The adventure continues...

Greetings!  It's definitely been a while since the last time we posted.  Big things have been happening here at Studio Gattai and we've finally gotten around to giving you all an update.  For those of you who didn't know, I have left my full time job in the animation industry in order to dedicate all of my effort towards getting Studio Gattai up and running.  I have a few updates today so let's get going!

ARAM...

First up I have an update on the announced series "ARAM".  We have decided to put the project "on the shelf".  This means that we're not quite ready to produce the series yet and we want to save it for a later date.  The truth of the matter is that the story just wasn't working.  Hopefully we'll be able to strengthen the story enough to bring the project back at a later date.

STUDIO GATTAI...

We've been able to set up a new studio space!  ShiroNinja and I have been saving our pennies up for this occasion and we were able to assemble some really nice computers.  Below are some pictures of the studio as it came to life:

Again, my apologies for the long absence, but hopefully now that we're working full time on our own original projects we'll have more updates for you to check out.

We've also opened a tumblr page where we'll feature more of our day to day art and work in progress reports as well as some silly stuff.  You can check out our tumblr here.

Raeden's expressions

Ossu!  Shiro Ninja here.  Zer07 and I have been hard at work on "Aram" and we've been continuing to fine tune our hero, Raeden.  Utilizing our character sheet and CG model, we created some more images which will be used as important references during the animation stage.  

 

More to come soon!  Saraba!!

Making a hero...

Greetings friends!!  Zer07 and I are working hard on our original animated series called, "Aram."  It's going to be a daunting task producing the pilot between the two of us, but we are really excited about this project.  We're currently in the pre-production phase, hammering out the story and establishing the look.  The first character we designed is our hero, "Raeden."  

Our plan for the animation process is to utilize CG models as a base for our characters, and draw over these CG models in 2D.  (You can get an idea for this process in Zer07's post:  3D to 2D workflow - use the tools.)  The hope is that by having CG characters as a base, we will be able to maintain a consistent style (what traditional animators call, "staying on model") while keeping the animation and aesthetic quality high.  

Here is the CG model that Unit Zer07 created for Raeden:

Zer07 has already finished rigging this model, which means that we can pose him and start animating him however we like!  As you can see, this CG model is low resolution, which means that we need an official 2D character sheet to establish the fine details that will go into the drawings.  (Traditional 2D animators use character sheets to make sure they are consistently drawing the character exactly the way they're supposed to look.  This is "staying on model.")  Below is my 2D version of Raeden:  

(He's wearing a skin-tight suit which will include some patterns that we have yet to design.)  Keep watching for more updates!  

Story writing with Shiro Ninja and Zer07: Part 1 - Always looking forward

Ossu!!  Shiro Ninja here.  Unit Zer07 and I have been hard at work doing some story writing.  We're developing an idea for an animated series we want to make, which we're calling, "Aram."  We're making progress and are really excited with the direction the story is going, but as you can see, the story writing process doesn't always go smoothly.  More story writing tales to follow...