Let’s face it, Flash CS4’s performance sucks whether you’re dealing with a misinterpreted CS3 file or you just have too much stuff on screen at once. I noted in my CS4 review that several seconds could be spent staring at a spinning beachball by just moving from one spot on the timeline to another. Scrubbing complex scenes could prove completely impossible even if it performed well in CS3. Well, how’d you like to know that most if not all of your CS4 performance issues completely disappear with Adobe’s 10.02 update – downloadable here. More details on this update and my impressions after the jump. More »
Flash CS4 10.02 – Update Now!
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Announcements | Friday · 19 June · 2009 12:35 | 72 views |  (No Ratings Yet) |
Are the Arts Failing?
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Insight | Monday · 1 June · 2009 15:18 | 123 views |   (2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5) |
There is a growing consensus that the “art world” – that bastion of so-called serious expression – is failing. According to a Time article I just skimmed while rolling my eyes and yawning, many traditional art institutions are losing money hand over fist. Government doesn’t want to fund them, people don’t want to attend, and private donations are not as tax friendly as they used to be. But is it really that the arts need saving or that the definition of art has changed from what we have been taught all our lives? More »
Fire Everything! A Star Trek (2009) Review
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Reviews | Friday · 8 May · 2009 21:10 | 232 views | (1 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5) |
Of all the nerdtastic entertainment I devour on a regular basis, the original Star Trek is my favorite. I watched my first episode at the age of five – it was “Devil in the Dark” – and have been hooked ever since. If I was stranded on a desert island and could only bring one TV series to watch for all eternity it wouldn’t be Star Trek, because I’ve already got all seventy-nine episodes and five of the six films memorized. So for the past two years I’ve been following the production of J. J. Abrams’ new film with great trepidation and doubt. Could he make this hardcore TOS purist believe in his take on a show he’s admitted to not liking all that much? The answer is a restrained and grudging “yes”. More »
The Definitive Guide to Exporting Video From Flash
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Tutorials | Monday · 27 April · 2009 23:42 | 239 views | (2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) |
One of my biggest peeves about Flash is its various hit or miss methods for exporting video. In version 8 and earlier Flash would create a file made up of a series of frame by frame image captures with the soundtrack recorded separately and laid on top. This worked fine, except it didn’t record animations inside of MovieClips or created by ActionScript. It only recorded whatever could be rendered in real time in the authoring environment. In other words, just Graphic symbols. Adobe revamped video export in CS3 to allow both MCs and AS animation to be captured by recording the the SWF output in realtime. The problem with this method was that if your movie dropped frames in FlashPlayer it was going to hiccup in the video output as well. Here’s a way to finally have both performance and your full movie in video form. More »
The Inflexible Professional
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Insight | Monday · 20 April · 2009 16:02 | 1,226 views | (7 votes, average: 3.14 out of 5) |
Professional graphics people are a strange lot. On the one hand they embrace many technologies as they appear. Newer and better lenses and imagine sensors, higher DPI scanners and tablets, faster graphics cards, and rarely is a favorite app not upgraded as soon as the new version is released. But like audiophiles who cling to their vinyl, graphics folks can’t let go of their computer displays. Every time there is a major change in displays you will inevitably find a very angry and nearly fundamentalist vocal minority of graphic pros followed by hordes of mimicking amateurs complaining that the new tech is inferior. The difference between the graphic pro and the audiophile is that eventually the graphic pro caves to the new tech and then grows to have enough love for it to hate the very next thing as much as they hated what they are currently using at the time that it came out. What in the world is the cause of this bizarre behavior? More »
Why Watchmen’s Ending Matters
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Reviews | Friday · 13 March · 2009 12:22 | 432 views | (3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) |
I just saw Watchmen last night on an Imax screen. Critics have been so hard on this movie I could only be impressed by how my low expectations were exceeded. I liked it a lot, in fact – at least most of it. It was a far better film than Dark Knight was by a very wide margin. I think director Zack Snyder really brought the characters to life pretty much the way they were in the comic. The one thing that I was sure would be a disappointment, and turned out to really be one, was the ending. Massive but necessary spoilers ahead. More »
Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Process | Friday · 20 February · 2009 16:57 | 400 views | (4 votes, average: 4.25 out of 5) |
I’ve had a pretty deep love for tropicalismo/pop duo The Bird and the Bee ever since I heard what I believe is the ultimate song about fucking, Again and Again, two years ago in a noisy cafe. The band became a mainstay in our household when our then one and half year old began referring to all music as “La La” – the name of another track from their debut album – and insisted we play The Bird and the Bee songs nearly constantly. Fortunately she moved on to Feist and then Hasidic Surf Rock before she was old enough to realize what “brain” is a euphemism for.
This month marked the release of “Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future”, which, with few exceptions, is pretty darn awesome. We were also able to attend Inara George and Greg Kurstin’s first live performance in San Francisco in nearly two years, which, with no exceptions, was pretty darn awesome. Would I please clap my hands? You bet.
So, I was easily inspired by the show and the new album’s title to make this image. I’d love to do a music video for the title track in this style…ahem…if anyone would just ask me… The pic is proportioned just right for use as an iPhone wallpaper, and would probably fit other mobile devices as well. Enjoy!
Sometimes I Impress Myself
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Process | Thursday · 22 January · 2009 0:55 | 119 views | (2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5) |
| Here’s a little tid-bit I worked on this morning. It’s part of the Star Squadron series. I wanted to put it up as a stand alone movie because it goes by so fast I’m not sure it can be fully appreciated with all that’s going on in the scene (she’s walking across the screen toward someone. |
All Scuffed Up – An Intuos3 Retro Review
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Reviews | Wednesday · 21 January · 2009 20:58 | 357 views | (2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5) |
When you use a device day in and day out you get to know it better than the average reviewer who’s only dealt with it for a few hours. A digital art tablet like Wacom’s intuos3 is definitely one of those things. I bought mine the same month it was released in 2004, replacing my intuos2 tablet. It’s been four years since then and the rebates and Gun Metal Special Editions tell me the intuos3 is nearing end of life. So what better time to talk about its strengths and weaknesses than when awaiting the imminent release of the next gen? More »
The Better to Smell You, My Dear – The Female Nose
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Lessons | Saturday · 17 January · 2009 0:52 | 627 views | (3 votes, average: 4.33 out of 5) |
A year ago I did a pretty well received article on rendering the human female’s mammary glands, or “tatas calientes” in the vernacular. Today I want to talk about another part of the female body that is equally the subject of controversy both in the operating room and on the printed page: The Nose.
Yes folks, more than the breasts even, the Hollywood Starlet, the hip Brazilian dancer, and even the Jewish girl next door is getting her nose done. In my home town of Miami I’d say more than half of all Hispanic women overthe age of 16 have had the “bump” cut off the top of their noses. A lot of white girls have their’s done too, shaving their Bill Clinton-esque bulbs into deadly sharp tips, not unlike the Folsom Point. More »
Nearly There – A Flash CS4 Review
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Reviews | Tuesday · 13 January · 2009 2:28 | 481 views | (2 votes, average: 4.50 out of 5) |
Only a year and a half ago I wrote a scathing and fiery review of Adobe’s first iteration of Flash: CS3. Now I’m back to write a mildly pissy review of Adobe’s second attempt: Flash CS4. Score one for Adobe for making me slightly less annoyed with my day to day job. Flash CS4 is a huge step in the right direction for Flash. It’s got a lot of flaws, but while they maybe be deep and filled with puss, they aren’t quite fatal. Let’s take a look, eh? More »
Cartoon Modern – A San Franciso Cityscape
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Process | Friday · 9 January · 2009 13:59 | 112 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
I’m creating a series of illustration that will be later used in an animated presentation for city contractor Streetline. My idea for the presentation was a mid-century, UPA style with limited animation. Not only do the many simplified angles, shapes, and colors look great in a San Francisco street scene, but the 50’s are generally known for their infotainment films. Now imagine this with a little Donna Reed type music! The only part that betrays the aesthetic is the blue 2008 Toyota Yaris in the middle parking space put there to not make the scene look too dated.
The preliminary sketch for this drawing was done in Illustrator, white the actual drawing and coloring was all done in Flash. If you’d like a wallpaper of this its on my studio site under About/Stuff
Anime is Easy – Space Squadron 200X
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Process | Sunday · 4 January · 2009 22:38 | 152 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
This week starts production on a new series of one minute shorts for the non-profit Internet Sexuality Information Services (ISIS). The premise of the series is to start conversations about sexual questions and misconceptions of that all important teenage demographic. It needs to not only reach the youth, but all of them no matter what the subculture. It’s a tough job, to make something broad reaching enough to interest boys and girls, nerds, and hip hoppers a like. My immediate though? Anime space saga. More »
New Bad Monkey Studios Already “Best Site Ever” – Updated
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Announcements | Monday · 2 June · 2008 23:28 | 157 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
I just released my portfolio site’s upgrade last Tuesday and already it’s received a design award. Design Licks, a great web design portal that picks “the greatest sites on the web”, has dubbed us “Site of the Day”. We’ll be on it’s front page for the entire month of June. Not bad for only seven days in operation.
Probably due to a snowball effect of appearing on one site, more and more design sites are recognizing Bad Monkey Studios – many in Japan and Europe too. We’re on the front page of The Best Designs, Pixel Gangerster, Kayac Designer’s Blog, Flash Mania, and Web Trend Awards. We’re also #9 on Design Charts‘ top 40 list. Pinch me, I’m dreaming! On the tush, even!
“Watch Out Obama!” Cartoon Released
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Announcements | Monday · 2 June · 2008 11:07 | 143 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
My new animated short “Watch Out Obama” has been released and can be found at www.watchoutobama.com . The short is based on the unbelievable comments made by Hillary Clinton in regards to the RFK assassination ending the 68 Democratic primary. Many say it was an exhausted slip of the tongue, but she’d said it to Time Magazine two months earlier. Anyway, watch it, enjoy it, and share it.
It’s really tough to do animation about current events. Especially good animation. It took me 15 minutes to write, but four days of 9am-3am animating to complete. This despite the fact that I chose a UPA style of illustration specifically to make the animating process quicker and simpler.
Sneak Preview – The Pyramid
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Process | Wednesday · 5 March · 2008 23:52 | 133 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
There have been a select few who have seen parts of my new Bad Monkey Portfolio site in action, but for the most part it’s been top secret. However, there are some bits that I find hard to contain. One such element was finished today. It’s a ruined pyramid from my contact section. I’m really proud of it because its one of the few geometric objects I’ve drawn completely by hand (I usually some get help from 3D software and then build on it). I’m posting it here because it’s probably going to be a relatively small object in the final composition, but here I’m showing it in all its full sized, detailed glory. More »
Flash Quick Tutorial – Creating Subtitles
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Tutorials | Sunday · 24 February · 2008 23:01 | 188 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
On a couple of occasions, especially in movies containing a song, I’ve had to include some kind of follow along subtitles. I hear this is super easy in video editing software like Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premier. However, in Flash the answer is no so apparent. Here’s how I got a subtitle effect identical in look and quality to those on DVD and right in your SWF file.
This requires Flash Player 8 or higher. More »
The Death of Bruce Timm – A Superman: Doomsday Review
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Reviews | Sunday · 21 October · 2007 0:54 | 139 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
Well, I just watched Bruce Timm’s latest DC animated brainchild – Superman: Doomsday. I love Mr. Timm. His simplistic, angular style made me realize my own drawings didn’t have to be bogged down with detail I didn’t enjoy putting into them. Timm also has always been one of the few artists, comic or otherwise, who could give women strength and power while keeping them feminine. He’ll always have my respect and admiration, but I have to say Superman: Doomsday is a disaster. An absolute disaster. More »
CodePink “Whip Congress into Shape” Released
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Announcements | Monday · 1 October · 2007 9:50 | 92 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
This actually happened two weeks ago, but I was out of the country at the time. The 40 second animation I did for CodePink: Women for Peace was released for public consumption. Its the heart warming tale of three senators attempting to steal seized Kuwaiti gold bullion from the Iraqi bunkers… or not. Just watch it! Its only 40 seconds and its pretty good considering it went from glimmer in my eye to full production in only two weeks. The project was managed by Jody Evans and the voice over was done by Medea Bengamin, CodePink’s C&C.
Watch it after the jump. More »
Went to Milan and All I Got Was These Lousy Video Clips
| Posted by Mark 2000 | Announcements | Friday · 28 September · 2007 9:22 | 106 views | (No Ratings Yet) |
I’m back, folks. The trip to Milan for the festival was wild. They put us up in a warehouse that was used for trading livestock before it was abandoned. It was set up dorm style with three in a room and music and dancing until 6am. My movie film played to about 100 people and was pretty well received. And then afterwards there were the interviews. I did three of them, but I only have two on tape so far. Hopefully the camera crew will get the last one to me as they promised, but for now enjoy the first two. More »
