Rocky: virtual sculpting as the basis for computer generated character development

Human beings have two perfectly aligned eyeballs working together sending three-dimensional images to the brain and providing accurate depth perception. I lack true stereoscopic vision. When I was five years old I had my second eye surgery and I remember lying blind and terrified for two days in the children's ward of Reid Memorial Hospital in Richmond, Indiana. I later learned that my eyes didn't align properly and for the rest of my life my right eye would "wander". Because of my condition, I was given a list of jobs that I could never perform, jobs where human lives are entrusted to skilled professionals wielding scalpels or landing jets. I could never be one of those people. Or so I was told. I've always had excellent vision, nearly 20/20 my whole life and I've never struggled academically. It's just that my eyes don't point in the same direction like everybody else. Those who know me best can see it, but I've learned ways to make it not so obvious. It's all I've ever known. But, in an ironic twist of fate, it's become clear that my lazy eye has taught me to "see" better than the average artist. Having spent the last five years of my life studying 3D Design and exploring the most advanced creative technology on the planet, I've created a series of computer-generated environments, objects and characters. This is my latest attempt to prove to the world that I can see just fine. I could've been a doctor or a pilot after all. In this paper I present to the world a digital friend manifested from my slightly skewed interpretation of the world. Rocky is part of my imagination brought to life in perfect three-dimensional clarity for the world to see. He's a symbolic representation of my childhood love for cartoons and science fiction. He is strong yet gentle, modest, intelligent and noble. And, he is fiercely protective of that scared and blind five-year old boy.