They Live Tribute – Cities Of The Imagination

In this post, I’m going to show you how I made a They Live Tribute – Cities Of The Imagination film set model from a famous scene in the movie by using maker technologies, in this case, 3D printing. For those who don’t know,  in the classic late “They Live” is a classic 1980’s science fiction film. Check out my FabLabs for artists post for more about using maker technologies. Use this following post to make a similar scene. Even better, use what you learn here to make your own tribute city of the imagination from your favourite film!

Have You Seen The Film Yet?

I only saw it last month, I’m a fan of 1980s science fiction films and also the Director John Carpenter, including his all-time classic The Thing.

Þórarinn Bjartur Breiðfjörð Gunnarsson, the  manager of the FabLab Ísafjörður in Iceland during some art projects here told me about this film. I was so surprised that I had never heard of it before!

About

To avoid a plot spoiler, the story is a movie where horrible looking aliens with bug eyes and skull faces control the rest of us without the vast majority of us knowing,  here is the Wikipedia entry about it.

There is a famous part of the movie where the protagonist puts on some special sunglasses and sees the world as it really is, controlled by these aliens of course! Everything is grey and almost 1950’s looking while subliminal messages adorn billboards in downtown LA. commanding us to “consume”, “obey”, “watch TV” and a multitude of other conformist actions. On top of that, the horrible aliens walk amongst us in the guise as humans. Only the sunglasses reveal the truth!

It’s a conspiracy theorist’s dream but also raises important issues about what many see today as Crony Capitalism, where a corrupt elite control the planet’s wealth, resources and power. Definitely a film worth checking out!

So let’s start to make the “They Live Tribute – Cities Of The Imagination”…

Homage

I liked the film so much, I decided to make a tribute to the film in the form of a stage set design and also part of a joke. The FabLab movement is probably one of the best new phenomena of recent times. FabLabs around the world encourage people to make, learn and share their ideas and projects. As a joke, I decided to turn this message into something more sinister as in the film They Live. The FabLab logo adorns the top part of a skyscraper and billboards command us to Make, Learn and Share!

This also fits in well with my imaginary cities common theme within my own work. If you like this post, let me know. I intend to make more tributes to imaginary cities from your favourite movies!

So don’t be offended, FabLabs are not a secret society or are they? 😉

Here is a photograph of what I made and I will show you how to make it in this post.

Maker  Film Sets!

3D models still can achieve a nicer feel than  a 3D computer graphics image. It can take a long time to make 3D CGI like a nice black and white analogue image. 

This is a strong argument for making real life 3D models, props and scenes so that we can take nice looking photographs or even stop motion animation without that cold overworked feeling that a lot of CGI has. At the same time, we can use 3D CGI to make models and then get them made using a 3D printer. You can check out a previous post about 3D printing for artists .

How I Did It – The Process

The complete process for the “They Live Tribute – Cities Of The Imagination”…

1. Simple 3D Graphics Poly Modelling

I made most of the 3D models prints myself using 3DS Max and basic polygon modelling. I only used basic functions such as extrude, inset, outline to make these simple models. It is easy and you can do the same.

The satellite dish above again was made using simple commands. I also attached objects together, the cylinder, base, dish and vertical support.

For the Make, Learn and Share signs, I actually made them using 3DS Max too rather than a 2D package such as Photoshop. I used the font “Futura Bold” which was a close match for the font used in the film. I then rendered them from above. For the final model, I printed the words out using a black and white printer and glued them onto a thin 3D printed sheet.

For the FabLab logo on the left, I found a premade one on Thingiverse. For the cars and trucks, I found free 3D models on the website, Turbosquid. You can save a lot of time by finding pre-made 3D meshes online. Don’t reinvent the wheel! At the same time, however, always check if the models you are using are legal to use for your own projects and haven’t been stolen.

Finally, I arranged all of the models in 3DSMax and so that I could get an idea of the scale, proportions and look of the final scene when made into a 3D print. Looking good!…

2. 3D Print Setup

Make sure in your 3D print setup application, for example, I am using Cura, to check your layers and drag the layer display up and down to see how the 3D model will look externally and internally.

Sometimes, I have found that due to plugins and modifiers, the 3D mesh will not even appear and be corrupted for 3D print. It is best to check this as you model by importing the mesh into Cura at different stages. If not, you may run the risk of working on a model for a long time then finding due to a plugin or modifier, you cannot print it! 🙁

3. 3D Print

The magic thing is once you start making your 3D prints, you can start arranging your scene in the way you want. It is one of the most fun parts of the process. Finally to get something real made!

4. Photos – Simple Retro Chic

As I mentioned before, 3D CGI renders can take a lot of work to make them look analogue. That is why I believe it is sometimes quicker to make 3D prints and take a photo of them. This gives that grainy, retro feel that epitomises older films! Once more, you can take the photography process really far. You can set up a high-end SLR digital camera with a tripod, paint with your lights!

For this scene, unfortunately, I misplaced my SLR charger and can’t get a new one as I am in a remote place in Iceland at the moment! For this reason, I had to just use the digital camera on my smartphone. However, if you look at the photos below, they are effective in creating a grainy analogue look. Again something I was aiming for!

In the images below, I improved them by using some post production techniques that help the image to “sing”. A great list of tips can be found on this great post processing tutorial video by the 3D guru, Gleb Alexandrov.

The Result

Check it out my video below, I talk more about the 3D prints for this tribute scene for They Live.

Going further and more like this…

Did you like this post “They Live Tribute – Cities Of The Imagination”?

I hope you let me know if you like this post. If you like it, I will make more posts of imaginary cities based on movie sets. For example, I’m thinking of Blade Runner, Metropolis, the Abyss etc. You can also send me a request and I might just do what you suggest! 

Make a comment below or email me at info@jamesabellart.com for your suggestions.

Take the first steps today to make your own city of the imagination, look out for more posts. Exciting times ahead!

If you are interested in taking your Cities Of The Imagination, you can take it to the next level, you can buy my Kindle book here about making an imaginary city using Blender, the free 3D graphics application –

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