First two Siggraph fxguidetv episodes
In addition to the daily written reports from the show we have posted the first two fxguidetv episodes from Siggraph 2009 in New Orleans. Episode #62 covers Fluid sims with Exotic Matter and we get the scoop on announcements made by Autodesk at the show. In Episode #63 we talk with Lucas Martell about his […]
Siggraph Day 3 report
Day three – HDR Cine cameras, Renderman, GPU. Sphereon launched the hdrv camera at Siggraph. A new cine or video camera capable of filming HD footage with 20 stops of latitude making it the first serious HDR video camera. Also, Pixar had their Renderman User Group Meeting and Nvida proved that GPU capabilities are continuing to climb in creative and technical depth.
Siggraph Day 2: exhibition opens
Day 2 meant the start of the exhibition and the job fair. Highlights included a killer ILM series of lectures showcasing their work on several major blockbuster films, anyone of which would have been enough for most studios. Siggraph is a great place to connect with the who’s who of the industry during the day and enjoy the parties each night – such as fxguide/fxphd’s gathering of the faithful at Lucy’s Retired Surfer Bar.
Siggraph Day 1: NOLA
Day one: Siggraph got off to a good start in a city that is both extremely hot and welcoming. The trade show floor does not open until Tuesday, so the first day was all about the talks, with some brilliant presentations. Day One also saw a flood of press releases and the odd user group meeting.
Toxik RIP (sort of) + New Maya 2010
Toxik has had a bit of a tortured past. It was first announced at NAB 2002 as technologies Strata and Mezzo, code named Toxik during development, almost released as a product called mass, then debuted at NAB 2005 as Toxik. While the product has some strong features, it never really caught on, in large part […]
More Autodesk SIGGRAPH announcements
We attended the Autodesk press conference today to get the latest on their announcements at the show. We’ll be detailing what’s new and interesting in one of our fxguidetv episodes from SIGGRAPH but in the meantime here’s a brief recap in addition to the Maya 2010/Toxik news: Launched Mudbox 2010. Photoshop layer support and better […]
Splinter Cell Trailer Strikes a Chord
fxguide talks to Rainmaker Entertainment’s Shea Wageman about the storytelling behind the cinematic game trailer for Ubisoft’s Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Conviction.
Pixar Announcements: New Versions, New Product, and More
With SIGGRAPH just around the corner, Pixar today announced some nice upgrades and new additions to their products with unlimited threading, RenderMan® Pro Server™ 15.0 and Tractor™1.0 RenderMan® Pro Server™ 15.0 and Tractor™1.0. Unlimited threading will enable users to have each license of RenderMan to utilize any number of threads on multi-core platforms, unlike the […]
Sony Pictures Imageworks Open Source
Sony Pictures Imageworks has announced it is releasing five projects as open source. The five cover Open Shading Language, Database library manager, Voxel data storage library, Python string handling in C++ and Flexible camera guides for Maya. They are embarking on this in hopes of building small development communities around the code. We’re planning to […]
The Butterfly Effect
Life is hard, but it can work out in the end. That seems to be the basic theme behind ‘Caterpillar,’ a spot for Swedish pension company AMF featuring CG animation and visual effects by The Mill LA. fxguide looks at how The Mill enabled a hero caterpillar to meet his love, lose his love and then transform into a beautiful butterfly.
Transformers Revenge of the Fallen
For Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, director Michael Bay enlisted ILM and Digital Domain to create several new characters and blockbuster action for the sequel to his monster 2007 hit. Mike Seymour speaks to ILM’s Digital Production Supervisor Jeff White in this week’s fxpodcast. In our online article, Ian Failes speaks to Digital Domain’s Visual Effects Supervisor Matthew Butler and CG Supervisor Paul George Palop about their work.
New Red Centre Podcast
Our Digital cinematography & production podcast red centre episode #41 is live and ready for download. This week’s podcast we talk his week, the guys talk about RED Rocket, films on RED, Scarlet, and more as Mike prepares for a SMPTE panel by interviewing Jason about his opinions on Scarlet, 5D Mk II and full […]
Terminator Salvation: Asylum, RSP & Kerner
In part 2 of our Terminator Salvation coverage, we have interviews with artists from both Asylum Visual Effects and Rising Sun Pictures. We also have an extraordinary exclusive video look at the practical effects done by Kerner Optical.
Final Cut Studio Updated
Apple has released the long anticipated update to Final Cut Studio which brings versions of Final Cut Pro 7, Motion 4, Soundtrack Pro 3, Color 1.5, Compressor 3.5 and DVD Studio Pro 4. Apple posted videos on their web site to show many of the new features that include new ProRes options including a 4444 […]
Evolver goes live (3D Character generator site) + coupon code
Evolver is a web application designed to generate great looking customized 3D characters, and purchase them for export into 3ds Max, Maya, Softimage as high res models that are fully rigged for character animation for only $39. With an additional $30, it’s possible to purchase setups for facial animation as well. The site’s been in […]
Behind the scenes of Terminator: Imaginary Forces
For McG’s Terminator: Salvation, Imaginary Forces was tasked with creating the machine vision sequences seen in the film, as well as creating the opening and main titles. fxguide gets the details from Jeremy Cox (lead animator/designer), Rod Basham (Inferno artist) and Karin Fong (creative supervisor/designer). We love the work of Imaginary Forces and this story includes some great behind the scenes videos.
The Foundry SIGGRAPH Nuke User Group
The Foundry will be holding their Nuke User Group at SIGGRAPH on Monday, August 3rd. The event is being held at Le Petit Theater, beginning at 5pm and will include presentations by Nuke artists from Laika, Digital Domain and Blue Sky Studios. In addition, The Foundry team will be showing new developments and features in Nuke 5.2, […]
Another Unpaid Workers update
The Montreal Gazette has an update on the workers from Meteor Studios – a Montreal facility that filed for bankruptcy after completing work on Journey to the Centre of the Earth. Last we heard Discovery Trademark Holding Co. Inc. and Evergreen Digital LLC had offered the workers 45% of the amount they were owed, then […]
Zoic Fuels Mountain Dew
Zoic Studios creative director and visual effects supervisor Leslie Ekker tells fxguide about integrating World of Warcraft game characters into a live-action market for a spot showcasing Mountain Dew
Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) launchs AICP Digital
The AICP has been a force over the years on the production side in helping with the business of the business. After the jump is a press release announcing the formation of a new chapter to work with companies that create digital content. Ed Ulbrich, President, Commercial Division, of Digital Domain will head up this […]
eyeon Software Announces New Software Financing Option
eyeon Software has launched a new financing option aimed at helping artists and facilities get back to business. This limited time offer allows users to purchase licenses for a low cost upfront ($995) and design flexible payment plans. Full press release after the jump
Tweak Software Launches Major Upgrade for RV Playback Software
In a facility pipeline perhaps no piece of software wants to be reliable, invisible and do exactly what you want than playback software. Tweak Software’s RV was created in a real world production environment by very senior artists and engineers who needed a refined tool for working with film resolution, high dynamic range images and […]
GenArts announces Sapphire Rental Program
GenArts is making the Sapphire suite of plug-ins available for monthly rentals for $169 per month. The versions for After Effects and Final Cut Pro will be available and up to two months of the rental can be applied to purchase. full press release after the jump
Weta Digital Purchases Site License Of Nuke
London, July 6th, 2009 – Leading visual effects software developer, The Foundry (www.thefoundry.co.uk), today announced that Weta Digital, New Zealand’s premier multi-award winning VFX studio, has purchased a site licence of Nuke to enhance its in-house pipeline. Weta Digital was formed in 1993 by a group of young New Zealand filmmakers including Peter Jackson to […]
Faking the Moon – Gerty and beyond
Duncan Jones’ Moon is the story of Sam Bell, the lone occupant of a lunar mining base who discovers not all is what it seems away from Earth. Cinesite contributed more than 270 visual effects shots to the film, incorporating miniatures into a lunar landscape, creating a CG service robot called Gerty and producing several split-screen composites for shots of Sam interacting with a clone of himself. Cinesite Visual Effects Supervisor Simon Stanley-C
Earth 2100
For Earth 2100, an ABC News special which aired on June 2 in the U.S., Guerilla FX contributed over 30 minutes of graphic novel style animation to depict various future catastrophic scenarios brought about by climate change, overpopulation and the misuse of energy resources. Ian Failes gets the details from Director of Animation John Bair.
Feng Zhu + Iron Man with Dav Rauch: fxguidetv
In this week’s fxguidetv we have a designer focused special episode. We lead with world renowned Concept Designer Feng Zhu from his new Studio in Singapore and then look at the HUD (Heads Up Display) design of the Iron Man with Dav Rauch. Both men are exceptional designers. Angie and the team get in depth […]
Digital Domain loses termination suit
David S. Cohen in Variety is reporting that the jury was unanimous on most findings and awarded Brad Call approximately $2 million in damages in his wrongful termination suit against Digital Domain. From the article: The size of the award raises questions about whether Digital Domain can survive, though in a statement, DD’s VP and […]
Academy Invites 134 to Membership
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced it will invite 134 people to join as members. Included in the Visual Effects category are: Christopher Bond, Matthew Butler, Chris Corbould, Rob Engle, Scott Gordon, Hal Hickel, Van Ling, Shane Mahan, Steve Preeg, Tim Webber, Edson Williams Full press release after the read more
Land of the Lost : Rhythm & Hues
In Land of the Lost, a Brad Silberling film starring Will Ferrell as an alternate world explorer, Rhythm & Hues created hundreds of visual effects shots to depict a universe populated by dinosaurs and other creatures. Ian Failes talks to visual effects supervisor Bill Westenhofer about the project.