• In spirit of Curie's mission to promote undiscovered but exceptional content, we wish to use this weekly section to provide an author showcase for some of the outstanding authors who received Curie upvotes in past week. Curie curators and reviewers nominate authors for inclusion in this showcase and author approval is sought and attained.
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Featured Author: @cinemaninja
GRAND CANYON - A 4k Time Lapse Film - Ninja Cut

@cinemaninja is a new user who has only been with us for 11 days. In his own words, from his recent introduceyourself post:

I am a Digital Producer, Cinematographer, and Artist based out of Colorado. [...] Through utilizing my innovative motion control time-lapse photography and super high definition video it's my hope to help humanity rediscover nature through new eyes.

@cinemaninja reveals that his goal is to "one day make films that are so powerful that the people who view them gain a sense of enlightenment simply by watching them." Okay, so @cinemaninja may have some very lofty ambitions but his short time lapse video GRAND CANYON is an amazing step toward this goal!

Still frame from GRAND CANYON - image used with author's permission

I personally watched this video several times in a row and found it a powerful experience, relaxing and meditative and invigorating all at the same time. If I am not enlightened now, it is not @cinemaninja's fault! As gorgeous as the scenery and footage is, the attention to detail in the editing and the amazing job matching the edits and cuts to the music is every bit as impressive. This post is only in payout for a short while longer so do yourself a favor and visit it now and give @cinemaninja a richly deserved upvote while you still can!

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Featured Author: @lextenebris
[3D and Illustration] Making Game Tokens For Tabletop Simulator

@lextenebris Steemit account verification - image used with author's permission

Not content to merely write an account verification on ordinary paper, @lextenebris created a 3D printed Steemit tag with his username and date for his introduction post back in November. While I highly recommend visiting the link to learn more about this man of many talents, you can probably get a pretty good idea of his quirky genius by this alone!

It wasn't 3D printing that landed @lextenebris in our showcase, but rather a continuation of his posting on a solo play war game campaign using the 5150 Sci Fi Military Ground Combat Rules from THW games. Previous posts in this series followed the (mis)adventures of a ragtag band of planetary defenders nicknamed "Gaia's Worst" as they fought off incursions by the Hishen, a hideous alien race of war-mongering slave traders. This showcase post covers converting the statistics of two mecha (think giant war robots piloted by human drivers) from a different rule set to be used in a future episode of Gaia's Worst, and creating images and ultimately game tokens to represent the mecha on the virtual tabletop: https://steemit.com/gaming/@lextenebris/3d-and-illustration-making-game-tokens-for-tabletop-simulator

Bullhorn Mech work in progress - image by @lextenebris, used with permission

The process used to create the mecha designs in 3D modeling program Fusion is fascinating and the designs and game tokens end up looking great. If you love RPGs this post is definitely for you, but everyone should get a kick out of seeing these mecha come to life. Make sure to check out the earlier posts in this series and two more recent posts as well: a short original screenplay featuring Gaia's Worst and the next post in the ongoing solo campaign, covering setting up the battlefield for the next engagement.

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Featured Author: @jillustrations
Mocafurbs - an animated short film by yours truly & it's Making Of

Another new poster who has been on Steem for two weeks now, @jillustrations has a clear vision for her posting here:

I want to create a place for animation related content on Steemit. I want people to learn about, and get interested in the artform I love more than anything else, share my passion and maybe even set some sparks in some people's hearts.

@jillustrations is well on her way to accomplishing her goals, because this post is guaranteed to set some sparks!
https://steemit.com/art/@jillustrations/mocafurbs-an-animated-short-film-by-yours-truly-and-it-s-making-of

You may be wondering, "What is a mocafurb?" Excellent question! I turn to @jillustrations:

Mocafurbs, in case you are curious, actually stands for Monster Cat Fur Balls, which, essentially, is what they are: Balls of fur with feline features and personality traits (that's also where the "monster" in the name comes from XD ).

They are also super cute!

Mocafurbs illustration by @jillustrations - image used with author's permission

This post is so much more than the (amazing) short animated Mocafurbs film that @jillustrations created while attending Vancouver Film School - it is a glimpse behind the scenes at the 2D animation process and the incredible amount of work and effort that goes into creating even a short animated film. It is exceptionally well written and formatted with copious illustrations.

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Featured Author: @muphy
Elementary fermions: the particles of matter… (Particle Physics Series – Episode 3A)

This featured poster is a real life most interesting man in the world! In his own words:

After a few years in Academia in France preparing my PhD and then in Hiroshima University (Japan), I worked as a researcher for a bit more than a decade for a water treatment company in The Netherlands. Then, I woke up. I slammed the door and decided to spread my wings. So I caught up on what I really loved: composing music and teaching sciences. Now, 4 years later, I make a comfortable living from these two activities as a music producer for media and as a private Physics teacher. Longboarding and gardening are my hobbies. I used to be an Aikido-ka too but I had to stop training about a year ago. Still, I know I will go back train in the dojo when the time is right.

Music producer... physics teacher... longboarder... Aikido-ka... now that is what I call a well-rounded individual.

@muphy is currently posting in two ongoing series: an initiation to Particle Physics; and “diamonds in the sky”, an Astrophysics series where he explores the universe with the reader in search of huge and magnificent diamonds which can be in some cases the size of a planet!

With a goal of presenting particle physics in terms that could be understood by a reader at the high school level, it is the latest installment of the Particle Physics series covering elementary fermions that we are featuring today:
https://steemit.com/science/@muphy/elementary-fermions-the-particles-of-matter-particle-physics-series-episode-3a

Reading this series from the beginning has taught me a lot about the way the world works at the sub-atomic level. @muphy has a very clear way of explaining things, providing just enough detail to make sense of the information without overwhelming the reader, and the posts are also very well illustrated. @muphy also provides a video lecture version within each of the particle physics posts so there is something here for everyone, no matter how you learn most effectively.

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Featured Author: @planetauto
Volvo V90 Full Review and Road Test

Our final featured author today is actually a team effort, bringing us extremely well produced video car reviews.

The Planet Auto team - from left, Ben, Annabelle and Michael (photo courtesy of @planetauto, used with permission)

Michael was good enough to tell us the Planet Auto story:

Myself, Ben & Annabelle relaunched Planet Auto back at the start of 2017, our direction changed focus to car reviews, something new to all of us. Our idea was to provide high quality impartial car reviews, which the industry is crying out for. It looks like 2018 is going to be our biggest year yet with a whole host of cars lined up for review, everything from Alfa Romeo through to Audi. Planet Auto started out in 2005 with a website, and has grown exponentially into what it is today, an automotive media outlet. The Planet Auto platform combined with Steemit provides us with the ideal opportunity to share our two loves, cars and reviewing them.

In this showcase we are featuring a review of the spacious, dependable and (perhaps surprisingly) stylish Volvo V90:
https://steemit.com/car/@planetauto/volvo-v90-full-review-and-road-test

The Planet Auto team puts together a really thorough review, with Ben covering the interior and exterior design features of the car and Michael informing us on how the V90 drives. Visit their post to watch the video and find out how they rate the Volvo V90!

More recent car reviews already up on the @planetauto blog:
Nissan X-Trail
Fiat 595 Abarth Turismo
Kia Picanto GT-Line

Michael (Left) & Ben (Right) On set with the 595 Abarth Turismo, Silverdale, Lancashire (photo courtesy of @planetauto, used with permission)

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This Curie Author Showcase was written by regular top Curie curator @carlgnash with input from other Curie curators and reviewers.