Sunday, December 31, 2006

Thomas Brin: Episode 3 Update

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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Well, I hate to do this to the millions of Thomas Brin fans out there--okay, TB has been downloaded over a million times but I have no clue how many fans TB actually has--but, due to some technical crud, the release of Episode 3 of The Adventures of Thomas Brin: Gardens of Tomorrow is going to be pushed back about one week--or so. With my limited budget, my Mac computers are at their wit's end churning out animation after animation.

I was literally down to the last animation and I just was not happy with it. Since I'm trying to improve the production values (story, acting, lighting, animation, compositing, etcetera) with each new episode, I thought it best to push back the premiere a week to give me time to fix the final animation.

But, there is a way that setbacks like this could become a thing of the past. If only some of you wonderful TB fans out there would buy some of the exceptional TB merchandise at the
Thomas Brin Store
, then maybe I could put together a small rendering farm and produce more episodes in fewer hours! Oh, the 2007 TB calendar will be available in the store after Episode 3 is released. Yeah, I need time to make the calendar too.

So, to keep you going another week (I hope), here's another screen shot from Episode 3:

Thomas Brin Episode 3 photo #3

Please, take a moment to share your thoughts and make comments. None of you have ever bothered to do so via this blog. I mean, come on, this is new media at its finest. You are being asked to participate in this saga and I really will listen to and appreciate your input--whether positive or negative. What old media company ever says that? So, let me have it!

Tuesday, December 19, 2006

Thomas Brin: Where's Episode 3?

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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It's way past July 2006 and Episode 3 of The Adventures of Thomas Brin: Gardens of Tomorrow is missing in action. People are concerned, people are patiently waiting, people are plain angry that it's not yet up for global viewing. Well, we don't blame any of you for harboring such feelings and thought it was way past time to post an update on the Brin Blog.

As most of you know--at least those who have taken any time to visit the official Thomas Brin website--we create each episode of Thomas Brin on a zero budget. Okay, the budget is not zero. I foot the bill for everything.

What I should have said is that we lovingly create Thomas Brin at our expense. We do not make any money on this effort and therefore it takes a back seat to all of life's more important pursuits like making a living, hanging out with family and friends, and drinking Chai tea. Actually, thanks to the good old Tazo Chai Tea goddess, TB Episode 3 is close to done!

I've been working like a hungry dog, mustering my strength and concentration to put Episode 3 in the can--that's film talk for finish the project, not flush it down the toilet. I plan to have The Adventures of Thomas Brin: Gardens of Tomorrow Episode 3 up on the website and iTunes by New Year's Eve! Look for it by late afternoon EST.

Oh, if you've emailed me and have not heard back from me, please accept my apologies. Our primary email provider (.mac) has blocked all forwarded email from our dedicated server. We recently discovered that we have been missing all sorts of email for about 6-8 weeks (maybe even longer). So, if you want to say hi or ask a question, please leave a comment on this blog.

So, that's the update. TB E3 is on it's way! This time for real!!!

To rewet your appetite for Thomas Brin, I'll leave you with two pictures from E3:


Thomas Brin Episode 3 photo #1


Thomas Brin Episode 3 photo #2

Friday, July 14, 2006

Thomas Brin Episodes 3 & 4 in Post Production!

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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We know you've all been waiting for this day! After a long, hot, and fun 3-day shooting schedule, principal cinematography for Episodes 3 & 4 of The Adventures of Thomas Brin: Gardens of Tomorrow wrapped up. That means that our efforts have now shifted to post production--the stage where the artistic creativity and special effects wizardry of what we do comes into play.

We plan to first concentrate on Episode 3 with a goal of getting it out and live by the end of July. This, of course, is a challenge since we do not make any money of this effort and it is done in our spare time. So, if it drifts into the first week or two of August, we hope you'll understand.

As pointed out in the previous post, our production values took a big (almost major maybe?) step up. With better lighting, script, directing, and a bigger studio space, we think you'll agree the next two episodes will improve upon the first. Also, our post-production suite of tools has expanded. We now have the capabilities of high-end graphics houses--well, we have the tools at least, the capabilities will come with experience.

Here is a photo of our new studio garage space. Since studio garage or garage studio sounds a little quaint, we have come up with a new, hip term--studiage. That's right, just combine the pronunciations of studio with garage, minus a few letters, and you'll be able to say STUDIAGE with no problem!

Our new studiage

We have not heard from any of you in a long time. We'd love to get your feedback and comments on the series to date--and your thoughts on the direction we are heading. Please take a moment to drop us a line.

Sunday, July 02, 2006

Thomas Brin Episodes III and IV Shooting Next weekend!

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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The time has finally arrived! The scripts for Episodes 3 & 4 are done, our cast is assembled, rehearsals are underway, and our new, bigger studio is almost complete--okay, we just expanded our studio space in my garage but it is bigger and better!

Principle videography begins next Friday, July 7 and continues all weekend long. When we are finished, we will have Gardens of Tomorrow Episodes 3 & 4 in the can. From there, it goes to post (that is post production). We have several new, high-end software applications for creating more realistic, better quality 3D landscapes and animations, and we have Shake 4.1, Apple's award-winning 3D compositing application--the choice of Hollywood editors.

As promised on our website, we are upping the ante with these two episodes. Our craft is improving and hopefully the results will entertain and awe.

As soon as we have an estimate for the premiere date of Episode 3, we will post it here and on the www.thomasbrin.com website. Episode four will follow in two months or so. Hey, we don't get paid doing this and we need to catch our breath in between.

We hope you enjoy!

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Thomas Brin hits 164,000 downloads!

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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It's hard to believe but the groundbreaking vodcast cinema The Adventures of Thomas Brin recently surpassed 160,000 downloads!. Wow! Furthermore, our website is continually visited by people spanning 5 continents View our recent website visitors.

Episode III of Thomas Brin is finally in production! More coming soon on the expected release date.

Sunday, January 29, 2006

New 16 x 9 Formats of Thomas Brin Available

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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Are you a fan of the wonderful world of Thomas Brin but wondered why our actor's seem a little squished? Well, that is because they were. The Adventures of Thomas Brin is shot in high definition using a Sony HDR Z1U HDV video camera. It captures true 16 x 9 video images. However, when we encoded the online and iPod versions of the Thomas Brin, they were mistakenly encoded as 4 x 3 video.

We have corrected our error, thanks to an astute viewer's comments (Thanks, Claude!). So, if you have subscribed to the iPod version of Thomas Brin please delete the old Thomas Brin files from your iTunes Library and then visit the iTunes Music Store and resubscribe to The Adventures of Thomas Brin video podcast.

Or, if you simply watch Thomas Brin through the SayreMedia.com website, please return to our website and watch the first two episodes in their proper aspect ratio--it really makes a difference!

Please note, for viewers who do not have QuickTime 7 and watch the MP4 version, the movie will still show as 16 x 9 but in a letterboxed frame.

Thank you for watching and please continue to spread the word about Thomas Brin.

Thomas Brin Receives 40,000 Page Views per Month!

To see Thomas Brin in action, visit the official movie site at: The Adventures of Thomas Brin

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Here is an update on the page view statistics for The Adventures of Thomas Brin video podcast series:

December 2005: 38,120 page views (we projected 34,000 page views)

January 2006: We project 40,000 page views.

If you would like to help Thomas Brin continue his adventure, please read the post immediately below to learn how.

Thank you for watching!