In this episode we continue our Siggraph 2008 coverage from Los Angeles. We look at what Autodesk is doing with Stereoscopic, get the scoop on the latest developments in Fusion, and have some fun in the New Technology area.

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In our last fxpodcast we interviewed Dave Rand about the artists who went unpaid by Meteor Studios after working on Journey to the Center of the Earth. This week we take a break from that Labor Series and focus on the technology in the film and in particular doing DI on a stereoscopic film. Our guest is Jeff Olm, who may be known to some of you as a long time Flame compositor, or maybe you had a Lustre demo from him at a trade show and he is also a professor at fxphd.com. Jeff did the DI for Journey to the Center of the Earth and shares his insight into the technical issues.

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In this fxpodcast we get an overview of New Deal Studios with co-founder Matthew Gratzner. New Deal made their name in miniatures but can take a project from design through finish using whatever tools and tricks the job requires. Matthew shares some great stories about favorite past projects as well as offering a perspective on the industry.

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Plenty of great behind the scenes images after the jump…
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In this fxpodcast we talk with Chris Sage, VP of operations at Luma Pictures, an artist driven facility in Venice California that does high end visual effects.

From time to time we like to do facility profiles rather than stories about specific films or techniques. Luma Pictures initially caught our attention because they promoted themselves as a primarily Mac based facility. We discuss this as well as their work, pipeline and tools.

To hear the podcast or subscribe to it via RSS or iTunes, click on Podcasts. You can also search for fxguide in the iTunes Store.

Show notes, images and links after the jump….
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REALVIZ was a unique company, one of the first to solve and commercialize a range of outstanding visual effects tools ranging from panoramic Stitching to 3D Tracking. The fxguide founders actually visited REALVIZ about 2 years ago in its location just outside of Cannes, France. This visit cemented our opinion about the quality of the team and depth of their image research and development. The company’s contribution to the visual effects industry has been enormous, thus their future is of great importance to many in the industry.

The purchase of REALVIZ by Autodesk initially received some bad press - perhaps due to the online suspension of purchases via their website, or perhaps because of discussions suggesting a reduced product line. As reports have widely speculated about the future of these French developers, we approached Autodesk directly to set the record straight: would the French R&D team be leaving, would the original founders be moving on, and just what could we expect from the company formerly known as REALVIZ?

fxguide spoke with Marc Petit, SVP, of Autodesk Media & Entertainment about the the deal….

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This week we talk to Michael Rubin about his book DroidMAKER: George Lucas and the Digital Revolution. While the book is very much the history of Lucasfilm, it doubles as a history of the computer graphics industry. From ILM to Pixar, Alvy Ray Smith to Brad Bird, and from Francis Ford Coppola to Steve Jobs, the book shows the inter twinning of the computer graphics industry and the Hollywood blockbusters of the last 3 decades.

We discuss both the book and ask Rubin to name the four most significant turning points of each of the last four decades. Rubin got unparalleled access for the book and today he is the premier historian of the period. His knowledge, insight and first hand experience results in a fascinating discussion and perspective on a time and group of people that have shaped the entire industry as it stands today.

To hear the podcast or subscribe to it via RSS or iTunes, click on Podcasts. You can also search for fxguide in the iTunes Store.

A new redcenter podcast is now live on the site. If you haven’t already, subscribe to the RSS feed or iTunes podcast on our redcenter page.  We also now have downloadable shownotes in pdf format available on the redcentre page.

 It’s a big show this week as the guys look at the RED’s new Nikon mount, Mike chats to Steve Sherrick about his modified Nikon lenses, and Jason speaks to Silverado Systems on their unique ’OpenCut’ RED editing competition. Throw in the usual news and gear reviews and it’s another great ep here at fxguide.

Our latest podcast looks at the RED announcements and includes an in depth technical interview with Graeme Natress CTO of RED. (Yes, it gets very technical)

Mike Seymour and Jason Wingrove also discuss the Red Ray, Land Sea and Air Camera options, and more.

See the podcast block on the right side of this page or subscribe in iTunes.

click read more below for show notes:

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A new ep of fxguidetv is up, covering da vinci and a new workflow spark called informer. This is our last one from NAB — thanks for all the emails and comments about our efforts from Las Vegas. We appreciate hearing from you.

Visit the fxguidetv page for download and iTunes links.

fxguidetv #26 is on the air! This episode comes to you from NAB in Las Vegas and features an exclusive interview with Ted Schilowitz from RED, a look a what the wizards at the Foundry are working on to improve stereoscopic workflow and we’ll also explain why Angie suddenly has many tattoos.