Showing posts with label People. Show all posts
Showing posts with label People. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

Interview with Silvia Ametza


By Deaflegacy

Silvia Ametza

I recently met up with Silvia Ametza, the builder of the Newser's exhibit at the Second Life Birthday. She invited me to her sim, and we met at the meeting place there. Silvia then started showing me her work. Starting with a copy of the Newser tower.

“This is (the) tower – original as intended. All works – all floors available.” said Silvia, “But due to script restrictions, floors between ground and top were closed.” We got on the elevator,. “All is automatic, like a real elevator. We planned with Bixyl to put on every level something from SL history – 15 levels – 15 years. Unfortunately, our plan was halted by script restrictions.”

My next question was, “What were your first few days on Second Life like before you become good at building.” According to Silvia , it was confusing, “I logged in and spent maybe 30 minutes in and then – logged out for a looong time.” She still had an account and after some time, just logged in without any goal – just logged in and started to explore. “Exploring was actually my first activity in Second Life,” said Silvia,

I asked Silvia Ametza where she got her first start in building. According to her, some years ago, not that long as at the beginning, Silvia didn't enter Second Life much. “I find SL fascinating with all that options available to residents – socializing, finding new friends regardless of where they are from, builds, clubs, various activities, etc and I decided I will learn how to shape prim. (smile),” replied Silvia, “You know – brick – one simple brick and you can build cathedrals with them. I do see in simple prim – simplest shape – cube as a brick. I can shape it. I can use many of them and give them some meaning. Later I learned some scripts and now, meshes.”

“I do still prefer using simple prims shaped and made from the mesh," Silvia Ametza continued to say, "It is very rewarding to see your build appreciated by people. This tower was built by two of us, Aimeelou Destiny and me. Aimee gave life to this tower, and to many builds we did together, with her elegant highly efficient scripts and as well builds. She corrected me many times what and how something should look. I do love building, showing it, and often give to people – I am very poor as (a) seller. I do prefer build for my friends and as a gift. Their happiness satisfies me a lot and it is a good pay for me.”
 
The next question is if Silva took school in learning how to build. “No,” she replied, “My first prim rezzed – cube – and I played with one single prim to see what can be done. Then I rezzed other default shapes like cylinders, etc and straight away, my imagination busted out – woooooow this is material I could build probably anything. So, no school, self teaching (smile)."

Silvia wanted to show me her biggest build. “It was difficult and it was done for joined sims called Cumberland City – they used this build but sadly, sims are gone now.” Before Silvia Ametza showed me her biggest build, I asked her how many times she had built for the SL Newser on the Second Life anniversary date. “Three times,” replied Silvia, “I did enjoy all of them.”

I was curious about if Silvia had any inspiration when it comes to building something. “It is various," replied Silvia, "Depends on mode or for an example, my best friend, Aimee shows me something – some pictures on Google and just says 'we can buld that.' And – we jump to work and just build, rebulid, fix. Often when I am exploring Second Life (many nice sims and builds) I get motivation there – plants, builds, vehicles, a lot of motivations and trying to check my abilities what I can do. As well – friends often ask- We would like to have this or that – is it possible for you to build something? Or in case of my friend< Gee – I see her build – gallery and have idea how to rebuild and make it better."

I asked Silva if she would continue to build for a long time. “Yes, I like building and will continue,” she replied. We then went to an exhibit by Kim. “Kim was able to accumulate to small parcel a lot of information," Silvia told me, "She even created voting stations to see what people think. In my opinion as builder, this is one of the best exhibits I have ever seen. Weather prediction and giving information on demand fast in case of some emergencies like was for example Catrina Storm in the USA requires a lot of education and deep knowledge. It is her world. Kim is now on stage in China, having the meeting with Chinese scientists, she inspires me a lot as well, she is motivating me to build something special, not just to please eyes.”

Silva went on to show me her biggest build. “Increase draw distance to – maybe 400 to see it all," she told me, "This bridge with realistic design. It has lights as well and all bridge needs.” She showed me the other side of the bridge. We went on maintenance carriage. “It goes back automatically – Aimee and me – we made this bridge together. What's more, Aimee scripted it all (smile).” Silvia then offered to show me their airship. I accepted, and she brought me to it, telling me, “Fully functional air ship with moving parts. Airship made by Aimeelou Destiny and me. Scripted by Aimee.” Unfortunately I found out a bit too late that I have forgotten to take a picture of the airship but it was amazing.

In my opinion, Silvia Ametza is a really good builder. She had built a 15-floors building for the SL Newser for the SL15B. I have gone on the building and would end up being impressed. I look forward to seeing her new buildings in the years to come.

Deaflegacy

Friday, November 8, 2013

Nu’Ville Will Haunt Your Soul


By DrFran Babcock 

 During the month of September I was immersed in the Arcade Gacha Event, because I was trying to complete sets of items that I liked. My favorite items of all are the OhMai Spice Jars and the Teacup Piglets, both of which were created by Anya Ohmai. I also adored the Hamster avatars that were all the rage in the last September’s Arcade Gacha. These pint-sized marvels were created by Suetabulous Yootz, the owner of Beetlebones, who, it turns out, is the real-life sister of Anya Ohmai. Together, they have teamed up with a scripter named Biblar Heliosense to create the Nu’Ville Horror sim. My guess is that they had planned to role this out for October and Halloween, but if you still feel the need for a scare, and some amazing gifts, head over to Nu’Ville. 

 Full Disclosure on Pricing 

 I have no connection to these creators; I only wish I did, the things they create are things I want. Nu’Ville is not a free sim. For a 24 hour pass you will have to pay 100L, and for 800L you get an unlimited pass, and group member gifts throughout the month that the sim is open.  

 This is not the first time that this kind of pricing has been used. MadPea has had several events for which an entry fee was charged. I am not adverse to this if I believe there is value in the event. I never hesitate to pay the shocking entry fees to the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, because I want to see the art. The work of these sisters is art, and worth the charges paid. Plus, I got a bunch of items made by Anya and Suetabulous that I would have paid for anyway. 

 I paid for my membership in the group, because I wanted to remain unbiased in my views towards the event, and let my dear readers decidre for themselves. 

 What’s On The Sim of Nu’Ville? 

 Once you have paid either for a pass or an unlimited membership, you can find your way to a bus stop where you embark on a ride through scary, dark and foreboding Nu’Ville. The bus drivers offer commentary along the way, as their skeletal hands clutch the wheel to navigate through the horrors. If you press your Escape key your camera will point in the manner intended by the creators, and you will see the gates of Nu’ville open to welcome you. The cemetery on the right has a tombstone that reads: R U Next.  

 The bus ride takes you through the village of Nu’Ville and over a bridge upon which a car accident seems to have occurred in the fog. You wish that the driver would stop and pick up the girl in the middle of the road asking for help, but he’s just a bony civil servant, making his way along the road, and refusing to stop for passengers that don’t know enough to wait at a bus stop. Perhaps you can imagine what happens to the girl? 
 When you arrive at your destination, the bus drive and bus poof in a cloud of brown smoke, and you are left at the entrance to a huge apartment building. It is there that the hunt begins. 

 Nu’ville Hunt 

 I don’t want to give away too much, so I will tell you that Anya and Suetabulous have filled this apartment building with gifts and prizes that are as much fun to have as they are to find. It took me a few times to gather all the prizes that are shown on a HUD given out for the hunt. Some of the better hunters finished quickly. I still haven’t found the rumored 13th floor as of this writing, but I continue to try. There are 50 prizes in all, plus extras along the way. In addition, residents who join the Nu'Ville Group will receive gifts throughout the duration of the event. 

 My favorite hunt gift is the bat avatar, that is the opposite of the cute, harmless little hamsters that were all the rage a year ago. 

OMG, It's Them!!!! 

I am honored and amazed to tell you that I was able ato catch up with both Anya and Sue, and they agreed to speak with me about their work. I will present a combination of their answers below.  

My aim in conducting these interviews was to learn about Nu'ville and to get a peek into the minds of these two creative genuises. 

SL Newser: What was the inspiration for Nu'Ville ? 


Anya & Sue: We have always dreamt of making a theme park/amusement park sorta sim, but that particular idea had been held and shelved for years now. We decided to do a miniature version for Halloween to see if we can even finish something smaller scale compared to our initial idea. The inspiration was mostly Disneyland's Haunted Mansion ride and it really spun off into something entirely different. It was meant to be an animated gallery of our work, but  most importantly, we wanted to build a theme park where Secondlife Families and Friends can spend time together and have fun! 
 
SL Newser: What would you like Second Life residents to take away from their experience there? (Besides the great hunt gifts )? 

Anya & Sue: We really want SL Residents to take away the experience and the ride more so than the apartment/hunt itself. The main focal point of it is to show a combination of passions - Sue loves meshing and modeling, I for one love texturing and Biblar (Heliosense) is a huge scripter extraordinaire. So with three of our passions, we hope to bring you an idea of the potential SL has in having something that just takes your imagination into another place. We wanted people to see the possibility of what mesh can offer when you combine scripts, sounds, lighting and animation together.  
 
(ED Note: I have come back to the sim and taken the ride about five times now, so I guess the plan worked) 
 
SL Newser: What projects do you have for the future ? 

Anya & Sue: Of course, one of the projects would still be creating that theme park/amusement park idea—it'll be a sim called NuWiggles. We also are working on The Clove, which is a more realistic, beautiful sort of Tuscan village. The Clove hopefully brings back the malls and rentals we use to have in Second Life™.   For the Clove we are using an architect we commissioned from www.deviantart.com because we wanted to see what it would be like to collaborate with artists from different communities. We are also trying to create more places and items that would be fun and interactive for Second Life™ users. 
 
SL Newser: Personally, I am always interested in the workflow people have. What tools do you use to make the enchanting objects you create?  

Anya & Sue:  We always joke around because Sue says the entire place is a walking Zbrush (from Pixologic) advertisement. That's really the main software we both use, but we do also dabble with Hexagon, Blender and Maya—oh, and how can we forget Photoshop?! Those are the main tools we've used for modeling and texturing. Most of our rigging is done using Avastar for  Blender (http://blog.machinimatrix.org/).  
 
To speed up the process for some of our avatars, we actually used Makehuman that creates amazing base models. We bring those into Zbrush and touch them up. This time round Sue dabbled with Audacity for mixing sound effects that you'll hear throughout the ride.  
 
And finally, Dropbox is our savior! We are real life sisters but we currently live in different parts of the world. So having Dropbox to exchange files is the best way to go. The work flow for us is always: 1) Sue gets the base meshes done,  and then 2) Anya finishes it with a texture. That has been the way we worked for several collaborations now! 

Is It Worth It? 

I am a satisfied customer. I have shown my avatars and transfusion bottles to many people, and they went immediately to Nu'Ville. I was impressed with how well the ride worked. The number of avatars is limited on the sim, the build mesh has been optimized to keep down lag, and the experience is so multi-sensory that you can almost smell the Vampire Chocolate Kisses. 
 
Duration of Opening: Nov 2nd, 2013 (8AM SLT) - February 2nd, 2014 (12AM SLT) 

 Entry Fee: 100L for a Day Pass (12hrs) to Nuville Horrors 

Group: Or join the "NU'VILLE" Membership Group for 800L for a permanent access throughout the time we open. 
*Additional group gifts will be given throughout the time we open via the Membership Group as well. 


DrFran Babcock

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Perri Prinz’s Green Meadows Club


By Grease Coakes

One day I sat down with the owners of the Green Meadows club Perri Prinz and RECoyote Mindes and asked them about their club, which was known as Xanadu before. Perri’s club is managed by Skylark Lefarve and is based on the Green Meadow Lands club in Perri’s very own writing series “Spectral Shadows.”

In Perri’s own words she explains, "Everything in Spectral Shadows is an allegory of something, mostly dealing with my internet and SL experiences." Perri said like Bixyl, I’ve been put in her story series as a reporter. Perri said I don’t have any super powers in her story, just skills as a reporter. Drat!

Perri explained that the club plays mostly various genres of rock, like 50’s rock and roll, swing, classic country, and classic rock and so on. The décor is very original like a 50’s swing wall design, plus album wall art all along the club walls. There are also retro game machines up on the upper floor. Not in the mood for dancing? Play a game of Pac Man instead. The arcade machines created from the real thing link to a game site where you can play the game matching the machine. Perri said that Truck Rolland designed the arcade games, but Perri designed the invisible overlays to lead you to the website.

There are a few vendors around behind you when you warp to the club selling disco outfits and more. Curio Draco designed the dance floor and when Perri asked for permission Curio said it was ok to use the artwork.

Later that evening, Cynthia Farshore of the Sunweavers DJed at the Green Meadow Lands club and she played her mix of classic swing and more.  A lot of avatars were dancing and having a good time on a Sunday night. Skylark Lefarve during every event has a Linden contest for best in something for both men and women avatars. So there’s good music and a chance to win at Perri’s retro style club.

The teleport carpet in the plaza also warps you to Perri’s gallery of Punk Hippie’s art work commissioned for Perri Prinz’s "Spectral Shadows. So if you’re in an art browsing mood by yourself or with a friend you can check out the gallery of artwork created by Punk Hippie. In fact she’s the same artist that drew the cover for my children’s book “Ginny Griffin’s First Day Of School”. Punk Hippie’s art style is very simple but professional in my opinion, with bright colors and a fair amount of detail.

Stop by once in a while to Perri Prinz’s club with live rock or also my DJ set 4-6 SLT on Friday nights. And also if you are a classic rock DJ looking for a place to perform, why not apply here? Perri is always looking to new dj talent to add to her club.

Grease Coakes

For the 2009 article on "Perri's Xanadu" as it was called then, Click Here: http://15timez.blogspot.com/2009/12/xanadu.html .

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Farewell to Gracie Kendel's "Ce n'est pas une peinture"

By Bixyl Shuftan

On Sunday February 24th, noted artist Gracie Kendel held a farewell party for her three-dimensional art exhibition "Ce n'est pas une peinture." Known as Kristine Schomaker in real life, had created the artwork after hearing comments that artists in Second Life were simply uploading photographs of their work and not using the Grid's ability to fuller potentials to display art and decided to "play with the concept." The name translates to "This is not a painting."

For some months, the exhibition was in LEA 15 for anyone to come by and either look at from the teleport spot, or jump right in it. Unlike other examples of modern art, one could float around and experience the colors, and background music, from the inside.

Eventually, it came time for the exhibition to close. On the weekend before it, Gracie invited her friends to drop by for one last party for the place. And at 11AM SL time a number of residents dropped by. Some were decked out in some artistic-looking avatars themselves. It was a fun time for both the artist and her friends.

Asking her about her future plans, Gracie answered, "Well working on some more RL/SL plans," mentioning she needed to finish her current project: mannequins used as canvases for modern art. … I am creating 16 in RL but also creating 16 avatars in SL with painted skins that I will project in RL. So it will be another mixed reality thing (smile)." Would that be the only thing? Gracie herself wasn't sure, "who knows, maybe something else will come up ... you never know. (laughter)."

On Feb 28th came this announcement from Gracie:

LAST DAY to enjoy Ce n'est pas une peinture. It has been an amazing 6 months but it is time for it to end. Please come and enjoy the sim while you can  this one last day. I will be letting it all fall tomorrow morning slt :)) Have a wonderful day!!! Thank you so much for your support :))


And so, "This is not a painting" was now a part of Second Life history, gone with the nether. But one can still see the artwork in pictures and videos, such as this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2NQ69A4DQM&feature=youtu.be .

Gracie Kendel is perhaps best known for her 1000 Avatar Project, which made news in 2011. One can read more about her and her works at http://kristineschomaker.net/ .

Bixyl Shuftan