adamlightandmagic (9th Mar 2005 22:30)

I really hope this is good cause the trailer didn't do anything for me. I'm currently downloading the film now and also hope it's better than this trailer...

Fuser (9th Jan 2005 14:51)

Thanks CJ. I tried realistic saber and found I just didnt like it. I might play around with the 'lightbulb at the hilt' trick to see if its worth doing (I have done all the lightsabers already, so it will be a LOT of work). I'll fix the mask for the saber on the characters face - I did on most of the others - this one slipped through (wood for trees and all that!). Vaders saber isnt a saber....its meant to be that thick.....! And the sound effects were going to be 2 sabers - good idea about offsetting - thanks!

ChristianJedi (8th Jan 2005 23:33)

Everybody has their own way of doing lightsaber effects, but there are still some guidelines and "methods" which make the saber overall look more realistic and cinimatic. I've watched your movie about a dozen times now, and taken some shots frame by frame; so I'll try to help you as best I can make what you got, better. First off, they're not that horrible. Sorry if I made them sound do before. When dealing with low light shots, such as when your "Darth Maul" character is wielding his double "saberknives", it helps to reduce to glow, especially against a black backdrop. In bright shots, you can get away with more glow. Also, have you tried other saber plug-in's? Personally, I find "realistic-saber" works best for me, as they have a small edge over the generic plug-in's. When you've got a lightsaber behind somebody, such as when it appears behind the Jedi's head, try using a mask to stop the glow from covering his face. It takes alot of time, but you have what appears to be a great piece going for you, and every little thing helps. I find putting a small ALAM lightbulb on low glow setting at the hilt helps make the saber look more realistic, but it's another one of those things that takes alot of time and is more up to the artist's discression. Darth Vader's lightsaber near the end appears about 4 inches wide. Having a saber expand when it's travelling quickly looks awesome, but when it's not in motion and it's still so big it seems awkward. Finally, two other things you might try are 1. Putting a flare or lightbulb at points where lightsabers remain in contact with eachother for some time. and 2. When you have a character wielding two sabers, instead of using one sound effect, try using the same sound effect twice but offsetting the second one by a tenth of a second. It's a slight adjustment, but can go a long way in the long run. Thanks for reading my rambling, I don't mean to sound all "authoritive" and I know first hand how difficult making realistic sabers can be. Best of luck in your film making May the Force Be With You CJ