So, my activities with Mid-Atlantic Combat Sports and other MMA related writing has slowed the progress of the project a bit.

Thankfully, our lead artist Chris Covelli has used both the occasional hyperbolic credentials I give him and his Martian heritage to produce the first cut of the opening sequence of our trailer.

The pause on Coach’s face is intentional so that we may overlay a moving face with one of his lines. He will also be a little more expressive with his body language in the final render.

In spite of the lack of site updates, work continues. We’ve got some very exciting things in the works for the Fight project, but those chickens can wait until they hatch.

In the mean time, lead artist and surprisingly skilled unicyclist Chris Covelli has been putting together all the environments for the movie trailer.

Below are stills of the gym using the extreme ends of both types of textures that Fight will utilize. Every environment and character is designed to look equally believable in each texture, allowing shifts between the cartoon and realistic animation while maintaining visual fidelity throughout the film.

Opening scene using photo-real textures

Same scene with toon shading

Lead artist and surprisingly talented dancer Chris Covelli just sent me the first test animation that has two characters interacting. Currently it’s a little crude, but I was a huge fan of the body movement.

Test animation for double leg takedown:

P.S. Yes, I know they look like the stick figures used in Human Weapon. I actually think they look a lot better, and this was only the test.

Thanks in no small part to the tireless efforts of the project’s lead artist, Chris Covelli, the first animation for Fight is moving right along. Currently, I am working with a number of volunteers to finish recording the sounds and voice acting for the trailer. In the mean time, enjoy these character compilations of Coach and James.

Coach and James from front

Coach and James from side

Coach and James from other side

Coach close-up

If you think these look nice, I can’t wait to show you how they look in dynamic lighting.

The first animation samples are complete. Below is a test of all of James’ facial expressions. The animation itself is a little crude, but it gives an idea of the expressive range of the characters. Another kudos to 3-d artist Chris Covelli for this one.