Death Star attack briefing, sort of...

[Kenny_10_Bellys]

Hi kids, been out of 3D for a while but got dragged back in and starting to get the bug again. On one of the 3D effects forums I frequent I posted a link to this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMeSw00n3Ac

It details how a guy called Larry Cuba made the original vector graphics for the Death Star briefing way back in 1977 with cutting edge coal-fired computers and weeks of work. I wondered how long it might take a hobbyist with modern kit to remake this epic CGI milestone, and there was talk of maybe making it a challenge. I also discussed maybe recreating other classic effects from movies, specifically the Genesis briefing from Star Trek II. After some quick debate they decided to combine the two into a retro challenge, recreate the briefing for the trench run and then pull out and actually hit the Death Star with the Genesis device instead. Since it's half SW and half ST, I thought some of you guys mike like this one.

Turns out making the Death Star briefing would probably take a competent hobbyist a few hours to make and render, where it took the original guy that long just to render a few frames of animation. My first proof of concept animation took me 10 mintues to make the model, 30 minutes to set up the animation and 1.9 seconds a frame to render. Last night I went back and made a more accurate recreation of the Death Star vector model and made the first part of the briefing, up to the point where it zooms in to the trench. The second part of the zoom and the trench run itself will be done seperately to avoid a huge and complex animation scene. I'll also have to spend an hour making a trench, etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVMnwd4mZlA

Once it's done I need to then pull out and blast a more realistic looking Death Star with a Genesis device, which will be a genuinely taxing challenge. It might be so challenging I can't do it very well, but at least I'll always have my DS briefing.

[Vehrec]

Well, for one thing, I dunno how well a genesis device handles hypermatter. Or will it just lay down a few fractal layers on top? Either way, both early computer effects are going to be simple to the modern hobbyist, if you can find the right fractal formula to build the mountains and stuff in the genesis sequence. If you can't, go buy Mandelbrot's textbook on the subject and start from basics.

[Kenny_10_Bellys]

Making the mountains rise up shouldn't pose a problem, although accurately controlling it might. The problem will be making the wave itself, and having it travel around the globe. I haven't experimented with techniques yet, but it will indeed be a challenge.

[salm]

Cool videos.

What is a genesis device and what would the wave look like?

Sounds a bit like you´re trying to animate a radial wave expanding on a sphere which is supposed to deform the surface of the globe? If that´s it you can do it with an expanding radial gradient and put it into the displacement slot (or whatever the Lightwave equivalent is) of your planet material. I´ve done this for a meteor impact once and it works like a charm.

[Kenny_10_Bellys]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXbWCrzWJo4

Here's the effect I have to reproduce, but this time with the death star instead of a moon. The red particle effect is the issue, morphing the landscape I can probably do as you describe. Thinking about it, I may be able to do it with particle emitters triggered by an invisible plane moving through the globe. I need to go experiment...

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Heh! Nice!

Now if you really want to be hardcore, render it all out with only a 3D graphics API and a compiler

[salm]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXbWCrzWJo4

Here's the effect I have to reproduce, but this time with the death star instead of a moon. The red particle effect is the issue, morphing the landscape I can probably do as you describe. Thinking about it, I may be able to do it with particle emitters triggered by an invisible plane moving through the globe. I need to go experiment...

You´re using Lightwave, IIRC. In 3ds Max there´s a Particle Operater called "Speed by Surface" which accelerates particles along an objects surface. In other words: exactly what you´d need for this animation.
I´m not sure if Lightwave has an equivalent but there might be a plugin for something like that.

Another way of doing this is using your Sphere as an emitter, animating a radial gradient like in my other post and using the gradient for controling where the particles are born.
E.G. If place on object currently occupied by white part of gradient -> create particle. If black -> don´t create particle.

[Kenny_10_Bellys]

Yeah, there's operators like that in Lightwave. A moving gradient or image map might be the way to go with this.