CompuServe Messages

This sounds like a job for . . . (ta da) camera mapping! To be honest, I haven't used the effect, but knowing how it works, I think it will fit the bill for you. Here is the trick. Render the scene from your lights point of view with the shadow casting object as a matte object (with a black background). Set up your projector light as needed. We'll call this rendered series CamMap.IFL. OK, now you'll need the camera mapping IPAS (for shame, I can't remember who makes it — just ask around). Anyway, camera map your object, referencing your projector light as the camera. Now just create a material as needed with CamMap.IFL (in the texture1 slot) and apply it to the curved object. Don't forget to flip the curved object's normals before the final render, so you can see it from the other side!! VIOLA!! A simulated rear-projection, complete with shadows!! For those who are not familiar with camera mapping, it applies mapping coordinates to an object such that it will seemlessly blend into a backround image. If the backround image were a rendering from a spotlight's point of view, camera mapping would cause a material to be mapped in such a way as to appear "projected" from the spotlight. The advantage in this case is that the projector light isn't doing the work, so you can flip the normals of the reciever object and the texture simply appears on the other side. The disadvantage is that the mapping coordinates for the reciever object are modified. Hey, maybe I should write a book!! <VBG> — James — Choreo Motion —