TITLE: First Response
NAME: Michael Sobers
COUNTRY: USADATE: January 15, 2001


EMAIL: michaelsobers@mindspring.com
TOPIC: Pursuit / Escape
COPYRIGHT: I SUBMIT TO THE STANDARD RAYTRACING COMPETITION COPYRIGHT.
MPGFILE: mschase.mpg
ZIPFILE: mschase.zip
RENDERER USED: 
    POVRay 3.1g


TOOLS USED: 
    I used Paint Shop Pro 3 and Corel Photo House 3 for image map
manipulation.  
The only model I used that wasn't mine was the Rebel Pilot include file created
by Howard Day.  
I have included it in my zip file.  I used Video Mach to compile the frames.

PROGRAMMING TIME: I stopped keeping track after 100 hours ...

RENDER TIME: 38 hours (a little over an hour of total parsing time)


HARDWARE USED: 
    Pentium III / 450 mHz


ANIMATION DESCRIPTION: 

  The Ka'Dell had been in power for as long as anyone could remember. Economic
and political 
strength were on their side.  In recent years, however, that power had been
waning, as the 
Ka'Dell forces had been stretched thin along the outer rim territories.
Recently, a small 
band of Dentri rebels managed to salvage three Ka'Dell Scorpion fighters. The
standard issue 
Scorpions were ill-equipped for the task at hand, but they were all the rebels
had at their 
disposal.  Fortunately, the only remaining sensor post in the sector that the
Ka'Dell had not 
abandoned was lightly defended by two only droid Scorpions. Dentri spies had
reported that 
the post's main ion cannons were no longer functioning due to neglect. 
Destroying the post 
would be the first step in returning freedom to this small, forgotten piece of
the galaxy. 
The rebels needed only to make visual contact with the post, then begin their
attack...    


VIEWING RECOMMENDATIONS: 
    I've only viewed it with Windows Media Player - others
should work.


DESCRIPTION OF HOW THIS ANIMATION WAS CREATED: 


The frames were created in POVRay, using the standard Windows animation support.
First, I 
created grayscale image using a bozo image map.  Then, I edited it using PSP3,
carving out 
the river and adding some high rock formations.  The grayscale image was used to
create a 
height-field.  I decided that the area was too small, so I then mirrored the hf
to give me 
more room to fly around. Later I decided to add water, which is just a box set
at a certain 
height with my own recipe of bumps, color, and reflectivity to create the
effect.  

I started out using Y-wing fighter models that I got off the web, but toward the
middle of 
the project, I decided to design my own ships.  I used mostly blobs to build the
ship up.  
After a friend of mine said the ships looked "cute" I changed the scaling and
added some 
features to make them look a bit more aggressive.

The sensor hut, radar antennae, and cockpit are mostly CSG. I've added lots of
little details 
that will probably never be noticed in this particular animation (like the
little power 
indicator on the reverse of the anntennae that fluctuates with time), but
hopefully they 
add to the overall effect.

The "outside" camera shots were all created in one "sitting" from the main
animation file. 
The "cockpit" shots were created from a separate file and then inserted in the
correct spots 
in the animation.  The scenes displayed on the monitors, both in the cockpit and
in the hut, 
were also created separately and then mapped onto the monitor screens, advancing
one frame for 
each scene frame rendered.  Once the frames were completed, I compiled them in
VideoMach.

I apologize for the poor commenting of my code, but I ran out of time and didn't
get to clean
it up the way I wanted to. If you can't figure out how or why I did something
specific, I'll 
be happy to answer questions you have - just e-mail me.  I also didn't get a
chance to really
polish the transitions between camera shots, so you can reserve your
constructive criticism
for other areas of the animation (and I know that there are plenty of things
that can be
improved - so please let me know your opinions!) Also, the 191MB uncompressed
AVI version is
a LOT cleaner!

SPECIAL THANKS : I have to thank my wife for her indulgence in this
time-consuming hobby of 
mine (she makes a cameo appearance in the final cockpit scene).  I would also
like to thank 
all of my friends who gave input during the last few months (especially during
the final 
days!)  Thanks also to the POVRay team for a wonderful product, and to Howard
Day for the
use of his pilot model.  But most of all, I'd like to thank my Savior Jesus
Christ for all 
of the joy and fulfillment he brings to my life.  

