I explain and discuss the very basic rules of what I call three-axis animation, and present the essence of what I have learned during the past few years. In this article, I'm going to describe Talking Heads, our facial animation system which uses parsed speech and a skeletal animation system to reduce the workload involved in creating facial animation on large scale game projects. Well, that's hardly the way I like to start off stories. But this time, it's unfortunately apropos. Loosely defined, a composite is a collage of different elements that are layered on top of each other to form a single image.
Every visual effect is a composite, regardless of how it is produced.
There are a few general areas in the visuals department where many games can benefit from a metaphorical strategic splash of mascara, and a well-considered application of eye shadow. The Game Developers Conference, targeting computer game developers, was a geek's paradise. Coders and artists spent their days in a wide variety of classes, or on the show floor looking for cool schwag. While working on a music video by the band Orgy, Director Nic Mattheiu decided the on-set images of an actress in a large, plastic android helmet needed some digital enhancement. Saturday morning 3D animated show called Butt Ugly Martians.