September Update

 Quick update just in time for the weekend! Production for ARENA has been completed and I've moved on onto the post-production process. A rough edit for the film has been completed. Instead of 45-75 minutes, the final runtime of ARENA will be approximately 33-40 minutes with credits included. I had initially calculated a general time span of the film based upon the amount of shots per map made and their respective length. I wanted to create sections with extremely long shots, but during post I found out how redundant and boring these shots actually were. They did not add a lot to the film as a whole and I figured that even audio would most likely not be able to fix this issue. That is why a lot of shots had to be cut to a shorter length in order to keep the film digestible and interesting. A number of shots from certain maps could also not be used  (some looked the same as shots from other maps, or did not fit my vision on the film anymore) and were removed from the film in their entirety. I think these changes are for the better. A 75 minute film concerning Quake III Arena maps would be too long for anyone to watch in one sitting, and the overall quality of the shots remains the way I had originally visualized it by doing it this way.

I'm still a bit torn whether I will be implementing one or two custom made maps. I have not started the mapping process yet due to a lack of dedicated hardware for this. I hope to fix this issue soon. Whether one or two maps will be featured, only time will tell. It highly depends on the schedule, available time and how well the remaining post production is going. What is set, however, is that the custom maps will serve as a bit of a red thread throughout the film and their shots will be featured in the beginning, at the one third mark, half way through, two third mark, and at the end of ARENA. I have currently started the grading process after tinkering with the edit for a couple of days. You know, switching shots, making sure the film keeps on flowing, changing shot lengths, the usual. I've started grading two days ago. So far I'm grading at a pace of 5 minutes of film per two days. It does not sound like much but it's at least around 30 to 40 shots. Considering each shot requires its own care and attention, it's safe to say I'm a bit worn out after each day.  During this month I'll be fully focusing on the grading process and starting the mapping process of the one/two custom maps featured in the film. Once mapping is done I will create additional shots for in the film and place them accordingly. All of the processes will eventually overlap so I am not sure on an exact releasedate as in a day. I have set an exact month though, and that is december again. At this moment I am working on both ARENA and Pixelated Soundwaves every single day for hours on end. Only thing I can say so far is that I can't wait to share the end result and hear what you guys think. More coming soon. I will share a couple of shots that contain before and after grades so you are able to get a bit of a idea of what the film is going to look like.

Regarding Pixelated Soundwaves, production is still going strong. Out of the 13 video's, 3 video's have been succesfully completed and currently 5 are being rendered. The video's serve a complimentary role in this project as the main focus lays on the audio. There are 12 songs composed; each of them containing their own respective video. The thirteenth video revolves around a continuous mix of all 12 songs in one single 45 minute video. The visuals that are used in the video's require a lot of time to render. Approximately 48 hours per video, to be exact. That is why production is going at a bit of a slower pace than Arena. Considering the first two tracks are awaiting premiere, I'll share right now that the songs are based upon Habbo Hotel music samples from their Trax furni line that enjoyed high popularity during 2007 and 2009. Since Trax was such a popular feature back in the day and I also enjoyed it a lot, I figured to create an album with 12 custom made songs composed with Habbo music samples inside of Ableton Live. Don't worry if it sounds a bit vague if you are unfamiliar with what Trax contains. I'll release an APPOVTALK about Pixelated Soundwaves sooner or later explaining everything and I will also release a dedicated post when both Pixelated Soundwave and ARENA are being released. The first two tracks are already awaiting premiere on YouTube. The rest of all the video's are now currently being produced or awaiting final post-production.

Since you're able to see the video's awaiting the official premiere on my channel: yes, Pixelated Soundwaves will release on October 7th. Every song will premiere 15 minutes after one another. The first track will premiere at 12PM CEST, the second one at 12.15PM CEST, the third one at 12.30 PM CEST, and so on, to be concluded with the continuous mix around 3PM CEST. Pixelated Soundwaves will not release on Vimeo, only on YouTube. So be sure to check it out on my YouTube Channel. Also, since ARENA is going to be most likely an extremely large videofile since it is 35 minutes long, I will only share a compilation of clips on Vimeo due to storage constraints on free Vimeo accounts. The full film will only be shared on YouTube and IGMDB (Internet Gaming Movie Database). 

Here's a quick screencap from the video's awaiting premiere thus far. See you in the next update!