From February 20, 2003 to March 20, 2003
Upon returning from Kish Island around 2003, I took part in my first project, a short animation. Although the animation was primarily 2D, the final segment required fluid camera movements and 3D scenes. The camera was designed to smoothly navigate through environments filled with elements such as meadows, flower fields, a roaring sea, mountains, and a cloudy sky. Each environment concluded with an old wooden door that would open as the camera drew near.
While still on Kish Island, I was proposed to undertake this project. Two weeks later, during a trip to Tehran, I met with the director at the Saba Center. He outlined the project’s needs in the 3d part, which I accepted after some thought. At that time, I had several years of experience with Maya software. The newly released version 5.0 included features that were ideal for this project.
A significant challenge was the necessity to complete the project independently. We were unable to find anyone else proficient in Maya software. At that time, nearly all individuals working in the Saba Center’s 3D department were using 3D Studio Max software for 3D tasks.
At the time, the policy of the Saba Center was not to allow anyone to duplicate the project files. Even bringing a CD into the studio required permission. We viewed the final output in the Saba Center theater and later on national TV. I found the video on the internet at a later date with low quality.
During that period, the Saba Center was equipped with two 3D graphics units. The first, known as the Xeon unit, was made up of workstation computers powered by Intel Xeon processors. This unit was frequently used by 3D artists for animation projects. The second unit, referred to as the Silicon unit, comprised Silicon Graphics O2 workstation computers, which were rarely used.
I used the Xeon unit systems to do the project and rendered approximately 3000 frames using the Silicon unit systems. I remember that it was very difficult to find a version of Maya for the IRIX operating system, but I had an interesting and valuable experience with SGI O2 systems.
With composite frames in Digital Fusion software and adding some visual effects, I finished my work on this project.
If you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me or leave them in the comments section below.