Author: Lauren Brady

You may have previously heard that we’re going to be sponsoring this year’s TIGA Awards. If you have, you’ll probably know that we’re pretty excited to be doing so. And that’s partly to do with the amazing, super awesome, brick-tastic idea that we have been creatively brewing for our table gifts (which we hope that you’re excited to be receiving too).

You’re probably thinking… ‘But Jess, what is this amazing, super awesome, brick-tastic idea that you are talking about?’ Well I’ll take you all the way back to the beginning…

Once upon a time, at the start of September… The RealtimeUK Marketing Department congregated around the ‘great boardroom table’ to try and come up with the ultimate award evening table gift. It was much like the meeting of ‘The Fellowship’, but with less people.

We debated what makes a great gift; practicality, shininess, collectability… but one word kept coming to mind- fun. And from fun we found colourful blocks of joy… Lego.

But Lego alone wasn’t enough. We felt like we needed the statement scarf to match our already chic outfit. Fortuitously, it was at that moment that we found out about the success of our Jurassic World Evolution trailer – Dinosaurs!

The RealtimeUK Lego Challenge was born.

On the night of the TIGA Awards we’ll be placing a giant brick on each of your tables. Much like a Russian nesting doll, the giant brick will be filled with lots of regular sized bricks. And this is where you’ll come in.

We’re challenging you to get creative, to let your imaginations run wild; by creating the greatest Lego dinosaur known to man, and reptile alike.

It’s a big ask, I know. And that’s why we have been busy making these informative yet cute videos of the RealtimeUK Dinos being built. Let me introduce you to our resident Dinos;

 

Meet Darius: The dotty Diplodocus. He is a keen train spotter, loves drinking hazelnut lattes and wearing odd socks.

 

 

Meet Jeff: The short tempered but warm hearted T-Rex. Jeff loves reading Nordic spy novels, doing some *rad* stunts on his skateboard, but he also knows how important it is to relax with a Bublé Bath.

 

 

Meet Susie: The cheerful Triceratops. She likes laughing, watching Criminal Minds and participating in bi-monthly tug of war contests.

 

 

Meet Greg: The chill Stegosaurus. He’s a big fan of David Attenborough, a proud Ravenclaw, and he is also a strong believer in the theory that Keanu Reeves is an immortal.

 

They’re going to be up to quite a lot over the next week; meeting Stormtroopers, going on hobbit like adventures and even playing a bit of FIFA. You can follow their adventures over on our Twitter page.

You can build one of the RealtimeUK Dinos or you can go off-piste and do your own thing. Either works for us.

But whatever you do, we want to see your masterpieces! You can do that by tagging the pictures with our marvellous hashtag #RTUKLegoChallege over social media platforms, where we’ll be eagerly awaiting to see what you have created.

Not attending the awards? Don’t worry. Gather together your own brick supplies and make some fabulous dinosaurs, and send them to us with the hashtag. The more Dinos the better.

TIGA Awards here we come!

After four weeks of hard work; Joe, Dani and Flora have successfully graduated from the first REALTIME Academy!

They have each gained invaluable industry experience at our Lancashire studio, working alongside world renowned artists, preparing them for life outside of the lecture theatre. The academy offered a perfect opportunity to dip their toes into the pool of professional artistry, and a “peak into the real world” (which they found isn’t all that scary).

During their time here, they were briefed with a challenge to test both their creative and technical skills. Joe, Dani and Flora had to create an environment that intrigued the viewer, which would then force them to ask a question. Each environment also had to feature a hero asset, a vignette set around the hero asset, a digital matte projection and two atmospheric FX elements. One of our Senior Artists, Chris Scubli, responded to seeing their final pieces; “The best part was seeing how each of them reacted differently to the same brief.” You can see the impressive results below.

It’s brilliant to see how much they enjoyed their time here, and how they are keen to recommend their experiences to others looking to develop their skill set. As Dani from Hertfordshire University said, “It’s a very good experience in terms of being in a studio with actual professionals around you. I think that it’s the best way to learn.”

It’s not just the students who are benefiting from the academy though. Our Recruitment Manager, Pete Leonard, has found that the responses from the universities themselves has been excellent. He hopes to develop further collaborative strategies with more educational institutions in the future.

We can’t wait to host some more incredible talent at next year’s REALTIME Academy.

Make sure you follow us on our Twitter and Facebook pages so you don’t miss out on any amazing opportunities.

 

 

This weeks Top Tip on Houdini substeps comes from our very own Graham Collier!

Houdini – Substeps!!!

When running simulations with Houdini substeps, it’s always a good idea to check if your emitter and collision object are setup correctly.

Under Global animation options, switch off Integer Frame Values. Now you can scrub through subframes in the viewport.

Switch on Display point trails in the viewport to check your velocities.

No velocities on your animated geo? Then try using a trail SOP set to Compute Velocity. If your point count is changing and you have IDs then switch on Match by Attribute and set it to id.

If your geo is not updating during substeps then try using a Timeblend SOP. This can be used to compute fractional positions within a frame.

If you have deforming collision geometry, then make sure you have Re-evaluate SOPs to Interpolate Geometry switch on. You can switch on the Collision guide geo to check it updates.

 

Take a look what Graham had to say about his latest VFX work in SMITE:

 

 

 

 

BRINGING THE DIGITAL WORLD TO LIFE

With seamless visual effects, cutting edge in-game cinematics and compelling storytelling, we help immerse gamers in fantastical digital worlds. Our cutting-edge visuals and engaging storytelling can set moods, create emotional connections and drive a storyline forward – all while helping to bring digital worlds to life. This can be combined with character design, helping to inspire belief further and turn players into fans.

As well as pre-rendered footage, we also deliver in-engine, live action and 2.5D solutions; all created by the same highly skilled team. Our highly adaptive production pipelines ensure an efficient, high quality and transparent creative process.

Please get in touch with Callum if you have any questions on how we can help you, [email protected]