THE HOLD

        I've technically been working on this project for about 7 years now. I just wasn't always in full swing.

When I first came up with the story idea, I really had no clue what it could be used for. A video game? A movie? I knew It was to be in the style of an animated film but I couldn't make a movie... or could I?

At first I decided I'd like to make a really well done home made animated movie. I'd recently discovered that I had a knack for animation. I figured I'd get my family and friends to work with me on it, we'd work our butts off, and in two years time, produce a full length feature film that was so impressive that despite being an "amature" work, would be welcomed into the theaters as a minor league prodigy, like the Blair Witch Project or Facing the Giants.

Little did I realize how much harder it would be not only to produce the animation but to get anyone to actually commit. It's hard to do a group project when you're the only one in the group.
So we scrapped that idea. The one good thing that did come from it though? I managed to get a full script finished in about 6 months. And 46,000 revisions later here I am.

Next I decided I'd do a graphic novel. The comic world is where I intend to break into anyway, might as well start with a one time piece that I can finish at my leisure without having to produce another issue every single month. I managed to get out a few pages before slackeritis kicked in.

Oh and life. Life kicked in as well.

There was another problem: Music. How was I going to make a comic-book into a musicle? I juggled several ideas for a while, including lyrical pages, included CD's and web videos. Then it came to me. we live in a world of apps; smart phones, tables, i-pods, kindles, the internet is going more and more mobile everyday and it is these devices that have the ability to incorporate multimedia AND interactivity.

Finally I decided on the current format. A digital blend of video and static media, with interactive elements here and there. And while we're on the subject of flipping tradition on it's head, why not rearrange the visual format as well?

Instead of the classic comic-book format with multiple panels, reading classically from left to right and top to bottom...

... why not see each panel as one big beautiful image with nice detail and size enough to view?

After all, unlimited digital space means unlimited pages.

At 960 x 540 (which just so happens to be the same dimensions of a piece of 35 mm film), the audience should be able to flip not only from one major image to another but from one micro-detail in the scene, to the next. So in essence, you sit there and watch a movie by continually clicking the next button.

I'll post an example of this at a later time.

And music? Just as easy to simply animate the entire scene and post a video. this could work for fight scenes, montages, any time the details are to extensive to communicate through a series of panels. Just let the view the scene as a whole and then get back to the comic portion. Easy, interesting, and completely void of obstacles. You get the best of both worlds.

OK, so there were a FEW obstacles.

Now I had opened up a hole new can of problems for myself; Nothing that couldn't be fixed easily enough, but it would take some time.

Problem #1 - Animation Software

I needed a software not only to do the animation but that could handle code. If I'm going to make this interactive, I need to make more than just a picture or video. I'm essentially creating a game with controls. Which leads to the next obstacle.

Problem #2 - A Programmer.

I new nothing about programming. Maybe a little bit of html, but that's not going to help me add a start button to a video or a flickering fire to a series of still images. I knew I'd need to hire/partner up with a professional app designer at some point though for now I could just start working on the imagery.

Problem #3 - Music
I am not a musician. I play the piano every so often using skills that I learned in intermediate piano classes abut 10 years ago. I'll say it again. I AM NOT A MUSICIAN. My brother on the other-hand is. And may I say an EXCELLENT one.
http://www.shepgibsonmusic.com/
The problem would be getting him on board. (Shep doesn't exactly like creating music with other peoples perimeters.)

Problem #4 - The Script
I needed to make sure that my story was perfect. There were still things here and there that I didn't like about it. It was going to be hard working out the bugs and I couldn't well start on anything until I knew I wouldn't want to change it half way through.

So before this post becomes a doctoral thesis and the production history of the project, resemblant to Richard Williams' The Thief and the Cobbler, I'll sum up what has happened in the last year.

         My best friend Logan Schell is a English and Lit Teacher. I had him review and critique my work. After fighting him over most of this suggestions, I ended up going with about 95% of them. I ended up making changes to about a third of the script. I held a reading with some friends and family and got their input as well. After everything I've come to a good clean 76 pages with maybe a few tweaks to polish off but the story is solid.
I finally managed to shamelessly guilt my brother into working with me. His expert composing skills will be a great asset to the overall quality of the work.
I've taken a course in digital animation and learned exactly what software I need and how to use it AND that the coding is not actually that hard. I may still hire a proffessional when it comes to making an app but I think I can manage most of the content by myself now. And after saving up enough money, I've finaly managed to buy Adobe Flash.

Now the road is clear and I can move on; "FULL STEAM AHEAD!"

Stay TOONED!