Hi all! This is my first post on the forums.

It’s so great to see Voltron alive and kicking with fans. I was a Superfan of the anime series during the 80’s (still am).

And (don’t hate me), I am a Superfan of V3D because...

I was the Lead Motion Capture Actor for PIDGE.

Me with Mike Parente (director of the MoCap Actors at Netter Digital)

Me on IMDb (Internet Movie Database)

compare/contast blah blah blah... And Yes, that’s an erotic thriller for the Playboy Channel on my IMDb. And No, you won’t see me being erotic or thrilling myself or anyone with my Playboy-ness. I was hired as the ‘legit’ actor for them. Now you have a legit excuse to get the Playboy Channel... “Honey/Sweetie/Pumpkin/Cutie, I just want to see this MoCap guy doing some dialogue... not the hot girl taking a shower... really really.”

You won’t find Voltron on my IMDb because I was uncredited.
You won’t find the other actors who did MoCap because of the same reason. We’re pretty much unsearchable. (And for the most part, no one seems to care. *tears up, huddles in a corner, and plays the world’s tiniest violin*)

It was such an amazing experience at the time. My first and only MoCap experience. And it turns out to be for VOLTRON!

It was a great acting gig: doing something completely new and different and utilizing non-verbal skills to portray characters DISTINCTLY. (Watch the series with sound off and see if you can tell how many MoCap Actors were used. I played more than just Pidge...)

I come from a Shakespeare, Kabuki, Commedia dell’Arte, Dance, Movement, Stunt, and Gymnastics background It was so much fun for me as a young struggling actor to be part of VOLTRON. (hmmmm... I’m STILL a struggling actor... just... not so young anymore. hee hee. I could probably play Pidge’s Dad now.. or Pidge after many years and he’s now a CPA, there’s Peace in the Universe, Allura is a SoccerMomQueen in some dead-end marriage, Hunk owns a FixIt Shop in town, Keith is hopping from relationship to relationship with no commitment in sight, Lance is smoking in some dark bar, and THEN a long forgotten shinything begins to ‘beep-beep-beep’... Hey, I’d actually like to watch that... sounds like a pilot episode of ‘Desperate Housewives’ + ‘Heroes’ + ‘NewBattlestar Galactica’ + ‘Voltron’ = ’Vol-Desp-Hero-Tica-Tron’! I’m a genius! *pats self on back*)

Back to topic: I thought it was great that V3D was taking a risk and trying to advance the art of serial animation. Whether the outcome was good or bad, I have to applaud them for pushing the limit. So many folks (in real life and in the Biz) are so scared of taking risks. Of trying something different. Granted, it seems that the majority of fans didn’t respond to it, but still: “Yay for V3D.” I can only imagine what it would be like today if they had the Technology, Time, and Budget to do the MoCap done in LOTR or Pan’s Labyrinth. Just freakin awesome.

The biggest personal thrill for me was walking into the toy store and purchasing a whole bunch of V3D Pidges... and ONLY PIDGES. (They must have thought I was a freak. I thought I was a freak. )

So far, working MoCap on Voltron has been one of the the most memorable experiences of my acting career. Not because it made me tons of money (not) or catapulted me to stardom (not) or anything like that... just because it was fun, risky, and challenging. And I can say I was a part of IT. Part of the VOLTRON HISTORY. Definitely, something of which to be proud.

Anyhow, great to see Voltron still alive in any Way, Shape, or Form.

peace,
MoPidge

Welcome, MoPidge!

I think I speak for most of us here on the board when I say that we all wish we were involved somehow 'legitimately' with Voltron, and many of us here have been. The German voice actors were hanging around here a couple of weeks ago....

Anyway, it's great to have you. I'm sure AlluraP will be around to ask you if you know the MoCap guy for Keith, and KBL will be here with his clipboard to do some nonsense or another.

Anyway, welcome to the board!

*clunks Radical on the head with the old clipboard*

Catch up on the times, my friend. *holds up iPhone* I've gone digital baby!

Ahem, anyway...welcome to the board, MoCap Pidge. I am KiethBlackLion, KBL for short, and I am the resident Voltron Parody Master here on the message board. It's a tradition that I assign each new board member a room here in the castle.

*starts running through the different screens on the iPhone*

Ahhh...here we are. Ok, we have a room on the 19th floor overlooking the swamp and 'gator pit. Just take the first elevator you come to up to the 7th floor. Then take a left. Take the first flight of stairs to the 15th floor. There you'll exit, make right, make a left, go past the giant iguana, make another right as you pass the fountain of the lion peeing, take the next elevator up to the 19th floor. Exit the elevator and go about 4 blocks. You'll see a sign that says "Off-Broadway, next 4 miles". Turn left at the sign. Go about 2 klicks and you'll see some orange traffic cones. Turn right and your room will be at the end of the hall.

We hope you enjoy your stay with us. If you need anything, just call for room service. Just go through the automated menus until you get tired of listening to all the options then go out on the balcony and yell for help. Someone will eventually come.

We do ask that you do not feed the space mice, they are on a diet. And don't fall off the balcony, the 'gator pit is right below you.

Speaking of which, Radical, I need you to feed the 'gators. They haven't eaten all week.

The Board Princess bids you welcome to the Forum Kingdom of Voltron, MoPidge! If you need anything further regarding directions, KBL will assist you. In addition to his Parody title, KBL is also my trusted Black Lion Knight.

If you need exterminating, witch hunting, or 'gator removal, please call upon RadicalX, my Red Lion Knight.

And, no, I'm not going to drool over MoCap Keith. I did however, love Pidge's moves in V3D. It has been documented in the past by the Arusian Media around here (aka: somewhere imbedded in some thread or conversation previously mentioned years ago) that I have always found that Pidge and the Princess were the best characters of V3D.

Not much else I can say as far as quality. I hated Keith's look. What the heck happened to his hair???

Anyway, I'm very honored that you have decided to join us. As you can see, Voltron is alive and well, and waiting patiently for a decent live action script for which to hang our hopes on.

I invite you to post often and visit frequently. Your comments and thoughts are always welcome!

~AlluraP
The Board Princess

RadicalX-- German Voice Actors! Hee hee cool. Voltron in German I’d like to hear!

KBL-- ok, found the elevator to the 7th floor, found the iguana, passed the lion peeing (the lion was peeing, but was I supposed to be peeing while I passed him as well?), had a little trouble finding the elevator to the 19th floor, but eventually found it. It went DOWN instead of up... picked up a few shady characters, then finally went up to the 19th floor. We all exited. I walked the 4 blocks, but them shady characters were trailing me... so I ditched them behind an alley and through an abandoned building, found the sign to Off-Broadway, took a break and got a coffee, did some sightseeing, decided I needed a haircut, so I went and got a trim, found the traffic cones, and finally my room.
Just a question... was I supposed to have brought my luggage with me or... will the porter be delivering it...

Princess AlluraP -- thanks for the kind words of welcome and the compliment about my movements for Pidge! Yeah, the Actress who did MoCap for Allura was a real good talented trained dancer and just as attractive as any Allura I've seen. She knew her stuff. As for Keith's hair... no comment.

Porters? *checks the iPhone inventory list* I'm sorry, we don't have any porters here. If you need anything, just head back down to the main floor. Our gift shop has all the supplies that you will need. Any money that you brought with you can be exchanged for Lion Bucks. They are good for any in-castle stores.

You wouldn't happen to know who came up with the concept for Amalgamus, do you?

*glares at KBL*

Can't you simply ask one of the Castle pageboys to go down and pick up MoPidge's belongings? Honestly . . .

*whistles for RadicalX*

Rad, would you mind taking care of this for me? *bats long princess eyelashes at him* Pleeeeeease?

*kicks at the dirt on the floor then walks away mumbling*

Geez...just trying to make us a few extra bucks. Housing all these fans isn't cheap you know....there's food, water, clothing, heating, air conditions, grounds keepers, custodians to keep the animal poop off the floor, the cost of dangerous animal wranglers, ghostbusters......hoenstly, who's going to pay for this stuff...................

You have my permission to speak to the royal couffer keeper. Tell him you need some money to provide the basic services needed for our guests.

Remember . . . First Impressions equals lasting impressions. But you should be rewarded for your thoughts.

*AlluraP frowns toward KBL*

Then again, you made MoPidge get his own luggage. No reward for you . . . except to pick up the mice droppings on the floor in the main hall.


And speaking of Pidge, and back on topic, MoPidge, how did you do the moves for Pidge to do flips in the air in V3D? Those were some pretty impressive flips, especially in the second ep when Hunk and Pidge and contacted by Keith and Allura to rejoin the team.

quote:

Originally posted by Princess AlluraP:
*glares at KBL*

Can't you simply ask one of the Castle pageboys to go down and pick up MoPidge's belongings? Honestly . . .

*whistles for RadicalX*

Rad, would you mind taking care of this for me? *bats long princess eyelashes at him* Pleeeeeease?

*brrrrring...brrrrrring*

Hello! You've reached the office of RadicalX, manager of maintenance. For Thursday, November 1st, I am out of the office tending to an alligator problem in the deadly swamp. If this is an emergency, please call KBL. Otherwise, leave your name, number, and a brief message explaining your problem, and I'll attend to it once the alligators have been removed from my leg....I mean, the swamp.

*beeep!*

*AlluraP bows head and hangs up the COM link*

The help these days . . . honestly.

*huffs and puffs as he pushes open the door to his room, dumps his luggage on the floor, along with some gummie lions, some postcards of iguanas, a pair of alligatorskin boots, and a teeny bottle of toothpaste from the giftshop.*

KBL -- I have absolutely no idea who came up with the concept of Amalgamus. Sorry.

Princess AlluraP -- I did all those flips myself in real time, with no wires, etc. That’s actually what I look like when I flip around (minus the Pidgeskin of course). We pretty much worked alone. So all those walking scenes, group scenes, fighting scenes, all that stuff was all done individually at different sessions. We had to imagine the height, weight, actions of the other characters and/or elements (lasers, controls, monitors, props, etc.) around us. In my opinion, that’s why V3D was a true forerunner for some cool animation mocap techiniques. They made it look pretty seamless at times.

RadicalX -- thanks for the alligator kills. Love the boots!

--MoPidge

You're welcome, MoPidge. =) I figured since you had been the one in the most immediate mortal peril at the hands of the 'gators, that I should at least give you some free boots.

The pants, vest, and tie are extra, though. =)