The infamous "Make A Movie Button" (a.k.a. "Do the MAMBu")

[Cognis]

Okay, this is tricky to get across without being brutalized by the small but influential purist crowd roaming the board, but please, take a stroll with me down Impossibility Lane...

NOTE: This is meant for humorous pondering. People who take things too serious should stop reading right now

I recently made a suggestion about a streamlined importer option at blenderstorm (btw, go there and be a part of it, it's a brilliant site). Basically, I'd love to see the option of building a permanent list in Blender of one's own main assett files, whether models, materials, rigs or actions, and options for quickly assembling them. Essentially streamlining the whole work of putting pre-created things together to form an animation.

What happened was that, mostly because of my far too brief explanation, an admin noted that it was looking a bit like the dreaded "Make A Movie Button". I have given a clearer explanation on why it is far from it, and hope it gets my ideas better across this time.


Then I leaned back. Then, I thought "what IS the Make A Movie Button, anyway?" I know the basics, of course; the button is a fictional button that one presses and it does all your work for you, creating a fantastic movie and making you instantly famous and wealthy, all while making you breakfast and biscuits. It's a way to ridicule noobs and dweebs who want features that do all 'the boring stuff' and takes away their need to actually be creative. I know that much.

But try looking at it from the button's perspective... We all want to do things easier. The majority of new features speed up our workflow. Subsurf could be done by hand, and sculpting is just another fancy way of pulling larger numbers of vertices around simultaneously. Even Jahka's new particles produce nothing that could not be attained without it.... with ten to twenty times as much painstaking effort.

So what exactly does this button, this "MAMBu" feature, do? What would the ultimate time-saving feature you could imagine do? It doesn't have to produce a whole movie, think instead of the step-by-step functions that the MAMBu would need to use would be.

How would YOU like to see all your ambitions on making that fabulous movie made easy as cake??

I am still thinking about it myself. I guess some parts, for me, would be that the button could somehow identify from a script the things in a scene and import them. For some things, like a whole house, it could combine rooms and furniture to make a unique house for a specific scene ("take all the required components for the house from files marked <luxurious>" would let it make a luxurious house, if such discrimination was needed).

It would definitely have its own voice-generator. Why should I be overburdened with finding actual people to do (quality!) voices?? I hardly need to add that it would create the lipsyncs automatically, either.

Then, a massive archive of bits and pieces of common actions would let it move characters around, have them grab things, do things, have things done to them (don't get kinky thoughts, now!), etc., like a complex mix of BlenderPeople and the rigid body simulations in the Game Engine.

How to make it write the script without my help, I have no idea, but I'd love to hear yours!


PS: Don't reply if all you have to say is that the MAMBu is impossible or that this thread is silly. I know both things already, but let's let those who want to play with the idea play with it Also, look at Moviestorm, Antics3D and iClone for people actually trying desperately to do this

[kernond]

Your idea is actually the very premise of "The Movies" game. In fact, Moviestorm looks like output from The Movies game. I think it's a great idea, frankly.

I have an idea similar to this that I'm putting together (sooner or later). It's more of a type of "challenge" where you have a .blend file containing a set of props and basic characters. The challenge is to create an original animated scene using only the assets available in the file. The character(s) would already have a library of actions that are ready to be used. No additional animation would be allowed other than basic manipulations of the character and objects.

I think anything that facilitates people getting involved in the learning process is a good thing. Having pre-made assets would allow people to begin focusing on the many aspects of film-making without the burden of the long setup process.

[jesterKing]

I guess that my DbBlender project (for which I'm now at the MySQL conference in Santa Clara, CA, as we speak!) may be useful here when it comes to the managing of assets part.

/Nathan

ps. and thanks for the blenderstorm -plug

[kernond]

Hey, I checked out those links to the movie-making tools and they're definitely what I was looking for BEFORE I got into Blender. I was gearing up to get deep into machinima when I decided to give Blender another look.

Moviestorm is definitely what the The Movies game would have been if they had really gotten it right.

I think these tools are very useful for visualizing ideas, camera moves, etc. for an animation that would eventually be done in Blender (or other software). I think a lot of these movie projects that we see get started and never finished would probably do better if they used these types of tools for pre-vis to get everyone on the same page. Or at least to have a demonstration of a workable story idea that needs to be better realized with a tool like Blender.

Anyway, just some thoughts.

[Cognis]

The big bummer about those three and other similar projects is that they are typical for-profit schemes, they do no allow users to export to anything useful (AFAIK!). I never found much info on The Movies Game, but if I understand you right, it's the same field. I did try to see the machinima angle on Blender a while ago, but kept winding up caught between the interesting posibilities with logic blocks in the Game Engine and the need for flexibility found in the Blender modeller/animator. I finally chose the modeller/animator, hoping to get an angle on some Python for it, but work ate my homework

Anyway, I think you are in the right ballpark. I would love to hear more ideas on what (both of) you would like in an imaginary MAMBu! Machinima and central assett storage were what gave me the original ideas way back when, so let me hear what you can imagine this thing doing! Remember, it's all just for the fun of it

Originally Posted by jesterKing ps. and thanks for the blenderstorm -plug

No sweat, the idea is great and long awaited! Can we please add MAMBu as a project now

EDIT: Just watched my old Judge Dredd DVD. I think a lot of those cheesy sci-fi stories could actually be scripted into something. Maybe MAMBu has a button for selecting an auto-generated cheesy sci-fi, cheesy horror (go Jason!), cheesy fantasy (Hercules and Xena forever!), cheesy war drama or cheesy romance movie, if one does not have a script of one's own

[kbot]

This is a brilliant thread - would love more viewpoints as the "MAMBu" button could help a lot with future projects.

[Cognis]

Originally Posted by kbot This is a brilliant thread - would love more viewpoints as the "MAMBu" button could help a lot with future projects.

Just for future passers by... Is this a general notion? I ran a blog once on the topic, but I never publisized much and hence got practically no responses. I would love to take my old notes out and discuss them, if people are interested. Heck, I have method layouts for functions that had me talking to people in artificial intelligence just for some interesting feedback Maybe it would spin off some cool Blender scripts, too

3 or more hands for yes and I'll see if I can't dig some of the stuff out of my mammoth binders

[Lamoot]

Well the solution is quite simple. We (actually them coder guys) should make digital copies of every worthy CG artist that every set his/her foot in the blender institute and integrate them into blender. Of course a lot could be left out to keep blender installer below 10MB, like the artists' abilities to brush teeth or open a beer can and such. They wouldn't really need these, being digital and all. In addition you wouldn't have to include their ability to resist the will of all the masses using blender, so the workflow would get really intuitive from here on. You command and they do.


Hopefully Google SoC this year will provide us with a voulenteer or two to make this?

[Maluminas]

No no no! You guys got it all wrong! The only piece of code needed is a brainwave importer. Then we need one of those funky electrode hats, but with a USB plug. Put the hat on, plug it in your comp, and run the importer script while you play the movie in your head, with sounds and all. Blender will extract your brainwaves and convert them to a movie! So all those short animations that are always so clear and awesome in your head will be imported directly into blender exactly as you envisioned it.

The MAMBu's function would be to import your brainwaves, convert them to a movie and start the rendering in one single click.

Simple and elegant. And you get to wear a funky hat.

EDIT: Oh and of course a secondary function of the importer is to save and organize all the assets it generates from your mind.

[kbot]

I'm sorry but you have just let this wonderful thread astray from us more serious dedicated people. The hat cannot be funky. It must be formal, and have a pencil and eraser holder. And a calculator spare battery slot too.

[Maluminas]

ok, ok... and a 9-in-1 media card reader?

[AndyD]

Using something like Celtx as a central platform for organising all the assets that go into a movie, then having it linked to a database that targets all archived stuff.

Then consider that all those databased items could be tagged for a whole variety of things, like "luxury" and you see the possibilities.

Then consider that there are already story generators out there. Okay, they're mostly crap - but with a bit of tweaking...

Then, with some word recognition software, the generated story could be used to access the database, automatically of course, and collect all the assets needed.

From there, well, it starts to get difficult but it could be done if someone could be bothered doing it...

[Cognis]

Good ideas (I actually dreamt of that hat a few months back) If enough people submit ideas, I think I will try to write a fictional background story on the MAMBu, set 2 years after it is finally invented Hey, 80% of all people involved in the Moon landing said they were inspired to participate by reading Jules Verne, maybe this will get some Great Minds to actually make the button

[musk]

Ok I'm approaching this from the other side of things still in a fictional way. What is it that makes animation fun?
Surely a lot of people would be happy to have a MAMBu button but I don't think everybody would like to have everything done for them.
E.g. DO you want your main character to be created by you or do you want to create it yourself? If you like modelling you might want to create a lot of the assets yourself. Same goes for animation and the like.
I'm sure if it makes the movie for you it will degrade your effort to create a film and produce lower quality. So I think you can't solely look at this from a technical standpoint "What has to be done in order to get the MAMBu" but also from the standpoint "What do I want to have done by the MAMBu".

Just my 2cts.

[AndyD]

Hmmm, maybe we need a MAMBetthSpeilCanBu.

Make a movie better than Spielberg can button.

[PapaSmurf]

Originally Posted by AndyD Hmmm, maybe we need a MAMBetthSpeilCanBu. Make a movie better than Spielberg can button.

That should just be a quality slider on the panel.

@kernond: your idea to have a .blend file pre-loaded with assets that people could use to create their own movie is EXACTLY the idea behind ED and now BBB.

[Cognis]

Originally Posted by PapaSmurf @kernond: your idea to have a .blend file pre-loaded with assets that people could use to create their own movie is EXACTLY the idea behind ED and now BBB.

Could you expand on that, please?

As for sliders, not just for quality, but for complexity, campiness, making sense (all the way from Arthur C. Clark to David Lynch ), appropriate rating, and more !!

EDIT: Ever since I installed my bootleg Windows 2017, I've been getting weird mails. This one might fit the topic at hand:

<sent from: Mark TheRookie>
<sent to: Cognis>
<date stamp: 2018/04/15>
<topic: Cool flick!>
<contents:>

Hi, it's your cousin again! Thanks for the movie you urled me, I enjoyed it. I am not as big a fan of pure Made By AI as you, tho, so I did a personal overhaul on it. Thought I'd give you a quick rundown of my mods here, just to prep you for the experience (I urled the movie last in this mail).

Firstly, your 90 minute preset is really too little. I upped it to 120.

Second, I did a bit of manuscripting on it. I like how the AI you used placed all the cops in that hotel, but it just seemed too... logical... to me. I did four added twists to it. Also, I cooled down the dialogue a bit. Too many clever oneliners for me, I like some background talk to just be background.

Third, I picked a dedicated style emulation on Haxi, the main henchman. The AI had made a mix of three standard visual designs, but my friend from Milan just sent me a style package he and a few others put together. I put it in as an 80% mix, with 15% Gieger and 5% random for variation. Costumes and vehicles of Haxi should sow some serious changes.

I did like how the AI set up the sets, tho! That new add-on for AI-creation of full original indoor decorations and furnishing really works nicely!

As for the acting, you do know how the AIs do it, right? They base the actors on the idea that they act 'normal'. I spiced up the raid on the survivalist compound by having just a single FBI agent fire an early accidental shot and had the AI do an event calculation on it. Trust me, you'll love the result, far more chaotic and gritty. I did have to adjust for a casualty that would mess up the storyline, since I really like the whole buddy-comedy element that kinda peeks through on occassion. The AI streamlined the action based on that.

As for the rest, I modelled you a new van by hand and had Blender transpose all the functions, doodads and visual style from the original one onto it. It does make the lightrack look a bit smaller, but I like it, and I liked making the new base model, so anyway. I also did a face model on that perky techie, to look like Maya. She loves it when I mix her features into my stuff, so just tell her it looks great, okay?

As a finishing touch, I turned up the gloom a bit and cranked the gore down. It's not personal, I do that on every blendie people send me. I like how it makes the AI go for a more film noir look, just by me moving those two sliders. Anyway, I think the results are really cool, and was thinking of taking duration from 120 minutes to 45 and episodes from 1 to 25, making it a short-run series rather than a feature film. Maya loves the longer plotlines the AIs whip up, and I like getting some more details to play with when I manually tweak different episodes.

So I hope you enjoy my 120 minute version of your auto-generated movie, and we'll see if we don't make a double date out of a series with you and Liz!

As always, stay cool,
Mark!

PS: Movie url

[kbot]

Originally Posted by Maluminas ok, ok... and a 9-in-1 media card reader?

Yeah ok. As long as the hat matches a white shirt, red tie, pants that reach 2 inches above the belly button with dark suspenders. The shoes have to be spit-shined and dark.

[Maluminas]

Originally Posted by kbot Yeah ok. As long as the hat matches a white shirt, red tie, pants that reach 2 inches above the belly button with dark suspenders. The shoes have to be spit-shined and dark.

Cool, its all clear in my head now, you have undeniable taste. Hugo Boss might as well declare bankruptcy right away

Cognis? Does this amazingly fashionable outfit have your "Official MAMBu Uniform" approval? The MAMBu needs an image, a representation, that will impress potential users. Apple's marketing office will be knocking at our door to beg us for our secret for such a perfect image.

[Cognis]

Originally Posted by Maluminas Cool, its all clear in my head now, you have undeniable taste. Hugo Boss might as well declare bankruptcy right away Cognis? Does this amazingly fashionable outfit have your "Official MAMBu Uniform" approval? The MAMBu needs an image, a representation, that will impress potential users. Apple's marketing office will be knocking at our door to beg us for our secret for such a perfect image.

Add a fake golden emblem that looks a little too much like the Star Trek logo (without being it, of course. No plagarism), and I think we're home free. Apple and Hugo Boss licensing fees will be donated unpredictably amongst Blender organisations!