Here we go, time to get this blog online. And what better way to start than to talk about the first of my 3D projects on the table: The Girl and The
Guardian.
Concepting The Guardian
I'm happy with how this project has shaped up. I found this sort of happy medium somewhere between Dune and The Iron Giant. The girl, at the start of our would-be story, comes into the possession of a powerful artifact left on her world in a bygone chapter of an interstellar war. The guardian is tasked with safeguarding the object, and by extension her.
The majority of my focus thus far has been to develop the Guardian, so I'll focus on him here. I was concerned with making something machined, intimidating, but also approachable and in line with the stylized character of the Girl. Neither one could overshadow the other, and neither one could disagree with the simplicity or complexity of the other. A sphere, the friendliest of shapes, played to this idea. It also gave me the chance to toy with the idea of an adaptive design; you can never knock it down, you can never disorient it.
What I realised pretty fast was, ballbots aren't intimidating, especially if you give them big 1950's corrugated tube arms. Inspiration came from motorcycle chassis, and I set out to give him some bigger fists. The last touch came from gorillas and their front-heavy structure, so I tipped the design forward. The last minute change was to bring the head down low. This give him a hunch back, and lets him get face to face with the Girl.
Guardian.
Concepting The Guardian
I'm happy with how this project has shaped up. I found this sort of happy medium somewhere between Dune and The Iron Giant. The girl, at the start of our would-be story, comes into the possession of a powerful artifact left on her world in a bygone chapter of an interstellar war. The guardian is tasked with safeguarding the object, and by extension her.
The majority of my focus thus far has been to develop the Guardian, so I'll focus on him here. I was concerned with making something machined, intimidating, but also approachable and in line with the stylized character of the Girl. Neither one could overshadow the other, and neither one could disagree with the simplicity or complexity of the other. A sphere, the friendliest of shapes, played to this idea. It also gave me the chance to toy with the idea of an adaptive design; you can never knock it down, you can never disorient it.
What I realised pretty fast was, ballbots aren't intimidating, especially if you give them big 1950's corrugated tube arms. Inspiration came from motorcycle chassis, and I set out to give him some bigger fists. The last touch came from gorillas and their front-heavy structure, so I tipped the design forward. The last minute change was to bring the head down low. This give him a hunch back, and lets him get face to face with the Girl.
With the shape language in hand, all that's left is that sweet mechanical detail. I'm really looking forward to getting this guy built, as well as Finishing the formal designs for the Girl. You can see her there for a rough size comparison. I hope you look forward to seeing the finished piece, and please let me know if you have any questions.