I've been on a roll with posting videos to my blog, and you might think, "Why's Torley doing this?" In large part, it's really about practicing my chops and finding techniques (transitions, encoding, etc.) that'll serve my video tutorials better. Skills learned in one area can be applied on a related track. Now, it isn't the most obvious path, but makes sense from both a fun — and if you will, spirited perspective.
Recently, my beloved wife and I watched the notable Studio Ghibli production, My Neighbor Totoro. How can you resist the family-friendly nature with moving character introspection which isn't cloying? Easy answer; you can't.
And so, as with many things that merge with my subconsciousness, I began seeing pink-and-green Totoros in my dreams… watermelon spirits instead of acorn ones, but at least as friendly. Today as I was relaxing on the weekend, I recorded some footage and stitched it together; it was pretty fun to record and move the mouse to the beat while I listened to the music.
Creds to Joe Hisaishi for such an amazingly catchy theme song. The production style is distinctly 80s, and it now ranks up there with other synth-accompanied hits of the era like Moroder's Neverending Story tapestry.
I paid a lot of attention to the transitions and it shows. The more "cinematique" sorts of effects are a tip of the hat to another great anime, Paprika (which is largely about waking dreams), and maybe surprisingly, a little David Lynch in there too. (I must've watched his iPhone rant two dozen times! *wiggles right hand nervously*)
For what it's worth, enjoy… and this is all worth it if it puts a smile on your face. 
Now that looks too cute and the song awwwwww i can't wait to meet you in-world
Thank you! Totoro and Paprika - 2 of my favourite films….
woot ! Torleyazakiness !
God I love that stuff .. watched Laputa just last night..
Nice to see Totorleyo in DynaFleur too !
Diz
I am so in love with Studio Ghibli.
I watched spirited away, grave of the fireflies, princes mononke, kiki's delivery servive and nauticaa last week in a "I need Studio Ghibli marathon" day
Ahaha toooooooo cuuuuute. That avatar was created what, 3 years ago? Maybe almost 4? And it's still as classic as Miyazaki's crown jewel.
Watermelon-flavoured No-Face would be a touch scary, on the other hand.
p.s. A Japanese resident named kuroe Noel actually built one of the robots from Laputa. Non-functioning, but a very nice ornamental touch to gardens. ^^!
I LOVE My Neighbor Totoro. We bought it years ago for my daughter, but it has become more mine than hers now.
While shopping in an anime collectibles shop one year near my birthday, I saw that they had a stuffed Cat Bus on display behind the counter. It was $60 USD! I told my family that is what I wanted for my birthday present. They laughed, and didn't believe me. I insisted, and have for many years had my own Cat Bus to love. It has become a tradition that he comes on every trip my husband and I take, and the first thing we do when unpacking is find him a place of honor so he can observe everything. I love all of Hayao Miyazaki's work (and we own it), but Totoro is my favorite. Our copies are so old they are all on VHS! Time to upgrade to DVD editions while they are still in print, I think!
Princess Ivory
"For what it's worth, enjoy… and this is all worth it if it puts a smile on your face."
It did indeed Torley - thanks so much for a great start to a Monday!
That…. Thing…. Is…. CUTE!
Really, Totorleyo needs to be more inworld! I just wanna hug that little thing tightly :-}. And, great VJing! That video has some nice effects and looks great 
.
Hi Torley
from Beech/ 28/128/28 from where you send a snap to bloghud (with our totoro).
We are waiting for yotu next Tip & Trick with you as Totoro "pink and green"!
I'm sure you'll do!
See you later inw sometime somewhere
E.P.
Incredibly lousy, incompetent, and unprofessional work. You make Second Life sound like a kindergarten. Your childish, apparently unrehearsed videos are a perfect example why businesses and educated people are few, and Internet newbies looking for sex are many.
Torley, don't pay any attention to "drknowledge". It was a beautiful, incredibly creative video you made.
@"drknowledge": I don't mean to sound like a high-school girl, but OH NO YOU DIDN'T! Once you enter Torley's website, you need to know (1) everything here may be "childish", only we call it oldschool fun, and one way to make us laugh and have fun while browsing the web, and (2) Second Life is sometimes supposed to be "like kindergarten", or in other words, be "silly-ish-ly" fun. I mean, a few laughs about "Oh look, my shoe's stuck in my crotch!" doesn't make a person stupid, he just knows how to laugh at the unfortunate bugs we encounter, and that's a good feature. Knowing to find the fun part of things is a gift, and is what makes our society mixed and not all serious. I don't "ban" you with this speech from making your opinion visible to the entire world, but please, even if you're writing a very, very bad comment, try and find one thing good, to keep the creator/owner/writer from being insulted. You'll be surprised at what one bad comment can do to a person.
Wow, that talkback-comment is one big comment, and I feel like an adult writing it
. (I'm 14 and from Israel, if you don't know)
Wow, Smiley, your comment (and rebutal) made me smile! (ironic, isn't it)
Comments like dr.knowledge's (he really seems to know a lot…..NOT!) in a sea of sunshine is like a depressing, heavy dent in the fabric of space. I feel very sorry for him/her.
I love the Totoro film too … thanks, this was lovely. As for drknowledge, well, it's a shame he didn't spot the details that tells how much effort you've put into making the video. And what he means by saying a kindergarten image will attract newbies looking for sex is way beyond my knowledge.
Thanx SO much for all the nice comments! (And to the not-so-nice one, what's *important* is that *you watched my video*, so thanks for your time.) I LOVE CUTENESS.
@Renji: Hope to see ya at my office hours!
@Sheila: And now, they're 2 of my faves too! What other movies would you recommend?
@Dizzy: Yes, it was a literal trip to visit DynaFleur! Especially as Totorleyo.
@Menno: My bro says Grave of the Fireflies is like, sooo depressing, but worthwhile… apparently there was a live-action version some years ago?
@Iris: *makes a note to heck out that robot* Sounds like it'll keep any intruders who try to steal my crops away! =)
Before I go further tho, I should mention I'm not wearing Aestival Cohen's Totoro-esque av… I *have* hers but it's non-mod, so I actually have a couple others. The one I've got on is by Taketch Oyen. I'm looking forward to seeing my wife inworld with hers, which she added a cute pink bow to…
@Princess Ivory: What a great story! Awww. I hope to see the rare movie "Mei and the Kittenbus" someday, apparently it only got limited showings but from stills I've seen, it looks adorable! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mei_and_the_Kittenbus To paraphrase a friend of mine: "Smaller than a catbus? I'd call that a taxi!" Happy I could uplift your Monday too.
@Eleonora: OH MY GOSH! Thanx and keep up the colorful creations! And yes, I made several video tutorials already with the Totoro avatar you put together… one of them is here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=RZgz1KNQKMc Thankya!
@Nimue: Understood! Thanks for the encouragement!
@Smiley: Thoughtful comment! There's nothing wrong, and everything right about positive enthusiasm that rekindles fresh memories of being childlike (see: Anton Ego at the end of Ratatouille). All too often in this world, it's easy to forget the Good, Pure, and True, and those are things that can be enjoyed by the young, old, and in-the-middle too. Humor goes a long way in life's travels.
@Therese: Hahaha, I'll stay outta the controversy and keep making videos. Thanx for letting me know how you feel! =^_~=