David Ikeda: programming behind the 3D curtains

8 Jun 2007 Category: Features, Film / Animation, Technology, Worldwide

David Ikeda: programming behind the 3D curtains

A ship in space - 3D space, to be precise. Made with LightWave. This is actually the modeller's point of view, as he builds an object within a grid.

Cheap doesn’t necessarily have to mean bad quality — when it comes to 3D special effects, at least. Next to deluxe applications like Maya and the most refined SoftImage, now there is something smaller which hit the limelight in a new wave of small budget flicks that made an over-extensive use of the green screen lately: LightWave. Think of special-effects laden Sin City, Pan’s Labyrinth and most recently 300; yet another Frank Miller comic adaptation.

So, to get a level deeper below the user’s interface, who is actually programming all this software code in some weird language only a PC can clearly understand? The Japanese-American programmer David Ikeda is part of a growing global workforce, and as such happens to be the only LightWave coder in Japan. PingMag met this shy geek in his Ueno hood for some deeper insights into coding and a programmer’s daily drags…

Written by Verena

The LightWave user interface - 3D modeling for beginners:


By activating LightWave’s drag tool, you can move the points around in space by dragging the mouse.

Continue to do this until you have a symmetrical star shape. So far, you’ve been working on the front view of the model and it is still a two-dimensional shape.

Now, by switching to the perspective view, you can see how the star shape appears in 3D space from any angle.

By pulling on the center point with the drag tool in the perspective view along the z-axis, you can turn the two-dimensional star shape into a three-dimensional form.

How did you actually manage to get a job at such a popular 3D software development environment?

I used to write programs just for fun. What actually got me the job with LightWave was that I wrote some PowerTools plug-ins as a hobby while I was in college. Then, I started working for them in May 2005, and I program with C++. LightWave used to be strictly C-based and now we are slowly migrating to C++.

Okay, that sounds abstract. On what are you working exactly?

I work on the Modeler primarily. This is one part of the program of LightWave, and the other one is the Layout program. Although they are separate programs, there are few things that cross over between the two parts, and some codes that are shared.

This is how you model a human with LightWave. The different perspectives help conceptualize the abstract mesh sculpture in a three-dimensional environment.

Please explain…

When compared to a package like Maya for example, LightWave is distinct in a way that the program is separated into two applications: the Modeler for building the models; and the Layout where you take the model for animating and rendering. We also have an application called the Hub for synchronizing the two, so you don’t have to necessarily import the layout. You can easily switch between the two applications anytime. One advantage is that you can fully focus on the modelling. There is no time line or animation, as it works very isolated to the rendering.

Excuse me, but that sounds a bit complicated… How come?

It stems from the software’s history that’s now more than 20 years old. It goes back to the Amiga days, around 1985. There were two programmers in the beginning, and that’s probably why it evolved into two separate programs as part of the whole package: Stuart Ferguson for the Modeler and Allen Hastings for the Layout program. They’ve since started their own company called Luxology. But the separation actually has its strengths as well.

This is the rendered version with a surface texture to resemble skin.

Interesting. So, as you were saying, although you work on one part — you actually don’t apply the software yourself?

Most of the developers are very focused on working strictly on the code base. Actually a lot of of them don’t use 3D software at all. I believe that some of them had never tried it till joining the team. They are just interested in working on their section of the project. Besides, using a graphic package is quite a dedicated task. In my opinion, it is equally challenging as learning a coding language. Just because the programmers don’t use it, doesn’t mean that it’s heading for a disaster. The management is very keen on looking after the users’ needs.

I see the programming code to be also clever, artistic… and creative, of course…

There is no such thing as absolute science. And of course, you can’t take away the individual element out. I don’t see it as art, but more as a method of communication between the computer and me. We use a very primitive language, but ultimately I find a way to express what I want to the computer. I tend to think of it as creative writing in computer speak.

Movie stills from the making of “300”: In one sequence, a modeller at Pixel Magic explains how he used LightWave to build a “cloth”. It seems to delicately move as if under water. Watch the whole clip here. Credit: NewTek

This is the finished version as seen in the movie. Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

So, what would you call elegantly programmed - and what not?

Lately my work has become more of a routine since we’re currently in a maintenance cycle, but there was a project that I liked and took part in as a core individual. In the past, we had a lot of functions duplicated multiple times, like one function that does the same to the vertices as it does for edges and polygons. Meaning, the vertex is a point in space, the edges connect them and the polygons are born out of all that. This used to require three different functions, and I reduced them down to one; but the user would not be exposed to that at all since it’s only in code.

You mentioned routines…what is the usual one for a programmer then?

Like 90 percent of our time usually goes into fixing bugs, as there is a whole history of it. It is maintenance work…

What would be a programming challenge for you, a breakthrough?

Right now, everything is about speed and efficiency. But today there is a whole different scenario. When LightWave was initially conceived a couple of decades ago, people couldn’t imagine models with a hundred thousand polygons, let alone millions. Now with all software packages, people want those huge models; and they want to interact with them and animate them. So, the packages have to handle a lot more geometry and render it way faster.

“300″ is yet another adaptation of one of Frank Miller’s dark comics. This is the model as shown in the making of. Credit: NewTek

… and the rendered fight sequence as seen in the finished film. Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

Let’s get to the movie part! I saw on your website a whole bunch of projects that used LightWave, amongst it Sin City and Pan’s Labyrinth…

Most of the special effects in the recent 300, as well as in Sin City were done with LightWave. The extent to which it was used is rare for these types of big Hollywood films - though we had a lot of limited use in Spiderman, Lord Of The Rings, The Matrix. However, usually those movies are made with high-end software like Maya.

What exactly can you do with LightWave in terms of special effects?

As with all of the 3D effects, the screen combustion is of course video. But all of the 3D backgrounds created behind the green screen, like the buildings or the flying bullets, can all be done in LightWave. First of all, it is popular because of budgetary reasons. Second, when we were recently visiting the SFX company Rhythm & Hues, one of the guys said: LightWave users tend to be generalists since the application is easy enough to learn no matter what every level you are. That is why everybody can participate a little bit on everything at every point of the production, making the whole process more efficient and keeping deadlines – a very important factor for small studios. You don’t usually have big time slots with the modeller waiting for the animation guy to finish, and so on…

For “300″ the movie: This is the model of an ancient temple, built with LightWave. Still from the making of. Credit: NewTek

Next step: The surroundings of the temple are built. Still from the making of. Credit: NewTek

But 3D software usually tends to specialize…

Maya in particular, is such a multi-layered package to master and you’d have to know at least some scripting to get the full extend out of it. Learning just one area and becoming an expert to studio level takes a long time because of its complexity.

I see. By the way, regarding your own company: How many people are working on LightWave?

Regarding only the programming - meaning the engineering side - there are ten people actively coding at the moment. Half of them are located in the States, and the others are all over the world: Me in Japan, one guy in Finland, one in Sweden, one in New Zealand, and one in Austria.

The finished temple as seen in “300″. Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

So, a typical cliché of a programmer…you’d sit at home all day and chat?

Yes, we communicate over Skype and TeamSpeak, game software developed for players, initially.

That’s a truly global workforce! How about deadlines, globally speaking?

The headquarters set a time for a meeting and tries to take into account our various time zones. But if there is a meeting at, for example 6pm, central time, and that might be at 2am in your country, too bad…

But still, as you told me before, you have to show up at the main office in San Antonio, Texas, every two months…?

Every two to three months we meet with the whole active team for one week: the programmers, the coordinators, the management, the documenter, etc.

Flicks like “300″ make extensive use of the green and blue screen: First, everything is shot with the actors… Still from the making of. Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

… and after a lot of 3D beautification with programs such as LightWave you get the finished sequence. Still from “300″. Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

And then everybody reports what he or she did?

We talk more about the design of the product and where we want to take it in the future. It is mostly an engineering-based discussion. Above all, it is good to get to see everyone’s face again, as it is much easier to talk about designs then.

So, why on earth don’t you all work in one place at the headquarters in Texas?

It seems to work out well and for some reason our company NewTek likes it that way, too. Although the programmers aren’t willing to move and their talents are scattered across the globe. But in the internet age, this seems to work quite well, and it has allowed me to choose where I want to live; though this can be a lonely job sometimes, just sitting at home communicating over the internet…

Well, well. I bet we can reach you easier over Skype than in person in Ueno then… Thanks a lot, David Ikeda from LightWave, for giving us a bit of an insight into a programmer’s world!

46 Comments

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  3. “and of course unlike mere math, creative…”

    I, as a representative of all of mathematicsdom, have to say “thank you.”

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    Posted by: Anonymous on June 9th, 2007 at 2:04 pm

  4. Man I used to love using Lightwave. I still think it’s one of the best 3d programs out there.
    .
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    .
    ….well, Maya is good too! But I never got into using it.

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    Posted by: SHANTELL MARTIN on June 11th, 2007 at 5:29 pm

  8. Wow… this is AMAZING… my background is in digital arts and this article makes me want to design for movies now.

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