Inside Vancouver Film School
News: - Nano-Animation
In animation, it’s the little things that count - something 3D grad Robert Cole is witnessing first-hand. He’s the Surfaces & Lighting TD for Nanotoon’s next version of the popular Molecularium. Molecularium originated as a “full dome musical cartoon” - meaning it was shown in planetarium-type environments - and now Nanotoon is expanding and improving upon it for a 2008 IMAX release.
The production is spearheaded by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY. Animators draw on the Institute’s resources and nanotech know-how to present a microscopic world in an accurate yet engaging way. (With songs like “Carbon is Incredible”, how can you lose?)
“What I find interesting about the project is the molecular simulations that have been created on the Institute’s cluster of supercomputers,” Robert says.
Robert’s experience in animated features - he was senior texture artist on the 2006 film Barnyard - is proving invaluable. “Many of the crew on production are students and graduates of RPI, so scripting and coding comes naturally to them,” he tells us. “As one of the only three people on the project with feature film experience, I have been enjoying bringing the ‘art’ into the film and sharing my knowledge.”
from http://www.vfs.com/blog/2007/11/13/nano-animation/
