AA: Giulietta is the topical car, why didn’t you use that?
SD: Indeed, it’d be topical, but when we’d started our work, there were only few photos of Giulietta and those were not enough to create a lifelike model. But in the future, another Alfa can pop up in our virtual world. Anyway, if you watch the film carefully you can recognise Giulietta two times, and MiTo once. Of course, I didn’t have enough time for them, only some tricks, some particular views… I want to model every Alfa!
AA: How can you model a car in 3D?
SD: There are interesting parts of this, actually available pictures are taken as a basis, it is true in every cases. I did the same when I made buildings for NavNGo ‘iGo navigational software in 2008, for example my favourite there is Dome of Szeged. We collected pictures of buildings around the world and then we modelled them. However, a model consisted of 500 triangles there, in case of 8C, this is a million. I made ten models per day there, this one took a month. (Yes, it can be a million triangles, because I made it to be handled during animating, so its resolution can be set from about 100.000 polys to 500.000 polys – a poly mean minimum two triangles.)
This poly-thing is about a procedure: the computer generates the 3D image using triangular surfaces. I have to set them (of course not one-by-one, there are special tricks), but for the nice results I must modify them individually sometimes.
Back to your question: photos are given, and if you are lucky, there are blueprints on the net. This is a graphics which shows the car from every aspect without distortion. Using this, the basic scale and typical lines can be in-taken to the 3D software. 8C is not a mass-product, so there wasn’t a quality blueprint, only a small-resolution piece, it was good for the scaling only. (Anyway the blueprint wasn’t perfect, later I had to correct that.) So, that’s how schematic is made which shows the figure of the car.
And then next ones were the rims, tires, tire-pattern. It sounds crazy but I modeled those Pirelli patterns because I wanted to see a perfect 8C. You can buy a Matchbox everywhere; it’s no use sitting in front of the computer for a model like that! Only computer performance limits desires, I could feel this, because if I had set a more difficult model, the machine wouldn’t have been able to render it. You see, sometimes it’s a part of being an Alfisti. Then, finishing the model, there are the surface, small signs, glistering blinker cap, holes of the grill, inside of taillights’, size of carbon-pattern on the diffuser. You can’t notice these but I’m going to make bigger renders, and those will be visible!
AA: What are the difficulties and joys of a job like this?
SD: Difficulties? As other jobs: status of the market, human performance, machines and other devices. It’s much better to talk about the joys – he laughs. When I could enjoy the picture of my 8C. When I realised small design perfectness inspecting the car inch-to-inch. When I saw my baby taxiing on video-sharing websites. These are incredible and nameless joys. I know a similar one: sitting into my own Alfa and driving to AlfaCity as thousands of people do with their Alfas.
AA: When did you hate this film the most?
SD: Sometimes I came to standstills as usual. I hated this whole stuff a little bit when the second computer made a 25 fps smoke for the 30 fps video, so I had to start it again... There are always bloopers like this, but I solved it. Another case: there was a beautiful sunshine in the afternoon and I couldn’t go to the riverbank. But I love my job with all of the consequences, and I’ll placate my wife somehow… what if a 155 jamboree this weekend? – he laughs.
AA: What does this film mean to you?
SD: Honestly, I tried to stuff ourselves; our Alfisti-being which can be felt if somebody has already had a car like this either old or brand-new. I’d like to buy a new Alfa, doesn’t matter front- or rear-driven. There is something in these cars which can’t be copied by other factories fortunately. You can say feeling, soul or something else, but you can feel only if you sit into one and able to feel. I hope we can transmit this with our movie. Driving an Alfa is not just about power and scud, but style and sophistication and lifestyle and community. I’ve great ideas for some impressive frames.
AA: Will you come to AlfaCity?
SD: Sure! It’s ritual for me. I dated the regular test of my car not to interfere. It’s got its certification, some cosmetics, fresh oil, and set course to AlfaCity. It’s going to be a great party, extremely special this year, every Alfisti must be there!
Translated by Ferenc Pozsonyi
