3DVF : We asked Chris the following question : As a director, what are you expecting from computer assisted creation software ? He answered :· I am no longer expecting much from software that today are becoming more and more powerful. We know have to devote ourselves to story writing and the creation of universes. The flexibility of 3D tools gives opens us the way to an infinite field of creation. 3D can finally be considered as a creation tool by itself. Tools have evolved enough so we can now that the only limit is that of the imagination of the artists. You should interview Thomas Marqué. He has a really interesting theory on the subject. Could you tell us about this theory ?

Thomas Marqué : Of course. I try to use the 3d tools at their maximum. After a lot of tests, I figured out that a lot of them can be diverted from their initial purpose and become real tools for creating images without any 2D preparatory drawings.

The most simple thing to do is to give you a concrete example. About three years ago, Chris had had the idea of creating a typo for the Alien race from Hoppaz (the Vecarians). He asked me if I had an idea on the subject. The Vecarians are a developed specie, I thought a 2D typo was to simple to graphically enhance their environment so I opted for a 3D solution derived from a single object (kind of a typographical mould) which was used to make all the characters by applying on it simples deformations (twists, rotations). If you look at this object from different angles, you get a “drawing” that can vary to an infinity of shapes. The only problem has been to find the right 3D object, that had to be simple but varied.

When you have a look at the picture above, the mould is the one at the centre, and, in blue, a few examples rendered after the mould has been deformed. In this example, I have only used 3D tools with no preparatory design. The benefits are that the final result is very flexible (if you need new characters, they can be created within a minute) and directly useable in the movie since the database is 3D from the start to the end of the process.

This method, we could call ·3D design· is interesting for sfx since the possibility of the tools are exploited from the very beginning without even trying to stick to a reference 2d design, design that can hardly be modified by directors due to 3D problems.

3DVF : What have you learned from this adventure?

Thomas Marqué : Thomas Marqué: It was a fantastic adventure for me. I was free to do a lot of things as I wanted to do them quite freely and lucky enough to deal with almost every fields of 3D. When you realize the experience we acquire on this movie ·thanks· to the numerous problems encountered, we can say that, in France, we are perfectly able to produce 3d movies, not so expensive, favouring the story told rather than the technological feats.

I do think that 3ds max is reaching its maturity today. Many problems could be avoided or solved in a future possible production. I wish by the public will enjoy Kaena. It could open the path to the production of other 3d movies in France. And those, according to me, really are part of the french cinema

3DVF : Thanks Thomas for this great discussion. All the best for the rest of your career.

Thanks to Cyril Grégoire www.e-media4u.com for the English translation.