Animatic - Episode 11 Preview

The storyboard is done! On top of that, all the lines have been recorded, and I've just about finished placing them in the file for the final animatic render!
Voice work took a little longer this time around because, as you may have seen earlier this week, this time it wasn't just me doing them! We've got a whole cast for some new voices:
Cashier: e_doodlesnstuff
bsky.app/profi...
Clef: Manfred King
Bombardier Beetle: Will Quisenberry
/ @wquizyoutube
Unsure Hiver: Snager
linktr.ee/snager
I'm incredibly excited to share their performances with you. They definitely brought something to the table that I couldn't have just talking to myself!
In the interest of not spoiling too much, I've limited this preview to a beginning sequence with Rose and Soph. A lot of you have wondered what carnivorous macrovolutes eat, and here's your answer!
Now, the bad news. This episode is going to be...INCREDIBLY long, compared to what I've done previously. The last episode already had the longest pre-Gregorsa animation at almost exactly 7 minutes, and this one is going over 11--not counting the Gregorsa lecture or credits. I am getting some help on the work for this one, but even so, it's going to take a while.
I'll wrap up animatic work this week and get it shipped out to SinclaireDeLune ( / sinclairedelune ) and DDX.EXE (ddxexe.bandcam... ) for backgrounds and music, respectively. DDX.EXE will also be handling sound effects this time, which helps a ton!
Next week, a break from HBG work to watch some tutorials on rigging. The latest Blender version has finally broken half of my rigging process, and the other half is a precarious Jenga tower on its own, so I'm going to have to get a new system going entirely and rerig every character. Additionally, every character model in the episode needs an overhaul (some more dramatic than others), and I've got some new models to make. Including a very intimidating one that I've been putting off.
So, we're looking at over a month for all that. Then, staging!! Even at this length, that should only be a week or two. Luckily, none of the assets are too difficult, and I can ask for help with those, so that will also probably be a week or two. Hopefully, background art will be mostly done then, and work can begin on animation! ...Which will anywhere from one to two months. Luckily, work on Gregorsa's lecture and notes should be brief after that, just a couple days.
So, all told, we're still in the realm of an April-May release. We'll see what happens. Until next time!

[@jedder]

I have a feeling that "swarm courier" will lead to some interesting info about Sophondra.

[@Spider-r6d]

Oh yeah, I guess isopods wouldn’t be as intelligent as insects or arachnids since they’re crustaceans. I wonder what a swarm courier is though

[@HumansBGone]

Technically, insects are crustaceans (or at least very closely related, depending on the taxonomic scheme you use). Only insects and arachnids (not counting horseshoe crabs) are affected by the bolecore in the same way, though. So, isopods and other non-insect crustaceans are unintelligent demivolutes, rather than sapient macrovolutes.

[@Spider-r6d]

@ oh yeah, I forgot about the taxonomy.

[@angelsartandgaming]

​@@HumansBGonetoo bad horseshoe crabs don't have the same sort of effect. Because I can already imagine a talkative horseshoe crab who owns a paintball gun shop. XD Splatoon joke aside, I actually like horseshoe crab so it's actually kind of disappointing to know that they aren't part of this world. But that's okay!

[@HumansBGone]

There are still giant horseshoe crabs! They just can't talk

[@angelsartandgaming]

@@HumansBGone oooooohhh!! :D

[@raylordofkhalah28]

This is a funny joke about isopods when one of the most common pet isopods is Porcellio aff. laevis "Dairy Cows"

[@ALostCarolean]

can't wait!

[@elzed2667]

Oo, worldbuilding... a specialty of yours.

[@dustyinsect]

Can’t wait for this episode to come out! I’m excited

[@JAYZ-47465]

Isopods? :0

[@vulpinitemplar5036]

If you were ok with increasing the length of episodes even slightly with more work you could try some more filler world building stuff, I bring this up simply because I could imagine this scene going longer but being more so the two chatting away while we get to listen and take in the surrounding sights and such, might be a good exercise too?

[@HumansBGone]

Oh don't worry, there is plenty of worldbuilding and this episode is plenty long

[@vulpinitemplar5036]

@HumansBGone Delightful, hope it goes well :)

[@dubuyajay9964]

Ooh, did she say Swarm CURRY-ER!? YUM! I WILL GLADLY JOIN THE TERRARIUM FOR CURRY! XD. 🍛🥘

[@raylordofkhalah28]

Currier is another word for messenger/mailman.

[@dubuyajay9964]

@raylordofkhalah28 I still want some curry tho. D: