 Issue: 8 (Aug 2007)) of Computer Graphics World provided insight to an ancient Mayan city, rebuilt in digital 3D form. Clement Valla, an architect who utlizes 2d and 3d graphics, worked with Allan Maca, an archaeologist from Colgate University, to recreate an ancient temple area of Copan (near present-day Honduras).

This project is interesting for a number of points. First, the importance of using technology, such as high-end 3D computer modeling for academic and scientific purposes, should always be at the forefront of our minds, as 3D modelers, animators, and artists.

Second, this project illustrates the importance of technology for cultural continuance. Projects such as this allow individuals virtual access to aspects of material culture that might otherwise not be available to them. For instance, whereas scientifically-trained archaeologists might be allowed to view and handle various artifacts, most of us "regular folk" would not have the same opportunity (and rightly so, as mistreatment or mishandling of the artifact could permanently damage such evidence).

Yet, by reconstructing ancient villages, burial sites, temples, and even individual artifacts, the general public is allowed to break through the "glass case," metaphorically, and experience the culture on a more immediate basis.

3D Simulation for Indigenous Culture

This type of immersive, 3D simulated environment is especially important for Indigenous groups, like the Caddo Nation, whose material artifacts represent a key aspect of more fully understanding and preserving the culture itself. This idea lends itself to another added benefit of using 3D modeling and animations (i.e., simulations) for Indigenous representation: cultural continuance: by immersing the audience within the simulated experience, important lessons and culture-specific perspectives are communicated in a virtual milieu.

In all, projects like this one are important for many reasons, including those mentioned above. However, as always, it is important to utilize Native-perspective when creating representations of culture in any media format. While the article listed many of entities involved in its creations - the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at Colgate University (New York), in partnership with PAPAC (funded by National Geographic and Colgate) and sponsored by the Honduran Ministry of Culture - there was no mention of any Indigenous-specific individuals working on this the PAPAC project.

Of course, the article might have overlooked this element (Allan Maca, Colgate archaeologist, does not have his specific ethnicity listed)...but too many times these sort of endeavors are not implemented by Native people ourselves. Thus, while all this (virtual reconstruction and recreation) is very COOL, there is a specific need for Indigenous people to author ANY media containing Indigenous representation, in order to maintain a truer ethnic/cultural perspective (versus a Euro-centric one). (For extra credit: This theme is a major one present in my book, "Native Americans in Comic Books," coming soon from McFarland Publications.)

To sum

I welcome more endeavors like the PAPAC project, both from a technological and cultural perspective. Yet (just like in almost every other media), there needs to be more Native interaction from the creative perspective.

aNm continues to look for major projects that support these ideals (technology and cultural continuance), as well as financial opportunities that can facilitate such projects. If you know of any such activities, please contact us and share your ideas.

Austin GDC !

alterNative Media in Austin

alterNative Media will be attending the Austin Game Developers Conference, September 5-7, 2007 in Texas. The Austin GDC is always a great time and there will be a host of really good vendors, people, students, artists, beer, and (of course) booth babes! :)
aNm will be on the lookout for the following at the GDC:
  • networking opportunities for additional contracts with independent and AAA game studios
  • art commissions
  • innovations in 3D media, content, sims, games & more
  • collaboration projects with other artist
In addition, aNm will have the chance to revisit some vendors and studios we made contact with last year at the Expo, many of which have already been "warned" (lol) that we are coming.

We will report on the conference as events surface, so keep an eye out at this (blog) location. Hope to see you there!

Monday, August 13, 2007

Animation Project: "Chubby Ninja vs. Master Key"

 

3D Animation Short

Summer classes are over at the Academy of Art and for my final animation project, I created "Chubby Ninja vs. Master Key". This was great fun and I learned quite a bit. While there are still some refinements that can be made, I am happy overall with this 12 seconds of 3D animation.





Monday, October 09, 2006

Excite News - 'Second Life' 3-D Digital World Grows

Life in 3D

While 2nd Life (yes, I know I am spelling it wrong) has been around for quite some time, it has only recently caught the attention of mainstream media. Perhaps this is due to it everygrowing popularity...more likely, it is due to the fact people make actual money inside this virtual world. Anytime there is money to be made, the news media is not far behind.

Not that there is anything wrong with making money.

However, as this article mentions, there are other important aspects to 2nd Life such as academic and simulation training. Given that 2nd Life is free (for basic membership), this can be a very cost effective forst step for individuals seeking advantages in simulation-based training scenarios.
...Or they could just hire me to create the virtual world for them. I'm cheap.
:)
Excite News - 'Second Life' 3-D Digital World Grows