If he wants to get a taste of it, and to see how determined he is, I would advise starting with Blender and the Gimp. Both are free, and both have a steep learning curve, but once you can handle them, you’ll be set for any other package. In fact, I’ve picked up Blender for my PC because there is also a version for Windows CE that will work on my cell phone.

Maya has a PLE version, which is fully functional, it just saves in its own custom format and renders with watermarks.

My favorite 3D package is still Lightwave, though I’m considering a switch to Modo. I like the separation of modelling and rendering that Lightwave provides.

I’ve never really liked Max, but I would say if you get Adobe CS and Maya, you’re ready to start. You still will need video edit software, and I haven’t found any I really like yet, though there are some good freeware / shareware ones out there I haven’t really given a fair trial, yet.

I’d love to put together a freeware / cheapware CGI package for wannabe CGI artists to start with..

Sorry to ramble on, I love 3D modelling/rendering, but haven’t really had / taken the time to do any in almost, geez, 3 years. That’s one of the reasons I want to play around with Blender. I always have my phone with me.

Blender’s website
The Gimp
My old work

If you have the cash, and want your boy to have a leg up on CG animation, you’ll want to start out with Adobe CreativeStudio, 3DStudio Max 9, AfterEffects, and Maya. Oh, and a computer capable of running a QuadroFX4500 video card.

Illinois Nszis?
What makes you think he’s from Illinois?
You’re a Cards fan, right?
(A Chicagoan in St. L.)

annoyinglittletwerp on April 21, 2007 at 6:55 AM

It was a Blues Brothers reference.

“Nazis. I hate Illinois Nazis.”

That’s all.

The graphics and animation are incredibly good; difficult to believe this was a one-man operation, the quality is so professional.

The P-51 wasn’t in-service at this time.

Of course it had the PC “token-black-sailor” shot.

Through most of the film I was thinking, “Palm Trees?”, trying to figure out why a German mech would attack in the Pacific.

The U.S. mech’s helmet made it look more like a Soviet mech.

The Jap mech fighting the U.S. mech to a standstill? TOTAL BS. I hate PC. Then again, maybe it’s a tribute to Japan’s delayed victory sometime in the 1970s. (Go ahead, gripe at me about hating Japanese culture, then go on in another thread condemning Islamic culture. I won’t call you hypocrites, honest.)

That coal-scuttle helmet looked familiar; then after reviewing some documentary tapes, I realised where I’d seen it before. Obviously the BATF rebuilt the German mech to use in the Waco Massacre.

http://www.maschinenkrueger.com/

I hate to nitpick over historical details in a film about giant friggin’ mechs in WWII, but I saw Air Force stripes on one of the American servicemen on the ground toward the beginning. The Air Force wasn’t around until 1947.

Sean M. on April 21, 2007 at 1:21 AM

Not only that, but they’re the newer version of senior NCO stripes that weren’t introduced until the early ’90s.

http://www.pattonhq.com/speech.html

Made my kids read it last night.

That said, the animation was KICK ASS. Very realistic and very cool.

This is one of the coolest things I have seen in a long time.Watch this and you’ll be amazed. Follow the link from Hot Air for the video.It’s a bit long, but you won’t even notice the time, it’s that cool!Great talent; hope to see a sequel.Direct…

As for battle mechs, I imagine they’ll be man-size, light, fast, and controlled from virtual-reality workstations by rotating shifts of middle-age men who got their start with Wii. They will be the most fearless infantry ever seen, for an obvious reason.

There was a flash of a rank insignia on one of the servicemembers in the harbor. He wore Air Force Chevrons with the rank of “Chief Master Sergeant” with a first sergeant device.

Aside from the fact the Air Force didn’t exist back then, the rank of Chief Master Sergeant didn’t exist until much later and the third upper stripe wasn’t moved up (from the former down rocker) until the mid-1990′s.

Alright, so what. It’s a cool-looking game anyway.

Mustangs.

And only when all but one of the pilots are dead, THEN they get their own mech out

Alright, alright, I could pick at this for ages – I can understand the point of ‘dramatic effect’, but.. eesh.

At least the ‘half power rangers, half Godzilla vs Mothra’ mech-fight at the end makes up for it