SilentSurfer's Laboratory: Come up to the Lab & See What's on the Slab.

[emarae]

That makes two of us.

I'm becoming more proud of this piece by the day! Glad to know there are other collectors out there that appreciate stuff like this and don't see it as just some girly thing! My biggest fear was not doing justice to both Rainman & Nathans work with my bash! Whew! So far so good...!

 

[MarfMaster]

The custom section can feel like a zoo sometimes, with countless threads devoted to so many of the same characters, and everyone in a mad dash to get their hands on stuff as quickly as possible to throw something together. Your Audrey figure is...a breath of fresh air. Best way I can think to describe it.

 

[Bucky Underbelly]

That's so true. We get so many of the same kinds of customs around these parts (and often they're enormously impressive figures) ... but it's so great to see a project like this come together. Unexpected character, beautifully executed. There's something about a labor of love like this that just warms the heart.

 

[Wake]

The custom section can feel like a zoo sometimes, with countless threads devoted to so many of the same characters, and everyone in a mad dash to get their hands on stuff as quickly as possible to throw something together. Your Audrey figure is...a breath of fresh air. Best way I can think to describe it.

 

[SilentSurfer]

Again, try to watch Roman Holiday and see if you fall in love with Audrey the way I did many years ago! It's an old classic movie now, but still a wonderful movie like they just don't make these days anymore! I'm telling you, it'll be a nice break from most of the CGI and bad screenplays going around these days!

Oh, no doubt. I've tried to find it On Demand, but it is more expensive than new releases. I can probably just go buy the DVD for the same or less, and probably will do just that.

For a pretty long time now I have been realizing that no movies really grab me and make a die hard fan out of me anymore. I thought it was just age and the fact that I've seen so much that so much seems less impressive. I'm sure that plays a part, but I've recently been reading a screenwriting book called STORY by Robert Mckee, and I'm learning exactly why nothing seems to click with me anymore. I still need monsters, robots, and fantastic things to capture my imagination, but too little of those kinds of movies these days have great story telling, relying on visual effects to put my *** in a seat. I think that's why so many of us die hards are fans of franchises that started in the 70's and 80's. Thought most sequels fall short, the movies that launched them are perfect, ie, ALIEN, TERMINATOR, PREDATOR, HALLOWEEN, STAR WARS (OT)... great stories that used special effects to tell the story and did not exist simply to show us cool stuff. I'm totally ready to start watching more old movies that had no effects, just story for a while.

Your Audrey figure is...a breath of fresh air. Best way I can think to describe it.

For me as well. A lot of customs are becoming white noise, and then a piece like that comes along and sounds so completely different that it gets my attention.

There's something about a labor of love like this that just warms the heart.

That's when I love doing this for a living, when I get a new singular head from a great movie and I can really get into it. And then there's other times when I get 20 more of the same head and it's just work no matter how good the piece is.

 

[SilentSurfer]

It just came to my attention that Tom Baker Dr. Who doesn't actually have eyebrows. They were sculpted on, but upon closer review of references, it's correct - he doesn't. So I painted them out, and he looks even more like him now.

 

[emarae]

The custom section can feel like a zoo sometimes, with countless threads devoted to so many of the same characters, and everyone in a mad dash to get their hands on stuff as quickly as possible to throw something together. Your Audrey figure is...a breath of fresh air. Best way I can think to describe it.

That's so true. We get so many of the same kinds of customs around these parts (and often they're enormously impressive figures) ... but it's so great to see a project like this come together. Unexpected character, beautifully executed. There's something about a labor of love like this that just warms the heart.

Oh, no doubt. I've tried to find it On Demand, but it is more expensive than new releases. I can probably just go buy the DVD for the same or less, and probably will do just that.

For a pretty long time now I have been realizing that no movies really grab me and make a die hard fan out of me anymore. I thought it was just age and the fact that I've seen so much that so much seems less impressive. I'm sure that plays a part, but I've recently been reading a screenwriting book called STORY by Robert Mckee, and I'm learning exactly why nothing seems to click with me anymore. I still need monsters, robots, and fantastic things to capture my imagination, but too little of those kinds of movies these days have great story telling, relying on visual effects to put my *** in a seat. I think that's why so many of us die hards are fans of franchises that started in the 70's and 80's. Thought most sequels fall short, the movies that launched them are perfect, ie, ALIEN, TERMINATOR, PREDATOR, HALLOWEEN, STAR WARS (OT)... great stories that used special effects to tell the story and did not exist simply to show us cool stuff. I'm totally ready to start watching more old movies that had no effects, just story for a while.

For me as well. A lot of customs are becoming white noise, and then a piece like that comes along and sounds so completely different that it gets my attention.

That's when I love doing this for a living, when I get a new singular head from a great movie and I can really get into it. And then there's other times when I get 20 more of the same head and it's just work no matter how good the piece is.

Aw, man! You guys bring a tear to my silly eyes! So happy to hear you all know where I was coming from with this and it really was a labor or love! Even just trying to get that look right with Nathan wasn't easy, but it all came together amazingly in the end! I just love it when it all works out!

 

[stshammgod]

I gotta say emarae, they are completely right about your Audrey. It certainly is a welcome break from the typical custom around here and your love for the character shows in your bash. Looks like a lot of love went into it. The Vespa really kicks it up a notch too! Congrats on such a really unique piece!

 

[shocktrooper_au]

It just came to my attention that Tom Baker Dr. Who doesn't actually have eyebrows. They were sculpted on, but upon closer review of references, it's correct - he doesn't. So I painted them out, and he looks even more like him now.

My favourite doctor then pertwee.

 

[sdabbs]

Oh, no doubt. I've tried to find it On Demand, but it is more expensive than new releases. I can probably just go buy the DVD for the same or less, and probably will do just that.

For a pretty long time now I have been realizing that no movies really grab me and make a die hard fan out of me anymore. I thought it was just age and the fact that I've seen so much that so much seems less impressive. I'm sure that plays a part, but I've recently been reading a screenwriting book called STORY by Robert Mckee, and I'm learning exactly why nothing seems to click with me anymore. I still need monsters, robots, and fantastic things to capture my imagination, but too little of those kinds of movies these days have great story telling, relying on visual effects to put my *** in a seat. I think that's why so many of us die hards are fans of franchises that started in the 70's and 80's. Thought most sequels fall short, the movies that launched them are perfect, ie, ALIEN, TERMINATOR, PREDATOR, HALLOWEEN, STAR WARS (OT)... great stories that used special effects to tell the story and did not exist simply to show us cool stuff. I'm totally ready to start watching more old movies that had no effects, just story for a while.



For me as well. A lot of customs are becoming white noise, and then a piece like that comes along and sounds so completely different that it gets my attention.



That's when I love doing this for a living, when I get a new singular head from a great movie and I can really get into it. And then there's other times when I get 20 more of the same head and it's just work no matter how good the piece is.

I couldn't agree with you more Nathan, I thought I was becoming cynical with my age, but I think your right about story and character of older films vs the majority of today's cinema.

I love the old Hepburn movies, the old musicals where the actors at the time were multi talented - could sing, dance, act, play an instrument.

There seems to be something missing in films at the moment, even Cameron's Avatar was just a shadow of his former work I felt.

Maybe now we are in a place in films where, if there is enough budget, anything can be created with ease because of cg. And so we don't have any films like star wars any more because we no longer are needed to be put in the position , to be forced in a corner so we need to create out of necessity, and then it's magic really, uncharted ground - like Georges Méliès . We don't need to figure out how to fool the audience because we already have the set of techniques in front of us and everybody knows how the trick is done.

 

[SilentSurfer]

Exactly my thinking. It's funny you mentioned Avatar. That was one of the things I had in mind as I wrote the comment you quoted. I so expected Avatar to become a new "childhood" obsession, and for a while I couldn't understand why it wasn't gripping my imagination. Now I think I know why.

1st. The graphics were amazing, but since I know that it's all CGI, I'm not left with any wonder about any of it actually existing in reality in any form like when I see Jabba or the Rancor on screen in Jedi. When I look at Avatar, all I can think is, "damn they're good with computers these days!" I can connect to Hellboy much more because almost all those creatures are really in camera.

2nd. Jakes doesn't actually overcome his physical limitations, so there's no growth of character. All the time he is becoming a more powerful characterization (how he looks and what he is able to do) he is not the real Jake but only his mind in a better body. And his mind doesn't change, only his opinion of the Na'vi. I can't connect to Jake because I can't relate to having my mind in another body before facing challenges.

3rd. The badguys weren't developed enough. The movie spent so much time showing us how cool Pandora was that the a-hole military guy was an afterthought until he shows up at the end with an army I already figure is going to lose. And even then, he's just a flat character who likes to blow stuff up. The evil he should have had was pasted onto the "company guy" who did nothing more than be another a-hole. Those two characters should have been lumped into one impressive villain. Now I'm just waiting to see if the battle choreography will be cool and wonder how long it will be until the resolution with the company guy.

Movies are supposed to be a metaphor for life so that when we watch them we say "yeah, life is like that", according to STORY. But today, most movies are just a couple hours of people doing stuff, and there's really no message about humanity, especially in today's special effects driven movies. Like you said, back then they had to overcome limits by being creative and offering us a story. If Star Wars was only successful because of the fantasy world and special effects, why then does everybody hate the prequels? Cause the stories and characters are empty.

 

[stshammgod]

Movies are supposed to be a metaphor for life so that when we watch them we say "yeah, life is like that", according to STORY. But today, most movies are just a couple hours of people doing stuff, and there's really no message about humanity, especially in today's special effects driven movies. Like you said, back then they had to overcome limits by being creative and offering us a story. If Star Wars was only successful because of the fantasy world and special effects, why then does everybody hate the prequels? Cause the stories and characters are empty.

It's funny, I thought about this this past weekend while watching "The Amazing Spider-Man."

It was lacking heart, or depth or something. I couldn't find myself emotionally invested in anything. It's like you said; I was watching people "do stuff" for a few hours. Quite a disappointment.

 

[galactiboy]

A lot of movies feel like that... just stuff happening with no real point or seeming investment.

 

[SilentSurfer]

It's funny, I thought about this this past weekend while watching "The Amazing Spider-Man."

It was lacking heart, or depth or something. I couldn't find myself emotionally invested in anything. It's like you said; I was watching people "do stuff" for a few hours. Quite a disappointment.

And it's funny how that movie ends talking about how there's really only one story - "Who am I?" yet Peter's character never changes throughout the movie. He doesn't face any challenge that reveals to himself and us who he really is inside. He's just kinda the same guy from beginning to end that things happen to. There's no dimension to his character because there's no contradiction between what he says and what he does. He just is.

 

[stshammgod]

And it's funny how that movie ends talking about how there's really only one story - "Who am I?" yet Peter's character never changes throughout the movie. He doesn't face any challenge that reveals to himself and us who he really is inside. He's just kinda the same guy from beginning to end that things happen to. There's no dimension to his character because there's no contradiction between what he says and what he does. He just is.

 

[sdabbs]

man, that latest spidey movie sucked - ha ha!

 

[galactiboy]

Still better than 3 though... but precious little isn't

 

[SilentSurfer]

WGP Indy tomorrow. 8 of these at once is too much.

 

[Wake]

WGP Indy tomorrow. 8 of these at once is too much.

Might've been 10 had I gotten mine from WGP. Lol

 

[tbay]

Wow, love that Dr. Who, looking forward to seeing the Indy's painted up.

STORY is a really great screenwriting book, one of my favorites, his seminar is fantastic as well. Did you ever watch Adaptation? The guy who played Mckee was spot on.