Arts and Entertainment

3D animation is a process of creating moving pictures in a digital environment that is three dimensional. In brief, animating objects which appears in a three dimensional environment and which can be rotated and moved like real objects can be termed as 3D animation. With the help of 3D software application one can create careful crafted 3D objects / models / characters, which gives an illusion of movement or an animation. 3D animation is the heart of games and virtual reality; however it also plays an important role in presentation graphics making the visuals more attractive. It is a process which involves innovative ideas to shape up the concept and to make it come alive. Nowadays, 3D animation has started taking place into the market with more and more industries demanding for the solutions offered by 3D animations. Ranging from presentations to advertisements, games to virtual reality, movies to education theories and more, 3D animation have earned its position in the market place....

Computer graphics are the graphics created with the help of computers which includes presentation and manipulation of images via a computer. Computer graphics animation, also referred as CG animation is a process of creating animated images by using computer graphics. it refers only to moving images.The concept CG animation hit the market late back in 1973 with the movie Westworld, but got the proper podium in the year 1992 with James Cameron's Terminator 2: Judgement Day. Now, CG animation is divided into two main category 3D animation and 2D animation, however in this cutting-edge market scenario the demand of 3D CG animation is growing at a constant pace. Still, 2D CG animation is also in demand because of its stylistic look, low bandwidth and faster real-time renderings. In fact, it is a real successor of stop motion animation techniques. Nowadays, besides 2D and 3D animation, CG animation provides varied range of solution including 3D illustrations, 3D modelling, photorealis...

There are now many things that could be done online, including finishing a college course and landing yourself a job. This is one of the best things that the internet has given mankind, and it has benefited millions of people over the world. There are now many college courses that could be finished entirely over the internet, and there are other tools to help those who would want a future in computer animation. What are the benefits of taking up an online computer animation course as opposed to taking it up in a real school? Needless to say, the training for people who want to be graphic designers and animators is very expensive. It would take long hours at school and at home, and it would be a nice, welcome idea to have it your way as you study a difficult course. There are also tools that could help with computer animation graphics - 3D computer animation software programs are available for those who would want to train themselves. College courses online are easier, because traditio...

You've been told a thousand times that you should market those quirky voices you love to use, that you have such an "animated sound". What does that even mean? After all, you're just being you...right? There's a high demand for character voices from radio to video games to accents. Learn how to bring out those amazing sounds and develop your character voice. Luckily, it's pretty simple if you follow a few easy tips. Character Voice Uses Character voices are everywhere. In fact, if you stop and think about it, you've probably heard over a dozen already today. Some of the best can be found in the entertainment world, including cartoons, e-cards, toys, games, website flash and pretty much anywhere where there is fun, color and voice. So you can see, there is more to character voice than Bart Simpson or Bugs Bunny. Make the Most of Your surroundings Everywhere you look there is another potential character just waiting to be born. In fact, most well known c...

The exciting initial beginning of 3-D animation in movies basically started with Tron in 1982 and in the same year, Star Trek II where 3-D animation was used in fractal landscapes. Pixar then introduced the first 100% 3-D animation when they released Adventures of Andre and Wally in 1984. The Dire Straits music video in 1985 was the first of its kind in full 3-D animation and two years later Tin Toy won an Oscar as the best animated short using realistic human form. Several other 3-D animations was subsequently released over the next few years, introducing animated organic elements, convincing animated mouths with synchronised speech and naturally Jurassic Park in 1994 with its 3-D animated dinosaurs. The big hit however was Toy Story in 1995 and the 3-D industry was literally started with its release. Pixar, which released it, soon had competition from Pacific Data Images when they released Homer and subsequently their second film Antz made them Pixar's greatest competitor. Like...

The level of 3D computer animation technology available today has made it possible for artists to attain needed skills for the field of 3D computer animation prior to attending a specialized technical school or college. There are millions of publications that have relevant information for this field of study. Self-study and take home instruction are examples of popular learning methods that are designed to enhance the progression of the artists' educational process. Artists involved in 3D computer animation are aware that their learning process is ongoing. That can be said for every facet of life. However, once we get our feet wet and have our roots into a career where we begin to see success, we tend to get too comfortable and throw our books or our tools away thinking we know everything. When we think we've learned everything we need to know, our quest appears to be over. The quest is never over as there will always be advances in technology. Learning 3D computer animation ...

Have you ever wondered why dogs bark with an unusual sound that gives a very uneasy feeling during the night? Or taught of creepy creatures hiding in the dark? We frequently heard of them from ghost stories and feared their appearance in televisions. They could be real and frighten you at the same time or maybe just a fantasy, brought to life by individuals with wide imaginations. Most fantasy creatures are feared because of their violence referred to as beasts, but you can also find some which are considered to be good ang helpful. Thumbelina, Thinker Bell, Peter Pan and fairy god mother sure don't scare us. Fantasy is often a dimension created by or originated from a wide imagination that separates real from enchanted. It is generated from the mind to make an imaginative picture as well as form an attractive fantasy creature. Generally, it is an art work by imagination of great writers, ancient myths, movie makers and artists. But don't worry because there isn't any exce...

Illusion Mage is a 3D Animation package that was put together by Seth Avery. Seth had been working in the animation business for over 10 years when he noticed how popular 3D Animation creation from home was becoming. When he looked into it further, he noticed how expensive the software programs were to buy. There were cheaper, and even free applications, but on closer inspection of these, he realised that the tutorials alongside them were complex and not at all user friendly. It was at this point that he saw a gap in the market for an affordable, comprehensive 3D Animation Software package that included detailed step by step tutorials on how to use the software. Using blender software (which is top quality and used by many of the top animators), Seth made over 6 hours of video tutorials and a 200 page manual that takes you step by step through the whole process of creating 3D animation at home. Illusion Mage shows you how to create high quality 3D Animations and Graphics, Characte...

To do animation you will have to have some area of interest as animation is such a broad specialized subject. The basis of animation is to simply create the illusion of moment from still images or objects referred to as modeling or meshing. Today with video real time on-line and manual training more and more people is selected the home training approach by following step by step training and manual guides. There is no difference here with animation as the concept is the same. If you were to take up the adventure of animation, you will in time know how to do animation as that is the only path to follow. Nowadays this is a more practical approach as to learning how the animation software application functions you are teaching yourself. So lets go back in time, to be an animator you need an artist or somebody who can draw. Lest keep it simple lets draw a stick figure on a piece of paper. This would be the first step to animation. It is referred to as modeling, which is 3D. Now we have t...

Welcome to another installment of Pokemon Cafe, where the java and Pokemon topics are evolving along with the Pokemon roaming the floors and occasionally engaging in battle. The latest news in the Pokemon world as you have undoubtedly heard is the release of Pokemon Black and White. The game itself is a must have along with of course all of the exciting spinoff products. There are new Pokemon Black and White stuffed toys, new cards for the Pokemon card game including Shiney Eutei and Raikon. Everything from great new Plushies to stationary are to be had. Children's minds are fantastic. We adults are constantly trying to teach them how to think when in reality the child's brain, like the Pokemon, has special powers and is growing on its own. As an adult, the Pokemon story, I admit, leaves me hanging. But I am not thinking like a child. I always felt that The Wizard of Oz was the greatest film ever made for children. Actually I still feel that way- it is a complex tapestry of t...

Welcome to the Pokemon Cafe! The Pokemon cafe is for those who, like me, know next to nothing about the world of Pokemon that our kids are so excited about. I myself am a mother of an 11-year-old boy who spends a great deal of his day thinking of Pokemon. These days he's especially crazy about Pokemon Black and White, including the Pokemon card game and also the new Pokemon Black and White Plushies (Pokemon stuffed toys that look like stuffed animals). Since Pokemon Black and White came out, I admit to caving in and buying him a large plush toy and two small plushies. No more! Today's topic is training- how it is done and the attitudes of the trainers. Practically speaking, there are the attitudes of trainers in the animated Pokemon storyline and the attitudes of gamers. It is the former I want to focus on; it's more interesting! Like any other animal/human relationship, the core of the Pokemon/trainer relationship is based on trust. Beyond that, there may be a great deal...

Someone tell me if I'm wrong. Amongst the plethora of Pokemon spinoffs, there does not yet exist a Pokeball. This should be a no brainer. How can any Pokemon collector and trainer go about his business without a Pokeball? It just makes sense to have one; one that you can throw without breaking things I might add. The problem with a Pokeball is that you need a Pokemon to live in it, and it would be great to throw your Pokeball and have a plushie leap out. Unfortunately, even in our high tech age, such things are still very low tech and would consist of a jack-in-the-box contraption with a spring and a Plushie that falls flat. I doubt that would be popular. I'm not sure how that aspect of the Pokeball could be fixed but amongst all the people working with Nintendo I'm know there's enough imagination to come up with something. The simple solution I have is this: Make the Pokeball?collection into a kind of Pokemon card game. That is, inside the Pokeball, have 6 to 12 laye...

This is Dinah again at the Pokemon Cafe and Media club and I've just been engaged in lively intellectual discussion about the Pokemon story and possibilities for the future. It's obvious from the development of the game and its spinoffs these years that Pokemon thrives on diversity. In fact, diversity and evolution are what Pokemon is all about! The latest 'shinka' (evolution) jump in Pokemon Mania is Pokemon Black and White (as if I needed to tell you that). As a mom who likes soft toys that can be thrown around without breaking things, I like the new Pokemon Black and White plush toys, or 'plushies' and my son has added some new Pokemon stuffed toys to his collection, though I must admit I bought them partially for myself. The Pokemon Black and White monsters are by far the 'coolest' so far in the game (as opposed to 'cute') and more dragon-like than cuddly. Still, like all Pokemon, they have agreeable and noble faces. Anyway, the Pokemon Black...

The Pokemon story series has always had its weaknesses. Basically, in every segment, Ash is taunted by his 'cool' but evil rivals that finally culminate in the ultimate Pokemon battle from which Ash emerges as the victor while his rivals are vexed. In between there are several sub-battles and a lot of wandering around for less than clear reasons. It does, I suppose, mimic the maze in the game. I confess to my ignorance on the latest; Pokemon Black and White. I know that as far as the game and the spinoffs go, Pokemon Black and White is the latest thing and it is immensely popular. Just go to the Pokemon Store to see for yourself: the shelves are stocked with Pokemon Black and White Plush Dolls, Pokemon figures, Pokedolls, and other toys, stuffed or plastic. Pokemon Black and White is doing well in the Pokemon card game as well, and the new cards are apparently 'the' ones to have. But I don't know if any new storylines via comic books or animation have come out yet...

Pokemon are different from other creatures in that many of them can spontaneously mutate and acquire new powers. In Pokemon parlance, this is called 'evolve' though though of us with an interest in paleontology know that evolution only occurs over a period of thousands or millions of years, while a mutation is something that a living creature is born with- it doesn't generally happen at a certain stage of life. However, animals do change as they grow older and furthermore in the insect world there is the phenomenon of metamorphosis, which is really what the Pokemon do- they metamorphose. I don't know if the latest incantation of Pokemon, Pokemon Black and White, are 'evolved' or not, but they sure look as if they are. They have evolved and may be found anywhere they are selling Pokemon goods- in fact they dominate the shelves and any Pokemon fan who wants something new can't get enough of them. Check out the new Pokemon Black and White plush toys, the stuff...

There are no real Pokemon of course, but there is everything from Pokemon mug cups to Pokemon Black and White plushies all for sale at reasonable prices and ready to give your Pokehungry tyke like mine. Some institutions have built spinoff empires based on characters that have become great legends of our time, though many of us have no idea what these characters stand for or actually do. I'm talking of Disney of course. We all 'know' Mickey Mouse, but how many of us have actually seen a Mickey Mouse animation 'short' (it's odd then that Bugs Bunny has been watched far more but has nowhere near the popularity)? How many have seen The Sorcerer's Apprentice? Maybe a few have, but not most. Then there is Minnie, two dogs (Pluto and Goofy- one speaks, the other does not), and the Donald Duck clan. I don't wish to talk much about Disney, but rather about Pokemon. But Disney is worth pointing out because like Pokemon both are extremely successful spinoff pheno...

Who is Betty Boop? Betty Boop is perhaps one of the most celebrated cartoon characters of all time. The sexy, breathy, independent Betty (created by Max Fleisher in the 1930's) made her debut in Dizzy Dishes, a cartoon made by Paramount Pictures as a talking French Poodle. In true animation spirit, however, by her next appearance she had morphed from a poodle into a curvaceous girl with big dark eyes and a little miss innocence voice. The woman/girl version of Betty Boop was a caricature of singer Helen Kane though the voice was first 'done' by Margie Hines, though later episodes would be voiced by a number of actresses, most notable of whom was Mae Questel; the Boop mistress who began voicing the part in 1931 and continued the character until she died in 1998. Today's Betty Boop is performed by Tress MacNeille in cartoons and Tara Strong when presented in commercials. A Short History of Betty Boop Character Licensing Originally all the rights to the character were ...

OK, so Pokemon evolve and when they do they usually emerge with new, formidable powers. This is why, in the Pokemon Card Game for example, a relatively harmless cute little guy with a little sting may be worth a lot of Pokemon points because of his evolution potential. But the Pokemons' powers are always static, that is to say that their powers don't necessarily fluctuate due to factors like sunlight or isotope intake for example. The Pokemon game could be made more dynamic if the strength of any given Pokemon's power at any given time were less predictable. Just as keepers of a Tamagochi need to feed their chick to keep it happy, so too could exposure to variable elements make a Pokemon more formidable in battle. Conversely, a search of empowering elements that does not result in a find could result in a battle with a Pokemon who is not at full strength and must therefore count on its maneuverability rather than solely on its power. This would give the game more levels, t...

"Chuck" Jones (Charles Martin Jones) was an American cartoon artist and animator. He was also a screenwriter, producer and director of animated films. He is best known for his Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts for Warner Brothers. The cartoons he directed contained some of the best known cartoon characters such as Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny, Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote as well as many more. Among his works of prominence was the 'Hunting Trilogy'. This incredibly famous triptych comprised of Rabbit Fire, Rabbit Seasoning and Duck! Rabbit, Duck. In 1933 Jones joined the independent studio Leon Scheslinger that produced Merrie Melodies and Looney Tunes for Warner Brothers. Initially joining as an assistant animator he was promoted to animator in 1935. During World War II Jones worked closely with Dr Seuss and they created the Private Snafu series. Jones also collaborated with Dr Seuss to adapt several of his books in to animated form, most notably How The Grinch St...

From British Book to US Theater Who doesn't love Winnie the Pooh? In "The House at Pooh Corner" A.A. Milne introduced Winne the Pooh, Kanga, Tigger, Eeyore and the other characters that live in the hundred acre wood of Christopher Robin's imagination. The book, illustrated by E.H. Sheperd, was an instant success and in 1930's the agreement for US rights was reached between Author A.A. Milne and Illustrator Stephen Slesinger. Disney purchased the US rights in the 1960's and a legend was born when the animated classics in the original Winnie the Pooh series first reached theaters and in 1969 Slesinger transferred exclusive merchandising rights over to Disney. Due to the nature of the Disney animated characters being so very different from the original drawings, and the popularity of the Pooh Bear movies, Disney was the one enlisted to market all of the Pooh merchandise including books, games, toys, stuffed animals, movies and all sorts of assorted products fro...