Massive Alien Invasion? Or Just Bad Audio? [Trailer #1 Devlog]

When I started this 30-second trailer, I thought the visuals would be the hard part — but sound taught me the biggest lesson: never work without headphones.

As a non-native English speaker, I was especially focused on making the dialogue clear. I added some effects (like flanger) to make the alien voice feel… well, alien — but I may have gone too far. I dialed it back after realizing it made things harder to understand.

I also underestimated how tricky voice consistency is. Even when it’s my own voice, small changes in EQ or noise reduction can throw off the blend between clips.

Curious what you think

The full trailer is below — and I’m building out a system to track what works (and what doesn’t) as I go. Feedback is welcome.

I used Warp nodes again, but this time more carefully — synchronizing them to subtle eye and eyebrow movements.

Just sharing an extra SSBytebot bit!

For this sequence, I used the Warp node to create a smooth ease-in/ease-out motion — but also to completely reshape a key pose. In the end, I chose a stepped interpolation to keep things simple and more in line with the characters' pacing.

About the scene itself

Even out of context, I’d love to hear your impressions:

This project is very character-driven, and that usually shapes where I spend the most time — whether it’s the animation, the voice timing, or how it all comes together in compositing.

Your feedback makes a real difference — thanks for being part of this!