Si viajáis al pasado, al 12 de Mayo, podréis disfrutar de este evento :-/


We becon all mortals to revel in the visual feast that is "The Art of the God of War" Too often we only see the final product and not the often inspiration that goes into creating that product.

This event will give everyone a chance to take a closer look at the artists and creative talent behind the scenes of one of the best games of 2007. The work, although commercial, proves worthy to be framed and hanged and appreciated by game lovers fantasy lovers and art lovers alike.

Come get your book signed and meet the 5 contributing artists that will also be in attendance on opening night.

Featured Artists:

Andy Park
Charlie Wen
Cecil Kim
Dwayne Turner
Erik San Juan
Ryan Meinerding
Scott Seeto

There will be:
- Free giveaways for the first 20 people in line.
- Free raffle ticket per attendee.*
- Free refreshments.
- Playable God of War II game on site.
- Multiple raffle prizes.* including Free T-shirts, limited quantity of 10 GOW I & 10 GOW II games, signed limited edition books!!!
- All Design Studio Press Books and other select books will be up to 25% off.
- Complimentary Drinks
- Music by DJ GRUSES

Los jueces de Final Fantasy XII vistos por Amano.


A continuación copio una entrevista que se le realizó en 2000, la encontré interesante.

Patrick Klepek: How long have you been drawing, both professionally and just for fun?

Yoshitaka Amano: I might have been born with pencils in my hand. I am not sure when I started drawing as a child. As a profession, I started at Tatsunoko Production when I was 15. When I have dead lines my work is considered professional, but otherwise it is just that I am having fun drawing.

Patrick Klepek: How long have you been drawing, both professionally and just for fun?

Yoshitaka Amano: I might have been born with pencils in my hand. I am not sure when I started drawing as a child. As a profession, I started at Tatsunoko Production when I was 15. When I have dead lines my work is considered professional, but otherwise it is just that I am having fun drawing.

Patrick Klepek: What do you look to for inspiration when coming up with ideas?

Yoshitaka Amano: I travel. For example, I am in NY for a particular inspiration. I go to Kyoto, Paris and other cities for the same reason. When I am in different environment, I am constantly inspired by the surroundings. Appearance of the city, the people, fashion, and food etc… The life style and the city in which I live naturally influence the way I depict images through my hands. It is like natural spring water. It depends on the kind of soil and rain the land gets, the kind of water that is created is different. Sometimes it takes months and years to digest the inspiration and make that come out in my work. Inspiration is something that accumulates in my memories. I am in search of the inspiration just so I can create images that I like.


Patrick Klepek: What other artists’ work do you admire?

Yoshitaka Amano: Right now, I like Delacroix. Actually I have always liked his work. The best 3 at the Louvre are Delacroix, Rembrandt, and DaVinci.

Patrick Klepek: Is there a particular project you’ve worked on that you could say is your favorite?

Yoshitaka Amano: Right now, they are Kotatsu, NY Salad, BATTY… the ones that I drew for fun. Cute characters. They mean a lot to me. Essentially, pictures are supposed be that way. All it matters is if I have fun creating or not. Stating about art doesn’t mean anything. My art exist in extension from my childhood fun of drawing. Whenever I work on something serious, I find myself having fun creating playful, fun and cute characters.

Patrick Klepek: What types of tools do you use when drawing?

Yoshitaka Amano: Pencils! First image is always created with a pencil. All is determined by the initial work with a pencil. I wonder what in the world I would do if there were no pencil. I think the person who invented a pencil is so great. If I were in charge, I would definitely give him a Nobel prize.

Patrick Klepek: Has there ever been a time where the ideas simply “stopped flowing”, and you were stumped on what direction to head in next?

Yoshitaka Amano: No, but it would be fun to experience that. Then I would come up with new ideas and that becomes so much fun. It is the most fun part to come up with new ideas. If I had to repeat the same things over and over again, that would be hard. Thinking, “let’s see what do I do…” is a pleasant sensation. If I lose that feeling, it would be meaningless to draw.

Patrick Klepek: How long have you been designing characters for video games?

Yoshitaka Amano: Whenever I started working on Final Fantasy.

Patrick Klepek: Does it feel strange to see the artwork you create sometimes transformed from two-dimensions to the world of 3D?

Yoshitaka Amano: Say my 2D images are 100%, 3D images would be 60%, I mean 50, or may be 40% of what I intended. The gap there is where unknown possibility is. The part that is blank and not fulfilled in the 3D works is the interesting part. I am not going to die because 3D images are not 100%, so it is OK.

Patrick Klepek: Recently, you collaborated with author Neil Gaiman on a few projects. Was there a reason you wanted to work with Gaiman, and would you like to work with him, or other authors, in the future?

Yoshitaka Amano: I feel that I have already met all the talented authors in Japan and outside of Japan, too. Plenty of them… I do not think I will meet anymore. I would need to be sensitive and passionate about getting inspiration from talented authors and I think I passed that stage. Rather, I want to meet musicians, and talents in other genres. I want to collaborate with a variety of talents. Anybody interested?

Patrick Klepek: Do you have a personal favorite design?

Yoshitaka Amano: Favorite design? Game character design? Design in general… I wonder? Well, when I like an image or something, it often turns out to be my work… I am just joking.

Patrick Klepek: Has Squaresoft asked you to work on any of their upcoming projects on the PlayStation 2?

Yoshitaka Amano: Other than Final Fantasy? I do not think so.

Patrick Klepek: What are you currently working on?

Yoshitaka Amano: As I answer this interview, I am working on BATTY. BATTY’s Christmas, I am doing this at my dining room table. I went to get Christmas candies, candles, decoration etc. for his environment yesterday. Oh, and I should seriously be working on FF10… A Japanese publisher “Digi Cube” will publish a book called something like “A Complete Guide to Final Fantasy Characters” in February, I think. It is going to be bi-lingual, Japanese and English. Editors and a photographer is coming from Tokyo next week, so I must start working on FF10, then. The book is especially meant for young artists who are interested in creating characters for games. Also I am working on new CG movies and games, called “ZAN” and “Agent 13”. “ZAN” is my original story about Samurai and the project is initially for American market. I have this original super hero called “TAKOMAN” as well. …and needless to mention, HERO!

Patrick Klepek: Thanks for answering our questions, we can’t wait to check out what you have coming down the line!

Yoshitaka Amano: My pleasure, you are welcome. Christmas is coming and soon it will be the new century. I really want to leave everything behind and start something new… I think at the end of the century, people were talking about what to leave in the history, but the new century is all about starting something innovative and I do not want to repeat the same thing. Let’s start something new!

Ilustrador de la saga Drakengard o Drag-on Dragoon.

Una entrevista (en inglés) del tipo en cuestión detrás de los modelados de los personajes que veremos en Uncharted Drake´s Fortune (PS3). Esto no es un panfleto publicitario, más bien un poco de historia sobre su trabajo, estudios y motivaciones.



Hi Rich, Thanks for talking to us. Apologies for the first most obvious question, but how did it all start for you?

Rich : No problem! Well let’s see. I’ve probably been drawing and painting for as long as I can remember. So I always knew I’d want to do something related to art. I think I actually wanted to become an architect
at some point. Don’t ask me why!!

While in high school I started getting more into portrait painting, while trying to achieve a very realistic style to my art. I think I’ve always been more into realism then "cartoon-ey". I actually had one of my paintings tour all of New Jersey, where I'm originally from. It was a very cool feeling! And considering I, like most artists out there, didn’t get the best of grades, it finally gave me the confidence to realize that I won’t just be one of those starving artist types. I got my first powerful computer in my sophomore year of high school and pretty much everything changed from there. I got heavily into video games and computers in general. I was a big Warcraft and Diablo fan and absolutely fell in love with their cinematics. I think it was then that I realized I wanted to make games for the rest of my life. I am the type of person that goes after what he wants. So, considering I knew that I wanted to make games, I did as much as I could to make that a reality. Computers have always come easy to me. So I knew I had the technical background to learn anything I needed to learn. The hardest part was finding out information.
The internet was just starting to get big. The only two choices I remember having for service back then was AOL or Prodigy. Great choices, huh?!! There really were no cg forums yet. At least not that I knew off. So my only choices really were to try to figure out what I needed to do on my own.I begged my parents to buy me some type of 3d software. Again…I knew nothing! So I went to my local computer store and found the only 3d software that was available: Truespace! Well, I tried. It was hard. That’s all I’m gonna say about that. With college just around the corner, I did my best to research as much as I could and to find a school that would teach me anything that had to do with 3d. Being from the east coast I had some good school options available to me. I got into both the School of Visual Arts in New York and the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. SVA had a really amazing silicon graphics lab but I wasn’t too keen on being in New York. So I chose the latter. During my freshman year, the University of the Arts had started a brand new Multimedia program.
   
It gave me the chance to learn a wide variety of different programs. I also had access to learning my first real 3d package, Softimage 3d. After 3 years in the program I started to have the feeling that I wasn’t learning what I needed to learn. The program was tailored towards web page design and multimedia presentations, rather than anything game related. So I decided to leave school and see what the real world was like.

About a week after I started looking for a job, one sort of fell in my lap. A local game company, Hypnotix, was looking for a 3d guy to help get their cinematics finished on one of their games. In the interview I remember telling my boss that I would work for free, as long as I get to work on games. That probably wasn’t too smart considering the salary they offered me was close to that! Its ok though, I think if I saw the work I showed them back then I wouldn’t hire me! I also made the mistake of wearing a suit to the interview. I got laughed at, a lot. But of course I didn’t find that out until about 6 months after I started! Word to the wise,
DON’T WEAR A SUIT ON AN INTERVIEW! What did I know? I’m from Jersey! Everyone wears suits to job interviews around New York! Well I got the job, soaked up everything I possibly could. I got about 3 raises in the course of a year and got promoted to Lead Artist when I was about 22. The rest, as they say, is history!

And what made you take this career path?

Rich : Well, since Hypnotix had a fairly small team, I had the opportunity to work on just about every aspect of the game. It really was great being able to work on both environments and characters. It gave me the chance to understand all of the technical aspects that go into creating a game from every angle. Being on the east coast however, did limit my knowledge of how other game companies worked. So when I decided to move on from Hypnotix, I knew I had to choose which area of the game I wanted to focus on. I always enjoyed making environments but especially loved making characters. So when I started applying to other studios, I decided to apply as a character artist.

What is it about character creation that makes the job so great?

Rich : That’s a hard question. There are so many great things about working on characters, especially if you get the chance to work on the main ones. For one, your character gets to be the centerpiece of the game, if the game permits. They do tend to get the most scrutiny however, but they also tend to have the greatest reward. I don’t think there is any greater feeling than when you hear, “Wow, that character is amazing.” In my opinion, working on characters has a huge advantage over environments. Because it's just one character, you can really focus all of your attention on one task, not having to worry about a gigantic area to populate. There is also a huge technical side to creating game characters, especially with next generation ones. That is one of the areas that I really love. I love figuring out new ways of achieving results and new and more efficient pipelines.

You recently moved to 'Naughty Dog' of Crash Bandicoot and Jak & Daxter Fame.
How did that happen?

Rich : At the time, I was working at NCSOFT in Santa Monica. I was hired to work on the cinematic team. Unfortunately that team only lasted a couple of months. The studio was formed initially as a concept house to handle all of the concepts for studios worldwide. They decided to get a hold of the giant talent pool in LA and see if they could also produce a functioning cinematic studio. After a series of communication problems, they decided to get rid of the cinematic team after I was there for about 2 months. So anyone that had anything to do with 3d pretty much got laid off, except for me. They decided to keep me around since I had a vast knowledge of games and pipelines in addition to high end cinematic know-how. I was going to help out as much as I could in making sure that their next generation games were up to a certain standard. I’ll tell you, it really was an amazing place to work. The concept team that they had there was probably the best I’ve seen anywhere as a whole. I learned so much from just being around those guys. Unfortunately my role there never got clearly defined. I felt more like an outsider being the only 3d guy and realized that I missed working in an actual production environment. So it was about time to start looking into other options.
 
I actually got a hold of the Offset guys after seeing their amazing videos online and was originally supposed to be heading up the character side over there. After months and months of waiting for deals to be signed and constantly wanting to be back in production, I decided to contact one of my recruiters and see what else was out there. He immediately sent me an opening for a texture/material artist over at Naughty Dog. I really wasn’t too interested at first, since I wanted to do more than just texture and materials. But he convinced me to meet with them, since they are known as one of the best companies to work for in the industry.

A couple of hours after agreeing to forward them my work, I got a call from Bob Rafei, the art director at Naughty Dog, asking me to come in the next day to interview. I was like, “sure, no problem!” I went on the interview the next day during my lunch break and presented them with some of my newer work that I couldn’t present online. I also, upon their request, brought in sample files to explain my workflow in more detail. Since I had a limited amount of time, I pretty much ended up doing most of the talking and showing off. I didn’t get a chance to see what project they were actually working on. Since it was top secret, nothing was really available for me even to see! So I left a little disappointed. However, the next day I got a call from Evan Wells, who is the co-owner of Naughty Dog, reassuring me that the position would not be limited to only texturing and shading. I told him I really needed to see what they were working on before I could make any further decisions. So he told me to come in the following day in order to show me everything.So the next day I went back and Evan and Bob proceeded to show me everything they had. And I must say, I was truly blown away. The technology and plans they had would remove restrictions that hinder other game studios. I had a feeling it would be something special.After thinking over the offer for a few days, I came to the decision that nothing else even came close to Naughty Dog. I’ve been there for just over a year now and it’s been an amazing experience.

What is your main role at naughty dog?

Rich : I was initially hired as a character artist but was quickly promoted to Lead Character Artist, in charge of overseeing anything character related. I deal mostly with character pipelines and coming up with both new and innovative ideas. I also get the honor of working on all of the main characters in the game.

How does it compare to previous jobs you have had?

Rich : Naughty Dog is on the forefront of technology which allows me to be on the forefront of next generation character development. I’ve never actually been at a place that is all about setting new standards and has the means of doing so. Naughty Dog also has an amazing relationship with Sony, which allows us almost complete control of how our game turns out. The freedom we have to explore and innovate is truly amazing.

What inspires you? (video games, films etc).

Rich : Everything really inspires me. I love video games, art, movies, music, computers and technology. If something is new and cool I’m all over it! I also get inspired by the people around me. I’m a very passionate person with my work so anytime I see that passion from someone else, regardless of the field, it motivates me to make a difference. I also try to inspire others around me. I’m all about pushing the envelope and getting everyone else excited to be a part of something special.

Do you get any time for personal artworks any more?

Rich : Not as much time as I would like. Its really hard trying to juggle a full time job that is very demanding and a family across the country that I’m trying not to miss. Not to mention a social life! Every once in a while I make sure that I get the chance to do some personal work. I think it’s an extremely necessary thing. It’s the one time I get to really experiment and learn new things without worrying about deadlines. I’m also really big on learning and playing with new tools and programs. I think I’d go nuts if I wasn’t able to do at least some things at home.

One piece of professional advice for our readers?
Rich : Don’t stop learning! The most successful people I’ve met are the ones who are always on top of their game. They know the latest and greatest methods of working and are constantly trying new ways to enhance themselves as artists. A vast knowledge of tools and pipelines will easily give you an edge over someone else whose knowledge is very limited. This industry is not easy. To be the best, you have to work for it. Good luck to all and thanks for reading!

Pasos intermedios hasta llegar a las escenas finales. La película se estrena a finales de Junio. La web oficial es Shrek the Third.

Aunque no llevo mucho tiempo trabajando con sus novedades, uno de esos pequeños detalles que me han gustado de Photoshop CS3 es el pequeño retoque a la interfaz que estaba sin cambiar desde... bueno, desde hace décadas.

Cada vez había más paneles, herramientas y mejoras que ya ni se sabía donde meter. Incluso situando Historial en la parte superior acababa siendo un engorro, por no hablar de la caja de herramientas que era demasiado gruesa y se llevaba buena parte del espacio de trabajo.

Ahora parece que han corregido algunas cosas, en parte inspirado por los paneles de Macromedia o del mismo InDesign, resulta cómodo que algunas de las funciones menos usadas estén escondidas como un mero icono, y cuando se necesitan (por ejemplo, la edición de párrafos), se despliegan. La tecla F que sirve para cambiar el espacio ahora es más útil, ya que en una de sus formas se amplía el lienzo sin quedar por debajo de los paneles de capas, algo que antes sucedía (impidiendo llegar a esa parte con la miniatura que hace de zoom).

En fin, que mientras Adobe siga mimando su producto ninguna otra empresa podrá toser a Photoshop. No vendría mal que Corel se pusiera las pilas.

¿Que tienen en común Sonic The Hedgehog, Shadow The Hedgehog, y la película (al menos una pequeña secuencia del primer trailer) de Los Simpsons?.

La respuesta es Dan Rice, un artista 3D que ha trabajado en las CGs de los citados juegos (entre otros) y en el curioso gag del conejito que muere al inicio del trailer de Los Simpsons.

El blog de Ashley Wood lo ha mostrado hace unos días, recién salido del horno.

Aquí un pequeño boceto del mismo comic.

Pues bueno, ayer estuve haciendo algunos wallpapers para mi PSP, no están muy allá pero peor son una pedrada. Además, en muchos ahorré trabajo usando el mismo fondo XDD








Por otra parte, no se si la música que he puesto os gusta. Después de ponerle a Sargon una, me quedé con las ganas, e hice lo mismo aquí, pero creo que retumba demasiado XDDD, quizás convendría una más traquila. Ya me contareis...

Un gran artista de fondos para películas (matte), además de ilustraciones personales.

Podéis ver cosas suyas en www.dusso.com

Por ejemplo, en este fotograma de Piratas del Caribe...

Encontramos que parte del fondo está pintado por él.



En las que mezclan foto real con pintura os costará distinguir cada parte. Pero adelante, echad un vistazo. Y de paso, intentad adivinar a que película pertenecen.





Y ahora llega lo mejor, avalancha de imágenes de Star Wars, algunas de un tamaño gigante (pinchad en las imágenes), ideal para wallpapers. Preparaos para babear...