Дамиан Ненов

Paths of Hate

source: motionographer

The trailer for Paths of Hate showcased its effortless combination of comic book visual style with dynamic dogfighting camera motion and kinetic editing. The film was created at Poland’s Platige Image, home of Tomek Baginski, Grzegorz Jonkajtys, Michał Socha and, of course, Paths of Hate director Damian Nenow.

The short film has shown at a number of festivals worldwide, and won awards at Annecy, ComicCon, and SIGGRAPH to name a few. Damian Nenow was at the SIGGRAPH Autodesk Booth presenting his short film, including a four-minute excerpt that includes new material not in the trailer. For those unable to make it to a festival screening, this footage is the closest taste you’ll get until the DVD gets released later this year.

We were able to catch up with Damian at Vancouver and find out a little more about this beautiful film. He and Platige Image were also generous enough to provide some fantastic making-of materials that show how much care went into the film, both artistically and technically. The images and videos are high-quality, so give them some full-screen love.

What is your background? How did you end up working for Platige?

I have loved drawing since I was a little boy. After I graduated from an art school in my home town, I got my first computer, and after just one month I was in love with computer graphics. I soon discovered 3D animation and watched Tomek Bagiński’s Academy Award-nominated Cathedral. I immediately gave up applying to the Academy of Fine Arts and dashed to take entrance exams for the Film School, in the animation faculty.

My cooperation with Platige Image started with Great Escape, which I produced at the end of my second year of studies. I recorded my film on a DVD, packed my bag and went to the studio, hoping that someone would like it. They did, and that’s how my cooperation in a large number of projects started. Platige Image agreed to provide the promotion and festival distribution of Great Escape, and then the full production of my next film — Paths of Hate.

What are the origins of this story for you?

The idea of Paths of Hate appeared five years ago, when I was still studying at film school. I have always been completely fascinated with everything that could fly. I put my ideas together into a screenplay about a surreal duel which could not be completed without losing one’s humanity, a fragment of a larger story into which the viewer is dropped in mid-action.

From the very start, I knew that my film would be a 3D animation. It was to be dynamic and spatial. I liked the visual solutions used in Tomek Bagiński’s films, which made the 3D graphics look very pictorial. I wanted to go even further in the styling.

I conducted a huge number of trials and tests, but the final choice was the comic book. I got my hands on the “Universal War One” graphic novel by Denis Bajram. The sketch line suited the surrealistic duel scenes perfectly, making the film feel fresh and making it stand out against dozens of photorealistic 3D animations.

THE FILMMAKING
CAMERAWORK

I think that realistic camerawork brings the pictorial, comic world to life. One of the most important goals was to combine realistic, dynamic, live camera animation with a stylized picture. I wanted the camera to be animated like a real one — with all the imperfections and unexpected motion, as if it was held by a human operator, sitting in another invisible aircraft, chasing those two main characters. The cameras were keyframed by hand. The distortions came from procedural noise algorithms that were applied to the camera rotations.

EDITING

Editing is probably my favorite stage of production. I love to play with the tempo and overall composition in my projects. In Paths of Hate you can find quite a wide variety of editing — ultra–fast, almost subliminal sequences divided by long, slow–motion shoots, time-lapses in the middle of dynamic action scenes, transitions through eye pupils … I love to mix it. I just couldn’t resist the temptation of editing the film myself.

MUSIC AND SOUND DESIGN

Our priority, when it came to sound, was emphasizing the dynamic character and the pace of the picture and conveying the fury of the main characters. We also tried to make the sound help viewers find themselves in the space they are being transferred to by the images which very frequently change very fast.

Right after the first edit of Paths of Hate was finished, it went straight to Genetix Sound Studio. I was still animating characters and simulating particles while Maciej Tęgi was working on sound effects and Jarosław Wójcik started to compose the music score.

The idea was to give those artists a lot of creative space. I shared my vision with them. On some points I was stubborn, but in others I choose their propositions. It was a cooperation. They did a really great job.

MESSAGE

In Paths of Hate, there is, indeed, an uncomplicated pacifist massage. However, it is not any in-depth analysis of the problem. It is symbolic. It was meant to raise questions in the mind of a viewer during the final credits.

It is more like a poster or banner: “Hey, there is a problem, have you ever thought about it?” This simple slogan is dressed in a sort of graphical “anecdote.” The Second World War is just a context — it is mainly of formal importance. I did not want that film to present any specific battle or fragment of a campaign.

The heroes in my film are anonymous warriors. I was afraid that otherwise the historical context resulting from their nationality would distort the very universal message of the film.

THE TECHNICAL NITTY GRITTY
STYLIZATION AND THE DRAWINGS LAYER

The drawing layer is one of two most important layers in the Paths of Hate compositing. The drawing layers, combined with the outline layers, are the key elements of stylization. By drawing layer, I mean a compositing pass containing hand-drawn textures — simple black sketches on white background.

The simple and cruel rule is that if you want something to look hand drawn, you just have to draw it by hand. Most of the textures were standard UVW mapped bitmaps, but some of them were projected. I used camera mapping techniques to project drawings from camera POV onto 3D surfaces. With this approach you are no longer restricted by UV mapping, but it can handle only a very small angle of movement. For some objects, with a lot of motion, like pilots’ heads, I had to prepare more then just one projection.

MAKING CLOUDS

The cloud sets were definitely the most difficult and challenging elements to create in this film. The development of a technology which would allow the creation of stylized, pictorial clouds took me over a year. It is always difficult to create clouds in 3D, especially if you want them to look photo-realistic. Having them realistic and stylized at the same time was even more difficult.

The dogfight choreography and camera animation in Paths of Hate are very spacious and dynamic, so the cloud sets had to be completely three-dimensional. There was no way to use any kind of half measure such as flat, matte-painted plates or stock shots. I also wanted to have full control over the shape and lighting in my clouds.

I developed a complicated technique that uses an old and forgotten vertex color in 3DS Max, one of the oldest tools in there. Using vertex color I was able to create and illuminate fake translucency and have full control over these clouds. The whole trick was to use old, simple tools in a new way.

The greatest thing about this technique is the render time. For one 2K frame it took less then 30 seconds to render.

PROJECT TEAM AND TIMELINE

If you were to add up all the months devoted to the work on Paths of Hate, not including the long development, it would be just over two years. I rarely managed to work without any interruption for more than one month. At that time, Platige Image was producing a huge number of other projects in which I was involved.

The film was created on the basis of a subsidy from the Polish Film Art Institute and the resources of the studio. There has never been a dedicated team working on this project. Although most of the animation and models were made by me, the project would not have been completed without the help from my colleagues, most of them from the Platige Image studio.

PARTING WORDS
Have you ever gotten a chance to fly an airplane?

No, I haven’t. The only way I’ve flown is as a passenger. But I am a huge fan of aviation, ever since I was a kid. I used to spend hundreds of hours playing on simulators and building paper models.

What advice would you give to those who want to make a short film like yours?

Sometimes good is better than perfect. An idea is often worth writing down somewhere you can see it, near your place of work. Original short films may be perfected ad infinitum. This is a terrible trap into which many artists can fall, and I was one of them. I once heard Sting say that you never finish musical pieces, that you only abandon them. I think that short animations are the same. It is good to have a reliable production manager who will not believe our artistic lament and will not let us start the whole film from the very beginning for the 10th time.

What are you working on now?

So far I have become involved in lots of labor-consuming commercial projects, but at the same time I’m developing several ideas. Right now it is nothing definite, but I will certainly start producing another original short film in the next two years.
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source: welikethatde

Den großartig aussehenden Trailer für den Animationsfilm Paths of Hate, hatte ich, hier vor fast einem Jahr schonmal gebracht und nun ist der komplette Streifen online zu sehen. Der Film des Polen Damian Nemow hat beim Imaginaria Film Festival in der Kategorie “Best Animation” gewonnen, was mich jetzt nicht wirklich wundert. Und wie schon beim letzten wurde mir der spektakuläre Kurzfilm wieder vom Honki in meinen Reader geschleudert. Dafür gibts mal wieder einen Tip an die Mütze.

The struggle. Its scale is irrelevant or the ideology that stands behind it, no matter whether it is two people or a million. Are followed by only a scar – the bloody traces the path of hate … “Paths Of Hate” is a short tale of beasts, which lie dormant deep in the human soul and push them into the abyss of blind hatred, rage and anger. Chasm that leads to the inevitable destruction and annihilation.
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source: filminteriapl

ulisy powstawania filmu “Paths of Hate” nt. walk lotniczych opowie podczas największej konferencji animacji komputerowej Siggraph 2011 w Vancouver polski grafik komputerowy Damian Nenow. Odbierze on również nagrodę jury na towarzyszącym konferencji Festiwalu Animacji Komputerowej.

Grafika z animacji “Paths of Hate” /materiały prasowe
Siggraph jest największą na świecie konferencją poświęconą grafice komputerowej wykorzystywanej w filmach, grach, efektach specjalnych i reklamach. Gromadzi ona co roku czołowych twórców z branży animacji, którzy prezentują swoje najnowsze projekty i rozwiązania technologiczne.

W tegorocznej edycji odbywającej się w dniach 9-11 sierpnia w Kanadzie, weźmie udział Damian Nenow, który zaprezentuje techniczne kulisy powstawania filmu “Paths of Hate”. Polak znalazł się wśród jedenastu osób poproszonych o dokonanie prezentacji w ramach wykładów organizowanych przez Autodesk – jednego z największych producentów oprogramowania do tworzenia animacji komputerowej. Wśród innych prelegentów znajdą się m.in. twórcy postaci do bajki animowanej “Cars 2” oraz efektów specjalnych do takich filmów jak “Kung Fu Panda”, “Alicja w Krainie Czarów”, “X-men” czy “Podróże Guliwera”.

Prezentacja Nenowa będzie skierowana głównie do specjalistów z dziedziny animacji. – Dla branży jest niezwykle interesująca stylizacja filmu. Wygląda jakby był robiony z płaskich obrazków, a tymczasem zastosowano w nim technikę 3D. Uzyskanie takiego efektu w technice animacji, która operuje na bryłach, było sporym wyzwaniem technologicznym – powiedziała Agnieszka Piechnik z biura prasowego studia “Platige Image”.

“Paths of Hate” to film pełen widowiskowych i atrakcyjnych plastycznie scen walk lotniczych. Swoją konstrukcją, specyficzną narracją a przede wszystkim dalece zaawansowaną technicznie stylizacją obrazu, bazującego na grafice 3D, przypomina wprawiony w ruch sensacyjny komiks.

Całość skonstruowana jest na zasadzie klamry. Film otwiera i zamyka anegdota graficzna – tytułowe ścieżki nienawiści to w rzeczywistości smugi na niebie pozostawione przez samoloty.

Zobacz zwiastun “Paths of Hate”:

– W morzu wyczerpujących, ponurych, egzystencjalnych animacji pragnąłem umieścić film, który przede wszystkim będzie dla widza rozrywką. Film spektakularny i atrakcyjny wizualnie. Z drugiej strony chciałem aby “Paths of Hate” był czymś więcej niż kolejną pokazówką możliwości technicznych, pełną bijących się wielgachnych robotów czy troli – mówi Nenow.

“Paths of Hate” otrzymały jedną z dwóch nagród głównych towarzyszącego konferencji Festiwalu Animacji Komputerowej – nagrodę jury. Wcześniej produkcja została już wyróżniona m.in. przez amerykańskich twórców komiksów podczas Comi-Con International oraz na Międzynarodowym Festiwalu Animacji Anima Mundi w Brazylii.

Damian Nenow jest absolwentem Państwowej Wyższej Szkoły Filmowej, Telewizyjnej i Teatralnej w Łodzi. Jego film zrealizowany na pierwszym roku “The Aim” (2005), dostał nagrodę specjalną na festiwalu “ReAnimacja” w Łodzi, oraz pierwszą nagrodę na festiwalu “Dozwolone do 21 lat” w Tarnowie. Zrealizowany na drugim roku studiów film “Wielka ucieczka” wyświetlany był na wielu międzynarodowych festiwalach filmowych.

Nenow jest specjalistą w wielu dziedzinach związanych z grafiką komputerową. Jest twórcą krótkometrażowych filmów animowanych i ilustracji.
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source: u148net

战争，甚至无关两个人（或者几千万人也同理）背后的信仰或者意识形态的观念。《仇恨之路》是关于沉睡在灵魂深处的魔鬼的故事，它会将人类推向盲目仇恨、狂暴、愤怒的深渊，而最终会将导致我们的毁灭。作者在借短片诉说人类的杀戮本性，正是“魔鬼”的存在才让人类历上的杀戮永无止境。

《仇恨之路》来自波兰最顶级的CG工作室Platige Image。该公司由《大教堂》和《堕落的艺术》的 短片导演Tomek Baginski一手创立，这两部作品在2010年分别获得了奥斯卡最佳动画短片以及英国电影学院奖的最佳短片。目前Baginski已经更多地转入幕后 的领导和组织公司，Platige Image也推出了更多的信任导演。《仇恨之路》的导演Damian Nenow生于1983年，就读于波兰久负盛名的罗兹国家学院，他在一年级拍摄的短片《目标》就遍获波兰国内各项大奖。《仇恨之路》是他在毕业后加入 Platige Image拍摄的第一部短片。与Baginski宗教和哲学意味的创作不同，《仇恨之路》追求的是好莱坞动作大片一般的视听效果。本片曾获得2011年法 国昂西动画节短片特别提及奖。
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source: numerikblogspirit

Ecris et réalisé par Damian Nenow ce film de 10 minutes verra le jour prochainement est produit par Platige Image. L’action se déroule probablement durant la seconde guerre mondiale et elle met en scène 2 aviateurs dans un combat aérien spectaculaire qui se terminera dans un bain de sang. Ce film veut montrer la furie, la rage et la cruauté qui sommeille en nous.

Le graphisme est superbe, l’action nous tient tout le temps et la musique originale de Rafał Smoleń colle très bien à ce film d’action.