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Tablet Mac?
Could there be a tablet PC from Apple coming soon? It's been known for a while now that Apple filed for related patents well over a year ago if not before that. The tablet market hasn't shown the kind of progress that would necessarily make it appear attractive to Apple, but then recently things have been picking up in the tablet world. Maybe Apple will have just the strategy to make it big.
Tools like the iPod and software like iTunes were nothing new to the market. Similar hardware existed for years and tools like Media Jukebox and Windows Media Player were also making the rounds long before them. So how then did Apple jump into this market and gain 80% market share in under two years? It was all about strategy.
 Apple made it cheap, easy, convenient and all the other things a large mass market would look for. People want to connect with media without doing any work. Apple made it so that you didn't have to be a tech head to get into that world and they won because of it. So could they do the same with Tablet PC's? Well, Australia's Smarthouse claims that Apple researchers have built a fully working prototype of tablet Mac and three companies in Taiwan are bidding for a potential launch in mid 2007, so we may just get to find out!
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INDEPENDENT'S WAY
Is theatrical really the way to go? One must admit that Phil Nibbelink did an amazing job of self financing and getting any level of distribution for a movie the studios were not interested in. This same task faces anyone who wants to have total creative control over their work and no interest in doing yet another talking animal film. After all, the studios will only jump into the "trend of the month" type of movie.
 Nibbelink wanted to do 2D. The studios say 2D is dead. Well naturally, self financing his film meant that Nibbelink could do whatever he wanted, and that he did. Anything outside of the narrow window of what studios can see as profitable is only going to see the light of day as an indie project. The real question is how do you go about it? What if you are very far outside that window, like doing mature subject matter or serious animated drama?
We all know that the current technology, the falling cost of animation production and outsourcing in Asia has made many independent projects possible, taking great animated content out of the exclusive domain of Dreamworks and Disney. Still, most seeking entry into this market, for all their talk of creative control, are eyeing that major theatrical distribution and thus creating more of the same thing the studios believe could sell. Talking animals and comedies. One company, Sandman Studios, according to AWN, is even going about it in a way that I personally could never trust.
Sandman's goal for most of its projects is to raise $1 million or so privately for development of a five-minute animated short, and then use that to pitch the project to investors or possibly studios. Most of its films are expected to have budgets in the range of $20 million to $25 million.
I've been through this process, twice, at two different studios. It doesn't work! There may be some potential with private investors but with studios they are merely dreaming or asking to get their asses handed to them and end up with next to nothing in the end. With planned budgets so low, the studios may not even take them seriously. Just like I thought when I was at Rainbow Studios, if you can raise the $1 million in private investment, do something with that!
Theatrical distribution is part of an old closed system. In fact, it's like the Holy Grail. We all know what happens to those who chase after it. Few ever find it. Many have never returned. The most important thing about Phil Nibbelink's quick theatrical stint is that it enables him to contend for the animated Oscar, but I believe his real audience will be found on DVD. The indie needs a different way. If you can muster what it takes to privately make the film and keep control, then seriously consider finding an independent path the getting it to an audience as well.
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children is a great example of a privately financed film and what can be achieved in the DVD market. It's marketing, while we must take to account its connection to a huge game franchise, was almost entirely internet and trade show based, and yet to one of the top selling animated DVD titles of all time in Japan.
Of course, none of us have the money Square has to throw at a production, but that doesn't mean there isn't a lot we can learn from them in terms of finding the way for our products to get made and find an audience. Square built on something. It was their brand. Something they had developed while almost going out of business years ago. That brand is an important part of the equation. Do you have a brand to capitalize on?
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MASTER OF MODELS
 While the technology might allow many of us to believe we can do our own projects in this day and age, I think many, especially from what I see on different forums, would still be quick to put severe limitations on how high a quality can be achieved on such projects. Michael Rak over at Sanctum Art shows us that in today's world there are no limits to what an independent artist can achieve.
Sanctum Art is in the business of models. Many of their works are available for sale in different object formats on their website. Michael Rak, creator of the V.A.P. Grim, pictured left, has formed long standing relationships with numerous media companies which allows him to employ the latest and most innovative tools of the day in the creation of digital art assets, including Z-Brush and 3D Studio Max.
The creative power given to independent artists by the latest tools, like Z Brush, overcomes barriers that we might have encountered just three years ago attempting to create digital content that rivals the majors. Now, as seen in the models from Sanctum Art, the tools available to all of us not only allow us to create feature quality work, but the major studios are now using the very same tools. Gone are the days when they wrote their own and the good stuff trickled down to us years later.
As mentioned earlier, not only does Sanctum Art create custom models for numerous media projects, they also sell models direct to users in Poser and 3DS format. The vast majority of their customers are hobbyists and enthusiasts who wish to learn. So if you were just about to say, "I can't model like that.", Take a cue from Sanctum Art's many fans and study their work for your own improvement. I think the indie digital art community can learn a lot, and those of us interested in making sci-fi and fantasy projects should be studying already.
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ANIME STUDIO PRO 5
In the tradition of always being aware of the next big thing, or looking for any possibilities to make life and work easier, I decided to check out Anime Studio Pro 5 from E-Frontier. I have only messed with it for a couple of days, so I am no expert, I think I see the strengths and weaknesses of this program. The creators say:
Anime Studio 5 is your complete 2D animation program for creating movies, cartoons, anime or cut out animations. Create your own desktop animated shorts in the style of SouthParkStudios.com and JibJab.com, or use Anime Studio to produce full-length animation for film, video or streaming over the web. Anime Studio allows digital enthusiasts at home and professionals in the studio bring their imagination to life!
On this they are right. It certainly is complete, lacking nothing. It has particles, can work with video and even does automatic inbetweening. There are some very key differences, though, between this and a program like, say, Mirage.
Anime Studio is a vector graphic program. This would be like the difference between a program like Corel or Adobe Iluustrator versus and program like Photoshop or Mirage. While this is its strength, it is also why certain types of animation would not be ideal to attempt here. If you know about Flash, then you know it is the king of vector animation. Maybe I should say was? However, you also know that Flash has its limitations. Many of the same apply to Anime Studio. Once you are fully aware of this, then the true power of creating in Anime Studio becomes apparent.
One need only look at the Anime Studio gallery to see that an artist can create animation ranging from the highest in feature quality to the quick and cartoony of TV. And the best thing about using the toolset they give you is that these things can be created fast! This is the power of vector. It approaches the use of cel shaded 3D in terms of reusability of assets. If you want to set up a complex character rig, to get the most reusable character, it can take some time, but the return on your investment is immense, especially if you're eyeing a long creation like a series. I see clearly why Flash is so popular on Cartoon Network shows or on Nick. With Anime Studio, though, you have even more power than those.
I hesitate to use the term complex, because it reality, nothing in Anime Studio is. Creating the most reusability takes time and thought, but the toolset is very easy. In fact, in the first night, just doing the first few tutorials, I had already touched on everything in it. The key is what a little thought and imagination can do with what they give you. People in the Anime Studio Forum are constantly coming with new things you can do with the simple tools available, possibly things the creators hadn't even thought. This is the great value of vector.
So far I am very impressed. I definitely can see series work being all the more possible with a tool like this. It's the perfect hybrid between the ease of 2D and the advantages of 3D cel shaded. If you're thinking a more simplistic cartoon like, say, Danny Phantom, then you might be amazed how productive Anime Studio can make you.
coming up next: MASTER OF MODELS
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GIVEN A REASON
 For a time now E-Frontier has been running a number of ads on their site to spur preorders of Poser 7 Special Edition. They have these cards which each represent a new reason to buy the program. I've been keeping an eye on Poser for a while now and it wasn't until Poser 6 came out that I really started to view it as possibly the right tool for a lot of what I do.
For a time I was somewhat unconvinced that Poser 7 had much more to offer. After all, E-Frontier bought Poser from the previous developer as is the case with just about everything they sell. Like Microsoft they are more of a marketing company than a developer. They find great products that may not be huge, and repackage them for a larger market... right?
Well Reason number 5 to get Poser really caught me off guard!
Reason 5. Create superior movies using Poser 7’s new Non-Linear Animation! Now you can use Animation Layers to separate the various parts of an animation into independent pieces that can be individually moved, edited, hidden, or even phased gradually in and out! At playback Poser seamlessly compiles all the separate layers into a single, cohesive animation! Animation layers are supported by a variety of Poser’s animation tools, such as the Walk Designer and Talk Designer, as well as the content Library, making it simple to organize and even reuse various portions of your animations.
That's what it says on their site. Well.. I'm in!
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WHAT THE STARS DON'T KNOW
 Sony held a star studded debut event for the PS3 Wednesday night bringing in the likes of Lindsay Lohan, P. Diddy, Chris Rock and Chirstina Milian. The stars got to see first hand the incredible powers of the Ps3 to deliver an HD gaming experience with launch titles like Genji: Days of the Blade from Yoshiki Okamoto's Game Republic Studio. They also got a sampling of movies like Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby in pristine HD glory on Blu-Ray disc. The even went on to show how the PS3 will connect to the net to perform iTunes style functions such as downloading music, ripping CD's and photo sharing.
What the stars don't know however is that Sony, because of the big Blu-Ray delay, cannot manufacture enough Ps3 units for their big launch and only a few hundred thousand will be available for the entire United States. Spread across the country, this will equal only a few units per store. The PSP shipped over a million units and was still impossible to get during launch week. I hope they have their preorders in.
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OLD WAYS PASS AWAY
 The world of animation is changing no matter what the majors want to do about it. The world of distribution is potentially going out of their sole control and they see that coming. The real question is whether or not indies will have content ready to fill the gap, because I suspect it shall be a very small gap before new locks are made for all new gates.
One animator has certainly put in the work. His name is Phil Nibbelink and he is the creator of Romeo and Juliet: Sealed With A Kiss. Now when I say he created this, I mean e wrote, directed and animated this film, a true theatrical feature now playing at local cinemas in California. Apparently reviews of the film have not been the most positive. Celshader actually went to see the film last Friday and she had good things to say about it:
Overall, though, I liked the film. I loved the visual gags, such as when the dancing Prince accidentally knocks most of the Capulets off of the ship. I also liked the look. The flat-shaded characters and full animation made me nostalgic for the 70's and 80's animation in my collection. I look forwards to buying the DVD.
 So how does the director and lone animator of a thatrical feature film make it happen? Of course there's persistance and dedication. He began working on it in early 2003. But there is also seeing new ways to get the project done rather than sticking to the old. He says:
I didn't need storyboards because I could see it in my mind and I didn't have to communicate my vision to anyone else. I wrote the script and then started animating. I didn't even bother to refer back to the script because the characters took on a life of their own and they told me what they wanted to say and where they wanted to go next.
While Phil Nibbelink's movie is certainly for children, the idea that animation for mature audiences is not to be found in the western world is crumbling as well. For a look at something very different, check out the UK film Princess, about a clergy man whose sister dies of drug abuse at the end of a failing career as a porn star. Anders Morgenthaler, the director of the film even has a blog on the site with great insight into past and future projects:
I hope my next movie will get a bigger audiens in Denmark than Princes did. Princess are doing fantastic in the rest of the world sales wise so I´ll start travel the film business highway when I finish shooting Echo .... But Princess did a good job for me I will always remember her!
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