Rendering out the final candidate of Secrets of Blackmoor right now!
over 4 years ago
– Sat, Aug 17, 2019 at 02:06:26 AM
We're rendering out the final candidate of Secrets of Blackmoor right now! We'll quality check it, and if we see no errors, we'll be releasing the VOD (Video on Demand) to all of you, our Kickstarter Supporters, tomorrow! To be followed by DVD's, T-shirts, and other sundries over the next few weeks. Thank you for your support and patience!
You can hear our office A/C blasting away, and if you listen carefully, also hear the hard drive arrays clicking away furiously.
Thanks!
Griff and Chris
Last Steps!
almost 5 years ago
– Wed, Jul 17, 2019 at 03:00:34 AM
Yesterday was a huge day for us. We rendered out the last reel of the film.
Films are made in reels even in this digital age. It makes handling the data easier as the files are gigantic. Getting that last reel (reel 'D') completed is a major milestone toward a final film.
As we mentioned in the previous update, a lot of the onscreen images of documents and old photos needed citations to give them context. Although that work is done, we need to review it once more.
The ephemera artifacts are critical to the story - we've noticed that people want to know what we have used in the film. One thing we may consider doing is publishing a complete list with thumbnails on our website a little later. Those of you with a desire to dig deeper can then look through the list. As we compile the list, we might also have our research team add annotations to the images - as we mentioned before, context is critical with these documents.
Also, the "World Premiere" version of the movie was missing several animated segments we wanted to include, but they turned out to be too time-consuming to make by that deadline. So, now we have completed them and added them in. They're an effective way to reveal information that is better shown visually than by a long narrative trying to explain it.
Here is an example:
A simple fly-over of the "First Fantasy Campaign" map gives one an idea of the immense size of this world. There is nothing within the spoken film narrative to explain these elements to the watcher, because it doesn't need it - the video animation speaks for itself.
Here is another animation clip:
We felt that Blackmoor dungeon needed to be made more tangible. With just images of map pages it's hard to get a feeling for how big this dungeon is. So, we took the maps and stacked them in a virtual 3D space and then flew around them. We feel this gives one the feeling of how immense Arneson's dungeon really is.
What lies ahead for us is actually fairly basic work. It just takes a little time.
1. Sound - We sent the sound layer off to Flysound's Studio last week. They are remixing reel 'D' for us as we type.
2. Titles - We'll be adding all the Citations and On-screen Identifiers to the video layer.
3. The Marriage - This is when we have all of the assets in our possession: Video; Sound; and Titles. It's at this point that we will assemble it all and call it a movie. Then send out the codes to all of you for the final VOD.
4. DVD's - this will require a few more elements. The box art is done, the bonus DVD/Blu-ray content has been assembled, but the creation of Menus and Chapters can't be completed until the movie is done. We'll then add in the closed-captioning text so that we can make sure all of you can enjoy this film.
5. Rewards, like the Dice Bags and T-shirts, are sitting in boxes waiting to get shipped. Because of shipping costs, we need to hold out until the DVD's and Blu-ray's are manufactured and delivered to us before we can start sending out everyone's gifts.
Very few steps left in completing the final film, and only a few more in the actual delivery of your real world rewards. It's hard to put a specific date on when each element will be complete. We can get ballpark time frames for the things we are doing "in house" yet we can't control our vendor timelines.
Tonisborg Dungeon is waiting on a little bit more artwork and the map for Level 10. When we get these assets, we will complete the layout and send it off for printing. These will be shipped separately from all the other gifts. Thank you Post Office for Book Rate shipping!
Our next update will be really short. It will be a simple notice telling you to check your email for the code to see the final cut of "Secrets of Blackmoor".
Huzzah Gamers!
Chris and Griff
The Holdup
almost 5 years ago
– Wed, Jun 26, 2019 at 09:58:01 PM
No, not that kind of holdup - we mean the delay in completing the film.
We felt we should do an update about where we are, the filmmaking process, and a breakdown of what we have left to do.
Firstly, we really want to thank all of you who have supported us all along and for hanging in there with us!
It was exciting to do a premiere screening of “Secrets of Blackmoor”. Both Chris and I felt we wanted to do a special show for everyone who was in the film, as well as their friends and family, as a way to thank everyone for their involvement in a very special kind of project.
The premiere served as the shakedown cruise for the film. This is when we all see it on the big screen and the little things that were not noticed before are suddenly gigantic and impossible to ignore; things like misspelled names, bad video renders, and incomplete plot narration.
After the premiere we went on the web to see if people were talking about “Secrets of Blackmoor” and found some people complaining about the film. Rather than posting to our FaceBook Page, or to our Twitter account, or even sending an email, people were getting their kicks slagging the film. Not very constructive, we thought.
You can run, but you can't hide. We found the greifers and actually listened to what they were saying. Yes, we listen to criticism - the one part of the film people were complaining about was the section on Blackmoor. People were saying it wasn't really clear to them what it was that Blackmoor does differently, or better. There are some things we can't do with this film. Some people would like more stories about the Blackmoor campaign setting, but that is not the purpose of this film. If we covered everything, this film would end up being about 5 hours long and it would take us another 3 years to complete it.
Back to this film.
Having done a premiere, we wanted to be able to pat ourselves on the back and say “WE DID IT!”. Nope, there were just too many little things we needed to fix. Although it seemed like a quick fix, the editing side of filmmaking is the most time consuming and exacting stage. It requires a filmmaker to empty their head and see their own film like someone who is seeing it for the very first time; not an easy task.
We are very close to having a completely polished film. Rather than giving you made-up timelines of 2 or 3 weeks, it seems more effective to give you updates of what is happening and why. We won't tell you exactly how long something will take to get done, but we will give you an inside look at the exact stage we are in.
So here is the breakdown for you:
- We went through the entire edit and replaced many documents and photos that did not seem to be in the correct place. This was literally an edit-by-edit quality control process that took several weeks.
- We then made extensive lists of everything that appears on the screen, so we can put in citations for all the documents and many of the photos. This is also an edit-by-edit process.
- The last 35 minutes of the film required a complete re-edit. We've added back some things we felt should not have taken out, such as Pete Gaylord, the First Wizard. We've had to dig out all kinds of documents to show on screen - this was actually very time consuming because it required a lot of reading and reviewing of old material. The weak spot in the last section was the narration. It had to be very concise but also very informative. It's a balancing act to get it right.
- Color work is really tricky. It looked great at the premiere, but there is always room for improvement. We can't resist doing some tweaks.
- The credits needed fixing. We got several names wrong and we missed some people. We're hoping we have it right now.
Up next are these tasks:
- Recording the rewrites on the narration. This will be done in the next few days. We need to wait until our audio technician was able to do the engineering for the voiceovers. Then the new narration will get edited into the film and we will send it all out to Flysound to have the sound mix remastered on that last 35 minutes.
- Chris will be adding all the titles into the film while the sound is being worked on.
Last stages:
- We will gather all the assets for the film: video; titles; sound mixes; credits and assemble them into the film.
- People who purchased via KickStarter will receive online screeners.
- We will shut down our BackerKit Store and those who ordered there will receive online screeners.
- The DVD's and Blu Rays will get ordered. When the DVD and Blu-ray discs arrive, we will begin shipping all the rewards.
Those who purchased Tonisborg will need to wait just a tiny bit longer, but we do have an extra bonus online forum for Tonisborg Referee’s. For those who ordered a copy we’ll be sending out invites within the next few days. You’ll find Griff in there, as well as a few familiar names contributing to the conversation.
Thanks so much to all of you,
Chis and Griff
Work Continues - We see the light at the end of the tunnel!
almost 5 years ago
– Thu, Jun 06, 2019 at 02:20:54 AM
Work continues on the final version - with feedback and input from the premiere screening we compiled a list of about 200 changes and additions to the film. We're almost done. We're working to make sure that the film is accurate and complete, but we also appreciate your patience. Although it's not very enthralling, below is a video of Chris working through a list of corrections on the closing titles. There's not a lot that goes on right now behind the scenes that makes for a nice photo or an exciting video. We're hoping that will be the final film!
Many Thanks,
Griff and Chris
We just pushed out codes for the VOD!
almost 5 years ago
– Tue, May 07, 2019 at 02:45:05 AM
We just sent out codes to everybody that was supposed to get a VOD of the full movie. This is to make sure that all of our supporters have a chance to see the movie before the World Premiere in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 8th (7:30pm). Look for the email!
This is the same version we're screening at the premiere, but since it is the first time we're seeing it on the big screen - we'll get to see the mistakes loud and tall - so once we get back from the Twin Cities (where we'll be shooting a few interviews for Secrets of Blackmoor: Volume 2) we'll correct them, and update the file for the VOD - and then we can get the DVD's and Blu Rays mastered right after that.
We hope you enjoy the VOD - and for those that get the bonus of seeing their name in the credits - let us know if we got anything wrong!
Also, we're hoping to tape the Q&A after the screening, and we'll post it for all our supporters to see in the next week.
Thanks for your support,
Chris and Griff
