August 4, 2009 by John Dickinson | 1,323 views | Comments (22)
Zaxwerks is one of the veteran After Effects plug-in developers, with the 3D Invigorator range of 3D title and logo plug-ins as popular as ever. In this interview with Zax Dow we discuss the origins of Zaxwerks, the ProAnimator and new 3D Serpentine plug-in. Zax also touches on new features in the upcoming ProAnimator 5 and reveals how Zaxwerks played a part in Star Wars!
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22 Responses to this post
August 4, 2009 at 5:16 pm |
it’s great Interview It’s full of information i really enjoyed it
thanks and keep it up
August 4, 2009 at 6:10 pm |
big fan of your unplugged series (and the entire site,of course) thanks for the good info
August 4, 2009 at 8:27 pm |
Great plug-in!! thx a lot!
August 4, 2009 at 10:43 pm |
I hope they fix the ProAnimator interface in version 5. It’s nasty right now.
John, you are in HYPERDRIVE lately. This site is the best!
August 4, 2009 at 10:49 pm |
Thanks John. The good news is ProAnimator 5 has a new unified interface. Actually the Motion version of 4 already has this interface, which is much more user friendly.
August 5, 2009 at 2:33 am |
Zax seems really to be a cool guy! Can´t wait to see the new Version…
August 5, 2009 at 4:37 am |
Realy enjoyed it. thx
August 5, 2009 at 7:43 pm |
Thanks, John for this!! Zax is a wealth of information. I think I saw him once at a motion graphics forum out here in Los Angeles giving a demonstration of 3D Flag when it first came out. His demonstration was so great and informative that I went to Zaxwerks.com that night and bought 3D Flag.
Can’t wait for the new version of ProAnimator. Although, I have been trying to use Cinema 4D more and more, so we’ll see!
August 6, 2009 at 12:31 pm |
I am a simple man so I was well chuffed that doing shapes etc will be able to be done within Invigorator 5 when it comes out!
Can you ask Zax when you interview him next time, what are the differences are between Invigorator and Animator?
I would like to do logos like the CNBC ones.
Which do I use!?
I am having so many problems installing After Effects CS4! Can’t wait to get to grips with invigorator for my intro scenes!
Cheers
James
news@transportradio.co.uk
PS Get Zax to come to the UK!
August 6, 2009 at 1:43 pm |
Hi James, you could use both 3D Invigorator and ProAnimator. There is a comparison right here on Motionworks: http://www.motionworks.com.au/2006/05/zaxwerks-product-comparison/
August 6, 2009 at 3:30 pm |
I’ve been using Zax’s products since the beginning, and he is a GENUIS!
PS John- how about tracking down Kai Krause for an “unplugged” interview?
August 7, 2009 at 5:33 am |
Could you possibly do a quick comparison tutorial in video form of how quicker it is to create a lower third using the stand alone version of ProAnimator V Invigorator Pro? The lower third being a 3D chrome outer edge with a seethrough inner section where the title would go? Also, could you do the same with creating a 3D logo such as the ESPN logo etc?
James S Welling
news@transportradio.co.uk
August 9, 2009 at 2:39 am |
James that’s easy, ProAnimator would be fastest for both these animations.
August 7, 2009 at 1:33 pm |
Anybody know anyone or anywhere where I can find somebody who has done a graphic intro simular to that of Jason Hirsch’s NBC-KUSA HD sequence or something simular using only the stand alone version of ProAnimator software? Please cheer me up! Because After Effects CS4 is refusing to install on my computer, so I don’t really want to do this option.
James
news@transportradio.co.uk
August 9, 2009 at 2:40 am |
James you won’t be able to get the kind of look that Jason creates using ProAnimator or Invigorate alone, you’ll need After Effects as well.
August 13, 2009 at 5:44 am |
I wish they would update their Flag product to make seamless looping more easily done. Or at least a video tutorial on doing it with the current version. Zax has hinted at how to do it in numerous CC posts, but never responded to requests for a tutorial.
August 13, 2009 at 3:22 pm |
Hi Dave, yes it’s not easy to loop the flags. Zaxwerks has only recently set up a Tutorial page so perhaps the looping flag could be on there sometime soon. I’ll send this comment to Zax. Best, JD
August 20, 2009 at 4:29 pm |
Thanks everyone for the kind responses.
Yes the interface of Invigorator/ProAnimator will be changed in version 5. You’ll be able to adjust it more to your working style and it’ll have room for many more features.
Good comment about the looping flag tutorial. We’ll take this opportunity to bump up the priority on it. The only method at this point of creating a loop isn’t perfect but it’s good for many situations.
August 20, 2009 at 4:51 pm |
Great to hear Zax, thanks.
August 26, 2009 at 10:07 am |
Thanks,JD.
I really learned a lot from the interview.
August 26, 2009 at 4:20 pm |
Hi Tendest, it’s great to hear what the ambassadors of our industry have to say isn’t it! Best, John.
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