Wow $199 for Pro??? That's $100 less than Manga Studio. I hope that's enough to cover future development/marketing costs. It really should've been $299 at least. When Flash debuted it was about $499. Weird. I noticed they're already pushing a user/vendor marketplace, just like Poser. Most people prefer to use their own artwork(it's easy enuff to do in 2d), but maybe it could take off if people uploaded models that showed off some cool rigging/animation techniques combined with great artwork. User created scripts could also sell, like plug-ins.
I'm really really hoping this takes off for e-frontier in a big way, then maybe we'll see things like 3d vectors, better audio support, etc.
But then, maybe I should start preparing stuff for this marketplace. Cha ching!
That flash file is only 554kb, compared to Moho's current swf export size. If it was actually made in "Anime Studio" then this looks like some good news.
If I understand correctly, at the time the filesize was due to (a) limited animation, and (b) moving the SWF into Flash before re-exporting.
While Dave states the character animation was done in Moho, I think he states the backgrounds were also added separately in Flash (after creation in Xara X). Whether that also brought the filesize down, I don't know.
Great facial expressions and enjoyably watchable animation, whatever the technology.
Regards, Myles.
"Quote me as saying I was mis-quoted."
-- Groucho Marx
I'm really excited about e frontier's newest product, Anime Studio. Sure, it's a great product, but I may be a little biased too - you see, I created the program.
Anime Studio isn't your typical version 1.0 product. It has been in development for over seven years. September 2006 actually marks the seventh anniversary of the version 1.0 release. Anime Studio was originally created as Moho, by a one-person company known as Lost Marble. It's been a long, crazy ride, but now Moho has found a new home with e frontier.
My background is as a software engineer, but my passion has always been graphics and animation. Although I lack the artistic skill to create captivating characters and stories, I take a certain amount of pride in creating the tools to get the job done. (Take a look at some of the sample animations on e frontier's website and you'll see what can happen when you put a good tool in the hands of a talented artist.)
I've worked on lots of projects involving 3D modeling, rendering, and animation, and while I love the amazing possibilities of 3D, I've always have a soft spot for 2D animation. Today people expect photorealism (or photo-surrealism) when they watch 3D animation, and that's a lot of work. A LOT of work: it takes a huge team of modelers, animators, texture painters, lighting specialists, and more. With enough time and money, the results can be fantastic. But what about 2D? No one complains that Bugs Bunny or SpongeBob SquarePants looks too low-tech. 2D animation is supposed to be about fun, and forget all the technical behind-the-scenes stuff. Polygon count? Hours to render a frame? Thousands of dollars of software?
Forget all that - let's see some old school squash and stretch!
Make no mistake, 2D animation can still take a lot of time. All animation is a labor of love, but with the right tool (*cough* Anime Studio *cough*), a small team or even an individual animator can actually produce professional results.
So now we have Anime Studio, a mature product ready for its introduction to the world. Without knowing it, you may have even seen some work produced with this software - it's actually seen quite a bit of use in TV commercials, comedy sketches, and even a few film projects. Now that e frontier is introducing Anime Studio to their customers, of couse I'm hoping for a good reception. I hope you like this program as much as I do. But if there's something that needs improvement, or some way we can help your workflow, be sure to let us know - a toolmaker's work is never done.