User Stories
MOVIES & EFFECTS
JESSE GRIFITH
Jesse Griffith is a director and writer who directed commercials for EAS Nutritional Supplements that aired during the NBA Playoffs and was the co-writer for Atari's Dragonshard. Most recently, he directed an award-winning short film titled, Cockpit: The Rule of Engagement, starring Ronny Cox. This project was created with a budget of just three thousand dollars, the movie trailer and the numerous awards received can be viewed at www.cockpitthemovie.com. Jesse's motion graphics & animation credits include several seasons of Blind Date and Jimmy Kimmel Live, in which he used Daz 3D models heavily in his work.
TOOLS USED
Poser Pro®, Lightwave 3D®, Adobe® After Effects, Avid Express Pro HD®
FAVORITE DAZ 3D PRODUCTS
Sector 15, Commander, StarHawk, RawnZombie M4
Jesse Grifith in action
JESSE GRIFITH USES DAZ 3D PRODUCTS TO LOWER BUDGETS NEEDED FOR TV & FILM EFFECTS & ANIMATIONS
"I have long believed that some kid is going to produce a Star Wars level film complete with a great script and amazing special effects on his or her home compute as there are thousands of kids out there wanting to do it right now. For the last decade, through failures and successes I've tried to be that kid. But it's tough. A lot goes into making a movie of that level and I'm not a kid anymore. Still, I've always believed that Daz 3D would be the key to my success because it puts an army of modelers at my fingertips – in a similar fashion to that of George Lucas, who has staff members of Industrial Light and Magic at his beck and call.
Although my early attempts didn't work, my pursuit of making a film from Daz 3D's models gave me the experience needed to integrate Daz 3D models into my day job, the pop-up graphic show Blind Date and The 5th Wheel. While I haven't created a film solely with Daz 3D yet, but I have used their models extensively to create storyboards and concept art, thus allowing me more time to actually write my stories instead of worrying about models.
For my project, Cockpit: The Rule of Engagement, I knew that this or any movie I made would have a limited budget and be limited to a few locations. But if those locations were a cockpit and a green screen, then the stars were literally the only limits. So, I wrote Cockpit as a feature screenplay about a squadron of pilots stranded in their cockpits in space, struggling with what’s real and what's not (as they are hunted by an alien that can control minds). I am proud to say, it has won two awards and was a finalist in several screenplay contests.
Although 96 pages of the movie take place on one set, the need for other locations such as the bridge of the carrier, alien barracks, landing platform, etc., were driving the budget up. So, with three thousand dollars out of pocket, I made the ten-minute short Cockpit: The Rule of Engagement. Daz 3D provided many of the right stock models to help me proved to the studios (and to myself) that with the right stock models and a green screen, locations are not budget busters and that this feature film could and should be made.
The takeaway being, don't let lack of an FX team keep your movie from being made. There are a lot of small productions out there that are not complete and will probably never be seen by anyone because the creator is holding out for making all the models and props themselves. Don't get me wrong; it's admirable to be 100% self-created but for me, the story comes first. A good story is useless if nobody gets to see it. Daz 3D allowed me to make this movie, which otherwise would have taken an additional six months to a year to make and would be missing a lot of cool shots."
