Attached Link: http://www.powerhousemultimedia.com/anims/

Hiya all, O.K. ... I hope I did the "Freestuff" / link-to-web-page "upload" thing right. It said it would be pending for 48 hours before it shows up in the Freestuff/Animation area. But, if you're impatient (or would like to make comments, suggestions, etc.), please feel free to take a look at the included web page link when you get a chance. I tried encoding the Space Elevator animation with the DivX codec, but I just wasn't happy with the results (or the large file size). I'll revisit that little effort when I get some more time. But ... The animations available are in either Windows Streaming Media (.wmv) format, or MPEG, so ... take a look, and please let me know if you have any problems viewing them (always best to download first, even if it IS supposed to "stream"!) Thanks again to everyone who helped me figure out this "upload" thing concerning animations. With a little luck, this might actually work! (and by the way -- be sure your volume is turned UP for these!) Thanx, Roy

Wow! Immensely enjoyable, although, the sound for the rocketship animation seems to be a bit choppy from web degredation. You might want to check to see if you can reupload an original copy back to your site. Website maintenence over a few years tends to do that to some files, being backed up, restored, backed up and restored again over a long period of time. It degrades if they don't restore from originals rather than from backups of backup of backups, if you get my drift.

Well done. Really enjoyable and very professional.

Excellent work, Roy-Boy! (Elroy Jetson reference. Sorry.) Santa's Gold was a professional caliber character animation, I wonder how long it took you to perfect it, and I wonder if you Ice skate in your spare time or just watch a lot on tv... The space elevator was very cool. It serves as a reminder that maybe soon the 21st century will really start to feel like the 21st century... and for whatever reason, the rendering seemed a bit retro, like the stuff from "Beyond the Mind's Eye". It certainly felt like a corporate product promo.

Hiya fellas, ... ... and thank you! You're very generous in your comments, and I certainly appreciate it! Steve -- I'll check out that soundtrack. I've been meaning (forever) to re-capture the "Santa's Gold" and "Giant Leap" animations from the master videotapes (all were originally rendered for NTSC playback). These old MPEGS are years old, and, if I could FIND my original masters, I think I'd re-cap them and convert to Windows Streaming format. Thanks for your feedback! BrainMuffin -- no need to apologize for the Jetson's reference. With a name like "Roy", I've had more nicknames over the years than you wanna know about! I spent months on the Santa animation, and I don't know anything about ice skating! For reference, I videotaped a number of olympic skaters from the T.V., and cut-and-pasted parts of several routines together to get the basic timing and speed references for Santa's moves. And yeah, the Space Elevator piece is essentially a corporate product promo piece, and the "retro" look stems from ... trying to make a very futuristic concept look ... "simple", and basic (the "climber" really will be light-weight and almost "spindly" in nature). By the way, I also wrote the script, recorded the voice talent, and mixed the audio track on that piece (and the others). The audio track is really what drives the pace of the animation. After the anchor-station fly-around, the rest was done primarily with After Effects -- I had run out of time, and so I had to alter my planned ending, and ended up with what you see. I'm working on a follow-up piece for the upcoming Space Elevator Conference in Washington D.C. this summer, and when I get that done, I'll be sure to make a mention of it here on this board somewhere. Thanks again, for taking the time to look, and for all your comments and suggestions -- I appreciates ya all! --Roy

Very good timing and animation in Santa's Gold, the one I've seen so far.

It took me a while to get to these (work's been crazy) but they were definately worth the download. I take it you do this kind of stuff professionally? It's very nice work!

Hiya Bobasaur, << I take it you do this kind of stuff professionally? >> Yeah, ... kinda ... My official title is "Senior Media Specialist" ... (but when people ask, I just tell 'em that I'm a graphic artist!). So what that means is ... I've been a professional graphic artist for a long time, and 3D is something I've "tinkered" with for a number of years. The company I work for is just now beginning to appreciate what can be done with all that 3D stuff! So, I work with print, web, photography, video, sound, music, animation, etc. ... and I gotta admit -- it is a GREAT way to make a living! :-) (The Space Elevator is a "professional" piece ... the other two were just for fun and my own education!)

Hey Roy, Any advice on finding and getting a job? Brain

Hiya Brain, I've certainly interviewed and made hire / not-hire decisions about a number of artists over the years. I'll give you my 2-cents-worth, but keep in mind that a whole slew of people in this world may not agree with me ... 1.) Do good quality work and present it well ... I don't give a hoot about college degrees. I care about the quality and quantity of an individual's work. In professions like accounting, that degree says you know what you're doing ... and in a profession like that, how could anyone ever really "show" you that they know their stuff? But in the graphics / media field, I expect to be SHOWN that an individual knows what they're doing. A good strong porfolio will impress me far more than all the degrees anyone throws out. I've met plenty of kids who went to the local "graphic arts" academy and got a degree, but who really had no talent whatsoever. Make good, complete, clean, and professional looking work, and present it in a nice, organized portfolio. That get's my attention and interest more than anything. 2.) Have a web site that actually works ... Web sites are a great way to show your work, and tell who you are. If you wanna work in the media field, you've just about gotta be able to produce a decent web site these days. It doesn't have to be fancy and "stylish", but it should be clean and easy to navigate, show your work well, and all the links gotta work. Nothing bugs me like someone applying for a job that involves website creation, and then showing me their own website that only half-works. I want people who pay attention to details. Make sure your web site works like it should (and that it includes your resume and contact information, too). 3.) Be professional and have a thick skin ... Sooner or later, someone is gonna ask you to change or modify something you've made -- don't be overly sensitive about it. Commercial artists get paid for satisfying their customers, not expressing a bunch of "high-brow-Artiste" opinions. Art directors have been known to "critique" people's work during an interview, to see how they handle it. Best not to make excuses for things (but O.K. to provide additional details if it helps explain why you did what you did). Accept positive criticism and suggestions gracefully, and don't get all defensive (the art director doesn't want to have to argue with you every time he wants something changed). And always, always, always keep in mind ... that just because your work may not appeal to one employer, does NOT mean your work isn't good -- it just means that you haven't found the best employer for YOUR skills just yet! 4.) Be hungry ... Like any other profession, if you're gonna be good at what you do, you've gotta WANT to do it. Show your prospective employer that you're serious about your career and doing what you do, because you love doing it. And you do that by showing work you've done just for your own benefit, enjoyment, and self-education. The best graphic artists don't really "create" for the money -- they do it because they're ... compelled to -- they almost HAVE to do it, for their own peace-of-mind. Include some good, original pieces in your portfolio that you did ... just because YOU wanted to do them. That's how I'll know that you want to learn and grow and improve and build a real career. So, there ya go. I guess the short version is ... do good quality work, display it well, demonstrate that you WANT to do that type of work because you really like it, and act like a mature professional who can accept direction and work well with others. And ... don't give up. Art is about as "subjective" as anything gets. Some people may not like your work, and others will love it. Keep looking and trying until you find an employer that relates to what you do (it's a big world out there). Artists tend to be a little sensitive, and it is easy to get "down" when you meet with rejection. Don't let it keep you down. If you've got talent, and desire, and energy, and smarts ... you'll get what you want in the long run. You won't be able to miss, in fact. And in the meantime, ... keep learning and trying and creating and getting better and better at what you like to do. You won't regret it. There are days when I just can't believe that I actually get paid for having all the fun I have!! It is a great way to make a living!

Thank's Roy! I think that's the best advice I've ever got! (I would've replied sooner, but I didn't get an e-mail notifier...) I'm gonna go give my URL to anybody I can... Thanks again! Brain