Release
It's only been a few days since the release of the first episode of Forlorn but the response I've received is more positive than anything I could have anticipated. It's incredibly relieving to hear that people enjoyed the short and are interested in seeing more. Thank you everyone for your kind words! It truly means a lot to me that you enjoyed my little experiment, and I can't wait to show you what I have coming up!
Not only was it featured, but it was also the thumbnail! I found out by scrolling through the new videos tab on Youtube, only to find a familiar image staring back at me. It was one of those wave-like reactions, where I thought "Yep, there's my video... wait, I didn't post on youtube... wait, what?" I'm so incredibly grateful to the folks over at Unreal for their support!
I'd also like to use this time to gush about Unreal a bit. It's literally the reason this project exists. For a long time I would watch videos and get very interested in real time rendering solutions. Coming from a traditional CG background, I found rendering to always be a time consuming hassle, requiring more a lot of in-depth know how to make things look close to half-way decent. The rise of GPU based rendering certainly made things a lot better, but it was never enough. Early in 2018 I made a prototype version of Forlorn rendered in Redshift. I was able to borrow a rendering farm, but if I hadn't it might have taken several straight days of rendering to get it done, and that's not including any possible hiccups. And then with compositing and other factors, and the whole process becomes a slog. After that test, I decided it was time to look at real time in earnest. I jumped into Unreal and never looked back. Through the engine I'm able to have incredible control over my animation, finalizing lighting and effects without having to wait and hope it comes out right. When you're working alone like I am on a single box, this is unparalleled. Because of this I knew it was time to make the film I always wanted to make.
With Forlorn Part II in the can, it's time to go on to Part I, and set the stage for the story properly. I said in the previous post that I was going to take a break, but after relaxing for a few days I'm feeling ready to jump in once again. I hope you'll continue with me on this journey.
The most exciting reaction to the release was also the most unexpected. It turns out I was featured in this weeks official Unreal Engine showcase!
Not only was it featured, but it was also the thumbnail! I found out by scrolling through the new videos tab on Youtube, only to find a familiar image staring back at me. It was one of those wave-like reactions, where I thought "Yep, there's my video... wait, I didn't post on youtube... wait, what?" I'm so incredibly grateful to the folks over at Unreal for their support!
I'd also like to use this time to gush about Unreal a bit. It's literally the reason this project exists. For a long time I would watch videos and get very interested in real time rendering solutions. Coming from a traditional CG background, I found rendering to always be a time consuming hassle, requiring more a lot of in-depth know how to make things look close to half-way decent. The rise of GPU based rendering certainly made things a lot better, but it was never enough. Early in 2018 I made a prototype version of Forlorn rendered in Redshift. I was able to borrow a rendering farm, but if I hadn't it might have taken several straight days of rendering to get it done, and that's not including any possible hiccups. And then with compositing and other factors, and the whole process becomes a slog. After that test, I decided it was time to look at real time in earnest. I jumped into Unreal and never looked back. Through the engine I'm able to have incredible control over my animation, finalizing lighting and effects without having to wait and hope it comes out right. When you're working alone like I am on a single box, this is unparalleled. Because of this I knew it was time to make the film I always wanted to make.
