Getting back on track..

Sooo I decided this morning to switch back to my original plans..

I'm still going to mel script, but I'm gonna go back to doing my rig tools. The reason being I want to continue my TF2 plans, but before I do that, I need to do my rig tools and autorigger I would like to tackle. Once I have those things done, then I can rig up the characters and start animating them. I could rig em up now by hand, but the whole point of this project is to create pipeline tools from start to finish..

Did I ever post what my full plan is? Here it is I guess in bullet form!

TF2 Project
Aim: To recreate a whole animation pipeline from start to finish, as if I was a TA working on a big team project. In particular I'm recreating the TF2 pipeline.

Steps to success!
1. Grab Valve's characters
2. Create rigging scripts and Auto Rigger
3. Rig TF2 characters using my new scripts/AutoRigger
4. Create new animations for TF2 (game and film animations)
5. Create export tools to get my animations back into Source engine and TF2.
6. Learn to use my animations in conjunction with Valve's other software, especially their facial animation program, Faceposer.
7. Bring animations into Source FilmMaker, either the hacked version or release when Valve gets around to it.

As to why I want to do all this and specifically TF2?.. Aside from TF2 is one of my all time favorite games.. Well all these steps aim to teach me new things. I've always been tech savvy, but have never shown it. At FIEA, I was always one to tinker and enjoyed figuring out the pipeline stuff for our small games, including Gamebryo and Panda. I coulda created rigging scripts ages ago, but never gave myself time.. I just wanted to keep animating.. and I still do.. but I also enjoy this stuff. Animating exercises my creative side, while scripting and pipeline stuff exercises my problem solving side. I figure now is the best time to do it. I'm trying to revamp my portfolio and this is a great way to start. I want to be able to show that tech side, along with my animation side.

With this project I get both. First I'm finally delving into mel scripting and making my rigging life easier.. I shoulda done this a loooong time ago! Then once that is done, I'll start animating these characters. Some of it will be in game animations, like run cycles.. Others will be more film oriented.. All of it will be new portfolio pieces to show off. and hopefully a short film can come out of it.

Once these new animations are completed, I'll figure out how to bring them into the Source engine. At the same time, I hope to make pipeline tools to help me get these animations in there with little ease. I have not looked into what support Valve offers for that, but whatever it is, I want to streamline it and make some tools, like what you would give artists at a studio.

And that is just getting my stuff into Source. I still want to figure out how to mix my animations with Valve's Faceposer. That would be awesome.. Then finally bring it into Valve's FilmMaker, figure out cameras and make some badass renders for this.. That's the ultimate endgame.

I don't know if other people have done this.. Surely they've created new animations, or people have made machinima with Garry's mod.. but to go to the extent I'm going.. I don't think so.. So I want to do it. and I'm hoping to learn alot along the way. :)

As for a schedule.. I plan on finishing this rigging stuff in two weeks.. From there I'll be animating for about a month.. By the start of may I should have a good group of animations to draw from.. That is what I have planned so far at least..