Another Mars film in the works!

Here's a quirkly looking independant film that's just come out in the States... Mars by Geoff Marslet (Perfect name!). More here and an interview here.

MARS - The Movie [HD Trailer] from Geoff Marslett on Vimeo.

...and nearly there!

This is a POV shot, hence the oblique view.

I've layered a reflection of the astronaut onto the display, which is quite effective.

I might need to add a small amount of jitter in there as well, to give it a slightly handheld effect, but otherwise I'm pretty pleased with the result.

Martian computer graphics from Damon Keen on Vimeo.

Future grunge

...now with added static, scratches and scan-lines.

I guess the technology of 2038 is a bit crap...

You know what they say; you can put a woman on Mars, but you can't make an iphone work in space...

Details, details, details....

Here's a couple of examples of the animation that's being built for the computer displays that appear in the film...

We're going with monochromatic displays - on the assumption that power is at a premium within the astronaut's spacesuit.

Also note our usage of IAL - the International Auxiliary Language of 2038. This is a language being used by the European Union in our future, and is an actual working language, created by David Parke.

Canyons test

Here's a quick and dirty (low res that is) look down into the canyons of Mars, with clouds whizzing past, as created in Vue 7.

The clouds are going way too fast, and full blown rendering of the shot is looking like it will take 10 days, so I'm not sold on it yet... But I'm getting there...

Canyons of Mars from Damon Keen on Vimeo.

This shot will ultimately be composited with a cliff-edge and our astronaut's feet, as we see a POV of her peering over the edge... Original storyboard shot below: