I love iMovie ‘09 and its stabilisation feature. This was footage taken from last week’s Pulau Ubin trip with Kader and Calvin.

Amidst all the junk on my desk, it stands tall, silent and strong. Presenting the all new Macbook Pro. This has been for me, a journey spanning 3 years, watching enviously as people around me got their own sleek high end Apple machines while I laboured away at my Windows Vista powered HP Pavilion DV9000. I assured myself that my choice of a PC was a pragmatic one, considering the amount of work I do on Windows as an animator. I was contented, until about the same time last year, a white Macbook came into my life. Sure, it had the most basic specifications an Apple computer could have, but it made me actually enjoy doing work. With its ram upgraded to 4gb, I found myself doing concept art, video editing, compositing, motion graphics and then some on this neat little machine. The only thing I couldn’t do was play games or use any 3D animation software. A year later, here I am staring at this beautiful 15 inch LED glossy display on the new Macbook Pro 2009, while my old Macbook is in the hands of a random buyer off the internets.

So I thought, what the hey, I’ll do a mini review of the Macbook Pro.

See the rest of this post

It’s been a long time since I posted anything on this blog. But I think this email I received from the NTU Students’ Union deserves to be the first post on my blog in a long while. There were some people who questioned the humour in this email and started a debate on whether polo shirts were a viable piece of clothing in Singapore’s hot climate, until they realised a missing letter. It brightened up my day. I hope it brightens up yours too.

It’s the last week of school, and it’s been a crazy last week. After back to back Business Law and Western Film History examinations I had to rush preproduction work. Managed to complete the above three paintings and a 16 frame colour script within 2 days. On submission day we had to run after our professor to the bus stop just to hand up our preproduction DVD. It was also the first time I brought my tablet to school because I couldnt stand the solitude of working alone in my hostel room.

I’m also one of the lucky few who haven’t finished with their submissions. Still got one more to go – Graphic Storytelling. Woot.

As you can see from my posts, I’ve been producing truckloads of work as the semester ends. Tried a different style for the last image, which has gotten mixed reviews. I don’t really know how to make a chinese landscape painting look colourful and blend into the rest of the shots. Much to learn, I still have. Let me know what you think in the comments!

Get the latest Flash Player to see this player.

This was done as a final project for my motion graphics class. We were tasked to make a teaser trailer for a film of our choice without any original footage from the film. I chose Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Done with Adobe After Effects and Boujou. Music from the OST. Image of Clementine from the motion picture. Background footage shot with my LX3. In case you’re wondering, the words on her face are quotes from Joel and Clementine in the film. Wanted to try something experimental.

My motion graphics class is having a screening tomorrow (14th April) at the ADM Auditorium at 7pm. See you there!

• the smell of burning incense is filling the air here in NTU. This of course begs the question: why am I in school on a Sunday? #
• hat trick! 3 Cup noodles in 24 hours. #
• Why is there a singtel iPhone advert in the straits times iPhone application? #
• wow they actually found a way to make a 26x zoom digital camera without compromising much on image quality. http://bit.ly/4DWe2i #
• The worst websites in the world are those optimised for internet explorer. #
• What’s the difference between a musical and a musicale? #

These are concept art for our final year project. Done in photoshop. Character designs by groupmate Gavin Tan. Paintings by me. Rushed them out in one night. Loads more to go!

Did this during my short 5 week stint at Lights and Shadows last December. I can’t say what project this model was for, but I can tell you that I modeled and textured this in 3D Studio Max and Photoshop. Prior to my time interning there, I had basic modelling and texturing in 3D Studio Max, so I picked up quite a bit along the way. Oh and did I mention I rigged and animated this fish as well? Max and maya had roughly the same features, but they named their features differently. It was like learning a new language. Wished I did a turntable of this fish though. More views after the break.

See the rest of this post

Another piece done for Graphic Storytelling class with Sonny Liew. We had 3 weeks to do this, but as always, I ended up rushing it the night before class. I told myself to stop doing that but somehow I still do. It’s a simple piece. We were asked to do something about a nightmare or the worst situation you can imagine yourself to be in. I thought that being dead while you’re still alive was a pretty crappy situation to be in. Second page after the break.

See the rest of this post